Greek Split Pea Soup With Lemon Recipes

Steps:

• If using bacon: In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp, 12 to 13 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a plate lined with a paper towel. Once cool, crumble and set aside for garnish. If using ham hock: In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil, then brown the ham hock until golden, about 6 minutes. If making the soup vegetarian: In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat, heat the olive oil.
• Add the onion, leeks and garlic and season generously with salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. (If the vegetables seem dry, add a little olive oil.) Stir in the carrots, paprika (if using), half the split peas, thyme and 8 cups stock or water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, partly covered, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes until peas are tender.
• Mash the soup coarsely with a potato masher or give it a few quick blitzes with an immersion blender (watch out for the thyme sprigs). If you'd prefer a smoother soup, blitz until nearly smooth. Add the remaining 1/2 pound split peas and simmer about 1 hour, or until the peas are soft. If at any point the soup looks too thick, add more stock or water; if it looks too thin, remove the lid during the second simmer until it thickens. If using ham hocks, remove any meat from the bone, cut it into small cubes and stir into the soup. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with crumbled bacon, if using, and lemon wedges.

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy saucepan, and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until tender, five to six minutes. Add the split peas and enough water to cover by an inch, and bring to a boil. Skim foam off the top, reduce the heat, cover and simmer one hour. Add salt to taste, and continue to simmer for 30 minutes to an hour until the beans fall apart and sink to the bottom of the pot. Stir often to prevent them from sticking. The water should cloud, and some of the split peas will be intact while others will disintegrate. Continue to simmer until they have mostly disintegrated.
• When the beans have fallen apart and are soft and fragrant, remove the pot from the heat and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Replace the lid and let sit for 20 minutes. If the mixture looks more like a soup than a purée, with most of the liquid on the top, place a strainer over a bowl and pour the mixture into the strainer. Let sit for 10 minutes while the liquid runs through the strainer, then return the split peas to the pot. Taste and adjust salt. Moisten as desired with the broth. Add a generous amount of pepper, and whisk in the remaining olive oil and the lemon juice. Whisking helps break down the split peas and contributes to a smooth texture. Transfer to a bowl or plate, top with a drizzle of olive oil and serve.

Steps:

• Bring the peas, water, and bay leaf to a boil, then simmer until the peas are completely soft, about 45 minutes.
• Remove bay leaf, press peas through a sieve and return the puree to the soup pot.
• Melt butter and olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
• Add onions and cook until soft. Add carrot, celery, garlic, salt, and ground cumin, and cook 10 minutes.
• Add the vegetables to the pea puree and simmer until they are soft. (Rinse out the skillet with a small amount of water, then add the water to the soup.) Add lemon peel and juice to taste.
• Check for salt and cumin and add more of each if desired.
• Finish with black pepper to taste and serve sprinkled with paprika and garnished with fresh herbs.

Steps:

• In a large cooking pot, heat olive oil on medium-high heat.
• Add onion and cook uncovered for 5 minutes, stirring often, until onion is softened and starting to brown.
• Reduce heat to medium and add carrots, celery, garlic, yellow split peas, chicken broth and cook uncovered for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until carrots start to soften.
• Add bay leaf and bring to boil.
• Reduce heat to medium low, and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours or until peas are soft but not mushy.
• Discard bay leaf.
• Add spinach, heat and stir for about 1 to 2 minutes or until spinach is wilted.
• Add lemon juice and black pepper and stir well.
• Adjust seasonings to taste.
• Refrigerate any unused portions.