Yellow pea soup

[MelissaH]

Hello all,

We were visiting with a friend last week. His parents were also there for a visit. One night we were all sitting around after dinner talking about the food that we remember our parents cooking. My friend's mom (she's about as old as my grandma, and of French-Canadian heritage) grew up in waaaay upstate NY, not far from the Quebec border. The thing she remembered most was French-Canadian yellow pea soup, made with whole (not split) yellow peas.

Is this a classic soup that everyone in that part of North America grows up eating? What else goes into traditional yellow pea soup? Is there something else (bread? biscuits? crackers?) that always gets served alongside? Do the peas need to be unsplit, and am I likely to find unsplit yellow peas in not-as-far upstate NY? Educate me, please. If you're willing to share your recipe, I'm interested!

Thanks,

MelissaH

[sf&m]

I was surprised when I first came to Quebec to find Yellow Pea Soup, a very traditional Swedish dish which is supposed to be served on Thursdays, toghether with Swedish Pancakes. The Scandianvian pea soup use only whole peas which are soaked for several hours or overnight.

The peas are usually preparded with pork, often smoked. They should definetly be whole undamaged peas and are best if cooked slowly to a "soft al dente" state - NOT mushy.

When we were in the Swedish Military, it was always served for Thursday lunch and was rumored to be laced with some anti-potency compound to dampen the allures of the coming weekend leave. A gourmet tidbit soldier lore I am sure you couldn't live without.

For those who might want to try it, I think you can find Swedish yellow peas at the IKEA foodstore.

I certainly enjoy Quebec Pea soup whenever I can get it as a very close relative to my native Swedish pea soup, and so far I've found it blessedly free of anti-potency stuff. Au contraire, you might say.....

The pea soup should be eaten with a dollop of mustard which you slowly mix in at the table when you eat it.

Here is recipie for Swedish Traditional Yellow Pea Soup:

For 6 - 8 portions you need:

500 g (or roughly 6 dl) dried yellow peas

1,75 litres of water

1 teaspoon of salt

2 yellow onions

1 teaspoon sweet majoram or 1 teaspoon thyme (or 50/50 of both.

Let the dried yellow peas soak for at least 2 hours before cooking. This improves

the end result.

Preparing:

Vegetarian:

Bring water with salt to a boil. Add the peas. A foam may form at the surface. Remove it with

a ladle. Add the peeled and chopped onions. Boil under lid, until the peas are soft. This will

take up to 1 to 1,5 hour. During cooking some of the skins of the peas may float on the surface. These must be removed, as they are hard to digest. Towards the end add majoram or thyme.

Certain recipes call for potatoes (1 per portion, diced, boiled together with the soup the last half hour) or finely chopped leek as an ingredient.

With meat:

Pork is traditionally used, but lamb is also recommended. 1 kg leg of pork (with bone) or 1 kg

rack of lamb. Cook in the soup (See "Vegetarian", but omit salt if the meat is salted), for the

whole 1 to 1,5 hour. At the end, remove the meat and dice it. Put back in the soup.

or

200 - 400 g back bacon, diced.

Cook in the soup for roughly the last half hour.

[Carrot Top]

The yellow pea soup that I know is quite similar, but the pork is pickled, the quantity of onions greater (adds sweetness), and includes a bit of chopped celery, a generous grind of black pepper, with an good handful of freshly chopped dill added in at the end.

Of course my family hails from Gottland. Which I hear is rather the "black sheep" island of Sweden. That could account for the difference.

Thinly sliced buttered dark rye bread works great as an accompaniment. A topping of some freshly made croutons works well, too.

[carswell]

Like sf&m, I associate whole yellow pea soup with Sweden (though we usually followed it up with fättisdagsbullar, Mardi gras buns filled with almond paste and served with whipped cream or warm milk). Am pretty sure that all the versions I've eaten in Quebec have been made with split peas. However, a couple of seniors I've asked (one of them in her 80s) confirm that whole peas are authentic. The recipe varies from cook to cook, of course, but is very much along the lines of the one sf&m posted. One of the main differences is the herbs; in my experience, the best Quebec versions use savoury. Some recipes call for no aromatic vegetables other than onion; others involve carrots, turnips and/or leeks (plus celery and/or garlic in some contemporary recipes). The meat is usually ham (typically from a ham bone) though salt pork and bacon can take its place. The meat and vegetables are finely minced; the effect in the soup is confetti-like. As far as I know, the Quebec soup is never eaten with mustard. If the above is not enough to go on, say the word and I'll post translations of a couple of recipes when I can find a minute.

[MelissaH]

Carswell,

This sounds like plenty for me to go on. I'm intrigued with your findings about whole vs. split yellow peas, and why that has changed over the last 60 to 75 years or so. We have no problem finding split peas here, in green or yellow. (My husband contends that split pea soup must always be made according to his mother's recipe, with green peas. This is a recipe straight off a farm in Michigan, and I really hate the color of the finished soup, so I won't tell you what it reminds me of. ) I don't know that I've ever seen unsplit peas for sale, even in the market that sells Indian food. I think I'll probably try it with the split peas that are easy to find.

Thanks a ton!

MelissaH

[sf&m]

Have no fear, it's all available with Scandinavian efficiency.... order whole yellow peas from "The Northener" and it will arrive via UPS in less then 10 days. I've ordered from them and it arrives here in Montreal very quickly. I've also had stuff delivered to San Francisco, so they ship to the US also.

The Yellow Peas (whole!) here at $1.40 /lb

The Required Mustard here

And if you really want to go all out, you're supposed to drink "Punsch" with your peas.

It's arrack flavoured sweet liquor. Definetly an aquired taste.

The Punsch

Carswell.... it's "Fettisdagsbullar".... Also called "Semlor". Never had them with pea soup but why not - in that season. Normally you have Swedish pancakes, which are like Crepes, with your pea soup.

Fettisdagsbullar (literally FAT TUESDAY BUNS) was supposed to be eaten only one day of the year on the Tuesday 7 weeks before Easter. Now you get them from January through March. Semlor goes back to the time when Sweden was Catholic i.e. 16th century. The modern Semla with almond paste, sugar and cream stems from the 18th century.

Carrot Top the pork is probably brined...the old way of preserving pork, sylta etc. being in salt brine.

Edited August 9, 2005 by sf&m (log)

[jackal10]

Pea soup is well known in the UK.

Called "London Particular" since its about the same colour as fogs used to be in London. Conversely a thick fog is described as "a real pea-souper"

Greatly improved by thowing in a ham bone in while boiling. A tsp of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) helps the dried peas breakdown.

[MelissaH]

A tsp of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) helps the dried peas breakdown.

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Whoa! Are you saying that pea soup is supposed to be mushy?

MelissaH

[carswell]

This sounds like plenty for me to go on. I'm intrigued with your findings about whole vs. split yellow peas, and why that has changed over the last 60 to 75 years or so. We have no problem finding split peas here, in green or yellow. (My husband contends that split pea soup must always be made according to his mother's recipe, with green peas. This is a recipe straight off a farm in Michigan, and I really hate the color of the finished soup, so I won't tell you what it reminds me of. ) I don't know that I've ever seen unsplit peas for sale, even in the market that sells Indian food. I think I'll probably try it with the split peas that are easy to find.

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I've sometimes seen whole peas in health food and bulk food stores. It may be my imagination, but I've always considered whole peas as more likely to produce flatulence.

I should also have mentioned that some cooks advocate sautéing the veggies in butter at the start, while others suggest adding them raw part way through the cooking. Modern day cooks are also known to add bay leaf and homeopathic doses of sweet spices like clove and nutmeg; not sure how authentic that would be, however.

The Required Mustard here

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The Swedish families that served me the soup always brought out a wooden rack with an assortment of mustards from which to choose. Slotts senap was all we got at the school cafeteria, though.

And if you really want to go all out, you're supposed to drink "Punsch" with your peas. It's arrack flavoured sweet liquor. Definetly an aquired taste.

Definitely. And one I never acquired.

Carswell.... it's "Fettisdagsbullar"....  Also called "Semlor". Never had them with pea soup but why not - in that season. Normally you have Swedish pancakes, which are like Crepes, with your pea soup.

Fettisdagsbullar (literally FAT TUESDAY BUNS) was supposed to be eaten only one day of the year on the Tuesday 7 weeks before Easter. Now you get them from January through March. Semlor goes back to the time when Sweden was Catholic i.e. 16th century. The modern Semla with almond paste, sugar and cream stems from the 18th century.

Förlåt! At least I got it right in the pastries thread. (The proper translation in English would be Shrove Tuesday buns, though there are probably a lot of anglos who have no idea that Shrove Tuesday = mardi gras.) As I recall, the Swedes I hung with (none of them religious in the slightest) used fettisdagsbullar and semlor interchangeably.

A tsp of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) helps the dried peas breakdown.

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Whoa! Are you saying that pea soup is supposed to be mushy?

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Well, the peas do break down a bit, thickening the soup. The baking soda also helps tenderize them.

Edited August 11, 2005 by carswell (log)

[sf&m]

Yeah, I would not recommend "Slotts" mustard for it's gourmet qualities!!

I could be wrong but I think I've even seem whole yellow peas at LobLaws..... however MelissaH is in Michigan. So the Swedish Store is as close as anywhere, via Internet and UPS.

It would be intertesting to know how Yellow peas made it to Quebec... I guess climat with short growing season and neccessary winter time stock-up were the mothers of that invention just like in Scandinavia.

/gth

[jackal10]

The pea soup I am familiar with in the UK is a smooth puree, maybe with sone croutons for texture.

[MelissaH]

however MelissaH is in Michigan.  So the Swedish Store is as close as anywhere, via Internet and UPS.

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Upstate New York, actually.

MelissaH

[sf&m]

Oops.... sorry MelissaH!

And your whereabouts is in your sign-off thingy too. Guess I saw that reference to the Michigan farm and though your were still there.

Anyway, enjoy your pea soup!

/gth

[chantal]

Hoping to revive this thread to get a recipe for a canadian version of yellow split pea. Anybody? I'd love a recipe.

[Chrisser]

Hi Chantal, I googled out of laziness, but this version, minus the sugar (??) is pretty much what I've made at home succesfully. I use low sodium chicken stock instead of water as well.

French Canadian Pea Soup

[porkpa]

If you are in a hurry or just don't want to go to the bother of cooking your own, the canned Habitant brand is pretty good. I like it with a sliced frankfurter in it. With some great bread, it makes for a very nice mid winter lunch.

Porkpa

[carswell]

Hoping to revive this thread to get a recipe for a canadian version of yellow split pea.  Anybody?  I'd love a recipe.

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Here's a basic recipe. You can add or substitute other vegetables (like turnips and leeks), meats (like bacon) and herbs/spices (like clove, nutmeg, oregano) if you like. Some cooks suggest not adding the meat until halfway through the cooking, claiming the salt toughens the peas; I've not found this to be a problem.

Pick over, rinse and drain 500 g yellow split peas. Finely chop 1 medium onion, 1 or 2 carrots and 1 branch celery including the leaves. Place a ham bone with some meat attached (substitute 200 g meaty salt pork, diced) in a soup pot. Add the peas and vegetables, 1 bay leaf, 1 teaspoon dried savoury and 2.5 litres water. Bring to a boil and simmer slowly for 2 hours, adding more water if necessary. Remove the ham bone; pick off the meat and shread any large chunks. Return the meat to the pot. Cover and simmer until the peas are tender. Season with salt and pepper. If desired, purée all or part of the soup before serving.

[momlovestocook]

Sadly, I do not have a recipe for this-my mother took it with her when she died. I do remember the ham bone and chunks of ham in the soup. Cannot say for sure if the peas were split or whole but definitely yellow . I also remember it was made in the morning and simmered all day.

Just wanted to say the post made me think of my mother since this was one of my brothers favorite things to eat(although his girlfriend-now wife did not like the after effects of the soup ) Although not a french canadian family, we lived not far from the Quebec border.

Sandra

[carswell]

Just wanted to say the post made me think of my mother since this was one of my brothers favorite things to eat(although his girlfriend-now wife did not like the after effects of the soup )

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This is why god invented Beano.

[chantal]

Thanks for the recipe Carswell. I'm sorry it took me do long to respond but I have been swamped with starting a new job. I'll be trying it out very soon