Swedish Pea Soup with Ham (Ärtsoppa)
This Swedish Pea Soup with Ham is a soul-warming, comforting meal in a bowl for any night of the week.
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 530kcal
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 onion diced small
- 8 ounces ham steak or cooked deli ham cut into ½ inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh marjoram or thyme
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 2 cups yellow split peas picked over and rinsed
- 2 carrots peeled and diced small
- 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 cups water more if needed
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 bay leaf
- Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
- Juice of half a lemon more to taste
- Chopped fresh parsley for garnish optional
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Add ham, marjoram, ginger and allspice and cook for an additional minute.
- Add split peas, broth, water, carrots, baking soda and bay leaf to the pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Continue to cook until peas are nearly tender, about 35 minutes. Using a potato masher or fork, mash the soup mixture to break up some of the peas and create a thicker texture. Continue cooking until the peas are very soft, about 10-15 minutes, adding more water as necessary to keep the soup from becoming too thick.
- Remove the bay leaf. Add lemon juice and season the soup to taste with salt and pepper. Serve, topped with chopped fresh parsley if desired.
Notes
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- For ease of digestion and a slightly quicker cooking time, you can soak the split peas in cold water for at least 8-10 hours or overnight. Drain the split peas in fine mesh strainer and rinse with cold water before proceeding with the recipe. That said, it not necessary to soak your split peas.
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- To store this soup: This soup will keep tightly covered in the refrigerator for 3 or 4 days. It also freezes well, so for longer storage simply transfer the cooled soup to a freezer safe container or bag and seal tightly. The soup will keep frozen for a couple of months
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- The soup will thicken considerably as it cools. Feel free to add more broth or water as necessary to loosen it up or when reheating leftovers.
Nutrition
Serving: 3g | Calories: 530kcal | Carbohydrates: 68g | Protein: 41g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 26mg | Sodium: 905mg | Potassium: 1499mg | Fiber: 27g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 5287IU | Vitamin C: 25mg | Calcium: 90mg | Iron: 6mg
