I needed to make up a quick pot of soup for a friend this week and pulled this together in a snap. It turned out so well, that I thought it would be a perfect recipe to share with you!
Next time you're in a pinch, reach for a couple of pantry staples and whip this up in about 30 minutes. It is surprisingly easy and quick to pull together, but is packed with flavour. The soup thickens up very nicely and makes for a very hearty meal. I garnished with some homemade croutons, but feel free to add your favourite cheese, a fried egg, some crumpled bacon or crackers. Your family will love it!
Easy Tomato Split Pea Soup (serves 4)
2 litres chicken stock
2 cups split peas
1 cup small red lentils
3/4 tomato puree
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/4 tsp dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
Heat chicken stock.
l like to make my own chicken stock from scratch and keep it on hand in the freezer. In a pinch, you can find good quality stock at your local butcher. Most have some on hand or in the freezer section. Try not to use a canned or tetra product for this recipe, as they are usually fairly bland and you need a rich flavoured stock as a good base. Add split peas, lentils and tomato puree.
i always keep a couple of bags of dried split peas and lentils in my pantry. They are a great way to thicken up a soup or stew and are a great source of protein. I also like to have organic tomato puree on hand. I like to look for San Marzano tomatoes that come from Italy to ensure maximum flavour, sweetness and the least amount of acidity. Place dried herbs in a mortar and pestle and crush to a dust. Add to soup.
Some dried herbs can really be overpowering. Crushing herbs to a dust really mellows the flavours and allows you to use dried herbs with more versatility. Heat soup to a boil, stir and then reduce to a low simmer for 30-40 minutes until split peas are tender and almost falling apart.
The longer you cook this soup the thicker it becomes. Keep an eye on it until it thickens to your liking. The following day, if the soup has thickened too much, just add some water, if you’d like it to be thicker, remove a cup, puree with a hand blender and add back in.
Season with salt and pepper.
Done! It’s really that easy.
Like these recipes? Check out a couple of my other favourites:
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