Split pea soup is one of my favorite soups — my husband’s too, as long as it has actual meat in it. I make this leaner version every time we we smoke a ham. It’s an excellent way to use up the leftovers on a cool evening.
So, when I came across this creole version with andouille (heaven!) from Closet Cooking (one of my favorite food blogs) lat spring, I saved it in my recipe planner for a cool fall or winter dinner. Jeff and I both absolutely adore Creole flavors, and andouille is right up there with bacon for us. We had to venture to a specialty store — Wholesome Choice — to find the yellow split peas since neither of our regular grocery stores had them in stock. Other than that, the ingredients are simple, easy and quick. And the soup? Hearty, filling, comforting and full of great flavors.
- 2 tablespoons oil (I cut this back from the original 2 Tbsp.)
- ½ pound andouille sausage (cut into small pieces)
- 1 cup onion (diced)
- ½ cup celery (diced)
- ½ cup green pepper (diced)
- 4 cloves garlic (chopped)
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1½ cups yellow split peas
- 1 ham hock
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
- Heat the oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
- Add the sausage and saute until lightly golden brown, about 5-7 minutes.
- Add the onions, celery and green pepper to the pan and cook until tender, about 7-10 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
- Add the stock, split peas, ham hock, paprika, cayenne, oregano, thyme, bay leaves, salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer covered until the peas are soft and tender, about 1-3 hours.
- Remove the ham hock, pull the meat from it, cut it into bite sized pieces and add it back to the pot if desired.
I am trying a version of this recipe today. I’m using salami as I had one in the fridge and didn’t have the sausage. Fingers crossed it turns out ok and tastes great.
Good luck! It would definitely work with any sort of smoked sausage (even a turkey smoked sausage if you wanted to lean it up a bit), so let us know how the salami worked!