Split Pea And Smoked Duck Soup Recipes

SPLIT PEA AND SMOKED DUCK SOUP

Steps:

• Cut the smoked duck into a fine dice and place it, skin side down, in a heavy-bottom casserole over medium heat along with the pancetta. Cook for 3 minutes to release the fat from the meat, stir and continue cooking for 5 minutes. Remove half the meat, drain well and set aside.
• Add the onion and carrots, stir and cook until the vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the bay leaf, the split peas and the chicken broth, stir, partly cover and simmer for 40 minutes to 1 hour until the peas are tender.
• Adjust the consistency of the soup with more chicken broth if necessary to achieve a thick, but still soupy, consistency. Adjust the seasoning with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. The soup can be made to this point up to one day before serving.
• A half-hour before serving, warm the soup. Place the lemon juice in a bowl with a dash of salt and several grinds of black pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Add the reserved duck and pancetta and toss. Add the watercress and set aside. When the soup is hot, stir in the heavy cream, quickly and vigorously. You want to completely enrich the soup while smashing as few peas as possible. Serve garnished with the duck and watercress salad.

HEARTY SPLIT PEA SOUP WITH BACON

Steps:

• Dice bacon into 1/4-inch cubes. Place in a heavy 6-quart pot over medium-low heat. Cook until fat is rendered and translucent. Add onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook until onion and garlic are soft and translucent. Season with salt and pepper.
• Add split peas, stir to coat with fat, and add bay leaves and 2 quarts stock. Increase heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat so soup simmers. Skim foam that rises to the surface for about 10 minutes, until no more appears. Add thyme leaves. Simmer uncovered about 1 hour or longer, until peas are soft and starting to fall apart. Add more stock, as needed.
• Remove soup from heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Purée soup in a food processor in several batches, short of perfect smoothness; you should be able to spoon up some texture. Reheat soup, skimming off any foam. Stir from the bottom to mix well, then ladle into bowls and serve.

SLOW-COOKER SPLIT PEA SOUP

Steps:

• In a 4- or 5-qt. slow cooker, combine all ingredients. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours or until peas are tender.Freeze Option: Freeze cooled soup in freezer containers. To use, thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Heat through in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.