Split Pea and Ham Soup

Name: Split Pea and Ham Soup
Yield: Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons, unsalted butter; 1 large, onion, chopped fine (about 1 1/2 cups); 1/2 teaspoon, table salt; 2 medium, garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons); 7 cups, water; 1 pound, ham steak (1 steak), skin removed, cut into quarters; 4 ounces, thick-cut bacon (about 3 slices) (see note); 1 pound, green split peas (about 2 cups), picked through and rinsed; 2 sprigs, fresh thyme; 2 , bay leaves; 2 medium, carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1 cup); 1 medium, celery rib, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 1 cup); , ground black pepper

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Appears in Cook's Illustrated January/February 2011, America's Test Kitchen TV

Simmering a leftover ham shank used to be a frugal way to stretch a meal. But what if you have to make do without the backbone of this soup?

SERVES6 to 8

TIME1¾ hours

has video

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Instead of the traditional hambone, we opted for a ham steak. Simmering the steak and some bacon in the broth made our Split-Pea and Ham Soup recipe smoky and meaty. Unsoaked peas absorbed the pork-enriched broth so that every layer of the ...

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