14 DAY TRIAL // Now that the holiday season is over and there’s no more indulging in home-made goodies and sweets, it’s time we got back to our healthy habits of before. However, even if that not be the case, it’s never too late to turn over a new leaf – and Marco Pierre White’s pea and ham soup is as healthy as it is refreshing and tasty, therefore, just the thing we need to get things started.
Ingredients (for eight servings):
- 1 knuckle of smoked gammon (approximately 1.3kg) - 2 sticks celery - 2 large halved carrots - 4 halved onions - thyme - 2 bay leaves - 12 white peppercorns - 1.2kg Bird's Eye peas - 40g unsalted butter - salt (to taste).
Preparation:
Start by making a stock with the ham, the celery, onions, thyme, carrots, bay leaves and peppercorns. Put all of them in a large saucepan, top with water, add two pinches of salt, put the lid on it, and then let boil. Once the mixture has reached boiling point, lower the heat and let boil slowly for about 20 minutes.
It is now that you’re to take the lid off and skim the water, to make sure that you eliminate all that might look bad on your plate – or taste unpleasantly. Continue to cook gently for another hour, or hour and a half, adding warm water if necessary. When the time is up, turn off the heat and proceed to removing the ham from the mixture.
Place the gammon on a carving board and, while still hot, cut it into bite-sized pieces that you’re to put away for later, when you’ll add them to the soup. Discard the vegetables, peppercorns, thyme and bay leaves from the stock, sieve it, and then put it in the fridge to chill. Next up, thaw the peas until semi-defrosted, then mix them with the chilled stock, and then sieve once more until a puree is obtained.
Pour the puree into another saucepan over medium heat and stir continuously. Do not let boil since that would make the soup lose its vibrant green color, Marco Pierre White tells us. Add salt to taste and a plus of richness in flavor by stirring in the butter. Once done, pour in plates and add the cut gammon. Decorate with dark pepper or parsley, or serve as such – the rich green color should be enticing enough for anyone to try out this miracle soup.