Yellow Split Pea Soup with Shrimp and Ham

by Lynne on June 6, 2010

Post image for Yellow Split Pea Soup with Shrimp and Ham

Yellow Split Pea SoupI wasn’t planning to do this recipe today. At all. But I was busy and I went into my freezer to grab a container of something to heat up in the microwave. When it was heated up I saw that it wasn’t what I thought it was. It turned out to be this container of Yellow Split Pea Soup, of which I had only one container left, and which I was saving to blog about on a day when I didn’t have time to cook something. Like an insurance policy, you know?

Well, it was heated up, so I had to photograph it, and because I didn’t have a chance to write about what I was going to write about, now I’m writing about the Yellow Split Pea Soup.

You see, I was going to write about the amazing day I spent at the studio of the world-renowned food photographer, Jon Edwards, watching a photo shoot for an international food market chain. And photographing Denise Vivaldo, Cindie Flannigan and Jeff Parker as they did the food styling for the photographs. I took 340 photos and I was planning on going through them all, sorting out the unusable ones, and choosing the ones to tell my story. Then photoshopping and maybe even finishing the writing. I had been procrastinating over the last week, but today I felt was really the day I would get that post done.

But noooooo…. I had to heat up the wrong container.

Yellow Split Pea Soup 2

So – this is an easy, wonderful soup that is so tasty and filling. Something happens about half way through the cooking: the broth turns so sweet and becomes infused with the flavor of the parsley and basil. Sort of a magical transformation. This recipe didn’t start out with shrimp initially – that was something I added one day when I had some extra shrimp that I needed to use up. Well, it was so good, I have made it a permanent ingredient in this dish. It’s interesting how recipes evolve over time, isn’t it?

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Yellow Split Pea Soup

4 servings

1 tablespoon olive oil
1onion, 1/8-inch dice
½ carrot, 1/8-inch dice or shredded
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed
1 cup yellow split peas, rinsed and drained
6 ¼ cups water
½ cup ham steak or Canadian bacon, ¼-inch dice
2 tablespoons minced fresh Italian parsley
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ pound raw shrimp, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces

1. In a large Dutch oven, over medium heat, sauté the onion, carrot and garlic in the oil until softened, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the water and split peas, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the split peas are tender, stirring once, about 1 hour.

3. Add the ham, parsley, basil, salt, pepper and shrimp. Simmer until the shrimp are opaque, about 2 minutes. Serve.

{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }

Monet June 7, 2010 at 11:58 am

Lynne,
What a healthy and delicious looking soup! I love using split peas in stews, and I’m excited to give this a try.

Lentil Breakdown June 7, 2010 at 1:35 pm

That looks delicious, but now my mouth is watering for your photo shoot post. Get cracking, lady!

Grapefruit June 8, 2010 at 10:29 am

I’m looking forward to your photo-shoot!
Soup photos = beautiful!

Andrea @ Fork Fingers Chopsticks June 8, 2010 at 10:08 pm

I l-o-v-e lentils! With shrimp and pork – I’m sure this will be fantastic. One question before I make it. I noticed you didn’t add the ham while the lentils simmered. I know the shrimp would get rubbery, but I’m thinking about adding the pork during the simmer. Any thoughts?

Lynne June 9, 2010 at 12:49 am

Andrea ~ Try it and let me know how it turns out. The ham is already cooked and adds its flavor blast at the last minute, but I’m open to a new method!

redmenace June 9, 2010 at 2:34 pm

Count me in as a huge fan of split pea soup. I’ve never made it using yellow peas or shrimp, but you’ve inspired me!

Cristina @ TeenieCakes June 10, 2010 at 4:55 pm

Lynne – what a beautiful soup (soup is the ultimate comfort food)…and there’s shrimp in it too! What an excellent find in your freezer.

I look forward to hearing also about your photoshoot of the international food market chain!! How fun to be a part of that and photograph it.

sippitysup June 10, 2010 at 5:40 pm

I had lunch with Denise yesterday! GREG

Lynne June 10, 2010 at 6:56 pm

Greg ~ I bet you laughed hysterically, a lot. Look for my post about Denise and Cindie…coming soon!

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