Split Pea Soup with Ham Hocks

My BFF Charlie brought me over some ham hocks from his farm! What is a Ham Hock, you ask? It is the portion of the pig's leg – also known as pork knuckle – that is neither part of the ham proper nor the foot or ankle. Ham hocks add a distinctive flavor to various dishes. Slave knows how “back woods” this sounds. Ham hocks are essential ingredients for the distinct flavor in soul food and other forms of American Southern country cooking. Please do not let your sophistication sway you from the really fine and inexpensive home cooked taste of this simple dish.

Roasted ham hock is called “Schweinshaxe” in Bavaria. “Fläsklägg med rotmos” is a Swedish dish using these lowly pieces of flavorful pork.

This addition to pea soup does make a pretty meal. It is very hardy and healthy. Keep that New Years Eve Resolution to have more dinners of soup, you will be surprised. The house will be scented with a fantastic aroma. All you need to serve along with this is some warm bread or rolls from the oven.

Ingredients

¼ cup olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced 2 celery stalks, finely diced
2 carrots, finely diced
1 -pound bag split peas, rinsed and picked through to remove any gravel
1½ lbs. smoked ham hock 1 qt chicken broth (+ 1 qt water to add any additional liquid needed)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

In a large dutch oven: saute onion, celery and carrots over medium-high heat.

Rinse the peas and check for any gravel.

Add peas and ham hocks. Cover with stock by a couple inches. Bring to a simmer and cook about 1 hour.

Watch carefully, stirring every 12 minutes. Set the timer, and mark on a piece of paper how often you have stirred. You want 5 marks, until soup is thick and peas have almost disintegrated but not quite.

Season, to taste with salt and pepper.

Remove ham hocks. With the tines of a fork, shred the meat from the bone. Pull it apart with 2 forks. This will take work. As You know: the best meat always does!

Now remove the bread from the oven. Dish out the soup.

Using a large spoon, sprinkle the shredded meat into the soup as a garnish.

What a fantastic dish to serve to your Master! Believe me, He never got a taste like this from a can of condensed soup! It is as homemade as possible, and YOU did it.

It is such a joy to fix this for my Master. For I know how He appreciates the work and wonderful taste made just for Him.

socialslave

To satisfy and restore.

To nourish, support and maintain.

To gratify, spoil, comfort and please,

to nurture, assist, and sustain

…..I cook!

Please buy slave's cookbook:

The Little Black Book of Indiscreet Recipes by Dan White http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F315Y4I/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_vAT4sb0934RTM via @amazon