Sopa De Chicharos Cuban Split Pea Soup Recipes

SOPA DE CHíCHAROS

Steps:

• Soak the dried split green peas as needed, follow the package instructions to determine the quantity of water and length of time needed to ready your split peas. Rinse the peas thoroughly before and after soaking.
• In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and garlic and saute for 3-4 minutes, or until fragrant.
• Add the chopped calabaza (or butternut) squash and chopped red potatoes.
• Add the liquid smoke, bay leaves, and seasoning (dried oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, ground chipotle pepper, salt, and pepper).
• Add the diced ham or a whole ham hock with plenty of meat still on the bone.
• Drain and rinse the soaked split peas and add them to the stock pot.
• Add the chicken stock or broth with an equal part of water and stir the ingredients.
• Cover and bring your soup to a rolling boil, stir and then reduce the heat.
• Simmer for about 1 hour 30 minutes, stirring the soup occasionally. After 1 hour of simmering, you would need to remove your ham bone. Allow the bone to cool for a few minutes, then pull any meat off the bone, shred it, and return the meat to your soup.
• Taste and adjust seasoning to your liking before serving. Also, if the soup consistency is not looking thick enough you can remove the lid for the last 20-30 minutes of the simmering cook time to help thicken your sopa de chicharos.
• Add all of the ingredients in your slow cooker (that is at least 4 qt in size). Modify the liquids amount to 2 cups less than the stovetop version (so 3 cups each chicken broth and water, or 4 cups chicken broth or stock plus 2 cups water).
• Cook on low heat for 7-8 hours, then remove the ham bone and strip any remaining meat from the bone. Shred or dice the meat and return to the soup.
• Set your Instant Pot to 'saute' and heat the oil. Add the diced onions, celery, carrots, and garlic and saute stirring frequently for 3 minutes. Press 'cancel' on the Instant Pot.
• Modify the liquids amount to 2 cups less than the stovetop version (so 3 cups each chicken broth and water, or 4 cups chicken broth or stock plus 2 cups water).
• Add the broth and water, calabaza (or butternut) squash, diced red potatoes, ham meat or ham bone, plus seasoning (dried oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, garlic powder, ground chipotle pepper, salt, and pepper). Stir to combine.
• Place the cover securely on the Instant Pot and set it to 'Manual' mode for 15 minutes.
• Once the 15 minutes cook time has passed, allow your Instant Pot to natural-release the pressure. Quick-release any remaining pressure after that 15 minutes is done and remove the ham bone. Remove any meat from the bone and return it to your soup. Stir, and adjust seasoning to taste.

SOPA DE CHICHAROS (CUBAN SPLIT PEA SOUP)

Steps:

• Sort, rinse and soak the split peas for approximately 20-30 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
• Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. When the oil is hot, but not smoking, add the onions, carrots and celery. Cook gently for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Add the garlic, oregano, cumin and black pepper to the pot. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
• Add the ham shanks, chicken broth and the bay leaf to the pot. Stir well.
• Drain the split peas using a mesh strainer. Add them to the pot and raise the heat to high. When the broth comes to a boil, lower the heat to medium-low and cover the pot.
• Cook the soup for 40 minutes. Keep the broth at a simmer. If it's boiling too vigorously, lower the heat a bit. Stir occasionally.
• Remove the ham from the pot and set it on a cutting board to cool.
• Add the diced potatoes to the soup. If you were keeping them in water make sure to drain before adding them in. Cover the pot and continue cooking.
• When the ham is cool enough to handle, remove and discard the fatty skin and bones. Chop the meat, return it to the pot and stir well.
• Cover the pot and continue cooking until the potatoes are fork tender, stirring occasionally. This should take 20-25 minutes.
• As the split peas fall apart the soup will thicken. Stir it more often, making sure to get to the bottom of the pot to prevent sticking. It may also be necessary to knock the heat down just a bit if it's boiling too vigorously.
• Remove the bay leaf from the pot and discard. Taste the chicharos and add salt if needed. As a reference, we did not add extra salt to ours.
• Serve the soup with a piece of crusty bread or a side of white rice, if desired.