Swedish Pea Soup

Visit Sweden identifies ärtsoppa as Swedish yellow pea soup. Sparring’s recipe for Arla cooks dried yellow peas with cured pork knuckle, clove-studded onion, thyme, marjoram and bay leaves.

The peas are rinsed and soaked in enough water to cover them, somewhere cool, for about twelve hours. They are drained through a colander, rinsed in fresh cold water and drained again.

Fresh water is brought to a boil with the peas in a large pot. Foam is skimmed and floating pea skins removed. Cloves are pressed into a peeled onion; the pork knuckle’s skin is removed and its bone separated, with the meat cut into coarse pieces.

Onion, pork meat and bone, dried herbs and bay leaves join the peas. The soup cooks under a lid for about three hours, until the peas are ready and the pork reaches the stated internal temperature. The meat is lifted out and diced; the bone, cloves and bay leaves are removed, and the onion is coarsely chopped.

The diced pork and onion return to the soup, which is brought to a boil and seasoned with salt. Extra water can thin it if needed. Mustard and fresh thyme finish the soup; prepared crispbread and cheese are optional accompaniments.