Recipe for Pea Velouté

I had you at velouté, didn’t I?

It’s quite nice to use sucha beautiful French word to describe what is the most simple of soups. Velouté simply means ‘velvety’, and velvety is just how I like my pea soups. My mum would make old-fashioned pea soup using soaked dried peas, cooked for hours on end until they broke down into a creamy, smooth mass. Well, I am happy to report you don’t need to soak, or cook, peas for hours. This soup can be on the table in 20 minutes from beginning to end. 

Starting the soup off with a roux and adding a tin of white beans and their liquid creates that all-important smooth, velvety texture. The protein in the bean water thickens the soup, while the beans bring the creaminess.

Make this vegan by dropping the butter and doubling up on the olive oil; or make it meaty by frying up some smoked bacon with the onions – both options work wonderfully.

Serves 4
Prep 5 minutes Cook 15 minutes

2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus extra to serve
6 spring onions (scallions), chopped
1 fresh or dried bay leaf
2 tablespoons plain (all-purpose) flour
800 ml (27 fl oz/3 1⁄4 cups) hot good-quality vegetable or chicken stock
500 g (1 lb 2 oz/3 1⁄3 cups) frozen peas
400 g (14 oz) in butter (lima) beans
a handful of mint leaves, roughly chopped, plus extra to serve
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
pinch of chili (hot pepper) flakes, to serve (optional) crusty bread, to serve

Heat the butter and olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter is foaming, add the spring onions and bay leaf, and fry gently for 5 minutes until the onion is soft but without color. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, then gradually add the hot stock, stirring continuously until smooth.

Add the peas to the pan, along with the beans and the liquid from the tin. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3–5 minutes, or until the peas are tender.

Stir in the chopped mint and plenty of salt and pepper, then use a hand-held (stick) blender to blend the soup until completely smooth.

Ladle into bowls, scatter with mint leaves and add a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of chili flakes, if using. Serve with plenty of crusty bread alongside.

Source: zabars.typepad.com

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