Engbrücker pea soup

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 500 g peas, dried
• 250 g bacon (belly bacon)
• 420 g carrot(s), finely diced
• 180 g celery, finely diced
• 2 ½ liters of water
• 1 stalk(s) leek, cut into rings
• 25 g salt
• pepper
• some lovage (Maggi herb)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tsp marjoram or oregano
• 3 onions
• 1 pork knuckle(s), cured
• 500 g potatoes, floury
• 8 Bockwurst
• 6 rolls
• Mustard, hot
• 1 bunch of parsley

Instructions

Working time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 45 minutes

Hearty pea stew in the Lower Rhine style

Soak the peas in cold water for 12 hours. Then boil them in a large pot in cold water without salt for about 30 minutes. Now add the cleaned and finely chopped vegetables and the pork knuckle, along with the herbs, spices, and 2/3 of the smoked bacon, to the peas. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. In the meantime, peel and coarsely grate the potatoes, and add them to the pot about 30 minutes before the end of the cooking time. Remove the pork knuckle and bacon (or a few bacon feet) from the soup, remove the meat from the bone, and cut into bite-sized pieces, then add them back to the soup. Cut two frankfurters into small slices and add them to the soup. Peel half of the onions, cut them into small pieces, and fry them in a little fat with the remaining, finely diced bacon until golden brown. Then pour over the finished soup. Before serving, season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with chopped parsley. I also serve this with delicious hot frankfurters with spicy mustard, which should still crunch when bitten into, and bread rolls. Heat the frankfurters in the soup for the last 10 minutes before the end of cooking.