Pea soup with smoked pork and bacon

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 2 ½ liters of water
• 500 g smoked pork, streaky, neck or thick rib
• 150 g streaky bacon
• 400 g peas (shelling peas), half green and half yellow, dried
• 450 g potatoes, floury
• 1 bunch of soup vegetables, preferably fresh
• 3 bay leaves
• 5 allspice berries
• 1 m.-sized onion(s)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 3 tbsp, heaped marjoram, fresh or dried, more if desired
• 1 tsp, heaped lovage, shredded
• 1 tbsp, heaped caraway seeds, whole
• e.g. salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour

Preparation in a 6-litre pressure cooker

For better flavor, I cook stews a day in advance so everything can infuse properly. Salt is added to this stew at the very end! Peel and quarter the onion and place it in a pressure cooker filled with 2.5 liters of water along with the bay leaves, allspice berries, smoked pork, and bacon (both whole). Close the lid and cook for 15 minutes. In the meantime, peel, wash, and dice the potatoes. Trim and chop the vegetables. Peel the garlic. Remove the pressure cooker from the heat and release the pressure completely through the valve. Make sure the steam escapes on the side away from your body! Now add the diced potatoes, dried peas, chopped vegetables, half of the marjoram, and caraway seeds. Close the lid and cook for another 15 minutes. Remove the pressure cooker from the heat and depressurize as described above. Remove the meat and bacon from the pot, place on a plate, and let cool slightly, then cut into bite-sized pieces and set aside. While the meat is cooling, peel the garlic and press it into the soup using a garlic press. Add the remaining marjoram and lovage to the pot. Now puree the soup with an immersion blender or blender, season to taste, and add a little pepper if desired. Finally, add the chopped meat and bacon and stir well. I cook stews and soups with pulses exclusively in my 6-liter pressure cooker. The pulses don’t need to be soaked, and the cooking time is also significantly reduced.