Artsoppa, Yellow Pea Soup
Artsoppa is the soup Swedish kitchens still make on Thursdays, a habit left over from the medieval fasting calendar that called for a filling meal before Friday's fast. Yellow split peas break down into their own creamy body within about an hour of simmering, so the pot needs no roux or cream to thicken it. A halved onion studded with whole cloves steeps in the broth and then gets pulled out, leaving its sweetness behind with nothing left to fish out piece by piece, while dried marjoram, the herb most identified with everyday Swedish cooking, supplies the savory backbone a ham hock used to provide. Mustard stirred in at the table, not the pot, gives the sharp bite that would otherwise come from salt.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups Yellow split peas, rinsed and picked over for stones
- 1 medium Yellow onions, peeled and halved
- 4 Cloves, whole, pressed into the two onion halves
- 2 mediums Carrots, diced small
- 1 stalk Celery, diced small
- 2 Bay leaves
- 4 sprigs Thyme
- 1 tsp Dried marjoram
- 1/4 tsp Black peppercorns, freshly ground
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard, plus more for serving
For no added salt, leave out the mustard, or pass it at the table so each bowl is seasoned to taste. A splash of vinegar brightens it either way.
Method
- Rinse the split peas and pick through them for stones or shriveled peas. Put them in a large pot with 7 cups (1.7 L) water and bring to a boil. Skim off the pale foam that rises in the first few minutes; left alone, that foam is what clouds the broth.
- Press the cloves into the two onion halves and drop them into the pot with the carrot, celery, bay leaves, and thyme sprigs. Lower the heat to a gentle simmer and cook uncovered, stirring now and then so the peas don't settle and scorch, until they break down into a thick, creamy soup, 45 to 60 minutes.
- Stir in the marjoram about 10 minutes before the peas finish. Marjoram is the herb every Swedish kitchen reaches for here, and it needs those last minutes in the hot broth to soften rather than sitting on top raw.
- Fish out the onion halves, bay leaves, and thyme stems. The onion has given up its sweetness and the woody stems have nothing left to offer. Stir in the black pepper.
- Ladle into bowls and swirl a teaspoon of mustard into each one at the table, with extra mustard alongside. The mustard's sharp bite carries the seasoning that salt would otherwise supply, and stirring it in at the table rather than the pot is the traditional way this soup is finished in Sweden.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 260 calories, 16 g protein, 13 g fiber, 150 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
