Pea Soup

I could never imagine that green peas could yield nice tasty soup. All Thanks to Taruna (my buddy and room-mate from Chennai) who cleared the block in my head..

She once announced that she was making pea-soup and if anyone was interested. I (and others at home) instantly said no as I really had no idea what a green coloured soup will taste like, not that green is one of the colours I dislike. Still she made a little extra portion of the soup, just in case you know...

And trust me, with the one spoon of the soup that I tasted, it only left me wanting me for a bowl-full..

Since then I have made this soup so many times, and each time people have been surprised (thankfully I am not the only one) to hear of a ‘pea-soup’ but have super-liked the taste of it..

(Pic to be posted soon)

All that I use:

(Serves 4)

• Fresh green peas - 2 cup

• Green chilly - 1

• Ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp

• Butter - 1 tsp

• Water - 2 cups

• Salt - to taste

• Black pepper powder - to taste

How I make it:

1. Take a saucepan and boil water in it. Add the fresh green peas with a few pinches of salt and let it get cooked.

2. In 10 minutes on medium heat, the peas will be a brighter shade of green and tender also. Switch off the gas. Drain the water and keep it aside as we shall use it in a minute.

3. Chop the green chilly.

4. Put the boiled peas and the chopped green chilly into a blender. Add 1 cup of the water that we had kept aside. Blend it into a nice smooth paste. Add more water, in case the paste is still coarse. We need the paste to be in a juice kind of consistency.

5. Drain the paste through a strainer, leaving behind the granulated mash of pea and collecting the pea stock in a bowl.

6. Now put another saucepan on gas, add the butter to it.

7. Once the butter is warm enough add the ginger garlic paste to it (just be cautious as it might start spluttering!!)

8. Once the raw smell of the paste is gone, add the boiled pea stock to the saucepan.

9. Add a bit of salt. For additional flavour, you may also add a bit black pepper powder (optional), only if you like.

10. Leave it covered, on the gas on medium flame, for 5 minutes (remember we have already boiled the peas, so the only thing we need now is the flavours of the butter, ginger garlic past to blend in with the pea stock!!).

11. Take a mug or soup bowl and serve it hot.

I love to add a small speck of butter to my soup…

P.S. – Even if the person you offer the soup is reluctant to try this (there may be many people like me), just convince him/her a little bit to try it and I bet they will love it..