How and how much to soak peas for soup

Dry peas, like other legume cereals, are finicky products during cooking. But housewives continue to prepare a variety of dishes from it, knowing that this grain brings many benefits to the body. You can also make lean soup from peas, seasoned with vegetables. Or it can be rich, with meat broth, and with pieces of meat. But when the peas remain hard in a dish, it is considered spoiled. To ensure that this never happens to you, let’s look at the article on how to properly soak peas for soup, how long will it take and is it necessary to do this before cooking at all?

↑ The process of soaking peas

Most of the schoolchildren, and now adult mothers and fathers, loved pea soup in the school cafeteria. The school chefs had their own trick for preparing this tasty and tender dish. Trying to make the same delicious pea soup at home, few people succeeded. It's all about soaking the peas.

Peas are sold dried, in whole peas and split. Refers to a dietary product. 100 grams contain only 55 kcal, which allows you to include it in your diet when dieting or losing weight.

By consuming pea soup, you can keep your body in shape and enrich your body with vitamins and minerals that peas are rich in. Few people know how healthy peas are - this vegetable is a source of protein, a treasure trove compared to other legumes.

Peas are high in essential amino acids and antioxidants, and also contain quite a lot of vitamin A.

There is practically no moisture in peas. If you rinse it and start cooking it right away, it is extremely difficult to calculate the cooking time and the required amount of water. If you fill the cereal with water in advance, the peas will cook much faster, saving resources and time.

To make soup or porridge flavorful and healthy, you need to learn how to soak peas correctly.

Approximately peas should be soaked for 6 hours.

Many housewives leave peas in water overnight. Or soak it in the morning and leave it all day while at work. Good options provided that the room is not hot.

When the room is cool, the temperature is below +18 degrees, the peas should be soaked for 6-7 hours.
If the room is hot, from +22 degrees, then the soaking time is reduced to 4 hours.

Soaking time is very important! Soak the peas in water - you cannot cook them; they will turn sour when cooked. It will not soak completely, will not swell - it will remain solid in the soup. If you start cooking until done, the rest of the food will be digested if it’s soup.

Reviews

Reviews about boiling peas and adding soda to further break them down have good responses, since this technique allows you to quickly prepare a tasty dish without cost or additional effort.

Dear readers, was this article helpful? What do you think about soaking peas with baking soda to make soup? Leave feedback in the comments! Your opinion is important to us!

“I cook pea soup only using this method with the addition of soda, because the whole family loves boiled peas. The main thing is to comply with all the conditions and within an hour everything is ready without any problems.”

Irina, Novokuznetsk

“I also make pea soup very often and do without soda. To do this, just select fresh beans based on organoleptic characteristics and cook them only in cold water for 40 minutes. And only when the halves begin to boil, add the rest of the ingredients.”

Galina, Simferopol

↑ Classic technology

There is a classic recipe that many housewives know; it is simple and does not take much time.

Pour the required amount of peas into a deep container. Remember that during the soaking and cooking process it will double in volume.
We sort through and clear of debris if the peas purchased were not of the highest quality.
Throw away poor quality peas.
Next, wash the peas 5-7 times.
Fill the peas with cold water, preferably not from the tap. It should completely cover the peas.
Place the container in the refrigerator or in a cool place for 6 hours.
After 6 hours, completely drain the water that contained the peas.
We wash the peas 5-6 times with water.

After these manipulations, the peas can be used to prepare pea porridge or soup.

If you need to reduce the soaking time, you can change the water several times. But it is enough to change the water 2-3 times during the soaking period, no more.

To greatly speed up the process of softening peas, you can add baking soda to the water. Not sugar or salt, as some advisers recommend: these products will not speed up the process of softening the peas.

But you should take into account that added soda will reduce the content of vitamin B1 in peas, and also slightly worsen the taste of the product. Here it is up to the hostess to choose: it will be a quick or healthy dish.

In addition to knowledge of classical soaking technology, you need to know the following rules:

Rule No. 1 - do not move or stir the peas in the water. The main task of peas is to swell. If you constantly stir the peas, they can begin to foam or even turn sour. Therefore: pour the required amount of water into the container with peas, put it in the refrigerator and do not touch it for 6 hours.
Rule #2 – no salt. It is forbidden to salt both soaked peas and a dish that is under preparation. Otherwise, peas easily turn into boiled porridge. Salt is added to the dish 1 minute before the end of cooking.

↑ The little secret of soaking peas

It's no secret that peas can cause flatulence. This phenomenon is natural, but it causes inconvenience to any person. But what if you really love pea soup? But you don’t prepare it so that awkward situations don’t arise. There is a way out.

To avoid flatulence, it is enough to add baking soda to the water when soaking peas.

You can calculate how many teaspoons you need to add yourself. If you use 100 g of peas and one and a half liters of water, then you need to add no more than 2 tsp. soda (without a slide).

Disadvantages of the method

If the rules for soaking legumes with baking soda are not followed, the finished dish may acquire an unpleasant soapy aftertaste. That's why:

it is necessary to strictly observe the proportions when preparing the soda solution;
Do not leave the product in water longer than prescribed.

A long stay in water causes beneficial substances (B vitamins) to be washed out of peas and beans, and fermentation starts in hot weather.

Advice. To avoid the unpleasant taste of soda, after soaking, the beans should be thoroughly rinsed under running water several times.

↑ How to cook peas after soaking

To prepare a delicious pea dish, it is not enough just to properly soak the peas in water. It is also important to cook them correctly afterwards.

Boil the swollen peas in unsalted water over low heat.
If the soaking procedure was completed correctly, the peas will slowly sink to the bottom of the pan and then slowly rise to the top.
The pan should never be covered with a lid.
During cooking, scale will form on the surface of the water, which must be removed.
Some of the water will boil away, so it needs to be added.

If you don’t have time to cook peas, you can cook them in a pressure cooker (if you have one, of course). The pressure cooker will cook the peas much faster.

When you don’t have a pressure cooker, you can cook it in a slow cooker. To cook in a slow cooker, peas are soaked for about two hours. The peas, washed after soaking, are placed in a multicooker cup, the “Stewing” program is started and left to cook for 1.5 hours.

Important! It is not advisable to open the multicooker lid during cooking.

Let's add information about the benefits! Peas are a source of vegetable protein. It is incredibly useful for the human body, as it contains many useful substances, micro- and macroelements, and minerals.

↑ How to quickly cook peas

Soak the peas in lukewarm water overnight. The main thing is to prepare the soup in the morning so that the peas do not become soggy in the water before lunch.
Swollen peas need to be washed several times. This will not reduce the calorie content of the soup. To wash 300 g of soaked peas you will need two to three liters of water.
During cooking, do not cover the pan with a lid, as the foam will flood the entire surface of the stove. Remove the foam until it appears.
You can now buy instant peas in supermarkets. These peas will cook 3 times faster - in just a quarter of an hour.

Agree, there is nothing difficult about cooking peas.

You can boil peas quickly by taking into account these important points:

Buy cracked rather than whole grains. In terms of nutritional value and healthiness of the prepared dish, you will lose little, but you will save a lot of time on its preparation.
There is information among chefs that pea porridge is cooked as quickly as possible from Idaho legumes.
As already written above, the purchased peas are washed well, placed in a deep container, filled with cold water and left to swell for 6-8 hours.
To prepare pea dishes, it is better to use drinking soft water.
When you urgently need to boil peas, try roasting the peas for 15 minutes in a dry frying pan.
The pea dish should simmer in a thick-walled vessel.
During cooking, you need to regularly skim off the foam and stir the porridge. Otherwise, it will firmly stick to the walls of the pan and to the bottom.

Delicious recipes

Try making a simple porridge, ideal as a side dish for meat and fish. Or a complete dish that requires a minimum of effort.

Simple porridge

You will need:

dry peas - 1 cup;
salt - a pinch;
butter - a piece.

Preparation

Pour water over the soaked peas and place on fire.
Bring to a boil, skim off the foam.
Reduce heat, cover with a lid, and cook until the water boils away.
Check the readiness of the peas, add butter, stir.

If individual peas are soft, but most retain their shape, just stir the porridge. The finished cereal will immediately fall apart into puree.

With stew

Pea porridge with stewed meat is very filling. This is a complete dish for an everyday dinner for a large family.

You will need:

dry peas - 2 cups;
meat stew - 1 can;
onion - 1 head;
carrots - 1 root vegetable;
butter - 40 g;
vegetable oil - 2 tbsp. spoons;
water - 4 glasses;
salt pepper.

Preparation

Place the prepared peas in a cooking pot and cover with water.
Bring to a boil, cook until tender over low heat under the lid.
Salt and add butter after the cereal is ready.
Peel and chop the onion and carrots, fry in oil in a frying pan. Add the stew to the vegetables, mix and heat.
Mix the porridge with meat dressing.

Try the dish after cooking. The stew usually contains spices, but if there are not enough of them, add ground pepper and paprika to the pan.

With meat

This dish can also be served at a holiday table. Pea porridge with meat looks original and turns out very tasty.

You will need:

dry peas - 2 cups;
water - 4 glasses;
onion - 2 large heads;
meat (pork) - 300 g;
salt.

Preparation

Boil the peas until tender over low heat. Add salt and stir until pureed. If it is uneven, mash with a potato masher.
Cut the meat into slices.
Peel the onion and chop into half rings.
Fry the onion until tender, place the pork pieces on top, and cover with a lid. Simmer over low heat, add spices and salt.
Place the roast on the puree and pour over the juice.
Preheat the oven to 180°, place the dish for 10 minutes.

You can serve this porridge in the form in which you prepared it. This way she will look simply luxurious. Therefore, before baking, place it in a heated ceramic container. Using a similar principle, pea porridge is prepared with smoked meats - chicken, pork ribs.

We hope that there are no secrets left for you in the question of how to cook pea porridge. And this hearty dish, alone or with meat, will take its rightful place on your table.

Add salt 10 minutes before the end of cooking. Pay attention to the water level. If you are preparing peas for a side dish, there should not be a lot of them. But don’t miss the moment when you need to add liquid. We don't want our side dish to get a crispy crust. Only add boiling water.

Cooking chickpeas for hummus.
After soaking the chickpeas for hummus, cook for 2 hours. This type of pea is also added to salads.
Cooking peas for soup.
After soaking and washing, put the legumes in a saucepan. Fill with cold water and salt immediately. Bring to a boil, skim off the foam. Let's turn down the fire. After soaking, cook whole peas for 1.5-2 hours; split peas need 45-60 minutes to cook. This time there should be a lot of liquid, almost full of the pan you chose for the soup.

Cook chickpeas for soup for 1 hour after soaking. We start counting the time from the moment of boiling.

Do not close the lid tightly when cooking peas. Stir the beans periodically to prevent them from burning. If you want the peas to boil completely, add salt 10 minutes before the end. If you want it to remain whole, add salt immediately. Foam may form periodically during cooking. Take it off. Avoid excessive bubbling.

Peas are a storehouse of ascorbic acid

The calorie content of peas is 60 kcal. It contains: proteins – 6 grams, fats – 0 grams, carbohydrates – 9 grams.

Boiled peas contain a lot of ascorbic acid. There are vitamins of group B, PP, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, iron. Boiled peas practically do not lose their beneficial properties. It normalizes metabolic processes in the body.

For elderly people and those with duodenal ulcers, peas can only be consumed in the form of puree. It is advisable to add carrots to it and eat it with bread.

Peas can be introduced into the diet of children after 2 years of age.

Peas are a tasty and healthy crop that was cultivated several thousand years before modern humans. Over the past centuries, the body has adapted to such food in the best possible way. In this regard, scientists Connor and Eaton put forward a theory that the increase in diseases over the last century is due to a sharp departure from the usual diet for everyone.

In ancient times, every family ate nutritious and healthy pea porridge. Even nobles and royalty were treated to this dish. Therefore, a return to food traditions that are inherent in each individual area is the key to the health of the nation and the prevention of all diseases. You can change your diet today by learning how to cook peas correctly.

↑ How many hours should beans be soaked?

How long it takes for the peas to swell and be suitable for cooking depends on several factors:

the variety of peas you choose (Idaho peas will cook the fastest);
whole peas soften twice as long (6–8 hours), and split peas – from 30 minutes to 3 hours;
temperature in the room where the beans are soaked: soak in a cool room or in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours, in a warm place for 4-6 hours;
If you add baking soda, the soaking process for the peas will be shortened.

The readiness of the peas is determined visually: when they have doubled in size, they can be cooked.

↑ How to soak peas with soda?

When you urgently need to prepare a pea dish, choose split or as fresh as possible peas, soak them in warm (not hot!) water and add baking soda. Step by step:

Sort peas, whole peas or split, and rinse well.
In a separate bowl, stir the soda, calculating 2 level teaspoons per two liters of water.
Pour the resulting soda solution over the peas and add warm water so that it covers the peas 2-3 cm above.
When the soaking process is complete, be sure to thoroughly wash the peas to get rid of the special soda taste.

When soaking split peas, take into account that this process should not take more than one hour. If whole peas are soaked in a soda solution, the process takes about 2 hours.

And when soaking peas in a soda solution, do not salt them.

The average time until the peas are half cooked is from half an hour to two hours. Then the peas are added to the soup, pea puree is cooked from it, etc.

What is soda for?

The presence of sodium bicarbonate softens not only hard water, but also what is in it. Legumes soaked in a weak soda solution boil faster. Due to this, cooking takes much less time.

Well-cooked peas, beans, etc. are easier for the human digestive system to digest. Accordingly, the risk of bloating and bowel dysfunction is reduced.

The main reason why legume dishes cause flatulence in many is the high content of indigestible fiber and complex oligosaccharides. The fact is that when sugar molecules are broken down in the stomach, gas is released.

When soaking, some of the sugars go into the water, which is drained before cooking. After this, the peas, beans or lentils are thoroughly washed and, filled with clean water, put on fire.

Attention! The method is suitable for dried legumes and fresh, just harvested ones. The canned product does not require additional soaking, since it has already gone through the pre-processing stage.

↑ How to properly soak split peas?

Soaking split peas is no different from soaking whole peas, except for the amount of time they spend in the water.

To soak split peas, 30–180 minutes is enough.

Some housewives do not soak split peas at all before preparing pea dishes. Only the process of cooking or stewing increases to two hours.

↑ How long to cook peas after soaking?

When peas are soaked, the process of cooking or stewing is reduced from three hours to one and a half hours. This is the time for whole peas.

When split peas are soaked, the stewing or cooking time is reduced to 30-60 minutes.

You can tell if peas are ready to add to soup or puree by trying to crush them. Take the peas and crush them. If this can be done easily, the soaking process is completed. Another indicator of the peas’ readiness for further action is their swelling. The doubled peas can be removed from the water, washed and added to the soup.

The readiness of peas in soup is checked in the same way: by trying to crush them. The dish is ready when the peas are easily crushed.

While preparing the puree, the finished peas need to be simmered for another 20 minutes.

Then they will become very soft, and with the help of a masher or blender they will easily turn into pea puree.

↑ Option for preparing pea soup with smoked meats

There are a lot of pea soup recipes.
Popular types include pea soup with smoked meats. Smoked meat products go well with peas and highlight their taste. Pea soup according to the proposed recipe will turn out to be satisfying, thick, and rich.

Follow the instructions for soaking peas.

When preparing soup, also remember that you should add salt only at the end of cooking. Cook the soaked peas over low heat, with the lid ajar.

Intense boiling will make the peas tasteless. If you need to dilute the broth with water, add warm rather than cold water.

↑ For pea soup with smoked products you will need:

1 cup peas (dry);
200 grams of smoked pork ribs;
100 grams of smoked hunting sausages;
one medium carrot;
two potatoes;
1 medium onion;
2 garlic cloves;
vegetable and butter;
salt, black peppercorns;
bay leaf;
fresh dill and parsley.

↑ Step-by-step process:

Split peas are washed in cold water, covered with water and left overnight.
Broth is made from smoked ribs. Excess fat is first removed from them and cut into large portions. Pour cold water over the ribs and bring to a boil.
The boiled water is drained, the ribs are washed and filled with cold water.
Bring the water to a boil and skim off the foam as it appears. Then turn down the heat and cook the ribs over low until done (the meat should easily separate from the bones).
While the ribs are cooking, prepare the rest of the ingredients.
Smoked sausages are cut into rings. The onion is cut into half rings. The carrots are grated on a coarse grater.
The garlic is chopped very finely with a knife and divided into two parts. Potatoes are cut into large cubes.
Heat vegetable oil and butter in a frying pan. Onions, garlic and carrots are sautéed in oil until golden brown. Once the vegetables have softened, chopped smoked sausages are added to them. The mixture is fried for 5-6 minutes.
Remove the ribs from the pan with a slotted spoon and cool. The meat is removed from the bone, cut into small cubes and returned back to the pan.
Add soaked peas to the meat in the pan. Cook the contents of the pan for 15-20 minutes over moderate heat with stirring. Do not cover the soup with a lid, otherwise the foam will end up on the surface of the stove. If necessary, remove the foam that appears from the peas.
Check the readiness of the peas. They should become soft, but with a hard core. If you need soup with boiled peas, increase the cooking time. Add potatoes to the finished peas and cook for another 5 minutes.
Next, the soup is seasoned with fried vegetables and sausages. Add pepper, bay leaf, salt, and cook the soup for another 5 minutes. Be careful with salt, because smoked hunting sausages and ribs are already salted.
Turn off the heat, add finely chopped herbs to the soup, cover the pan with a lid and let the soup brew. Don't forget to remove the bay leaf, otherwise the soup will have a bitter aftertaste.

To make your pea soup sunny, buy yellow split peas. Soup made from green peas will have an unappetizing grayish tint.

If you need to prepare pureed pea soup, then follow this recipe, but do not put the chopped meat from the broth back into the pan. Also, do not add smoked sausages to vegetable frying. Fry them separately.

Cook pea soup according to the step-by-step recipe. When you add the roast, use a blender to puree it. Serve with sliced ribs and sausage on a plate.

Hunting sausages can be replaced with other smoked meats: brisket, carbonade, bacon, etc. Fry them in a dry frying pan, because they release fat.

You don’t have to fry onions and carrots, but simply add chopped carrots and onions to the soup.
But roasting vegetables will preserve the flavor. The oil retains volatile aromatic substances. Soup prepared with sautéed vegetables has a richer taste.
The caramelization of sugar in carrots and onions will also add flavor to pea soup. It is also permissible to add salt and sugar to the frying at the end of a teaspoon - the taste of the vegetables will be more revealed.
To make the aroma of pea soup more intense, add parsley, leaf or root celery and parsnips to the frying.

If you need to add tomato sauce or fresh tomatoes to pea dishes directly during cooking, then add them when the peas become soft. Otherwise, due to tomato acid, they will take a long time to cook.

Soaking peas makes the subsequent process of stewing or boiling easier. Follow the recommendations described above, and preparing pea dishes will not be difficult, and the result will pleasantly surprise you.

Advantages and disadvantages of the dish

Such significant attention to the product is explained by its high nutritional value. The dish is high in calories (from 180 Kcal), very filling, even without additional ingredients. It is a rich source of plant protein, which can replace animal protein during fasting or when you need to quickly restore strength after hard work.

Today, the recipe for pea porridge is interesting for vegetarians who avoid eating meat products. It must be present in the diet of athletes - track and field and strength training. But the dish will also benefit an ordinary person, because it is rich in microelements and amino acids. Despite the calorie content, it will support your diet, as it dulls the feeling of hunger for a long time.

The advantages of the product include:

Possibility to eat as an independent dish. You can season it with any vegetable oil, but not with cream. This combination is too heavy for the stomach;
combination with meat and fish products. A simple and satisfying side dish will be a good addition to cutlets, stewed meat in large pieces, baked fish, and fried seafood.

People with gastrointestinal dysfunction are advised to approach the question of how to prepare pea porridge with caution. If in a healthy person it provokes a slight but productive cleansing of the intestines, then in a person suffering from colitis it can cause an attack of flatulence and bloating.

The product is also harmful for people with kidney disease and cholecystitis. You should not abuse it if you are anemic, despite the fact that peas actually help improve blood counts. The effectiveness of the product is many times lower than that of medicinal iron preparations, and the likelihood of digestive upset or weight gain is high.