Friday, May 10, 2013

Chilled Sugar Snap Pea Soup – Ain't Nuthin' But a "P" Thang, Baby!

I’ve never been a big cold soup fan. Where I’m from, cold soup gets sent back, but over the years I’ve grown to appreciate things like gazpacho, vichyssoise, and…that’s about it. Well, thanks to this gorgeous chilled sugar snap pea soup, my repertoire just expanded in a very delicious way.

Traditionally (from what I hear), chilled pea soups are made with English peas, but thanks to the very user-friendly sugar snap, not only is there no shelling involved here, but I think they impart an even sweeter flavor. Speaking of sweet flavor, you’re going to want to contrast that by garnishing with some sour cream or crème fraiche. If you can’t get or have that, then use a few drops of lemon juice or rice vinegar to balance the flavors. 

As far as the mint goes though, I’d make every effort to obtain some, as I can’t imagine another herb pairing as well. Lastly, the Snoop Dogg reference in the title foreshadows a Snoop Dogg reference made during the garnishing portion of the video. For more information, ask your kids. I hope you give this lovely, spring soup a try soon. Enjoy! 


Ingredients for about 6 cups of soup:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup sliced leeks
4 cups chicken broth
salt, pepper, and cayenne to taste
1 pound sugar snap peas
2 mint leaves
crème fraiche or sour cream, and more fresh mint to garnish

View the complete recipe

20 comments:

Unknown said...

Would this soup also taste good if it was served hot? Looks amazing either way!

Unknown said...

Would this soup also be good if served hot? Looks great either way, just curious. Thanks!

LisiB said...

wow that looked nice... call me crazy though, couldnt help but wonder what it would taste like with some smoked ham (cold) floating on top?

cheers from vienna,

daniel

Willie Dukeshire said...

gonna have to try it hot chef,cause me loves hot green pes soup,thanx for another awesome one....you still rock!

Chef John said...

I tried it hot, but was much better cold IMO!

Jasen said...

Perfect timing. Just got a fresh batch of sugar peas and going give this a whirl.

Unknown said...

"Rolling down the street, sniffing mint-o, sipping on chilled pea soup."

Chef John said...

nicely done :)

Anonymous said...

Could you use an immersion blender instead? My blender stinks!

cookinmom said...

Oh wow! I just picked a few pounds of snap peas and was wonderin' what to do with them. I have onions and mint as well. You're the best...kiss you if I could! Don't have a scale but about 3 cups of snap peas in a pound?

Chef John said...

sounds close enough!

candice said...

could I make this with shelled edamame, or would that just be gross?

Chef John said...

only one way to find out! Never tried.

Kurt said...

Chef John.........could I leave a little of the left over strained "pea paste" in the soup to give it just a tad more thickness? I loved the soup but, personally, would like it a little thicker.

Chef John said...

its a little fibrous, but you can if you like! Or use less stock.

Anonymous said...

I made this for my family and they loved it!!! (but I served it hot - sorry!) They think I am so talented now lol

Anonymous said...

I made this for my family and they loved it! (but I served it hot - sorry!) They think I'm super talented now lol

Unknown said...

I made a similar soup this weekend, only I used basil instead of mint Plant is going nuts right now) and I added a seared scallop to each bowl. Worked pretty well

Ron said...

I think I over-pureed, because when I strained the soup, there was almost nothing left behind. Oops. :)

Chef John said...

Even better!