Chilled Pea Soup
Chilled pea soup with watercress, basil, and potato, pureed silky and finished with cream. Topped with crumbled bacon, sour cream, and whole peas for textural contrast in every spoonful.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
20 minREADY
2 hrsThis chilled pea soup takes the spring green freshness of a basic pea puree and dresses it up with peppery watercress, earthy basil, and a shower of crispy bacon. It eats as a first course, a lunch main, or a late-summer appetizer on a hot day.
Watercress is the flavor hidden in plain sight here. Its sharp mustard-like bite cuts the sweetness of the peas and keeps the soup from tasting one-note. Don’t skip it; substitute arugula or baby spinach only if you truly can’t find watercress.
Reserving one cup of whole peas and stirring them back in at the end is what turns this from baby food puree into a proper soup. Every spoonful gets both silky base and little pop-in-your-mouth peas for texture.
Chilling is not optional. The flavors round out and settle after 2 to 3 hours in the fridge, and the soup’s natural sweetness intensifies as it cools. Served warm, it tastes flat and one-dimensional.
The crumbled bacon, dollop of sour cream, and torn basil leaves on top give every bowl a three-way textural hit of crunch, cream, and fresh herb.
Chef Tips
- Shock the peas in ice water immediately after blanching to lock in their bright green color. Warm peas turn army-drab in minutes.
- Use the potato unpeeled as directed. The skin adds a subtle earthy flavor and the thin starch helps body the soup.
- For silkiness, push the blended soup through a fine mesh sieve after pureeing. It catches pea skins and gives a restaurant-smooth finish.
- Taste for seasoning after chilling, not before. Cold dulls salt perception, so a soup seasoned hot tastes under-seasoned cold.
Variations
- Use frozen petite peas year-round. Two 10-ounce bags equal the fresh quantity and taste nearly as good.
- Skip the bacon and use fried prosciutto or crispy pancetta for an Italian lean.
- Add a tablespoon of fresh tarragon or chervil at the end of pureeing for a French herbal accent.
Ingredients
Directions
Shell peas and steam or parboil until tender.
Douse immediately in cold water to prevent overcooking, set aside to drain. (If frozen petite peas are substitut ed, cook two 10 ounce packages) Refrigerate all but one cup.
Trim base of water cress stems and discard. Rinse bunch and pat dry.
Melt butter in a large saucepan and sauté onion until transparent.
Add potato slices, watercress, and basil. Pour in broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook until potatoes are tender about 10 minutes.
Add peas. Remove from heat. In a food processor, purée this mixture in batches until smooth.
Return purée teaspoon o saucepan and reheat slightly and season with salt and pepper to taste. Chill thoroughly.
To serve, add cream, thinning soup to desired consistency. Stir in reserved peas.
Pour soup into serving bowls and crumble bacon over each. Add a dollop of sour cream and top with a basil leaf.
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