Pocket-friendly Pea and Ham Hock Soup

My pocket-friendly pea and ham soup is a super-soup in more ways than one. Not only does it have all the benefits of being made from a bone stock base, it is a beautiful green colour that would rival the Owl and the Pussycat’s boat… and it costs pence to make.

Ingredients:

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• 1 litre of ham bone stock (see below)
• 1 sliced white onion
• 1 medium potato diced
• 500g frozen peas
• small bunch of parsley roughly chopped
• 300g ham hock shredded
• knob of butter or olive oil (I actually use beef dripping)
• Freshly cracked black pepper

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For the stock

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• Start off by getting a ham hock (on the bone) from your butcher (it will cost a mere £3-4)
• Give it a rinse and put in a large pan with basic stock ingredients (2 bay leaves, 2 carrots snapped in half, a quarters onion and a couple of celery sticks)
• Bring to the boil and simmer for 5-6 hours with the lid on
• Drain, retaining the liquid and the ham hock
• Shred the ham from the bone and save for topping your soup, salads and sandwiches

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For the soup

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• Heat the butter/oil in a pan and add the onions – cook until softened but not coloured
• Tip in the diced potato and stir, pour over the stock
• Add a sprinkle of black pepper
• Bring to the boil and simmer until potatoes are soft
• Pour in frozen peas with the chopped parsley and bring back to the boil
• Cook for a couple of minutes until peas are cooked
• Remove from the heat and blend until smooth
• Taste to check the seasoning – add salt and more pepper to suit your tastes
• Pour into bowls and top with a generous handful of the shredded ham hock meat

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