Grochowka Recipe: An Easy Polish Pea Soup

While some soups are only substantial enough for a light lunch, others have enough substance to make a hearty meal, especially if you serve it with bread. One example of a hearty soup you can eat as a full meal is our grochowka recipe.

It is one of the most popular Polish soups, and split peas are the primary ingredient. Grochowka also contains smoked meats, root vegetables, and marjoram. It is similar to traditional pea and ham soup recipes but with the addition of other vegetables.

The history of the Polish pea and ham soup has links with the Polish army, as it was often served to soldiers, so some people refer to the dish as army pea soup or military split pea soup. Traditionally, people make a huge batch of soup and then serve it with rye bread.

We use leftover smoked ham from a joint to make the dish, but you can cook meat especially to make the soup if you prefer, or even buy precooked meat from the supermarket. Here is our easy, budget-friendly, and delicious grochowka recipe.

Useful Information

Ingredients for the Grochowka Recipe

• 500g/ 1lb 2oz dried yellow split peas
• 8 oz leftover chopped smoked ham or the equivalent weight in chopped smoked bacon
• 5 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
• 1 large onion
• 3 tbsp olive or vegetable oil
• 1 tbsp each of dried marjoram and lovage
• 5 bay leaves
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 2 vegetable stock cubes
• 4 litres of water
• Salt and pepper to taste

How to Make the Grochowka Recipe

1. Put the split peas, stock cubes, and water into a large pot over high heat. Bring the pan to a boil, then turn the heat down to simmer for 20 minutes.
2. Add the potatoes and carrots to the pot.
3. While the soup is cooking, put the oil into a large frying pan and put over medium heat.
4. Add the onions to the frying pan and cook for four minutes before adding the minced garlic and cooking for another two minutes.
5. Transfer the onion and garlic to the large pot with the other ingredients and continue simmering for another 35-40 minutes. At the same time, add the marjoram to the pot.
6. 10 minutes before the end of cooking, add the shredded meat to the pan.
7. Check that the peas and vegetables are tender before serving. If not, continue to cook for a little longer until all the ingredients are tender.
8. Season with salt and pepper (we like lots of pepper in a pea and ham soup).
9. Serve with your choice of bread, or add some croutons for texture.

Additional Tips

• You might also like to try our recipes for zupa pomidorowa, zupa grzybowa, zupa jarzynowa, and kluski.
• It is easy to make the soup in a soup maker. Similarly, you can increase the quantities in the grochowka recipe to serve from catering kettles at events or for commercial purposes.
• For a creamier soup, add some sour cream, double cream, or crème fraiche after removing the pan from the heat at the end of cooking, and stir through before serving.
• For a deeper flavour of the smoked meat in the grochowka recipe, retain the cooking juices when you cook the smoked ham and add it to the soup. Alternatively, use meat stock instead of vegetable stock cubes.