Classic Pea Soup with Garlicky Croutons

This easy vegan pea soup uses healthy everyday ingredients. Garlicky homemade croutons make it the ultimate winter comfort food.

In my last post, I shared a bit about my [formerly] tumultuous relationship with soup. My unwavering love for classic pea soup, though, has always transcended that uncertainty. As I mentioned then, we had soup every night of the week when I was growing up, and my mom’s pea soup was my absolute favorite.

It often seemed to me that for her, pea soup was merely a vessel for the giant batches of oven croutons she’d make whenever we had too much stale bread lying around. For me, however, it was like a tiny holiday each time it graced our dinner table, and I’d beg for it whenever I was in bed with a cold. Something about that thick, porridgy texture and uncomplicated earthy flavor is just so comforting.

What’s In This Vegan Pea Soup

This classic vegan pea soup is made with the simplest everyday ingredients: onion, carrots, celery, garlic, green split peas, and potatoes. I add dried thyme and bay leaves to accentuate the peas’ earthiness, as well as smoked paprika to imitate the smokiness of traditional ham-based pea soup. I also stir in a bit of lemon juice at the end to brighten everything up and balance the sweetness of the carrots.

Step-by-Step

Make the Base: To start, heat some oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot on medium heat and add the onions, carrots, and celery with salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are soft and the onion is translucent, about 8 minutes. The point here is just to “sweat” the veg, not brown them. Stir in the garlic and spices at the end and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds more.

Rinse the Peas: While the veg are cooking, place the peas in a mesh strainer and sort through for any loose dirt or stones. Then rinse thoroughly under running water.

Simmer the Soup: Add the peas to the pot along with broth and bay leaves. Cover tightly with a lid and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to low and simmer gently until the peas are starting to break down, about 30 minutes.

Finish the Soup: Add the potatoes and continue simmering until they can be pierced easily with a fork, about 20 minutes longer. When they’re cooked through, turn the heat off and stir in the lemon juice. Then season to taste with salt and pepper.

Make the Croutons: While the soup is cooking, cube up some bread and toast it in a skillet with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder until crispy and golden, about 5 minutes.

Vegan Pea Soup Cooking Tips

• Green split peas can take up to an hour to fully cook through. To speed up cooking, soak your peas in cold water for a few hours before cooking or even overnight.
• For a lower-carb version, sub the potatoes with cauliflower.
• Pea soup thickens as it cools – especially after you refrigerate it. To bring it back to its original consistency, thin it out with a splash of water or broth when reheating.
• Vegan pea soup freezes perfectly! For long-term storage, cool the soup completely, transfer to a freezer-safe container, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge before reheating.

More soup this way…

• Spicy Tomato Chickpea Soup
• Massaman Vegetable Curry
• Red Lentil Dal with Cauliflower
• Tofu Kimchi Stew

Let me know if you try this recipe! Give it a rating below and leave a comment, and don’t forget to tag your creation with #TheNewBaguette and @thenewbaguette on Instagram.

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