Trinidad Corn Soup

WizzyTheStick's Note:

Extremely popular at Carnival time. It can be bought piping hot from street vendors and is served at most carnival fêtes. West Indian corn is more starchy and less sweet than the North American variety but I don't imagine that other varieties of corn would detract from the flavour of this dish. Goes a lot faster if done in a pressure coooker. For the dumplings refer to recipe#183964

• Total Time: 1 hrs 20 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 onions , chopped
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 lb potato , peeled and quartered
• 2 carrots , diced
• 1⁄3; cup chives , chopped
• ¼ cup celery , finely chopped
• 1⁄3; cup fresh thyme , chopped
• ¾ cup yellow split peas
• 2 pimento pepper (optional)
• 8 cups chicken stock
• 1 scotch bonnet peppers or 1 habanero pepper , left whole
• ½ cup coconut milk (optional)
• 6 ears corn , cut into 2inch pieces
• 8 dumplings (or more)
• ¼ cup culantro , chopped (substitute cilantro)
• salt
• black pepper

Directions:

1. In a large soup pot heat oil.
2. Add the onions and garlic and saute until fragrant.
3. Add the potatoes, carrots, celery, thyme and pimento peppers and cook for about 5 mins stirring constantly.
4. Add the split peas and stock.
5. Add salt and black pepper to taste.
6. Add the scotch bonnet pepper and if using the coconnut milk.
7. Cover the pot and simmer for about an hour until peas are soft.
8. Use an immersion or ordinary blender and puree soup to a thick and creamy consistency and return to the pot.
9. Add corn and dumplings and cook for a further 20 minutes until corn is cooked and the dumplings float to the surface.
10. Add culantro, remove from the heat, taste and adjust seasonings.
11. If soup is too thick at any time, add water.

Reviews

[Chef #614140]

very very it take me back to trinidad again. thanks alot. :)

[Annacia]

This is a delicious soup. It is thick and very hearty and low fat. Add to that the fact that it's simple to make and what's not to love. I did omit the hot pepper and coconut milk because DH wouldn't eat it with the peppers and I'm not a coconut fan. I think the dumplings would be great except for the fact that I can't make a decent dumpling to save my life and we would have just picked them out and tossed them post pix. I really didn't see the point in that. It does have everything else though! This would be perfect in the cold months as it's very substantial. de Roche, I'm glad that I finally got to try one of your recipes.