Ham Hough - soup

[pinkiefriend]

I'm thinking of cooking pea and ham soup. How do you cook the ham, someone told me that you have to boil the hough and then drain the water and then boil it again. Is this true? Any tips on how to make a mean pea and ham soup would be much appreciated.

[pinkflamingo]

Hi from on pink to another.
It is true that you have to drain of the first water and then use fresh. This gets rid of some of the salt from the ham and also the scum. I personally use a cooked bacon joint from the hot chicken section in the supermarket. Its a lot cheaper, around �2.00 and you dont have to mess about.
fry a chopped onion and a medium chopped carrot in some butter. Add peas (the kind you soak overnight) Put you ham in top up with boiling water and add chicken stock(i use Knorr). simmer for about 1 hour.