Country Style Smoked Sausage, Ham And Split Pea Soup - cooking recipe

Ingredients

8 -10 ounces chopped cooked ham (see note in the directions for different types of gammon or ham for this recipe)
2 pre-cooked cured smoked sausage, chopped into cubes
1 large onion, peeled and diced
2 large carrots, peeled and finely diced
4 ounces split peas, or
4 ounces split lentils
2 sprigs fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 pints ham or 2 pints vegetable stock
salt and pepper

Preparation

WHICH GAMMON or HAM?.
I used a cooked boneless ham joint throughout this recipe. If you use an uncooked ham, you will need to cook it (see instructions below) which will leave you with homemade stock for the soup.
Sometimes ham or gammon can be very salty, especially gammon from supermarkets. To remove most of the salt, soak the gammon in water for two hours before cooking and pour away the water. Then simmer it for 15 minutes, pour away the water and add new water for the remaining cooking time.
If the ham or gammon joint you buy is too large, put what is left in the fridge and use it for sandwiches,or as a main meal another time.
As a very easy alternative, use pre-cooked ham which saves all the bother of cooking your own ham / gammon joint. If you decide to use pre-cooked ham, just ignore the first step of the recipe, OR you might have cooked my Celebration Spiced Ham with Orange and Marmalade glaze already - so the stock base and ham will be done!
Whatever ham or gammon is used, it's fine if it is smoked or un-smoked - I used un-smoked.
Cooking the Ham or Gammon:
Pour 3 pints of water into a largish pan and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down until the water is simmering (barely boiling). Place the uncooked gammon in the pan. If the gammon is covered half way to all the way by the water you're OK. Chop the gammon into smaller pieces if it's not at least half covered. The cooking method is the same whatever ham or gammon joint you use. Cook for around 50 minutes.
Turn the ham over about half way through cooking.
Immediately after the ham is put on to cook, start on the vegetables.
Cooking the Soup:
Chop up the onions and carrots into small cubes, and place all the vegetables, split peas and chopped parsley into a pan, pour in the stock and bring to the boil. Then lower the heat so that the mixture is just simmering (just below boiling).
This will need to be cooked for around one hour, maybe one and a quarter hours if you want your vegetables soft.
The ham or gammon should be cooked after about 50 minutes, just enough time to prepare it before the vegetables are cooked.
Remove the ham from the pan, and chop it into small cubes. Chop up the smoked sausage to the same size.
The final step is to add the ham and smoked sausage to the soup and heat gently for about 5 to 10 minutes. Stir well and have a quick taste. More salt and pepper can added if the soup needs more seasoning.
Serve the soup into bowls and add some extra chopped parsley if you have any available. Serve with crusty bread rolls or French bread/baguette.
This soup freezes well and will keep in the freezer for a month.