History

Erwtensoep is one of the oldest Dutch peasant dishes, recorded in cookbooks back to the 16th century. The Amsterdam test is whether your spoon stands upright in the bowl; if it does, it qualifies as snert. The traditional service is with rookworst smoked sausage sliced on top, slices of katenspek (smoked pork belly) on the side, and roggebrood (rye bread) to mop up. Moeders on Rozengracht runs the canonical version through winter.

Common allergens: Gluten, Celery

Make it at home

Yield 6Hands-on 25 minTotal 3 hrDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 500g green split peas, rinsed (no need to soak)
  • 500g pork ribs (rib-tip end) or a smoked ham hock
  • 2.5L cold water
  • 1 large leek, white and pale green only, sliced
  • 2 large carrots, diced
  • 1/4 celeriac, peeled and diced (about 300g)
  • 2 medium waxy potatoes, diced
  • 1 large onion finely chopped, 2 garlic cloves crushed
  • 3 bay leaves, 1 tsp white peppercorns, 2 tsp sea salt
  • 200g katenspek smoked pork belly (or thick-cut smoked bacon)
  • 2 rookworst smoked sausages, sliced 1cm thick
  • Slices of dark roggebrood (Dutch rye) and mustard to serve

Method

  1. Place the split peas, pork ribs or ham hock, water, bay leaves, peppercorns and onion in a large heavy pot; bring to a low boil and skim the foam carefully for 5 minutes.
  2. Reduce to a bare simmer and cook covered for 90 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes so the peas do not catch.
  3. Lift the pork out, strip the meat from the bones, dice and reserve. Discard bones and bay leaves.
  4. Add the leek, carrot, celeriac, potato, garlic and salt to the pea base; simmer uncovered 40 minutes until everything has broken down and the soup is very thick.
  5. Return the diced pork meat to the pot. The texture is right when a wooden spoon stood in the centre stays upright for several seconds.
  6. Warm the rookworst sausage slices in the soup for the last 5 minutes; sear the katenspek slices in a dry pan for 90 seconds per side to render and crisp.
  7. Ladle into deep bowls, lay the katenspek across the top, and serve with roggebrood spread with mustard on the side.

Tip from the editors. Snert tastes better the next day; make it 24 hours ahead, refrigerate, then loosen with a splash of stock when reheating. The spoon-stands-up test is not negotiable in Amsterdam.

Where to eat erwtensoep (dutch split pea soup)

Erwtensoep (Dutch Split Pea Soup) in Amsterdam

Moeders ★ 4.0

Dutch€€jordaanDaily 17:00-00:00 (kitchen until 22:00)

Moeders on Rozengracht is the room for Dutch stamppot, erwtensoep and the other home-mother dishes, the walls covered in photos of mothers customers.

Signature: Stamppot, Erwtensoep, Boerenkool

Order: The stamppot of the week with rookworst sausage and braised pork.

Tip: Bring a photo of your mother for the wall. Reservation strongly advised.

Rozengracht 251 HS, 1016 SX Amsterdam Book →

Café Hoppe ★ 4.6

Cocktail barBrown cafe€€€Sun-Thu 09:00-01:00; Fri-Sat 09:00-02:00

Café Hoppe on Spui has poured Amsterdam jenever and beer since 1670, the brown cafe with the dark-wood interior and the stand-at-the-bar after-work crowd.

Signature drink: Jenever, Dutch pilsner on tap

Food: Bitterballen, cheese, bar snacks

Spui 18-20, 1012 XA Amsterdam

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Erwtensoep (Dutch Split Pea Soup) in Utrecht

Ledig Erf ★ 4.7

Belgian€€centrumUntil 02:00

Historic brown cafe on the Tolsteegplein open to 02:00 on weekends. Forty Dutch and Belgian beers, bitterballen and a legendary local atmosphere.

Try: Bitterballen and Dutch bar snacks

Tolsteegplein 3, 3511 SK Utrecht

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