flipBivouac Pea Soup — Split Pea Soup with Smoked Bacon
Bivouac Pea Soup — Split Pea Soup with Smoked Bacon
Why this dish? Thick pea soup was the daily fare that drove the Prussian columns forward — those that 'Marschall Vorwärts' relentlessly pushed from Ligny to Wavre and then Waterloo. A dish cooked in the communal cauldron, it nourishes quickly and sticks to a marching man's stomach.
A dense soup of split peas simmered with smoked bacon, onion, and caraway, until almost a purée. Cooked in the company's large cauldron, the ration bread was dipped in to soften it.
Forward, my children, and first to the pot! A soldier with an empty belly won't cross the Sambre. Into my cauldron you throw the peas, a good piece of smoked bacon, onion, and caraway seed, and you stoke until the spoon stands upright in it. I ate this soup crouched in the mud at Ligny as at my table in Krieblowitz, and I tell you: it, and not fine speeches, leads men to victory.
- •Split peas (yellow or green) — a good bowl per man (nourishing base)
- •Smoked bacon — a piece the size of a fist (fat and umami)
- •Onion — according to what is found (aromatic)
- •Caraway seed (Kümmel) — a pinch (signature, digestion)
- •Spring or river water — to cover (cooking)
Bivouac Pea Soup — Split Pea Soup with Smoked Bacon
A dense soup of split peas simmered with smoked bacon, onion, and caraway, until almost a purée. Cooked in the company's large cauldron, the ration bread was dipped in to soften it.
Why this dish? Thick pea soup was the daily fare that drove the Prussian columns forward — those that 'Marschall Vorwärts' relentlessly pushed from Ligny to Wavre and then Waterloo. A dish cooked in the communal cauldron, it nourishes quickly and sticks to a marching man's stomach.
Forward, my children, and first to the pot! A soldier with an empty belly won't cross the Sambre. Into my cauldron you throw the peas, a good piece of smoked bacon, onion, and caraway seed, and you stoke until the spoon stands upright in it. I ate this soup crouched in the mud at Ligny as at my table in Krieblowitz, and I tell you: it, and not fine speeches, leads men to victory.
Ingredients (period version)
- Split peas (yellow or green) — a good bowl per man (nourishing base)
- Smoked bacon — a piece the size of a fist (fat and umami)
- Onion — according to what is found (aromatic)
- Caraway seed (Kümmel) — a pinch (signature, digestion)
- Spring or river water — to cover (cooking)
Ingredients
- Split peas — 400 g (base)
- Smoked bacon (belly) — 200 g in lardons (fat and umami)
- Onion — 2 medium (aromatic)
- Carrot — 2 (sweetness)
- Caraway seed — 1 tsp (signature)
- Water or broth — 1.5 L (cooking)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Rinse the split peas (soaking for a few hours recommended but not required).
- Sauté the bacon lardons in a large pot, add diced onion and carrot, sweat for 5 minutes.
- Add the peas, water or broth, and caraway. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat.
- Simmer for 1 to 1.5 hours, stirring occasionally, until the peas break down into a thick purée.
- Salt sparingly (the bacon is already salty), pepper. Serve piping hot with rye bread.
How it was made : Erbsensuppe is the direct ancestor of 'Erbswurst', a pea purée sausage invented later in the 19th century to supply the Prussian army. In Blücher's time, it was cooked in the company cauldron and each soldier dipped his bread ration into it.
The contemporary twist : Served in a verrine with a toasted rye bread crouton planted in it, and a few crispy lardons on top — a nod to the bread dipped in the bivouac.
Blücher · Charactorium
