flipYellow Pea Soup of Montreal Winters
Yellow Pea Soup of Montreal Winters
Why this dish? Rutherford was a professor at McGill University in Montreal from 1898 to 1907 — his decisive years on radioactivity. For the young New Zealander discovering Canadian winters, pea soup, the emblematic dish of Quebec cuisine, was comfort in the freezing seasons.
A thick and hearty soup of yellow split peas, simmered long with salted pork and herbs until velvety. The traditional French-Canadian bulwark against the biting winter cold.
Ah, Canada! When I arrived at McGill, a young man from the ends of the earth, I had never known such cold — a cold to freeze mercury! The people here taught me their pea soup, and I tell you: nothing warms a chilled physicist better after a day chasing those damned rays. You let it simmer for hours, without rushing it — like a good experiment, it cannot be hurried. A piece of pork inside, and it sticks to the ribs all afternoon.
- •Yellow split peas (dried) — a full bowl (base, long storage)
- •Salted pork — a good piece (fat and umami)
- •Onion — one (aromatic)
- •Salted herbs or summer savory — a pinch (Quebec flavour)
- •Water — plenty (cooking liquid)
- •Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Yellow Pea Soup of Montreal Winters
A thick and hearty soup of yellow split peas, simmered long with salted pork and herbs until velvety. The traditional French-Canadian bulwark against the biting winter cold.
Why this dish? Rutherford was a professor at McGill University in Montreal from 1898 to 1907 — his decisive years on radioactivity. For the young New Zealander discovering Canadian winters, pea soup, the emblematic dish of Quebec cuisine, was comfort in the freezing seasons.
Ah, Canada! When I arrived at McGill, a young man from the ends of the earth, I had never known such cold — a cold to freeze mercury! The people here taught me their pea soup, and I tell you: nothing warms a chilled physicist better after a day chasing those damned rays. You let it simmer for hours, without rushing it — like a good experiment, it cannot be hurried. A piece of pork inside, and it sticks to the ribs all afternoon.
Ingredients (period version)
- Yellow split peas (dried) — a full bowl (base, long storage)
- Salted pork — a good piece (fat and umami)
- Onion — one (aromatic)
- Salted herbs or summer savory — a pinch (Quebec flavour)
- Water — plenty (cooking liquid)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Yellow split peas — 350 g (base)
- Salted pork or smoked bacon — 150 g (fat and umami)
- Onion — 1 large, sliced (aromatic)
- Carrot — 1, diced (sweetness)
- Dried summer savory — 1 tsp (traditional flavour)
- Water or broth — 2 litres (cooking liquid)
- Salt, pepper — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Rinse the split peas (soaking for a few hours speeds cooking, but is not mandatory).
- Sauté the pork and onion in a large pot until the fat renders.
- Add the peas, carrot, savory, and water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat.
- Simmer covered for 1 h 30 to 2 h, stirring occasionally, until the peas break down.
- Season with salt and pepper, partially mash some peas to thicken. Serve piping hot with crusty bread.
How it was made : Pea soup is one of the oldest dishes of New France: dried peas, easy to transport and store, fed coureurs des bois and settlers. It was flavored with "salted herbs" from the Lower St. Lawrence. Simmered at the corner of the wood stove, it could cook all day.
The contemporary twist : 2026 version: a swirl of green herb oil on the surface and some crispy bacon bits — the "trajectory of an alpha particle" drawn in the bowl.
Ernest Rutherford · Charactorium
