I accidentally bought two bags of yellow split peas so I will be making more split pea soup. Next time probably going Indian. This calls for carrots, celery and leeks. But you can always just use more onion in place of the leeks. I have to say leeks, like fennel, do not impress me, they are underwhelming, IMHO. India-style yellow split pea soup. Makes 18 cups, I'm sure I will halve this. 1 lb. yellow split peas, soak overnight if you wish, or nuke for 10 min. with water and drain. 4 large cloves garlic, minced 3 celery stalks, chopped 4 carrots, chopped 3 onions, chopped (small ones I think!) 3 leeks, chopped (with 3 onions, no one will miss the leeks. I have some dried chives I'm wanting to get rid of which I will probably sub 3 TBLSP of that) 1.5 red pepper, seeded and chopped (I use canned roasted red peppers) 1.5 green peppers, seeded and chopped 2 TBLSP EVOO or canola oil 1 16 oz. can peeled, diced tomatoes. (I've never seen a 16 oz. can, I use the 14.5 oz ones.) 1 TBLSP + 1 tsp. tumeric 1 TBLSP + 1 tsp. cumin 1 tsp. corriander 1/4 tsp. fresh ground nutmet 3.5 quarts defatted chicken stock, veg. stock, or water Juice of 2 limes Chopped fresh cilantro for garnish Well, I have no directions for this!! I dunno, sautee the veggies in the oil, add the soaked peas, spices and broth, and simmer for about 1.5 hours, or 1 hour if you're making a half batch. Add tomatoes and lime juice only at the end, since they are acid which toughens beans before they are fully cooked. Add salt and pepper to taste. I have made this. It's a flexible recipe. I rarely buy red peppers so I'd probably use some other veggie in the soup to sub for that, like summer squash or sweet potato or butternut squash or turnip or cabbage or nothing. It's your basic Indian yellow dal soup so very flexible.

There's a first step I follow with split peas and dried beans to speed cooking and reduce intestinal flatulence. Put the legumes into a pot of water with at least 3X the volume of water as the volume of dry beans/peas. Bring to boil. Turn off heat, cover, let sit one hour. Pour off water, then use the almost fully cooked legumes to prepare whatever recipe you're making. Soup can be done in as little as one more hour. You can saute onions and other veggies in another pot while the peas sit. Or, take out the peas when done, use the soup pot to saute the veggies, then add back the peas and whatever liquid and other things you use.

It is hard to go wrong with split pea soup. I prefer using a ham bone, but if I don't have any, I do use a couple of ham hock chunks. The ham bone usually has some nice bits still clinging to the bone, and I shred them and add to the soup when it is done and has been pureed. I add carrots, onion, celery and usually any odds and ends in the refrigerator such as left over green beans, broccoli, squash, a potato or two. I use water to make the soup and add salt, pepper, a bay leaf and maybe a dash of nutmeg and a dash of Worchestershire sauce. After 2 or 3 hours or so, I remove the bone, bay leaf and any meat and whirl it in the blender or use the blender wand. Then I shred any meat morsels and return them to the pot. It is always tasty, no matter what odds and ends I throw in.

OMG - 30-hours! How full was your cooker? Don't fill a slow-cooker more than 1/2-3/4 full. As far as hot water VS cold water - I found recipes for split pea soup that use both, but when I use a slow-cooker I preheat the cooker and add hot liquids, if possible. Preheating the crock before adding ingredients or cooking on the highest setting for the first hour will ensure a rapid heat start. Either will shorten the time foods are in the temperature danger zone. You may want to test the actual temperature of your slow-cooker to see if you have a temperature problem. How to do a simple water test: Place 4 quarts of room temperature water in your slow cooker, cover, and cook on high (or low) for six hours, then measure the temperature of the water with an instant-read thermometer. It should register between 170-280°F to yield the best results. If yours runs hotter or colder, be ready to check the food for doneness either earlier or later than our suggested cook times. (You may also want to do this on each setting to be sure that both are on target.) -Grainlady