I also started this soup with the bacon and garlic, then removed them once rendered and crispy. I used the remaining bacon fat to start the onions and tomatoes for the soup, and once finished, I added the crispy bacon to finish the soup. I also had a couple of purple potatoes that I put in here as well, though that is entirely optional.
For this chowder I degassed the black eyed peas. Most of the time when I use beans, if I haven't soaked them overnight I will degas them. You do this by bringing the beans up to a boil in water, turning off the heat and covering the pan with plastic wrap. This helps reduce the amount of sugar which is partially responsible for the gas production people experience when eating beans.
I also started this soup with the bacon and garlic, then removed them once rendered and crispy. I used the rendered bacon fat to start the onions and tomatoes for the soup, and once finished, I added the crispy bacon to the soup. I also had a couple of purple potatoes that I put in here as well, only because I had them on hand.
For the sweet potatoes and the purple potatoes I cut them up while the soup was starting and held them in water so they didn't oxidize. Because I wanted the sweet potatoes to work with the okra and be the thickener of the soup (instead of a traditional roux you would generally use) I added them into the cooking process rather than blanching them separately. As they cooked, the potato starch and the okra worked together to act as the soup's thickener.
Finally, as with all my soups, you can adjust the levels of heat, salt, and vinegar. If you wanted to make this vegetarian or vegan, you can just omit the bacon and change the base stock. Though the bacon adds a rich background to this soup, the final product of a vegan sweet potato and okra chowder will still be amazing.
Enjoy,
Ingredients
Sweet Potatoes, peeled and diced 5 ea, medium
Bacon, diced 8 strips
Black Eyed Peas, raw 1 1/2 cups
Okra, sliced 1 lb
Tomatoes, canned, diced 14 oz
Onion, julienned 2 ea
Garlic, sliced 10 cloves
Ginger, minced 2 T
Chicken Stock 2 Qt
Water 2 Qt
Oregano, chopped 1/2 oz
Sherry 1/4 cup
Sherry Vinegar 1 T
Mustard Powder 1 tsp
Thyme, picked 1/2 oz
Worcestershire 1 T
Hot Sauce, Grace Hot Pepper Sauce* 3-5 splashes (or to taste)
Crushed red pepper 1 tsp
Harissa 1 T
Salt and Pepper to taste
*I used Grace for this, which is a very well balanced mild sauce. It has a pepper bite, a little tang but not too much vinegar, and not crazy hot. Feel free to substitute with your favorite sauce.
Method of Procedure
Either soak your black eyed peas overnight or bring to a boil in a sauce pan. Remove from heat and cover for at least an hour. Once ready to use, drain from the water.
Peel and dice your potatoes and place them in cold water while you are degassing your beans.
Start by cooking your bacon and garlic in your soup pan on medium heat while stirring. Cook until the bacon has rendered and become crispy. Remove from the pan while keeping the oil in the pan.
Add your onions, ginger, tomatoes, mustard powder, and crushed red pepper. Continue to cook while stirring until the onions have become translucent.
Add your sherry vinegar and de glaze with a wooden spoon.
Next put your sherry, chicken stock, water, oregano, thyme, Worcestershire, hot sauce, and harissa.
Bring to a simmer and season liberally with salt and pepper. The black eyed peas and the potatoes will absorb a lot of the seasoning.
Add your black eyed peas and potatoes then reduce to a simmer.
Cook for about 45 minutes and add your sliced okra.
Cook for another 45 minutes until the soup has thickened appropriately and the beans are completely tender.
Add your crispy bacon now and season to taste*.
*You can also garnish the soup with the crispy bacon, but if you are planning on doing that, add your garlic on step 4 instead of step 3.
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