Super Easy Pea and Mint Soup

Who doesn’t like a super easy soup for summer days. Pea and mint soup is a delicious Irish favorite and may just be the perfect refreshing summer soup you’re looking for.

Peas are paired with fresh mint leaves for a bright and delicious soup from Ireland. This flavor combination is so popular in Ireland, you can buy it pre made in cartons in Irish supermarkets.

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Bright Green Pea Soup

This is no dull green split pea soup. The peas are not overcooked, so they retain their beautifully light and attractive green coloring.

Cooking peas briefly helps to retain their vibrant color. Plus the addition of fresh mint helps to keep the final dish looking ever so appetizing and bright.

What is your favorite summer soup recipe?

Pea and mint soup definitely wins my summer soup prize. It’s delicious served warm or chilled, and it’s a summertime classic and staple in my Irish kitchen.

Summer soups must be super easy to make, and cannot be heavy and too filling like our wintertime favorites. My summer soup prerequisites include being light, refreshing, brightly colored, and quick and easy to make.

Minted pea soup checks all of these boxes. If you don’t like prolonged cooking during the warm summer months, then this simple recipe is perfect for you.

This soup is sweet and sophisticated, delicious and nutritious, all the while being refreshing, and cooling.

This soup is made with fresh summer peas and garden mint. However, if you can’t find fresh peas, then it turns out perfectly when made with frozen peas.

Peas and Mint

Peas and mint are a perfect flavor match. Both scream of spring and summertime meals.

Can soup be dinner? Of course it can.

And if you don’t like serving warm soup on hot days, then this recipe can be served chilled. I call this soup my Irish gazpacho.

This is a simple vegetable soup. By using vegetarian stock you can make sure it meets your dietary requirements.

Chicken stock or broth works fine too, if you’re not worried about a vegetarian profile. However, I think a thin vegetable stock works best to keep this soup light.

The lighter vegetable stock is more in keeping with laid back summer days without the extra depth of flavor from chicken broth.

No ham hocks or long cooking times for hot summer days, when soups are often best served chilled.

This can be an appetizer or a side dish served with a summer salad.

I find that the puréed peas do a great job thickening this soup, so there’s no need to add a potato to thicken the broth.

Ingredients for Pea and Mint Soup

Here’s a list of what you’ll need. Exact quantities can be found in the printable recipe at the end of this post.

• Olive Oil
• Onion, finely diced
• Garlic, crushed
• Fresh or frozen peas
• Vegetable stock
• Lemon juice
• Fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
• Crème Fraiche or plain yogurt to serve

If you don't have vegetable broth or vegetable stock you can just use plain old water to make this soup. However, the flavors intensify by using a vegetable broth.

Directions for Summer Pea Soup

This is a really easy soup to make. First prepare the onion by finely dicing it. Mince or crush the garlic clove.

Heat the olive oil in a medium to large saucepan over a low heat. Add the onion and cook slowly for 10-15mins. Take care not to brown the onion.

Browned onion detracts from the light green color of the finished soup. The end product will be dull and less appetizing if the onions change to a brown color.

You can add a little butter to the olive oil if you wish, but I like to simply use oil for this recipe. It keeps everything lighter and keeps the calories down.

Add the crushed garlic to the onions in the pot and cook for just one minute.

Next, toss in the peas. Pour in the stock. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil. 

Lower the heat as soon as you see bubbles rising. Simmer for just 5 minutes. You don’t want a rolling boil, just a gentle simmer to make the peas tender.

Turn off the heat and let the soup cool slightly before puréeing.

Add the mint and lemon juice and season to taste.

Use a hand held immersion blender to blitz the soup until smooth.

I like to add the mint at the end of cooking and just when blending the soup. This keeps the flavor profile extra bright.

This soup can be served warm or chilled with crème fraîche swirled over the top as a garnish.

This is optional, but boy is it impressive. If you don’t have crème fraîche you can substitute sour cream or plain yogurt.

In Ireland many people just used unwhipped heavy cream for this decorative swirl.

Tips for Perfect Pea and Mint Soup

This recipe makes a thick soup. When peas are blended they naturally thicken the soup.

If you prefer thinner soups, add another ½ to a full cup of stock or water.

For a true taste of summer use fresh garden peas. Many stores in the US sell English garden peas and they're perfect for this summer purée soup. You can use frozen peas if you prefer.

I always have a packet of frozen peas in my freezer so this soup is easy to pull together on a busy weeknight.

Mint is a great herb to grow in a pot. If you grow it in your garden, be aware that it proliferates easily and can take over your garden. I think it’s best to contain it in a pot. 

Most American grocery stores sell fresh spearmint leaves. If you can get your hands on peppermint leaves, this soup will taste extra delicious.

Cooking Tips for Storage

Slowly cooking the onions releases their flavour, making a more flavourful soup.

As I mentioned before, avoid browning those onions to keep this soup color vibrant.

This soup can be made in advance and frozen. Do not add the crème fraiche or yogurt before freezing.

Only add this touch after reheating the soup and before serving.

You can also garnish this soup with freshly ground pepper if you wish. Remember that black pepper flakes will be visible on the soup so you may prefer to use white pepper.

You can use a hand blender or food processor to blend the soup. If you choose a food processor, blend it in batches.

This soup can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 days.

This vibrant green pea soup can be frozen. Allow any leftovers to cool completely and then transfer them to freezer-safe, airtight containers in the serving sizes desired. Don't forget to label the soup containers with the date and soup name.

You can freeze this soup for up to 3 months. When ready to enjoy it again, remove the frozen container from the freezer. Thaw the soup overnight in the refrigerator. You can warm the soup in a saucepan on the stove or r in the microwave.

If you don’t wish to reheat it, simply serve cold pea soup. It’s delicious with slices of Irish brown bread.

Printable Recipe for Pea and Mint Soup

Here's the printable recipe if you would like to save this soup in your kitchen recipe files.

I hope you enjoy this taste of Ireland and this favorite summertime pea soup recipe.

Thanks for following my recipes and ramblings. 

Happy cooking from my Irish kitchen to yours.

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