My problem, it turns out, is that I added turnip greens at the beginning, right along with the split peas, the potatoes, etc. Although we don’t think of them as such, it turns out that turnip greens are quite high in acid. The acid, in turn, makes it difficult for the split peas to absorb water. How difficult? Well. Let me tell you. These split peas—pre-soaked, mind you!—were still hard as rocks after 8 hours in the crockpot, at which point I turned it to low and we went out for pizza at our local brew pub instead. I let it cook overnight. The peas were still mostly hard the next morning, but by now the mixture had started to turn an alarming color. Determined not to waste food, I decided to pressure cook the whole thing. Five minutes at 15 pounds pressure did virtually nothing to the peas. After another 10 minutes, they were starting to soften, but still not done. Finally, after another 10 minutes at 15 pounds of pressure, they were finally soft enough to eat. They were also not very pretty.

The end product was edible, sort of, if you smother a bowl of the stuff with yogurt and chutney. But it is not something I will repeat.

The lesson? Only add acidic things (tomatoes, greens, lemon juice, etc.) to legumes after they’re cooked. This is the logic that explains, among other things, why recipes for baked beans usually either have you start with cooked beans or include a cooking time of several hours. Great mysteries revealed!

Now, to be honest, I’ve often had trouble getting beans soft in the crockpot, which is one of oh-so-many reasons I usually prefer the pressure cooker instead. How does this work, exactly? What tricks do you use?

A note on meat vs. non-meat: I like my pork. Sometimes I throw in a ham end. Sometimes I use bacon. Sometimes I use bacon fat. And sometimes, I make it vegan. What you do is up to do.

Split Pea Soup in the Pressure Cooker

2 c. dried split peas
1 T. bacon fat or olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium or 1 large carrot, chopped
1 medium turnip, chopped
1 medium potato, chopped
1 medium sweet potato, chopped
a few sprigs of thyme
salt and pepper

1. Put the split peas with 4 c. water in a covered heat-proof bowl on the steamer rack in your pressure cooker. If you don’t have an appropriate bowl with a lid, just use a small mixing bowl covered with foil. (See pictures of this technique on this post on barley in the pressure cooker.) Add 1 c. water to the pressure cooker to create steam. Cover and lock the lid. Cook at 15 pounds pressure for 10 minutes.

2. Release the pressure and take the bowl out of the pressure cooker. Drain the liquid at the bottom of the pressure cooker, but keep the liquid in the split pea bowl. Set it aside.

3. Meanwhile, saute the onions and garlic in your chosen fat. I let mine get fairly brown. If you want to save time, do this in a separate pan while the split peas cook; if you want to save dishes, wait, and fry them up in the pressure cooker itself once you’ve taken out the bowl.

4. Combine the onions, the split peas and their liquid, the thyme, and all the vegetables in the pressure cooker. Add another cup of water or so. Close and lock the lid. Bring to pressure and cook for 3 mintes. Let the pressure drop of its own accord, then add salt and pepper to taste.

Variations: It’s soup. It’s mean to be flexible. Add or subtract soup vegetables as desired.