Go Back
–+ servings
A blue bowl filled with Caribbean cow heel soup on a white counter top with some chives and a sweet potato in the background.

Caribbean Cow Heel Soup

Cow heel soup is the traditional Caribbean soup. Full of ground provisions and a split peas base with cow heel (cow foot). This is a hearty, flavor-filled soup.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings: 8
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Caribbean
Calories: 426
Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 1/2 pounds cow heel
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon green seasoning
  • 1 cup yellow split peas
  • 1 cup cubed pumpkin
  • 1/2 medium onion chopped
  • 1/2 lb salted pigtail cut up (optional)
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 medium sweet potatoes cubed
  • 1 carrot chopped
  • 1 full-length corn on the cob chopped
  • 3 cups water plus additional water
  • 1/4 cup chopped celery
  • 1/4 cup chopped chive
  • Salt and pepper to taste
For dumplings
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt

Method
 

For Soup
  1. Wash cow heel off and put to soak in some water for about 10 minutes with vinegar.
  2. Remove heel from water and rinse again.
  3. Put meat to boil in a heavy-bottomed pot with 3 cups of water. (see notes for regular pressure cooker option or instant pot)
  4. When water is boiling add onion, garlic, green seasoning, and salt. Cook until cow heel is tender.
  5. When tender, add split peas and cook for about 20 minutes.
  6. Add pigtails if using and provisions (pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, corn on the cob, and any other provision that you may want to add)
  7. Add celery, hot pepper, and chive
  8. Mix dumplings and add dumplings and additional water (about a cup). Enough to cover the items in the pot.
  9. Leave on medium-low until provision is ready and tender and dumplings have floated to the top.
  10. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
Instant Pot
    For stove top
    1. Wash cow heel off and put to soak in some water for about 10 minutes with vinegar.
    2. Remove heel from water and rinse again.
    3. Put meat to boil in a heavy-bottomed pot with 3 cups of water. (see notes for regular pressure cooker option or instant pot)
    4. When water is boiling add onion, garlic, green seasoning, and salt. Cook until cow heel is tender.
    5. When tender, add split peas and cook for about 20 minutes.
    6. Add pigtails if using and provisions (pumpkin, sweet potato, carrots, corn on the cob, and any other provision that you may want to add)
    7. Add celery, hot pepper, and chive
    8. Mix dumplings and add dumplings and additional water (about a cup). Enough to cover the items in the pot.
    9. Leave on medium-low until provision is ready and tender and dumplings have floated to the top.
    10. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
    For manual pressure cooker:
    1. If you have a regular pressure cooker, you can make the meat tender this way (adding water, meat, and the other seasoning ingredients in there).
    2. Once the meat is tender, add the split peas and additional cups of water and continue the cooking process
    Instant Pot:
    1. Add cow heel, onion, cloves garlic, and some salt to the instant pot.
    2. Seal and select meat as the option. Set for 15 mins.
    3. Once done, release and check how tender the meat is.
    4. Repeat this step if needed.
    5. Add pre-soaked split peas, and provisions to the pot along with about three cups of water. Make sure it's covering the contents of the pot. Cover, seal and select soup for 20-25 minutes.
    6. Release and test for doneness of split peas, tenderness of meat and flavor (salt/pepper), and how much liquid.
    7. Repeat if needed and add additional water.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 426kcal

    Notes

    How to soften cow heel without a pressure cooker: If you plan ahead, you can add the heel to your slow cooker and let it cook overnight on low. Add the meat and water to cover it along with the ingredients that would have been used to boil it and a tablespoon of green seasoning and let it sit overnight. Once it's tender then continue on the stovetop

    Tried this recipe?

    Let us know how it was!