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Trini Corn Soup Recipe – The Classic Version (Inspired by Cooking with Ria)
If you’ve ever made traditional Trini Corn Soup from scratch, you know one thing: you’re not just making soup—you’re making a commitment.
We first tackled this iconic recipe following Cooking with Ria’s method—the full, beautiful, soul-warming, takes-forever-but-worth-it version.
(And YES… it took nearly 5 hours. We have the emotional scars—and the satisfied bellies—to prove it.)
Welcome to the Long Game.
Why This Trini Corn Soup Is Legendary
This isn’t your “whip it up on a weeknight” type of recipe. This is simmer-for-hours, chop-everything, taste-as-you-go, feel-every-feeling cooking.
And honestly? It delivers.
- The split peas are slow-cooked into a rich, creamy broth that coats every spoonful.
- The pumpkin, sweet potatoes, and corn melt into sweet, earthy pockets of goodness.
- The dumplings are little pillows of joy.
- The green seasoning brings that unmistakable Trini flavor punch.
- The scotch bonnet and coconut milk round it out into pure comfort food magic.
Ingredients You’ll Need (and Love)
- Dried split peas
- Fresh corn on the cob (sliced into chunky rounds)
- Coconut milk
- Pumpkin, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, carrots
- Green seasoning (trust us, make extra)
- Dumplings (flour + salt + brown sugar, the trio of life)
- Scotch bonnet pepper (for that fiery heartbeat)
- All the aromatics: onion, garlic, pimento peppers, thyme, celery, bandhania
It’s basically a Caribbean market’s worth of flavor simmering in one epic pot.
Our Experience (Spoiler: It Was a Whole Journey)
We started bright-eyed and full of hope, soaking the split peas and prepping the vegetables like we were auditioning for Top Chef Trinidad Edition.
Hour 1: Split peas boiling. Vegetables chopped. Vibes high.
Hour 2: Green seasoning pulsing. Peeling corn kernels by hand. Maybe singing a little.
Hour 3: Realizing we hadn’t even started the dumplings yet. Mood… slipping.
Hour 4: Soup is thickening. Arms are tired. Life flashing before eyes.
Hour 5: Final stir. First taste. Immediate forgiveness for everything.
Would we do it again?
Maybe… but also maybe not without a massage appointment booked right after.
Hotsteppa vs Traditional: What’s the Move?
If you’re short on time (or sanity), we created a Hotsteppa Corn Soup version that cuts cooking time to under an hour by roasting the veggies first.
Same comfort, less emotional commitment.
👉 You can check out our Hotsteppa Corn Soup post here if you’re feeling impatient but still hungry.
But if you want to experience corn soup the way aunties and legends intended—this is the real deal.
Pull out the big pot. Clear your afternoon. Light a candle for your future self.
Final Thoughts: Worth Every Simmering Second
Cooking with Ria’s Trini Corn Soup recipe is a full experience—the smells, the bubbling pot, the steady layering of flavors over time.
It’s food that hugs you back after a long day (or long year).
Even if you only make it once, you’ll understand why this dish is a must-have at every lime, fête, and family gathering.
Some recipes are shortcuts.
Some recipes are survival.
And some, like this one, are history in a bowl.
#TriniCornSoup #CookingWithRia #CaribbeanRecipes #DiasporaCooking #MoodyEater #SoupThatHugsBack #TraditionalTriniSoup
✰✰✰✰✰ star TRY TRY TRY before you die
Traditional Trinidad Corn Soup
Equipment
- 1 Pot large
- 1 blender immersion or food processor
- 4 cooking spoons
- 1 Pot medium
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried split peas, rinsed and drained
- 8 cups water or stock, or boiled salted meat broth
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 hot pepper, chopped
- 6 tbsp green seasoning
- 1 lb sweet potato, peeled and chopped
- ½ lb potato, peeled and chopped
- ¾ lb pumpkin , cubed
- 1 medium carrot , chopped
- 15 oz creamed corn , canned or homemade
- 2 cups coconut milk, fresh or canned
- 2 tbsp all-purpose seasoning, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, ½ tsp turmeric, 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 ears of corn, sliced into rounds each about 1 inch
- 1 ½ cups corn kernels , about 2 ears of fresh corn, shaved
- 5 tsp Himalayan salt, to taste
Flour Dumplings
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- ¾ cup water , to knead
Finishing Seasoning
- 4 bandhania
- ¼ cup celery leaves, chopped
- 2 pimento peppers , chopped
Instructions
To make split peas stock
- Add water to a stock pot over medium heat, pour in 1 cup dried split peas washed and stock of choice. Boil until split peas is a smooth consistency. Use immersion blender to blend half of the mixture. This can be made ahead of time. If using salted meat, rinse off the salt and boil under cooked but still firm. You may need to repeat if it is still salty. Once done you can add it to the split peas.
For Traditional Corn Soup
- Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1 onion and hot pepper and cook for 1 minute until translucent.
- Stir in 4 tbsp 6 tbsp green seasoning and cook for 2 minute.
- Add cubed potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrot, pumpkin and stir to combine. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook for 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are cooked but firm.
- Add split pea stock, coconut milk and cream style corn. Raise heat to high and bring to a boil. Cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking.
- Stir in whole chopped corn and corn kernels, ½ finishing herbs, 2 tbsp green seasoning, thyme, hot pepper, all-purpose seasoning, about 4 cups of hot water (more or less according to your preference) and salt if required. Raise heat to high to bring to a boil, then immediately reduce it to low and simmer while you prepare the dumplings (or make ahead).
To make dumplings
- Meanwhile, in a bowl, add 2 cups flour, 1 tsp salt and 1 tbs sugar and mix to combine. Gradually add water and knead to form a firm dough, about 5 minutes. Shape dumplings and add to the pot. Stir to combine. Add more water or stock if too thick, finishing herbs and salt, if required.
- Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes more.
Notes
We used about 6-8 ears of corn in the video to make the fresh corn kernels, cream style corn from scratch and 2 sliced corn.It must be noted that there was a very obvious timing error with her recipe. It takes more than 4 hours to make Corn Soup the traditional, old fashioned way. We came up up with a faster version using the same ingredients but more efficiently put together.
Did you make this recipe?
Please let us know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and tag @moody.eater on Instagram and hashtag it #moodyeater #moodyeatersclub .
