Garden peas, including snap- and snow-peas, belong to the large Legume family. Their highly diverse relatives include beans, clover, alfalfa, sweet-peas, lupine, and kudzu. "Legume" refers to the sometimes edible seed-pod, which divides down the middle. Those who grew up shelling peas or beans remember pulling the "strings" along the pod to release the seeds. Peas favor climates with long springs and slowly warming summers. Traditionally, in Ireland, peas were planted on St. Patrick's Day. While in America most peas are frozen for market, shelling fresh peas is fun.
What to Look For:
Peas Storage and Preparation Tips:
Cooking with Peas:
Fresh peas take only a few minutes longer than frozen ones to cook. Steam lightly, till green color becomes very intense. Peas combine well with carrots, onions, and potatoes. A dish of peas, new potatoes, and parsley butter announces to one and all that early summer has begun. Peas incorporate well into Indian curries and edible-pod peas are an Asian stir-fry staple.
Historically, dried shelled peas have sustained hungry families. The "pease porridge" of nursery-rhyme fame was cooked in British homes and on sailing vessels in colonial times. It appears in German and Northern European cooking as a thinner split-pea soup, often adding root vegetables and smoked meat to the dish. Indian dried peas are cooked into dal, a thick porridge seasoned with cumin, garlic, tumeric, and red pepper, often served as a daily main dish.
Peas Nutrition Highlights:
Peas are often attractive to children because of their sweetness. Like other legumes, peas are a good source of protein as well as fiber. Peas also contain higher levels of calcium, phosphorus, and iron than many other vegetables, promoting bone and blood health. Like other legumes, peas play a strong nutritional role in vegetarian diets.