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Peas

A surprisingly rich source of protein and good carbs, peas make a versatile and delicious addition to any menu.

By Cary Neff

May 2007

Food Basics
Nutritional Know-How
Kitchen Tricks
Eat Up!

With their crisp shells, sweet, creamy flavor, and jewel-like shape and color, peas are delicious, nutritious and easy to prepare in a variety of delightful ways.

Food Basics

Peas are members of the legume family, plants that bear pods enclosing fleshy seeds. But unlike most legumes, peas are green, and you can buy them fresh at the market – if you know where to look. About 95 percent of the peas available in stores are frozen or canned, because their sugars turn so quickly to starch after being picked.
Sweet green peas are sometimes available in their pods, but you'll need to shell them before eating. If choosing between frozen or canned sweet green peas, frozen are preferable since they are shelled and frozen within a few hours of being picked to seal in their nutrients and vibrant green color. The process of canning peas, which often includes adding salt and sugar, can create a dull color and mushy texture.

When selecting snow peas or sugar-snap peas (which are a cross between snow and green peas), look for firm, crisp pods with smooth skin.

Nutritional Know-How

Green peas are a fabulous fresh vegetable source of protein, second only to lima beans. A 100-calorie serving of peas (about 3/4 cup) contains more protein than a whole egg or a tablespoon of peanut butter. Rich in vitamin K1, folic acid and vitamin B6, peas help keep your bones healthy, and their combination of folic acid, B vitamins and iron helps boost energy and improve cardiovascular health. An excellent source of good carbs, peas also contain a significant amount of cancer-fighting flavonoids and antioxidant-rich vitamin C. Snow peas are lower in protein than sweet green peas but provide a bit more iron and twice the calcium.

Kitchen Tricks

• Fresh, unwashed peas should be stored in an unsealed container or perforated bag in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator for up to three days to preserve texture and nutrient content. When kept at room temperature, about half of peas' sugar content will turn to starch within six hours.
• To store peas longer than three days, blanch and freeze them. To blanch, plunge the peas into boiling water for one to two minutes and then immerse them in cold water.
• When preparing snow peas, cut off the tips of both ends of the pods. To prepare sugar-snap peas, remove the ends, as well as the chewy strings running down both sides of the pods.

Eat Up!

You can eat all types of peas raw, blanched, sautéed, boiled (for about five minutes using as little water as possible to retain vitamin C) or steamed (one to two minutes shelled; two to three minutes in a pod).

• Include sweet green peas in hot or cold soups, risottos, green salads, and egg or chicken salad.
• Steam or sauté sweet green peas with mushrooms and pearl onions for a delicious side dish.
• For an elegant and edible garnish, try pea shoots (also called tendrils). They are the leaves and shoots of immature pea plants.
• Dried split peas cook quickly, and there is no need to soak them prior to making a soup.

Chef Cary Neff is the president of the consulting firm Culinary Innovations and the author of The New York Times bestseller Conscious Cuisine (Sourcebooks, 2002).