Round Robin: Fresh Peas from the Garden

Enlarge Image Image Gallery Learn about growing and harvesting fresh garden peas from Leah A. Zeldes.

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CHICAGO, Illinois—I was an adult before I ever saw a pea in its pod. In my childhood, peas came in metal cans or cardboard boxes from the freezer. My first taste of fresh-from-the-garden peas was a revelation.

Fresh peas burst in your mouth, sweet and succulent, with satisfying sensation. They’re worth every bit of effort to grow and shuck.

Part of the Leguminosae family, the pea probably originated in Ethiopia during prehistoric times and spread to North Africa, Europe and Asia. Nearly every part of a pea plant is edible. The tender shoots and tendrils are popular in Asian stir-fries, African dishes and the hottest contemporary restaurant cuisine. They also make an excellent salad herb; the attractive flowers can be tossed in salads or candied. (However, do not confuse these with the flowers of ornamental sweet peas, Lathyrus odoratus, which are toxic.)

There are three basic kinds of peas. First is the garden, shelling or English pea, Pisum sativum, the regular, old-fashioned garden pea that most people regard as boring, at best, because they haven’t eaten it fresh.

These are the most satisfying to grow because the difference in the flavor of homegrown versus processed varieties is so profound. Even fresh peas from the grocer aren’t as good as peas straight from the garden.

Garden peas are classed as smooth- or wrinkle-seeded. The latter are sweeter and best for fresh eating, while smooth types contain more starch and thus are better for drying, freezing or canning. The French varieties, called petit pois, are half the size of regular peas and are supposed to be sweeter, too.

Fresh, young peas are tasty straight out of the pod and ambrosial when steamed lightly and buttered. Some people avoid the task of shelling by steaming the peas in their pods and then eating them by dipping the pods in melted butter and pulling them through their teeth.

Another type of pea is the snow pea, P. sativum var. macrocarpon, also called sugar peas, pea pods and, in French, mangetout, “eat all.” These are the peas often found in Chinese stir-fries. They’re also good raw with dip or in salads.

Snow peas are harvested before the pea seeds inside the pods begin to swell. They often have tough strings down the sides of the pods that must be removed before cooking. Everything else is edible.

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