How Should I Cook Fresh Peas In Their Pods?

[kaneohegirlinaz]

I went to our local Farmer's Market this morning and got these lovely fresh Peas.
This was the first Farmers Market since the Pandemic, by the way.

I've never eaten nor cook with fresh Peas before, and to honest, I can't recall every even have seen a fresh Pea in it's pod before!
I had walked right past them and hadn't noticed them at the Market today.

There was a tent featuring an up and coming new chef in the area and made this just gorgeous dish and had folks sample it,
take a photo of the recipe and where to get all of the ingredients all right there at the market!

I chatted up the farmer and she was telling me that these Peas can be eaten pod and all, simply "pull the string off" and eat it - raw.
Now I did not take a picture that Chef's recipe with the Peas in it, but I recall that she had cut the whole Pea Pods into small pieces and I think steamed them, I'm not sure.

So my question to the CB Community:
How should I cook these fresh Peas in their pods?

 

[karadekoolaid]

Yes - when I was a kid, we used to eat fresh peas from the pod.
However, if you buy peas-in-the-pod:

• Pull the stringy end down towards you
• Open the pod
• Push the peas out into a bowl.

I´d say you can only eat the peas in the pod when the peas are really small, ie. a little bit underripe. Think mangetouts.
Peas are so divine, the only thing I love to do with them is boil them is salted water until they´re tender, then slather them with butter.

 

[Morning Glory]

You can cook them with the pods but it really depends on how young and tender those pods are. My rule of thumb would be that if you can eat them raw then they will be OK. So before proceeding I'd cut off a piece of the pod and eat it raw.

 

[garlichead]

Snow peas and sugar snap are good to eat in the shell but regular peas and those look like regular garden variety is pretty fibrous and bitter. Imo.

 

[garlichead]

Just give it a try first before you commit.

 

[kaneohegirlinaz]

Mahalo, thanks all!
So I went with my gut ... both DH & I tasted a couple of whole Pea Pods for quality control
I snapped off the tops, pulled out the "string" and then chomped down, they were so sweet and tasty.
DH suggested that we go with half raw and half cooked.

Really good. For the cooked, I cut the whole Pods into small bite sized pieces, steamed them lightly and tossed them in some of my homemade compound Butter.
Now I wish that I had bought more than just one pint!
Hopefully that farmer will be at the Market next Saturday with more Peas.

 

[kaneohegirlinaz]

Note to self:
That "Chef In Action" that gave me the idea in the first place to go buy these Peas had them cut into small bite sized pieces like this and then in a lovely Pesto, I think with cream and then over some Chicken pieces, it was yummy!
Not something for DH, but then I could always buy more than 1 pint of fresh Pea in their Pods!

 

[rascal]

We pick from the garden, pod then freeze. We get about 2 kgs a year.

Russ

 

[kaneohegirlinaz]

We pick from the garden, pod then freeze. We get about 2 kgs a year.

Russ

Does freezing the whole Pod degraded the texture of the pod once defrosted and cooked?
I'd love to be able to freeze Peas in their Pods, they were so delicious!

 

[rascal]

Does freezing the whole Pod degraded the texture of the pod once defrosted and cooked?
I'd love to be able to freeze Peas in their Pods, they were so delicious!

No we pod the peas ( take them out of the pod) then freeze. Within 20 mins of picking. Pods are green waste.

Russ

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Does freezing the whole Pod degraded the texture of the pod once defrosted and cooked?
I'd love to be able to freeze Peas in their Pods, they were so delicious!

If you prep them first, so destring them, cut to size, you can blanch or not, I don't but I do prepare them as I want to eat them, then freeze.
To cook, I just plunge the entire thing directly into boiling water. They will take very little time longer than normal so watch like a hawk.

I don't notice a difference, but I've always had them frozen when eaten in the pod. As a rule of they don't easily snap, I don't eat the pod. The pod can go tough and fibrous if the peas have been on the plant too long so look for less plump pods they are not limp from water loss. Test the thickest pod by snapping and eating raw. That will tell you if you need to destring and if the pod is still edible. Aim to undercook a fraction because by the time you've drained and served, they'll be slightly overcooked and losing that brilliant green colour.

And the easiest way of testing if it will work for you, is just to freeze a couple in their pods, destrung next time you buy some and try.

 

[kaneohegirlinaz]

I went to the Farmers Market again this past Saturday and I found out that these are Sugar Snap Peas!
Either way, I'll be going back for more. The farmer said that she excepts to have them maybe 2 more weeks.
I must say that I've never really utilized our Farmers Markets but I will now.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

found out that these are Sugar Snap Peas!

Make sure those are as plump (aka mature) as you get them then. Sugar snap peas tend to be more shell and Iess pea than the garden pea, but more pea than snow peas. They'll certainly store in the freezer as above. I did that with sugar snap peas in the UK and now with snow peas in Australia. (Sugar snap peas are a cross between the snow pea and a garden pea.) Anything plumper and you'll find the pods have become tough and impossible to eat even after cooking.