We haven't seen these yet on the East Coast, but we know you lucky Californians have sugar snap peas in season. They are one of our all-time favorite green vegetables, and they have a cute French name, too...
Ingredient Spotlight: Sugar Snap Peas
Sugar snap peas are often called mange tout, meaning "eat everything," since the peas as well as the chubby little pods are edible.
We make do with sugar snap peas from a bag in the grocery store, since they show up for about 12 minutes at the farmers' markets in New York. And we have to say, even out of a Dole bag, they are pretty spectacular. They don't need salt, they don't need to be blanched, they don't need a dip. They are sweet and have such a satisfying crunch. We almost always eat too many while making dinner and end up with too few for our dish.
There's rarely a need to trim them before you eat. You may want to snip off the very tip or pull the string down the side if it's tough. Eat them hot or cold, in a green salad or pasta salad. Or be like us and eat them straight from a bowl as a snack.
Some recipes to try:
• Pork Stir-Fry with Asparagus and Sugar Snap Peas, from the Kitchn
• Snap Peas with Meyer Lemon and Mint, from the Kitchn
• Risotto with Sugar Snap Peas and Prosciutto, from the Los Angeles Times
• Sauteed Radishes and Sugar Snap Peas with Dill, from Bon Appétit
• Chilled Soba with Tofu and Sugar Snap Peas, from Gourmet
What's your favorite way to eat sugar snap peas? Is anyone growing them this year?
Related: Cooking By Feel: Asian Flavor Combinations
(Image: Flickr member EraPhernalia Vintage, licensed for use under Creative Commons)
Tags
Recipe Roundup, Spring, Summer, Ingredients - Vegetables, peas, sugar snap peas, snap peasRelated Links
- What's Cooking This Weekend?
Weekend of August 15-16, 2009 - Weekend Cooking and Reading: Eggs and Hollandaise, Spicy Broccoli, Lemon Tart, and Anise Cookies
- Gallery: 11 Winter Salads to Eat Right Now
- Weekend Project: Make Your Own BBQ Sauce!
- Salads and Other Side Dishes
Best of 2008
Share
Comments (12)
Weekly Email
Top Posts
Top Recipes
- Appetizer Recipe: Bacon-Wrapped Potato Bites with Spicy Sour Cream Dipping Sauce
- Recipe: Ginger Pumpkin Pie with Graham Cracker Crust
- Two Cocktails for Thanksgiving
- Vegetarian Thanksgiving: Nutloaf! And Leftover Nutloaf!
- Recipe: Potato Dough Rolls
Top Tours
- Alvar Aalto's Spare and Simple Studio Kitchen
- Before & After: Kelly Moseley's Calming Austin Kitchen
- Joe and Kristin's Warm and Cozy Craftsman Kitchen
- Rachel's Busy Single Girl's Kitchen
- Kitchen Gallery: White, Bright, and Clean
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
i love snap peas--we harvested some from my mom's garden at the beginning of spring, and not only were they great fresh off the vine (we snacked while we picked, it was unavoidable!), they were delish in a simple stir-fry:
http://sustainablediet.blogspot.com/2009/04/simple-savvy-successful-stir-fry.html
view amber77's profile
The Asparagus Lady had a small stash of these on Saturday, which means the remaining 11 minutes start this coming weekend. I can't wait.
view cmcinnyc's profile
Perfect timing! I have a lot of sugar snap peas ready now in my home garden in Georgia. I was looking for some new things to do with them. I keep eating them right off the vine before taking them into the house.
view weremonkey's profile
It's not quite as fancy as New York or Boston, but these babies are definitely available at farmers markets/produce stands down by Ocean City, Md.!
view Kelseyjean85's profile
That's odd that you haven't seen them yet. I'm in DC and I just harvested the LAST of my sugar snap peas yesterday. But I guess it must be the DC heat. I'm sure you'll have them further up the coast in no time!
view GreenCayennes's profile
I've been buying them at the farmer's market in San Francisco. They're delicious. I'm also growing them out onmy deck in cotnainers. The blooms are fragrant and smell wonderful. There was one pod starting to develip, but I think one of the pigeons stole it, since it's no longer there, and they've been perching on the railing, eying the peas.
view adiaphane's profile
Sighted Saturday at Union Square Greenmarket in NYC! I think they were from Migliorelli. I bought a few handfuls to snack on at work (with hummus).
view asz's profile
There's a FANTASTIC sugar snap pea and mint salad recipe in the current issue of Cook's Country. Goat cheese and honey are secret ingredients--I made it for a party a couple of weeks ago and it was impossible to stop eating, yum.
view lasomnambule's profile
They had one crate of them at one of the stalls at the Columbia University farmer's market on Sunday (from upstate NY) and they went fast. I think it's the official start of the northeast season!
These are by far my favorite vegetable. I just eat them, raw. YUM!
view ScienceandtheCity's profile
@KelseyJean, fancy has nothing to do with it. It's still COLD up here!
view cmcinnyc's profile
i just had the first batch off our plants here in portland, or. so tasty in our salads...
view cassiopia's profile
I love sugar snap peas ice cold out of the fridge or just barely steamed. For some reason I LOVE pairing up cold snap peas with cold strips of raw red pepper - probably because those are also a bit sweet. There's something about this combo that is truly satisfying.
view Miss Pea's profile