Saturday, May 29, 2010

Mange Tout


Was it the Latin Pisum which then became the Old English Pise and finally Pease?  This one is a French Mange tout which means you eat the whole pea, pod and all, as sweet and juicy as can be, and need I say super healthy?  It is actually not a true snow pea   This one is a flat snow pea type, and therefore, the peas inside do not get large.



The season is so preciously short for these nutritional and delicious vegetables that by the time days linger in the 80's C, the plant stops producing and the remaining peas become starchy and tough.  Therefore, it gets planted as one of the very first plants in spring, before the last frost and as soon as the ground can be worked.  According to my Internet research more than 1,000 species of this treasure exist today.

The collection in the strainer above of both edible podded peas and snow peas was stir fried every so lightly in butter and olive oil, salt and lemon zest, and an herb or two and then tossed with freshly picked crab.  OMG!

6 comments:

  1. this brings back great memories of picking peas with mom, and enjoying a snack along the way...hope you have a wonderful weekend!

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  2. oh my...your post had me sitting on the porch with my grandma, snapping beans! i'd almost forgotten what a lovely flower the plant comes with! your photography is gorgeous and i appreciate the recipe, too!

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  3. Great photo and it sounds so delicious. Thanks
    Hugs
    SueAnn

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  4. Love these, and planted some 2 weeks ago, a little late even for chilly Oregon.

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  5. Alright, now I'm hungry--and you live about a thousand miles away. What am I going to do?

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  6. Oh yum.. fresh peas are wonderful. I can taste that sweetness right off of the photo.

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