Are you feeling hap-pea today? I hope so!
Today we’re going to learn a little bit about green peas – a vegetable that is harvested in June and July.
Green peas have been around for a very, very long time. It is estimated that people have been growing peas for almost 7,000 years! Any vegetable that is that old must be pretty good.
Approximately 16 million tons of green peas are produced worldwide each year – that is about the same weight as 400,000 humpback whales! A lot of peas are grown in India but peas can grow in many places.
You can think of peas as tasty little bursts of vitamins and minerals. One cup of green peas gives you 10% or more of your daily needs for more than 15 different nutrients! Wow! Below are some nutrients that you can get a lot of by eating green peas.
Fiber: improves digestion of food
Copper: helps form red blood cells
Vitamin C: promotes healing
Vitamin K: important for healthy bones and tissues
Thiamin: helps transform carbohydrates into energy
Green peas have a flavor that goes well with many things. Here are some ideas on what to do with green peas.
- Eat peas raw (straight from a garden is best)
- Add to a salad
- Put peas in a soup
- Use them in a stir fry
- Add peas to a pasta dish
- Boil peas, then add your favorite seasoning
- Saute peas with onions and a little olive oil.
All peas have a sweet flavor and can be eaten raw or cooked!
Garden peas: these peas of round – the peas are removed before eating and the shell is discarded.
Snow peas: these are flat with small peas inside. The whole pod (shell and peas) can be eaten.
Snap peas: these are a mix between garden and snow peas. The whole pod can be eaten.
Information came from thekitchn.com, eol.org, and medline.gov
I’ve had the pods roasted and salted… not bad.