Top 15+ Mistakes Everyone Seems To Make With Peas
Overcooking them
One of the major mistakes everyone seems to make with peas is that they often get overcooked. This is what turns them from vibrant deep green to that putrid yellowy green. In addition, overcooked peas, depending on the cooking method, can be extremely dry, tough, and starchy, or mushy and soupy. Typically, the latter is an issue, leaving a textureless baby-food-like feel in your mouth. As adults, we shouldn't be subjected to such a mushy mess, at least not while we have all of our teeth.
If you're cooking peas from scratch, you can boil them but should set a timer for just a minute or two. The peas will continue to cook slightly when removed from the boiling water unless rinsed immediately with cold water. Your objective is to have them go from papery light green to a deeper darker hue. Once you've obtained that, the peas are done. They should still have structure to them, and even pop a little when you bite them. If the skin is shriveling, or they are turning yellow, then you've gone overboard.
Boiling frozen peas
Did you know that most frozen vegetables that you buy at the grocery store are already cooked? Most of them have at least been steamed, blanched, or parboiled in order to retain their texture after they've been frozen and defrosted. So when you bust open a bag of frozen peas and boil them in water, you're actually overcooking them. If you leave them in there long enough, you might even notice that they become quite starchy, or even break down. To avoid this, forget the boiling water altogether.
Instead, toss your peas in a hot pan with a little butter or extra virgin olive oil. Let them simmer just long enough until they are no longer frozen, and remove from the heat immediately. If you wish to season them, do so while they are still in the hot pan to give the herbs and spices a chance to toast and become fragrant.
Always cooking them
Unless you grow peas fresh in your garden it's likely that you often buy, and enjoy cooked peas, whether at home or out to eat. And don't get us wrong, we love cooked peas, they are tender, bright, moist, and quite sweet. But the truth is that most people have never enjoyed a raw pea in their life, and we believe that they are missing out.
If you are able to get your hands on some fresh peas, you may have to do a little extra work. They are often sold in their pods, but shelling them isn't as arduous of a task as you might think. Simply start by rolling the pod between your fingers to aid them open, and loosen the pods. Once they are free, rinse them in cold water and enjoy them by the handful, in salads, or as a beautiful garnish. They are starchy, sweet, and slightly crunchy.
Eating them plain
Why do people always feel the need to serve peas plain Jane? The most common methods are boiled and steamed, but even a flavorful food like peas deserves to be dressed up a little. At the bare minimum, use a little butter to infuse the little green veggies with flavor, but extra virgin olive oil and sea salt work well too. To give peas cooked in olive oil the creaminess of peas cooked in butter, add a little nutritional yeast and let it dissolve in the liquid while the peas cook. Beyond salt and pepper basics, there are dozens of ways you can elevate your peas with spices.
For any green vegetable, a little tamari and lemon juice can go a long way. The acid of the lemon paired with the salty tamari creates a rounded mouthfeel when used in combination with sweet peas. For our more daring home chefs, consider adding a little sugar to enhance the sweetness of your peas, along with basics like salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Speaking of garlic, toss a little in the pan along with lemon and fresh parsley to bring out the more vegetable-like grassy qualities of the peas. When in doubt, use your favorite seasonings, you can't go wrong.
Thinking they're bland
On the other hand, plain peas are quite capable of carrying their own without a load of fresh herbs, aromatics, and spices. In fact, they have quite a unique flavor that makes them so incredibly desirable. Fresh peas, eaten raw are quite sweet with a deep green flavor, which depends on the variety and how soon they are picked after maturity. Peas that have been picked early are slightly grassier, while mature peas are loaded with natural sugars. Freshly picked peas have an entirely different range of sweetness to them than those that have sat in the grocery store for several days.
Cooked peas can also be eaten plain, and are known for their starchy, mild yet strong sweetness. Like corn, they become sweeter as the sugars are heated and are more easily digested by us humans. This is the preferred method of enjoyment, and while they have subtle spring-like undertones, a good, fresh pea should still carry quite a bit of flavor. If your peas are bland, it's likely you need to find a different source for them, like a local farm or vegetable stand if you're lucky enough to have one near you.
Believing you can undercook them
Some vegetables like potatoes, eggplant, or asparagus can be absolutely ruined if undercooked, leaving them stringy, fibrous, bitter, and even poisonous in some cases. Luckily, peas do not fall into that same category and have a full range when it comes to cooking requirements. In fact, they can even be eaten raw, which eliminates the fear that you can undercook them, depending on your desired outcomes.
If you're looking for a soft pea to blend into your dish without making a statement, then be sure to thoroughly cook them. The same goes for reheating frozen peas, they should be warm throughout, but not overcooked. Slightly blanched or heated peas can be incredibly delicious and will make more of a splash than their fully cooked friends. They will be a bit crunchier, starchier, and grassier, but not as intensely as the raw version. It's a great in-between for those looking for texture and aesthetic appeal.
Sticking to the microwave
It's so easy to throw fresh or frozen peas on a plate and let the microwave take care of the rest. After all, isn't that what the microwave is there for, convenience? Well, sometimes flavor trumps convenience and it's worth it to whip out a pan or pot to do your cooking. Especially when dealing with pre-cooked frozen peas, it's best to skip the microwave.
If you're planning on steaming your fresh peas in the microwave, do so with a microwave steamer. Simply submerging them in water and microwaving them until they boil can leave them overcooked. This is because if you were to boil peas on the stovetop, you would add them to already boiling water, and remove them shortly after. It's similar to the concept of pre-heating an oven or a stovetop pan. You want to add the food once it's hot, not let the food heat up with the air, water, or oil.
Not steaming them
There's a reason that corn, peas, and potatoes can be labeled as "unhealthy" and it typically has much more to do with how they are dressed than the actual vegetables themselves. Butter, mayonnaise, sour cream, and salt are often used beyond moderation to jazz up starchy vegetables. While it's tempting to douse veggies in oil and butter, there's a healthier option that's just as easy to prepare.
If you've never steamed vegetables, then you're missing out. Steaming is a step up from boiling and is a great way to retain moisture and nutrients. Steamer baskets are inexpensive and easy to use. Simply set them at the base of a pot, and fill water up to its base. Add your vegetables, and when the water boils, it will cook them in steam. When boiled, much of the vegetable nutrients are leached into the water, while with steaming much more of them are retained, making it one of the healthiest ways to cook veggies. Be sure to season your peas when they come out, cooked and bright green.
Limiting yourself to green peas
While green-shelled peas may be the talk of the town, there are plenty of other varieties of peas to experiment with. Variety is the spice of life, so why not take advantage of all peas have to offer? You may be familiar with some of the more common varieties like snap peas, snow peas, and shelling peas (which are the little green peas we remove from their pods). Even within each of these categories, there are different varieties. These peas, while all green, range in texture, shape, and flavor slightly.
While you can eat the shells of snap and snow peas, it's advised to remove the shell for shelling peas (hence the name) as it's quite fibrous and less pleasant to consume. If you've stuck to one variety your whole life, give the others a try. You may find that the sweetness and crunch of the snap peas or the tenderness of snow peas appeal to you more than your standard pea.
