Sugar snap peas are a wonderful spring treat that is naturally sweet enough to eat raw and are only in season for a few short weeks. But what if you want to take advantage of them through their fleeting springtime?
The remedy is freezing. However, placing a large quantity of fresh sugar snap peas in the freezer will result in a somewhat slimy, partially stained (brownish) vegetable. Not all that appealing, But if you blanch the vegetables for only a few minutes before freezing them, you’ll have a delight that is ready to eat as soon as it thaws. Alternatively, since frozen sugar snap peas don’t need to be thawed before cooking, they can be wonderfully added to stir-fries and other savory recipes right from the freezer.
What is Sugar Snap Peas?
A vegetable for chilly climates is the snap pea. It is best sown and picked for flavor in the spring or fall. Snap peas are best gathered in medium to dark green when the pod is 2 to12 inches (6.4-7.5 cm) long.
The snap pea is a hybrid of the snow pea and the garden or English pea. It looks like an English pea but has a smaller, bent pod.
Like snow peas, snap peas are completely edible, but their flavor is sweeter. Unlike snow peas, snap peas taste best after the peas have developed inside the pod.
Snap peas are a relatively new variety of pea. Even though sugar peas have been available since the seventeenth century, the sugar snap was developed in the late 1970s—many types are stringless!
How to Freeze Sugar Snap Peas?
There are a few procedures to do when freezing sugar snap peas, but it is worthwhile.
- To clean the pea pods. The stem ends of the pods should be cut off and discarded or composted.
- Prepare a sizable dish of ice water.
- Bring water in a big pot to a boil. Add the sugar snap peas to the saucepan of water just beginning to boil. They only need to cook for 1 1/2 minutes. In a colander, quickly drain the sugar snap peas.
- Transfer the sugar snap peas right away to the ice-water bowl. This prevents the peas from continuing to cook due to residual heat. Give the peas two minutes in the freezing water. Drain them thoroughly in a colander once more.
- On a baking sheet, arrange the blanched sugar snap pea pods in a single layer—Froth for one to two hours (until completely frozen).
- Date-mark the freezer bags or containers where you transferred the frozen sugar snap peas. Sugar snap peas can be stored frozen for up to 8 months. After that, they are still safe to consume, but their quality will deteriorate.
Tips: The final product will be more delicious if you can get sugar snap peas from harvest to freezer as quickly as possible. Avoid confusing snap pea pods with snow pea pods; the snap peas’ rounded shape should be visible through the delicate pods, and they will be larger than the unformed peas found in snow pea pods. Pea pods that are bright green and have not yet started to dry up at the stem end are the ones to look for. Pea pods that are bright green and have not yet started to dry up at the stem end are the ones to look for.
Why Blanch Sugar Snap Peas?
When a vegetable is blanched, it is briefly cooked in boiling water before being submerged in an ice water bath (to stop the cooking). Since blanching sugar snap pea pods eliminates the enzymes responsible for breaking down organic matter once the pods are harvested from the parent plant, it is a crucial step for freezing sugar snap peas.
Although the freezer’s low temperatures kill dangerous germs, they do not eradicate those enzymes. That is taken care of in the blanching process.
How Long does Sugar Snap Peas Last in the Fridge?
The storage circumstances greatly influence the specific response to that query, thus keeping fresh sugar snap peas cold.
Fresh sugar snap peas should be kept in the refrigerator in a plastic bag and should not be washed until needed.
Fresh sugar snap peas have a short shelf life in the refrigerator. Fresh sugar snap peas can normally be kept in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days when properly refrigerated.
Peas should be carefully washed to freeze, with the stems removed and left whole. They should then be blanched (dumped into boiling water for 1 to 1/2 minutes) and then chilled in ice water.
What are the Serving Suggestions for Snap Peas?
Sugar snaps can be eaten raw or only briefly cooked to preserve their crisp, crunchy texture. Before stir-frying or adding sugar snaps to salads, blanch them in hot water for 30 seconds.
Sugar snap is quickly boiled before being tossed with butter, herbs, or herb butter. As a side dish with fish, chicken, pig, cattle, veal, or salads, offer sautéed sugar snap peas.
Snap peas and shrimp should be stir-fried and served hot with rice. Serve cold snap peas along with shrimp, rice, and vinaigrette. Snap peas can be added to stews right before serving. Snap peas as tempura, batter-fried.
What is the Difference Between Snap Peas and Snow Peas?
Both snap peas and snow peas grow by climbing up a pole, string, or stalk, are members of the legume family, and have similar sizes and shapes, yet they are distinct from one another.
Green, rectangular, flat, and shaped like a pea pod, snow peas (also known as Chinese peas) have tiny peas visible through the outside of the pod. They can be either raw or cooked and have a moderate flavor.
Snap peas are a hybrid of the garden pea and the snow pea. They have a sweet, juicy, crisp flavor and will “snap” when you break them in half. They can also be eaten whole, raw, or cooked. The peas in a snap pea are normally invisible outside the pod.
What are the Beneficial Effects of Snap Peas on Health?
Even though many foods are touted as “perfect,” snap peas may rank among the greatest in terms of the vitamins, minerals, and other beneficial ingredients this adorable tiny legume offers. In addition to antioxidants from vitamin C, several B-complex vitamins, folate, iron, and beta-carotene, snap peas also include vitamin K, which helps your bones retain calcium (another antioxidant that can help ward off cancer cells).
Snap peas are a fantastic addition to many dishes that call for steamed or cooked vegetables, but they are also delicious as a snack straight from the bag. Their fiber helps you stay full, and their sweet flavor can help you control your sweet desire. Only 41 calories, 7 grams of carbs, 2.5 grams of fiber, 4 grams of sugar, 0 grams of fat, and 3 grams of protein are found in one cup of snap peas.
How to Prepare and Cook Snap Peas?
Snap peas should be cooked or eaten as soon as possible after being picked to preserve as much flavor and freshness as possible. The entire pod can be consumed raw or cooked, though some people choose to remove the string that runs down the center of the pods and clip the ends of the pods. Cooking with snap peas is, well, a snap, as you’ll discover! Rinse the snap peas, clip the ends, and let your creativity soar for the greatest results.
As a side note, you can quickly prepare two of my favorite healthy side dishes—Garlic Sugar Snap Peas or Sesame Sugar Snap Peas—with snap peas in under 10 minutes. The best part is that all the components are probably already in your kitchen, waiting to be combined into something delicious.
Snap peas are a simple ingredient to include in any soup, especially Asian-inspired soups like this one with sesame soba noodles and fresh vegetables.
When your noodles are almost done, drop them right into the same pot and continue cooking them for only a few minutes.
A stir-fry: I used the same skillet that I seared the tofu in to sauté the snap peas and eggplant for just a few minutes before adding the other ingredients back in and serving, which saved time and required fewer dishes. Another keeper recipe is this sesame tofu and snaps pea dish.
Pasta is like a painting in pasta dishes. Why not add garlic, snap peas, a protein, and a great low-fat creamy, gooey, gooey sauce to spruce it up? This Bacon and Sugar Snap Pea Pasta recipe was developed similarly. We also adore this recipe for Snap Pea Pasta with Black Pepper and Garlic.
Sheet pan meals For sheet pan meals like this, soy and mango marinated chicken thighs with sugar snap peas, sugar snap peas are ideal because they cook rapidly.
Snap peas can be incorporated into salads fresh, blanched, or cooked for a crisp addition. They are also a fantastic addition to salads served as entrees, like this salad of snap peas and farro.
Conclusion
When freezing sugar snap peas, make sure you remove any stringy seams. After that, you can dry them off with paper towels and store them in a freezer container or bag. After that, they can last up to eight months, but their quality will start to deteriorate after that point. So, do not forget to blanch them before freezing! This simple step will help keep the peas fresh for as long as possible!
