Frozen green peas are available all year round, but during the season, from early June to mid-August, it is better to have time to feast on fresh, sweet and tender young peas. It practically does not need cooking, and there are many dishes from it.
In season, young green peas cook very quickly. It is enough to boil it in boiling water for a few minutes until soft, add a piece of butter, season with black pepper, maybe mash it a little with a fork and serve as a side dish for fish or meat. But even this simple recipe has variations. Bourgeois peas are obtained by boiling peas with a bunch of parsley, draining the water and adding raw yolk and a little sugar to a hot vegetable in a saucepan. Take one chicken yolk per 100 grams of peas. Buttery green peas, which are served on toast - fried pieces of bread, are prepared using a sauce made from flour and butter, a little sugar and nutmeg.
Young peas are often stewed with bacon and onions. In Italian cuisine, fresh green peas are almost a must in spring-style Primavera dishes, and they are also placed in risotto sprinkled with fresh chopped mint and sprinkled with lemon juice before serving.
For picnics and light snacks, you can use cheese such as feta, chopped mint and plenty of olive oil. In Spain, tortillas with baby peas and other seasonal vegetables are popular in summer.
Pea soup seasoned with cream, sour cream or kefir is also good in the heat. To make it, take 1 bunch of green onions, 1 medium diced potato, 1 clove of garlic, minced, 1 quart of vegetable or chicken stock, and 250 g of peeled young peas. Also prepare 4 tablespoons of chopped fresh mint, a large pinch of brown sugar, and 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice. Potatoes and garlic are boiled in the broth. 3 tablespoons of peas are blanched for a side dish - boiled in boiling water for 2-3 minutes, drain off the boiling water and put in a bowl of cold water. The rest of the peas are placed in the soup five minutes before cooking. Remove the pan from the heat and add the mint, sugar, and lemon juice. Cool and puree with a blender. Put about 100 ml of kefir, cream or sour cream and season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Serve chilled, not forgetting to garnish with blanched peas.
