Snow Peas

There are generally three types of peas that are commonly eaten: garden or green peas, snow peas and snap peas. Snow peas (or chinese peas) are flatter than garden peas, and since they are not fully opaque, you can usually see the shadows of the flat peas seeds within. Snow Peas are edible podded peas with the best features of snap beans (tender and crispy) and garden peas (sweet and meaty). Edible pods mature quickly and should be picked for vegetable use when young. Smaller ones tend to be sweeter peas. Snow peas are a very good source of vitamin K, manganese, dietary fiber, vitamin B1, copper, vitamin C, phosphorus and folate. Store peas unwashed, unshelled in the refrigerator in a bag or unsealed container will keep for several days. Fresh peas can also be blanched for one or two minutes and then frozen. Young Snow Peas are excellent for salads.