PEAS AND THEIR PREPARATION

59. In addition to beans and lentils, the class of vegetables called legumes includes PEAS, which, both green and dried, are used for food. In composition, there is a decided difference between the two varieties of peas, the green ones being about equal to green corn in food value, and the dried ones having a food value nearly four times as great. In each case, the food substance in the greatest amount is in the form of carbohydrate. In green peas, this is in the form of sugar, while in dried ones it is changed into starch. Peas also contain protein in the form of legumin, there being three times as much of this substance in dried peas as in green ones. The amount found in green peas is sufficient to be of importance in the diet, but the percentage of this substance is so great in dried peas that they may be used very satisfactorily as a meat substitute.

60. GREEN PEAS.--Numerous varieties of green peas are found on the market. A few of them are cooked in the pods, especially when the peas are very young, and are eaten pods and all, just as are string beans. Most of them, however, are allowed to mature further and only the peas are eaten, the shell being discarded.

When green peas are purchased, they are always found in the pods. For the peas to be most satisfactory, the pods should be fresh and green and should appear to be well filled. Flat-looking pods mean that the peas have not matured sufficiently. After being purchased, the peas should not be removed from the pods until they are to be cooked. However, if it is necessary that they stand for any length of time after they are shelled, they should be kept in a cool place in order to prevent them from shriveling. Their cooking is similar to that of any other fresh vegetable; that is, they should be cooked in boiling salted water in a covered vessel until they are tender enough to be easily crushed between the fingers or pierced with a fork. With this preliminary preparation, they may be dressed in any desirable manner.

61. DRIED PEAS.--Dried peas, because of their nature, require a different kind of preparation from green peas. In fact, their cooking is similar to that of dried beans. They require long slow cooking and are improved if they are first parboiled in water to which a pinch of soda has been added. They are not used extensively except in the making of soups or occasionally for a purée or a soufflé, but as they are very high in food value and can be used as a meat substitute, they should have a prominent place in the dietary of most families. Many of the ways in which dried beans and lentils are prepared are fully as applicable in the case of dried peas.

62. GREEN PEAS WITH BUTTER.--When peas are young and tender, no more appetizing way to prepare them can be found than to boil them and then serve them with butter.

Select fresh green peas with full pods, wash in cold water, and remove the peas from the shells. Put to cook in enough boiling salted water to cover well, and cook until tender. Pour off all but a small amount of the water, using the part poured off for making soup or sauce. Add 1 tablespoonful of butter for each four persons to be served, and season with additional salt if necessary and a dash of pepper. Serve hot.

63. GREEN PEAS ENGLISH STYLE.--If the flavor of mint is agreeable, green peas prepared English style will undoubtedly find favor. Cook them as for green peas with butter, but, at the time the butter is added, add 1 tablespoonful of finely chopped fresh mint. Season with additional salt, if necessary, and pepper, allow all to simmer together for a few minutes, and serve.

64. CREAMED PEAS.--A cream sauce adds considerable food value and flavor to green peas. Peas prepared in this way may be served plain, but they can be made very attractive by serving them in croustades, as shown in Fig. 13. As already learned, croustades are cases made from large pieces of bread that are cut any desired shape, hollowed out, and then toasted in a hot oven or on a broiler or fried in deep fat until crisp.

CREAMED PEAS

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Cook the peas in boiling salted water until tender, and then drain the water from them, retaining 1/2 cupful for the sauce. Melt the butter, add the flour, salt, and pepper, and stir in the hot liquids. Cook until the flour has thickened and then pour over the peas. Serve hot, either plain or in croustades.

65. PEAS IN TURNIP CUPS.--A somewhat unusual dish can be prepared by making cups out of turnips, filling them with peas, and then pouring a cream sauce over the peas. Besides being attractive, this combination makes a very palatable vegetable dish.

Select a sufficient number of medium-sized white turnips. Wash them thoroughly, and then hollow out the inside of each, leaving cup-shaped shells about 1/4 inch thick. Cook these shells in boiling salted water until tender, but not tender enough to break into pieces, and remove from the water. Then, according to the directions given in Art. 60, cook enough green peas to fill the cups. When tender, fill the cups with the peas and over them pour a medium white sauce. Serve hot.

66. PEAS PURÉE.--Many persons who cannot eat peas because of the coarse outside skins are able to digest them in the form of a purée. To prepare them in this way, boil fresh peas in the manner explained in Art. 60. When they are tender, force them through a purée sieve or a fine-mesh wire sieve. The pulp will pass through the sieve, but the coarse skins will remain. The purée thus made may be used for soup or in the making of a soufflé.

67. PEAS SOUFFLÉ.--Nothing in the way of peas is more appetizing and at the same time more easily digested than peas soufflé. This may be baked in a large baking dish, or it may be divided and baked in individual baking dishes.

PEAS SOUFFLÉ

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Melt the butter, stir in the flour, and add the heated milk. Cook until the mixture thickens and then add the peas purée, salt, and pepper. Separate the eggs, beat the yolks and add them to the mixture, and then fold in the stiffly beaten whites. Pour into a well-greased baking dish or individual baking dishes, place in a pan of hot water, and bake in a slow oven until set, or for 30 or 40 minutes. Serve at once.