Crunchy and vibrant sugar snap peas coated with spring onion flavoured oil are a wonderful side dish.
All beans are legumes
Many of us know about legumes and pulses, but when you think ‘legumes’ I bet you envisage mainly lentils and chickpeas, plus perhaps some dried beans like kidney, black eyed or butter. But green beans? runner beans? haricots verts if you’re French? Naaah – not really!
Surprise: all beans are legumes, including the fresh green ones, yellow and purple Italian ones and those funny ones that you eat with pods - sugar snaps and mangetout.
New peas on the block
You might also be surprised to find that snap peas are a relatively new vegetable, the ‘sugar snap’ variety that we know having been cultivated only since 1979.
They are apparently grown mainly in southern hemisphere which is nonsense, since they’ve been growing abundantly in my little vegetable garden patch this summer. Another example of the stupid way supermarkets source fresh produce, flying in vegetables that grow amazingly well in Britain.
How to prepare sugar snap peas
Snap peas are very cute, with the stems that look like funny elvish hats on the end and fully edible pods hiding round pearls of peas.
The only snag is the string running alongside the pod on both sides. It should be removed before cooking, but I actually find stringing the peas quite therapeutic. Shame that it involves removing the elf hats though.
Once trimmed and stringed, sugar snap peas need very little cooking, steaming, boiling or stir frying. They are edible raw though on the fibrous side so probably best thinly sliced if you plan to use them in salads.
Spring onion oil
Just boiled or steamed they are nice and crunchy but perhaps slightly boring. Topping them with crispy strips of spring onions fried in olive oil is just the added interest they need. And the oil beautifully glosses the green pods.
The best way to crispen the spring onions evenly is to cook the white and pale parts first, as they will take longer to crispen. Don’t use too high a heat or the olive oil will burn. When the first, white batch of onions is starting to brown, add the green parts also cut into thin strips.
Meanwhile, cook the snap peas which will need no more than three minutes of simmering in a pan of water. Drain, garnish with spring onion crisps and drizzle with the oil – and we’re ready to serve.
The remaining oil must be reserved because it's delightfully fragrant, to be used in salad dressing, drizzling over other vegetables or for dipping freshly baked focaccia in.
More fresh bean recipes
Green beans with Parmesan cream, a creamy casserole of green beans in cheese sauce. The Parmesan cream is easier to make than thermidor or mornay sauce and can easily replace either in a variety of dishes.
Green bean casserole is so good when homemade and cooked from scratch! Creamy mushroom sauce is easy to make, while blanching then drying fresh green beans stops them from being soggy.
The best way to cook runner beans is to blanch them for 5 minutes, until just tender with a bite, then toss in butter and Parmesan. Runner beans can be served in a salad or as a side with a main course.
More recipes with spring onions
Salmon fillet cooked with oyster sauce and a touch of brown sugar is a perfect umami storm. Salmon gently simmered in the sweet and salty sauce with spring onions and crushed garlic is ready in 10 minutes.
Takeaway-style Chinese sesame noodles, a simple and easy dish of egg or rice noodles with takeaway-style flavours. Sesame noodles with spring onions and beans, homemade sesame paste, served with chopped peanuts and cucumbers: ready in 15 minutes.
Crab salad with spring onions and radishes, served in lettuce leaf boats garnished with avocado slices. That's an elegant starter or a tasty sandwich filling.