Stokes Sauces: Peas, perfect peas - Great British Pea Week

https://www.stokessauces.co.uk/competition

Fresh as the moment
when the pod went POP !

http://www.stokessauces.co.uk/page/sauces/mayo-range

It is Great British Pea Week (9 - 15 July), a celebration of the pea harvest and the 700 British pea farmers who harvest 2 billion 80 g portions a year.

The first peas to be frozen were done so because of the invention of the 'plate froster' in 1920 by one, Clarence Birdseye. The vast majority of Garden Peas and Petits Pois are frozen within just two and a half hours of being picked, locking in their enormous nutritional values, rich colour and sweet taste.

The only difference between Garden Peas and Petit Pois is that the latter are picked younger.

DID YOU KNOW: The thick London fogs of the 19th and 20th Centuries were called 'pea soupers' because of their density and greenish tinge.

See if you can beat Janet Harris's world record this weekend. In 1984, she ate 7,175 peas on 60 minutes - one by one with chopsticks! OK, I agree ... watch the football and Wimbledon instead.

Peas please

Pea & Mint Ricotta Salad
with Mint Mayonnaise

You'll need:

4 to 6 slices of prosciutto
125 g of frozen peas
100 g of Ricotta
2 tsp of Stokes Mint Sauce
2 tbsp of Stokes Olive & Balsamic Dressing
5 tbsp of Stokes Real Mayonnaise
2 tbsp of chopped mint leaves
The juice of half a lime

Here's How:

Put he prosciutto in a frying pan and heat it up (no oil). It will gradually become crisp. When it is crisp, put it on kitchen paper to dry then break into brittle shards and set aside.

Add a nob of butter to the hot pan and gently fry the peas for 2 minutes. Put the ricotta in a bowl with half the mint leaves and 1 tsp of mint sauce and mix well.

Put the mayonnaise into another bowl and mix in the other teaspoon of the mint sauce and the lime juice.

To serve, spoon your minted ricotta onto a plate with the peas over the top and drizzle with the dressing. Season well, top with the crispy prosciutto and serve with your minted mayonnaise.

Pea'ummus

This is a pea-based hummus that makes a delightfully fresh dip as a starter or for nibbles with drinks.

You'll need:

125 g of frozen peas
2 tbsp of chopped parsley
2 tbsp of chopped coriander
2 tbsp of chopped mint
2 tbsp of tahini
2 tbsp of water, warm
2 tbsp of olive oil
2 tbsp of lemon juice
4 tbsp of Stokes Real Mayonnaise
2 garlic cloves, grated
Sliced raw vegetables for dipping

Here's how:

Blend everything to a smooth 'hummus-like' paste. You may need to add more water if it is too thick. If it becomes too thin, fry off and add more peas.

Serve it with raw vegetables to dip in it, or toasted pitta bread. It works really well simply spread on toasted french bread as crostinis.

Chilli Pea Patties

You can make these as spicy as you like, but it's nice to leave the chilli working with the sweetness of the peas instead of against it.

You'll need:

125 g of thawed peas, roughly mashed
85 g of panko breadcrumbs
2 spring onions, finely chopped
2 tsp of Stokes Chilli Jam
2 tsp of garam masala
2 eggs

For the curry mayonnaise:

4 tbsp of Stokes Real Mayonnaise
2 tsp of curry powder
1/2 tsp of ground cumin
a squeeze of lime juice

Here's how:

In a large bowl, mix the peas, breadcrumbs, spring onions, chilli jam, garam masala and eggs well together. Then form them into even sized patties - 4 larger ones or 6 to 8 smaller ones.

Fry in oil gently for 3 minutes a side to brown them and serve with curry mayonnaise.

For this, mix the mayonnaise and spices well together with a squeeze of lime juice. For a sweeter, pink curry mayo, add 1 tbsp of Stokes Curry Ketchup instead of the spices.

More foodie thoughts for the week: