Did you know Clarence Birdseye was the first person to freeze peas?
Why are peas good for you?
• Freshly picked garden peas and petits pois are frozen within just two and a half-hours of being picked, (retaining all the fresh peas nutrition)
• No matter the season, freshly frozen garden peas are available throughout the year.
• Being shelled and freshly frozen, they are ready to use. Just add to your recipe or pop them straight into soups, casseroles or curries.
• There’s no wastage. Garden peas or petit pois chosen for freezing are the pick of the bunch and are easy to store.
• Our peas are low in sugars and fat, saturated-fat-free, high in fibre and protein, and a source of vitamin C!
• Did you know that peas are a great source of protein for vegetarians?
How to cook peas?
• Microwaving and steaming are great cooking methods for pea nutrition retention
• When boiling frozen peas, add enough water to cover, bring to the boil and then cover and simmer for 3 minutes.
• To microwave 227 grams (8oz) of frozen peas add 15ml (1 tablespoon) of water, place in non-metallic container and cover. Cook on full power for 4 minutes (750W)
Interesting Facts about Peas
- The Latin name for peas is pisum sativum.
- The first peas were frozen by Clarence Birdseye who invented the 'plate froster' to preserve foods in the 1920s.
- On average everyone in Britain eats nearly 9,000 peas per year.
- The world record for eating peas is held by Janet Harris of Sussex who, in 1984, ate 7175 peas one by one in 60 minutes using chopsticks!
- Thick London fogs of the 19th and 20th centuries were dubbed 'pea-soupers' because of their density and green tinge.
- There are 35,000 hectares of peas grown in the UK each year, equivalent to about 70,000 football pitches. This produces about 160,000 tonnes of frozen peas - that's 2 billion 80 gram portions.