GARDEN FRESH : Ah, Shoots
In plants, everything--from seeds, sprouts, pods, fronds, leaves, bracts, buds, flowers, fruits, husks, pods, stamens, stems, stalks, tendrils and sap to corms, roots, bulbs, tubers and rhizomes, even fungi--can be eaten in one form or another. Many of these are unknown to most of us, such as squash leaves, radish pods, lettuce stalks and pea shoots--the first few inches of leaves, the young tips, of pea vines.
Shoot is a garden term loosely indicating new growth that’s especially rapid. I harvest my first pea shoots four to six weeks after sowing, when the vines are about six inches tall. And that’s rapid--not even many radishes are faster than that. I nip off the tips, leaving a little more than two inches of the plant to carry on, and soon it’s time for a second harvest.
Pea shoots are bursting with sweet pea flavor. This seems extraordinary to me. There are leaves that taste like their stalks--such as fennel and celery--and leaves that taste like their roots--such as turnips and beets. But I can’t think of another leaf that tastes like its seeds --peas are seeds, after all. I’ve never nibbled on the shoots of bean or corn plants, but perhaps I will this summer. Until then, I marvel at the flavor of the shoots.
Thin oval pea leaves are dark green, poised in pairs along slim juicy stalks, ideally the size of a quarter. Their perky tendrils are beguiling. Although you can eat the tips of any sort of cultivated pea, sugar peas--which were bred for their shoots--are the most popular in China and Japan. I find sugar peas grow faster than most garden peas, and their shoots are sweeter.
Peas do best in cool weather and the vines will tolerate light frost (their flowers and pods won’t, however). In much of this country, St. Patrick’s Day is traditional for the first spring sowing. Where summers are cool and winters cold, you can sow from March through July, then again about 10 weeks before the first expected frost. In much of Southern California, where summer temperatures are well above 70 degrees and winters mild, sow from September or October through February. Harvest now.
Growing pea vines for their shoots is the same as growing them for their peas, except that the crop takes up much less space because you needn’t give the vines support--they never get tall enough to topple. Once you’ve nipped out the growing points on the tips of the vines, the plant sends out side shoots and grows bushy. These side shoots will be the source of your future harvests.
Give peas good drainage and full sun--although they’ll take afternoon shade in summer. For lush vines, dig in a couple of inches of well-rotted manure (not advised if you want peas and not shoots--the extra nitrogen encourages lush growth of leaves instead of flowers and pods). With your finger, poke seeds into moist soil an inch deep and one to two inches apart, then pat the soil firm. After that, water when the soil begins to dry out. Be sure to water at soil level, because sprinkling the leaves can cause mildew.
The flowers of cultivated peas are edible (whereas the flowers of the ornamental plant called sweet peas are not --repeat, not --edible). But if you’re growing the vines for shoots, don’t let flowers bloom or the leaves will toughen.
I’ve had only one problem with peas, but it was a devastating one. Its name was mouse-chipmunk-squirrel-rabbit-quail. If bold critters have also found your garden, you must shelter peas from the day you sow them. It’s a bother, but the only sure-fire protection I’ve found is a lid of hardware cloth held tight to the ground with rocks. Make the lid at least six inches tall, corners squared. You have to lift the lid to pick the shoots, but the lid is long-lasting, portable and invaluable later for protecting other seedlings. Should you see insects on the pea shoots (I never have), spray them off with the hose.
Like other legumes, pea plants benefit the garden by fixing nitrogen in the soil. If you plan to grow many vegetables and are unfamiliar with crop rotation, look at an organic reference such as John Jeavon’s “How to Grow More Vegetables.” The point is to grow peas in a new spot each year.
Use restraint when cooking these delicacies. You can simply sprinkle lemon juice, rice vinegar or rice wine over the shoots for a salad, or toss them for a few seconds in a stir-fry. As natural as they are to Asian dishes, the shoots are equally appealing in other cuisines. A few Los Angeles chefs have been using pea shoots for some years now. Fresh shrimp at the market and a Venetian shrimp-cooking method I’m fond of inspired the delicious salad that follows.
You might wonder why I call for medium shrimp rather than large ones, especially when the dish is for company. It’s because smaller shrimp are more in scale with the delicate flavor of the leaves.
By the way, eating the fragile leaves and tidbits of salad from one’s fingers adds extraordinarily to the pleasure of the dish. That’s one reason I leave the tails on the shrimp.
To complete a Venetian menu, begin with room-temperature artichokes sprinkled with salty cheese (while hot from the steamer, press the buds open and sprinkle an ounce of grated Asiago between the crevices, or crumble in un-Venetian feta) and drizzle with fruity olive oil. Have a small pitcher of oil for dressing the hearts. With the salad, offer wedges of warm polenta (found in most Italian cookbooks) and glasses of cold, crisp Soave wine. And for dessert, slices of sponge cake sauced with crushed sweetened strawberries and decorated with unsprayed petals of tulips.
Sources: Mail order: Sunrise Enterprises, P.O. Box 330058, West Hartford, Conn. 06133 (order “Seedling Sugar Pea”). Fresh: 99 Ranch Markets or other Asian markets (buy the smallest shoots and keep in water in the refrigerator). *
I’ve found no other leaf that tastes of peas, but this is an equally engaging salad when made with the peppery leaves of dandelion or arugula. For this recipe, pick the pea shoots within a few hours of serving and keep them in a jug of water in the refrigerator--water revives wilted shoots. Don’t wash shoots from your garden unless you see a reason to.
SALAD OF PEA SHOOTS AND VENETIAN-STYLE SHRIMP 1 pound medium shrimp 4 cups cold water 2 teaspoons salt 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 cup chopped Italian parsley leaves Zest 1 large lemon, finely shredded 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1/2 pound mushrooms, thinly sliced 8 ounces tender pea shoots, 3 to 4 inches long Salt Freshly ground pepper
Peel shrimp, leaving tails. In medium saucepan combine shrimp, water and salt. Cover and bring to boil over highest heat. When water creates thick froth, turn shrimp into colander.
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in large skillet, then remove from heat. Drop shrimp into skillet, stirring occasionally to moisten with oil. When oil has cooled, stir in parsley, lemon zest and 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Turn into storage container, cover and refrigerate. Can be done day in advance. Shake container occasionally to blend dressing.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large skillet over high heat and saute mushrooms, stirring frequently, until lightly browned, 4 to 6 minutes. Cool and add to shrimp.
To serve, divide shoots into bite-size pieces by nipping stalks between leaf sets. Turn into bowl. Stir shrimp mixture and add to bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Toss gently with hands to blend. Taste to adjust seasonings. Serve at once. Makes 6 servings.
Each serving contains about: 195 calories; 539 mg sodium; 92 mg cholesterol; 13 grams fat; 8 grams carbohydrates; 14 grams protein; 1.35 grams fiber.
