Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Killer Peas



Risen from the dead by rehydration, these dried peas came back with a vengeance.

I cooked them in an effort to work through the many mysterious bags of dried legumes we seem to have accumulated. We have enough to live on for several days, but have no idea where they came from, since dried beans can last longer than your memory of where and when you got them.

In an effort to purge the kitchen of unwanted but still edible items, I've been slowly using up our stash by making chili, soup, kitchari, and so on. But when I found these peas I wasn't quite sure what to do: I've had peas fresh, split, frozen, canned (yuck!), and wasabied, but never dried whole.

I started by soaking them overnight, which made them much more appealing. Formerly a dusty shade of gray, the soaked peas turned a plump, luscious green. I decided to first try them straight up, cooked in salted water and eaten like a grain. When I did, they promptly turned gray again and didn't taste much better than they looked.

So I did what made me need to make them in the first place: I forgot about them. A day later, the peas that were still submerged in water had sprouted tiny tadpole like tails. I put them in a a colander to slow the process, and forgot about them all over again. A day later, they were poking through the mesh, coming to get to me.

Since they were so ugly cooked and since sprouted things are supposedly better for you, I've just been snacking on them raw, which I hope has the same effect as chopping up a zombie so much that no part of it can attack you.

Let this be a lesson: you can forget about legumes, but legumes won't forget about you.

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8 comments:

Epitome of Masculinity said...

Hate to tell you this Aaron, but this is what happens when you chop zombies into tiny pieces and eat them.

http://video.google.com/videosearch?hl=en&q=itchy%20scratchy%20scratchtasia&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wv#

(note: Fox may have already gotten to all these links)

Karen B said...

you must have an iron stomach!
p.s. do you know where the best coffee in Boston is? I need to prepare for my move and am feeling that nothing can possibly be as good as Gimme in Ithaca.

Aaron Kagan said...

The best coffee I've had in the Boston area was out in my direction at Karma Coffee in Sudbury, but I'm sure you'll be able to find a suitable fix among the many excellent cafes in town. Likely suspects include Diesel in Davis Sq., the Sherman Cafe in Union Sq., and 1369 in Central.

There's also a new, local roaster out of Waltham that's supposed to be great. See here for an article in the Globe:

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/food/articles/2009/03/18/they_really_do_wake_up_and_smell_the_coffee/

Ithaca has Boston beat in several food related areas, but I don't think coffee has to be one of them.

Brendan said...

My coffee choice is Simon's, on Mass Ave between Harvard and Porter. They serve George Howell's coffee and take brewing seriously. But not snooty seriously.

Karen B said...

very interesting! I've also been searching out the best croissant in Boston (must be crispy, buttery and tender)--I'm sure Boston will have Ithaca beat there, though Blue Wave pastry is great.

Nikki said...

I have been reading your blog last couple of weeks and enjoy every bit. Thanks.Pest control Austin

Vulcan Termite said...

I enjoyed reading your post. I bookmarked it for future reference. Thank you for sharing.

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