A period dish

Buttered Peas

Fresh peas cooked quickly and tossed with butter, salt, and a little chopped mint.

Serves 4

Green peas were a spring delicacy, and the simplest way to serve them was also the best: cooked just until tender and dressed with butter and mint. Wealthy tables had them picked young, when they were sweet enough to eat almost raw.

Ingredients

Dairy & Eggs

  • 3 tbsp butter

Spices & Seasoning

  • salt
  • black pepper

Other

  • 4 cup peas
  • 1 bunch mint

Method

  1. Shell the peas and put them in a pan with a little water and a pinch of salt.

  2. Cook quickly until just tender, then drain them well.

  3. Return them to the pan with a generous knob of butter and a spoonful of chopped mint.

  4. Toss over a low heat for a moment so the butter coats every pea.

  5. Season with salt and pepper and serve at once.

View a published recipe at Epicurious (opens in a new tab)

Served at

A last conversation at Arcetri · Arcetri, near Florence

An essay and two treatises · London, England