Lady peas are the most refined member of the whole Southern field-pea family — petite, pale, and so mild and creamy they hardly need a thing done to them. On Carolyn Talbot’s Easter buffet, where the country ham and the fried chicken and the macaroni and cheese are all hollering for attention, this is the dish that speaks softly: cool, bright, herb-flecked, and dressed in a mustardy little vinaigrette that lets the peas stay the star. Carolyn will tell you it’s nothing fancy, and smile to herself when you go back for a second helping.
Serves 8 as a side • Makes about 5 cups • About 45 minutes, plus chilling
For the peas:
- 4 c. cooked lady peas (from about 1¼ lbs. frozen, about 4 lbs. fresh in the shell, or 1½ c. dried — see notes)
- 3 c. chicken or vegetable broth, or water, plus a little more as needed
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp. fine sea salt
For the vinaigrette:
- 3 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice, plus 1 tsp. finely grated zest
- 2 tsp. honey
- 2 cloves garlic, finely grated or minced
- ¾ tsp. fine sea salt, plus more to taste
- ½ tsp. freshly cracked black pepper
- A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
For the salad:
- 1 c. celery, finely diced (about 2 ribs, plus a few of the pale inner leaves, chopped)
- 1 c. red or green bell pepper, finely diced (I prefer red)
- ½ c. shallots, finely diced
- ¼ c. fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 3 tbsp. fresh basil, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp. fresh mint, thinly sliced
- 1 c. cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
To serve:
- Butter lettuce leaves
- Crumbled feta or fresh goat cheese (optional)
- A few small basil or mint leaves, for garnish
Directions:
- Sort and rinse the peas. Tip the lady peas into a colander, rinse them under cool water, and pick through them, tossing out any that are broken, discolored, or hard.
- Simmer them gently. In a medium pot, combine the peas, broth, smashed garlic, bay leaf, and 1 teaspoon salt; the liquid should cover the peas by about an inch, so add a splash of water if it doesn’t. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. As it comes up, the peas will throw off a grayish foam — skim it off with a spoon and discard it. That foam carries a starchy, faintly bitter edge you don’t want in a delicate salad. Once it stops foaming, drop the heat to a bare simmer, cover loosely, and cook until the peas are creamy and tender all the way through but still holding their shape. Start tasting at 20 minutes. Fresh or frozen lady peas usually land around 20 to 30 minutes; dried can take 45 minutes to an hour.
- Cool the peas. Drain the peas, fishing out and discarding the garlic and bay leaf, and spread them on a sheet pan to come to room temperature. Don’t dress them while they’re warm — hot peas turn soft and drink up the vinaigrette like a sponge, and you’ll end up with a dry salad and overdressed peas.
- Whisk the vinaigrette. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, mustard, lemon juice and zest, honey, grated garlic, salt, black pepper, and red pepper flakes until it pulls together and turns glossy.
- Soften the shallots. Stir the diced shallots into the vinaigrette and let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Fold it all together. Add the cooled peas, celery, bell pepper, parsley, basil, mint, and the tomatoes if you’re using them. Fold everything together gently with a rubber spatula.
- Chill so the flavors marry. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Serve cool, not cold. Before serving, let the salad stand on the counter for about 20 minutes. Straight from the cold, the flavors hide; lady peas are at their sweetest, and this salad at its loveliest cool.
- Taste, adjust, and garnish. Taste one last time and tweak — a pinch more salt, a squeeze of lemon and a bit of olive oil if it wants waking up. Line a platter or a footed bowl with butter lettuce, spoon the salad on top, scatter with a little cheese if you like, and finish with a few torn basil or mint leaves.
Carolyn’s Notes:
On the peas: Lady peas are a summer treasure with a short season. Fresh and shelled from a farm stand are the prize — you’ll want about 4 pounds in the shell to get your 4 cups shelled, give or take, depending on how full the hulls are. Frozen are a fine stand-in; a generous pound, about 1¼ pounds, does it. Dried lady peas work beautifully out of season — start with 1½ cups dried, and cook them a good while longer until they’re creamy. If you can’t put your hands on lady peas at all, their close cousins — cream peas, zipper peas, or white acre peas — will step right in.
Tender, not mushy: Set a timer, start tasting early, and pull them off the heat the moment they’re creamy and tender but still whole.
Taste as you go: Lady peas are mild and sweet by nature, which means they lean on you for seasoning. Salt the cooking liquid lightly, then do your real seasoning at the end, in the dressed salad, where you can taste exactly what you’ve got. It should taste fresh and lively, never flat.
Make-ahead: This salad is actually better made ahead. Stir it together a day before and keep it covered in the refrigerator.
Enjoy!