sautéed pea shoots, asian-style


I live on the outskirts of Chinatown where the markets are filled with all kinds of weird and wonderful things. While I’m not particularly attracted to the lizards on sticks, I will try various greens. Last weekend I headed over to my favorite market and a huge bag of pea shoots caught my attention. It was only $1 so I really had nothing to lose.

While pea shoots are quite common, I’ve never bought them before and really, had no idea what I should do with them. This was the very same weekend that I attended the Eat! Vancouver festival and interviewed a couple of Food TV celebrity chefs. So in my interview with Anna Olson, I asked her what she would do with the pea shoots. After discovering that these weren’t the tender baby shoots, Anna suggested that I sauté them asian-style. So the next day, that’s exactly what I did. Unfortunately, I didn’t have garlic, so instead I subbed in some shallots along with fresh ginger. It was a worthy compromise. The soy sauce lended the much needed saltiness and the ginger added bite. Add freshly ground pepper if you’d like, but for me, this was pretty tasty as is.

17 comments to “sautéed pea shoots, asian-style”

  1. 1
    VeggieGirl   June 1, 2008 at 6:34 pm

    I’ve never eaten pea shoots before… sounds delish!

  2. 2
    Lisa (Show Me Vegan)   June 1, 2008 at 6:48 pm

    Simple and such a rich shade of green!

  3. 3
    Rachel   June 2, 2008 at 3:23 am

    Hey! I bought pea shoots yesterday for the first time. This looks great!

  4. 4
    Make!Do!   June 2, 2008 at 5:09 am

    I get pea shoots every weekend at the farmers market now – I just like ’em as my raw greens for salads or on a sandwich instead of lettuce, they keep forever and don’t go all slimy like lettuce.
    You’re so lucky to have Chinatown right there!

  5. 5
    kickpleat   June 2, 2008 at 12:39 pm

    they are delish, veggiegirl. the leaves are tender and the stems are a bit stringy like celery. toothsome!

    lisa, thanks, i love the colour too!

    rachel, we’re often on the same track, food wise! can’t wait to see what you come up with.

    kyla, i discovered the non-slimy effect, as a week later, the greens were perfect and i ate them steamed over pasta.

    thanks, jae young! enjoy the cod recipes and next time, i’ll definitely try the pea shoots with garlic.

  6. 6
    Jae Young   June 2, 2008 at 8:26 am

    omg, I love pea shoots! Aren’t they the best <3 And they are totes awesome with garlic. Popping in because I really like your cod recipes and I saw this entry and it made me happy.

  7. 7
    cookinpanda   June 2, 2008 at 3:49 pm

    The best way (and only way I’ll eat them) to eat pea shoots. Soooo good.

  8. 8
    eatme_delicious   June 2, 2008 at 10:05 pm

    Mmm I LOVE pea shoots. Well since about 2 weeks ago I love them. I’ve had them several times before that but for some reason now they taste so much better to me.

  9. 9
    Judy   June 3, 2008 at 4:42 am

    Chinatown sure is a fun place to explore, but I’ve never really bought anything. Something about cardboard boxes full of chicken parts that puts me off….. The greens look delish though!

  10. 10
    hag   June 2, 2008 at 10:21 pm

    I’ve never had pea shoots before…but for $1 a bag I would certainly try. This sounds really good!

  11. 11
    Bijoux   June 3, 2008 at 5:59 am

    Okay, I’m gone for 2 weeks and you suddenly become a celebrity chef interviewer??!! I’m so jealous kickpleat! Gotta check out those interviews of yours 😉

    I’ve never seen pea shoots in the local market. I guess China Town would be the place to find them. I wonder if little Korea Town (near me) would have them ?

  12. 12
    kickpleat   June 3, 2008 at 9:38 am

    good to know, cookinpanda!

    eatme_delicious, hooray on your new found love! me too 🙂

    hag, for a dollar a bag, there’s nothing wrong with that!

    judy, i’ve never seen cardboard boxes filled with chicken parts here. that’s a bit scary! i LOVE chinatown. the greens however are amazing.

    bijoux, one interview is up, the other is lost in limbo, i guess! for sure you can find them in chinatown, and probably korea town too! who knows!

  13. 13
    renae du jour   June 3, 2008 at 3:04 pm

    I haven’t had pea shoots either, but they look wonderful.

  14. 14
    EB   June 3, 2008 at 11:20 am

    I’m a peashoot person too. I like your simple preparation.

  15. 15
    Cakespy   June 5, 2008 at 9:35 am

    Even if it’s not a lizard on a stick, it’s still green!! These look delicious, I am a big fan of pea shoots and this looks like a great method of preparing them. I also just love the weirdness that you so aptly described of Chinatown–so foreign in your own city!

  16. 16
    kickpleat   June 9, 2008 at 3:43 pm

    thanks eb, sometimes simple is best.

    renae, you should pick them up if you see them in your market. they are worth it!

    yes, i love love love chinatown and i feel spoiled that i live so close!

  17. 17
    Brandy   March 22, 2011 at 6:40 pm

    Pea shoots are the best! I just put some seeds into my garden this past weekend and can’t wait to see them grow and then to eat them.

Leave a comment