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Snowpeas
	Snow peas (Pisum sativum)
Nutritional value per 100g
Energy	176 kJ (42 kcal)
Carbohydrates	7.55
Sugars	4.00
Dietary fiber	2.6
Fat	0.3
Protein	2.8
Vitamins
Vitamins and minerals
Vitamins	Quantity %DV†
Vitamin A equiv. beta-Carotene lutein zeaxanthin	6%630 μg 740 μg
Vitamin A	1087 IU
Thiamine (B1)	13% 0.150 mg
Riboflavin (B2)	6% 0.08 mg
Niacin (B3)	4% 0.6 mg
Pantothenic acid (B5)	15% 0.75 mg
Vitamin B6	9% 0.16 mg
Folate (B9)	11% 42 μg
Vitamin B12	0% 0 μg
Choline	3% 17.4 mg
Vitamin C	67% 60 mg
Vitamin D	0% 0 μg
Vitamin E	3% 0.39 mg
Vitamin K	21% 25 μg
Minerals	Quantity %DV†
Calcium	3% 43 mg
Iron	12% 2.09 mg
Magnesium	6% 24 mg
Manganese	11% 0.244 mg
Phosphorus	4% 53 mg
Potassium	7% 200 mg
Sodium	0% 4 mg
Zinc	2% 0.27 mg
Other constituents	Quantity
Water	88.89
	†Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies.

Snow pea
Snow pea
Species	Pisum sativum
Cultivar group	Macrocarpon Group
Cultivar group members	Many; see text.

The snow pea is an edible-pod pea with flat pods and thin pod walls.^[2] It is eaten whole, with both the seeds and the pod, while still unripened.

Names

The common name snow pea seems to be a misnomer as the planting season of this pea is no earlier than that of other peas. Another common name, Chinese pea, is probably related to its prominence in Chinese dishes served in the West.^[3] It is called mangetout in the United Kingdom and Ireland (from the French for "eat-all" and pronounced monge-too; /mɒnʒtuː/).^{[citation needed]}

Snow peas and snap peas both belong to Macrocarpon Group,^[3]^[4]^[1]^[5] a cultivar group based on the variety Pisum sativum var. macrocarpum Ser. named in 1825.^[6] It was described as having very compressed non-leathery edible pods in the original publication.

The scientific name Pisum sativum var. saccharatum Ser. is often misused for snow peas. The variety under this name was described as having sub-leathery and compressed-testes pods and the French name petit pois.^[6] The description is inconsistent with the appearance of snow peas, and therefore botanists have replaced this name with Pisum sativum var. macrocarpum.^[7] Austrian scientist and monk Gregor Mendel used peas which he called Pisum saccharatum in his famous experiments demonstrating the heritable nature of specific traits, and this Latin name might not refer to the same varieties identified with modern snow peas.^[8]

Composition

Nutrition

Uses

Culinary

Snow peas, along with sugar snap peas and unlike field and garden peas, are notable for having edible pods that lack inedible fiber^[11] (in the form of "parchment", a fibrous layer found in the inner pod rich in lignin^[12]) in the pod walls. Snow peas have the thinner walls of the two edible pod variants. Two recessive genes known as p and v are responsible for this trait.^[11] p is responsible for reducing the sclerenchymatous membrane on the inner pod wall, while v reduces pod wall thickness (n is a gene that thickens pod walls in snap peas).^[13]

Pea shoots (Chinese: 豆苗; pinyin: dòu miáo) are the stems and leaves of the immature plant, used as a vegetable in Chinese cooking.^[14] They are commonly stir-fried with garlic and sometimes combined with crab or other shellfish.^[15]

Nitrogen fixers

As with most legumes, snow peas host beneficial bacteria, rhizobia, in their root nodules, which fix nitrogen in the soil—this is called a mutualistic relationship—and are therefore a useful companion plant, especially useful to grow intercropped with green, leafy vegetables that benefit from high nitrogen content in their soil.^[16]

Cultivation

Snow peas can be grown in open fields during cool seasons and can thus be cultivated during winter and spring seasons.^[13]

Storage

Storage of the pea with films of polymethylpentene at a temperature of 5 °C (41 °F) and controlled atmosphere with a concentration of oxygen and carbon dioxide of 5 kPa augments the shelf life, internal and external characteristics of the plant.^[17]

Gallery

Snow pea flowers
Sautéed snow pea shoots, a popular dish in Chinese cuisine

References

^ ^a ^b Stephens, James M. (2018-11-05). "Pea, Snow—Pisum sativum L. (Macrocarpon Group)". edis.ifas.ufl.edu. Archived from the original on 2019-11-02. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
^ Myers, James R.; Baggett, James R.; Lamborn, Calvin (2010-06-22), Janick, Jules (ed.), "Origin, History, and Genetic Improvement of the Snap Pea ( Pisum sativum L.)", Plant Breeding Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., pp. 93–138, doi:10.1002/9780470650196.ch3, ISBN 978-0-470-65019-6
^ ^a ^b Kiple, Kenneth F.; Ornelas, Kriemhild Coneè (2000). The Cambridge World History of Food. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-40215-6.
^ "Definition of SNOW PEA". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
^ Stephens, James M. (2018-11-05). "Pea, Snap—Pisum sativum L. (Macrocarpon Group)". edis.ifas.ufl.edu. Archived from the original on 2020-02-14. Retrieved 2020-02-11.
^ ^a ^b Candolle, Augustin Pyramus de (1825). Prodromus systematis naturalis regni vegetabilis, sive, Enumeratio contracta ordinum generum specierumque plantarum huc usque cognitarium, juxta methodi naturalis, normas digesta. Vol. 2. Paris, France: Sumptibus Sociorum Treuttel et Würtz. p. 368.
^ "Pisum sativum var. macrocarpum". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture.
^ Ellis, T. H. N.; Hofer, J. M. I.; Timmerman-Vaughan, G. M.; Coyne, C. J.; Hellens, R. P. (2011). "Mendel, 150 years on". Trends in Plant Science. 16 (11): 590–596. Bibcode:2011TPS....16..590E. doi:10.1016/j.tplants.2011.06.006. PMID 21775188.
^ United States Food and Drug Administration (2024). "Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels". FDA. Archived from the original on 2024-03-27. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
^ National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Health and Medicine Division; Food and Nutrition Board; Committee to Review the Dietary Reference Intakes for Sodium and Potassium (2019). "Chapter 4: Potassium: Dietary Reference Intakes for Adequacy". In Oria, Maria; Harrison, Meghan; Stallings, Virginia A. (eds.). Dietary Reference Intakes for Sodium and Potassium. The National Academies Collection: Reports funded by National Institutes of Health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press (US). pp. 120–121. doi:10.17226/25353. ISBN 978-0-309-48834-1. PMID 30844154. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
^ ^a ^b Singh RJ; Jauhar PP (2005). Genetic Resources, Chromosome Engineering, and Crop Improvement. CRC Press. pp. 74. ISBN 978-0-8493-1430-8.
^ McGee, RJ; Baggett JR (1992). "Inheritance of Stringless Pod in Pisum sativum L." (PDF). J. Am. Soc. Hort. Sci. 117 (4): 628–632. doi:10.21273/JASHS.117.4.628.
^ ^a ^b De Ron, AM; et al. (2005). "Identifying superior snow pea breeding lines" (PDF). HortScience. 40 (5): 1216–1220. doi:10.21273/HORTSCI.40.5.1216.
^ "Stir-Fried Pea Shoots with Garlic (蒜蓉炒豆苗)". 10 April 2019.
^ "Snow Pea Shoots Photo - Chinese Vegetable Photos". Chinesefood.about.com. 2011-10-17. Archived from the original on 2014-12-28. Retrieved 2011-12-18.
^ "Peas Companion Planting Guide: 10 Plants to Pair With Peas". MasterClass. June 7, 2021. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
^ Pariasca, JAT; et al. (2001). "Effect of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) and controlled atmosphere (CA) storage on the quality of snow pea pods (Pisum sativum L. var. saccharatum)". Postharvest Biology and Technology. 21 (2): 213–223. doi:10.1016/S0925-5214(00)00149-6.