Peas / Mangetout

[chris]

Quick one:

Can peas be eaten as mangetout (in my case hurst greenshaft), and vice versa - my mangetout (well some) pods are really fat now, tempted to try one to see what it's like.

If not, why not?

Thanks

[zazen999]

Mangetouts are peas selected for their non-tough skins; thereby being able to be eaten as a mange tout. So, you could eat some peas as mangetouts but if they have tough skins they probably won't be very nice.

try one and see

[chris]

Yah... not too nice.

Maybe when their younger - I'll try when the next long emerge.


Thanks

[JJSH]

and vice versa

I'm growing Dilikata this year, which are a mangetout pea that can, apparently, give a reasonable crop when they've got to big. That's assuming that,

a) they grow before the slugs / pigeons / other pests get them, and
b) I don't eat them all when they are mangetout!

Hope that helps.

[rustylady]

Quick one:my mangetout (well some) pods are really fat now, tempted to try one to see what it's like

Well, what was it like, and why did you leave it to get so fat?

[Two_Sheds]

mmmmm, mangetout shouldn't be fat: you eat them before the peas inside are developed

[chris]

I've left a couple pods to save the seeds for next year.. just thought though, I've 'normal' peas in the same bed.. perhaps this wasn't the best idea?

I tried one of the fat mangetout - the pea was sweet inside, but the taste wasn't that great (almost glue-like ?)

[Two_Sheds]

I save my own pea seeds too: they've done really well this year. I mix different kinds all together, I like them being a bit jumbled.

Peas are largely self-pollinating, but cross-pollination can occasionally occur: http://pisum.bionet.nsc.ru/pg/32/16.pdf

[Flummery]

Your peas won't cross. It's quite hard work to cross them deliberately!

A true mangetout doesn't have an inner fibrous membrane to the pod. This means that even if they do swell up (which they will if you miss them or are saving for seed) they are still edible, pod and all. There's no tough shell. Shelling peas are sometimes eaten as mangetout but they will have fibre in the pod but it won't be too obvious when they are small. When they fill out though, you have to discard the pods.

[chris]

so I've done ok in terms of saving them - by letting them fat up... they're REALLY fat now, and the pods are going whiteish...

[Flummery]

For seed, wait till they are crisp - but you have to catch them before they shed their seeds everywhere! I wait till the pods are hard then bring them in on a sunny wndowsill on a labelled sheet of newspaper. One lot of pea pods looks very like another!