Many recipes will call for a cup of chopped snap peas but it can be hard to really know what that means. Different stores carry different varieties and sizes of snap peas, making it hard to know what they are talking about. How many snap peas are in a cup?
In order to figure out "how many snap peas are in a cup" we went to the grocery store to see what the produce section contained. Snap peas (also called sugar snap peas) have small peas inside, while snow peas (also called Chinese pea pods) have even tinier ones. We determined that 1 pound of snap peas contains about 56 whole pods and measures about 4 cups. So we selected 1 cup or 14 snap peas to experiment with.
Since most types of snap peas are normally eaten whole or in larger pieces (not minced or finely diced), when coarsely chopped, 1 cup of whole snap peas yielded about 1 cup of chopped snap peas.
Did you know that the sugar snap pea was not developed until 1979; in the world of vegetables, it wouldn't even be considered a toddler yet! Its pod contains under-developed seeds so when the entire snap pea pod is eaten, it is tender and sweet.
Next time your recipe calls for a cup of whole or chopped snap peas you'll know how much you need to purchase at the store to cover it. You can also use our conversion tool below for any custom "how much snap peas are in a..." measurements you need.
If not using immediately, refrigerate all varieties of peas as quickly as possible to lessen the amount of sugar content that will turn into starch.
Unwashed edible-pod peas stored in the refrigerator in a perforated plastic bags or unsealed container will keep for 2 to 3 days.
Trim the ends of edible-pod peas before blanching for 2 to 3 minutes in boiling water. Immediately shock them in an ice-water bath until cool; this helps maintain their bright color. Drain and freeze them in airtight plastic bags. They will keep for 5 to 6 months.
There are two common varieties of peas: green garden peas (need to be shelled) and edible-pod peas (eaten whole). Of the edible pod variety, snow peas and sugar snap peas are the most common; however, there are differences in the appearances between these two non-shelled types. Snap peas have crisp, plump edible pods, and snow peas, sometimes called Chinese pea pods, are flat edible pods.
One of the biggest hassles when cooking and working in the kitchen is when a recipe calls for "the juice of 1 lime" or a similar measurement. Often times when cooking people use bottled juices, pre-sliced vegetables and other convenient cooking time savers. Produce Converter will help you convert the "juice of 1 lime" and other similar recipe instructions into tablespoons, cups and other concrete measurements.
Produce Converter can also be used to figure out how many vegetables to buy when you need, for instance, "A cup of diced onion." You can use our easy conversion tool to figure out exactly how many onions you need to buy at the store in order to end up with the amount you need for your cooking.
We hope you enjoy Produce Converter and if you have any suggestions for how we can improve it and make your cooking easier please let us know.