The disappointment of the asparagus peas
Comments(35)
Photo: Asparagus peas
Initially it was the picture on the pack of the pretty pods that attracted me and when I read about flavour of these peas I was seduced.
They took ages to germinate and flower but finally three pods appeared. I rushed back to the kitchen to steam the delicacy. The pods were of varying sizes, from an inch down to half an inch.
They were vile and tasteless with a nasty scratchy texture. Danny refused to even sample one.
“Why are you trying to force me if they are so unpleasant?”
He had a point, I suppose.
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Fiona I love you for being so honest! We absolutely hated them too – and they were prolific podders so we had three goes at eating the harvest before we admitted defeat. They tasted rather like pencil sharpenings, in my opinion: both bland and horrible.
When you said you were growing these, I felt like writing and saying… DON’T! (… unless you like eating palate-lacerating tasteless razor blades, of course…)
But then I had a moment of self-doubt, and wondered whether, after all, it had been our own cultivation of these wretched things which was at fault.
Not so, it seems… Thanks for being so frank!
LOL!!! the vile mutant vetchy thing!!!
Count me in with Allotment blogger and katyvic – I too kept quiet about them as I thought that you may know the secret of when to harvest and how to cook them to make them pallatable … sadly not it seems
Celia
Thank goodness I thought is was just me, they do have attractive flowers though!
I too was seduced by the idea of them, but what a total waste of time they were. Only produced a few pods (only a handful germinated) and they were well frankly akin to eating spiky cardboard.
So glad I’m not the only one who found them awful (I too thought it was me)
jess
Grew them last year! Awful vile things. Waste of garden space!!!! LOL
Yes I also grew them last season and was disappointed, they were a waste of garden space. What a shame, they sounded so nice from the description! All a learning curve though eh.
Yep- like eating cardboard razorblades, very pretty plants though, good for the border, NOT for eating- unless you have someone you really, really do not like over for dinner ” we just have a few of these asparagus peas, they are very rare, absurdly difficult to grow and a real delicacy, we thought we should let you have them rather than eat them ourselves….”
Hello Allotment Blogger
Well done for trying them three times! I’m impressed at your courage.
Hi Katyvic
Having bought the seeds I’d have gone ahead anyway. But I can’t believe these are sold as vegetables. They’re a complete swizz.
Hi Magic Cochin
I followed the directions on the pack to the letter!
Whoever described them as delicious should be dragged naked around the seed factory.
Hello Helen
Yes the flowers are pretty but don’t make up for the nasty taste.
Hello Lavender and Thyme
Glad that you agree that they were nasty. All our plants have been hoicked out and replaced with mizuna.
Hi S.O.L.
Totally agree – what a waste of space. I had such great expectations too.
Hello Bridget
It’s really disappointing to grow something so pretty that tastes like pre-digested blotting paper.
Hi Kate (uk)
Your comment made us roar with laughter. Unfortunately we don’t have any one we dislike enough to torture them with these.
I’ve been tempted to grow them for years but always put off by the emphasis on having to pick them very young – we always aim to, but sometimes get too busy! So I’m glad to know not to bother.
Vile vegetables. In their seperate forms there can be few things more delicious than fresh asparagus or fresh peas from the pod; whoever christened these was either having a cruel joke or was out to make a fast buck.
What a waste of food-growing space & time.
Eugh!!
I love that your Danny can be so much like my Mat.
Stubborn arent they?
We want them to try things as we need someone elses opinion & someone else to discuss them with.
Last night Mat refused his mashed veg as he heard me say there was spinach in it – he eats spinach in all sorts of things without noticing & he knows this for true but he wouldnt even try the veg last night.
I grew these last year and, yes, I agree – they’re vile, I had a bumper crop, the buggers wouldn’t stop producing. Even the hens weren’t keen. And I was so disappointed too…
Hi Z
I’m really angry about these. How could they be marketed as delicious veg when they are vile?
I’m considering a campaign. Just don’t have the time to see it through.
Hi Jo
I totally agree, These are rubbish.
Hi Belinda
That is so Danny. If I have time to think I introduce a new dish quietly.
However his taste buds are set at the finest point. Often I’m delighted with a recipe and he isn’t. This is maddening and frustrating. But if I tweak to delight we generally get a better dish. Even more maddening.
Hello Kitty B
I ripped the crop up last night but didn’t toss them to the chickens as they are very discerning and only eat tasty scraps.
How I agree!! Lured by a seductive picture and delicious description of their ” out of this world taste” I too succumbed. Most disgusting veg. I’ve ever grown!!!
Hi Helen
How did the company that developed them pass the stringent seed and flavour tests?
Glad that you agreed
[...] descriptions – nearly all from the Cottage Smallholder and visitors. Cottage Smallholder seems to have given a host of closet asparagus pea haters the release [...]
I think maybe it’s the name that’s a big part of the problem. I first tried these in Thailand, where they are called winged beans (when translated onto an English menu, of course). They are served in a kind of salad with minced pork and coconut milk and the dish is delicious. I’d never really considered eating them as a separate vegetable. Since then we’ve been buying them (not particularly cheap, either)at the Thai grocery shop, purely to make this dish. They’re also popular in Sri Lanka where they are used in curries.
As mentioned on Frugilegus’ blog, they are also grown in many places as you can eat every part of the plant, so it’s good in places where not much will grow. I’ve just planted some myself (T&M ‘Eden’ seeds), so am hoping for success (I’m in Hong Kong so don’t know if they’ll grow, just one has hatched so far).
Although this is a defence of the (badly-named) asparagus pea, yes, I suppose they are a bit prickly…
Hello Antoniahk
Thanks very much for this comment. I can see that they would be totally different added to dishes rather than being a seperate vegetable.
Mine took a while to germinated and then went mad.
I grew them in the first season in our current garden (1995). Couldn’t believe how horrible they were! Used up remaining seeds in 1996 believing I must have been mistaken! I’m amazed they’re still on the market – particularly when I see that not one of your correspondents has had ANTHING good to say about their taste! Pleased to know I’m not the only one but amazed that they’re still selling!
OK, here’s a recipe, to try and save the reputation of these poor veggies. In the recipe they are called winged beans – really, I recommend giving it a try!
http://tinyurl.com/lmeltw
Hi Rocky
I think that we are very lucky that in the UK. We can grow such tasty beans. we are having a bumper runner bean year and are already freezing them for the winter despite eating piles of them most days!
I would never grow asparagus peas again…
Hi Antoniahk
Thanks for that
Wish I’d read these comments BEFORE tasting these horrible little devils They are disgusting, tried one raw and OMG couldn’t even keep it in my mouth it was dreadful. Agree with all other comments it’s a complete travisty to associate them with asparagus or pea they in no way, resemble either
i totally agree! they are vile. i looked at them today and was wondering if it was me that had done something wrong. obviously not according to all the previous comments. the next time i go to the allotment i am going to pull them up and put them in the compost bin. never, never again will i grow them – a total waste of time, effort and space. where asparagus and pea comes into the equation i will never know
How strange to see so much hatred for these lovely little things – my wife and I grew them for the first time this year and we think they’re actually quite nice. Ok, they don’t really taste much like peas or asparagus, or indeed much at all, but they have a lovely texture, look pretty on the plate, have nice flowers and crop prolifically – in Yorkshire at least.
You do have to cook them, because they’re horrible raw – I think ‘astringent’ is the word. And you have to eat them at an inch long – any longer and they go a bit woody.
They’ve been around for donkeys years too, so maybe we’re not the only ones who think they’re alright! But judging by all these comments, maybe we are!
In defence of the Asparagus Pea!
When I read this I was sorry for my little plants! they looked so attractive. However I kept faith and grew them on. We found they were delicious! Not like asparagus or peas but a new kind of bean. We cooked them with french beans and they were a great addition.
Hi Gracie
Well at least someone likes them
I think you must have been letting the pods get too old before picking them. When I’ve grown this veg, I’ve picked the pods when they’re about 3-4 cm long, and they’ve been tender and tasty.
umm….so I have just got my seeds and was wondering about best place to plant them and came across this blog…..will give them ago anyway!
Just bought a pack of T & M Asparagus Peas. Will remain open minded until we have actually tasted them following picking at the right age. It seems to me that perhaps they are greatly underrated – friends of ours grew them and were astonished how tasty they were.
harvested my first crop of asparragus peas yesterday and they were DELICIOUS, had them lighltly boiled with lemon juice and salt.
if anything they taste more of artichokes tan peas or asparragus
The main problem with the asparagus pea is that the yield is small, and the pods become tough very quickly. This is, effectively, a wild food and as such has not undergone any meaningful selection for pod size and tenderness. As such , it can hardly stand comparison with vegetables which have undergone hundreds of years of improvement.
It’s possible that the harvesting processes of the seed companies or their contract growers may have exacerbated the tendency for quick maturity and tough pods. I don’t know whether seed crops are harvested mechanically, but if they are, this is likely as slow maturing, non fibrous plants will be actively selected against.
If you can be bothered to collect the small pods, only a couple of days old and store them in a plastic box in the fridge until you accumulate enough, I’ve found them to be quite good eating.
Well I tried to grow some from seed. 2 or 3 came up, only one survived and then after around 6 weeks that died as well!
DELICIOUS! I love them!! I grew them for the first time this year and would grow them again even just for the beautiful flowers. I found out how to cook them here: http://topveg.com/2009/04/how-to-cook-asparagus-peas/ Very important to pick them when just about an inch long (otherwise they will be tough and probably sharp). I fried them quickly in butter and a little salt. I used them as a nibble because they had a light crispy texture cooked this way, and a definite taste of asparagus. I’ll try cooking more slowly so they might be less crispy next time, and I’ll try out Pablo’s recipe as well, but I certainly loved them fried quickly. Next year I’ll be growing two rows instead of one!
Am trying different ways of cooking mine to see if I can get a good result, so was very interested to read of the Thai recipe posted by Antoniahk…
but sadly, I think asparagus peas are not quite winged peas, according to the bottom of this site: http://recipes.wikia.com/wiki/Asparagus_pea
“Winged beans are Asparagus “beans” not the pea. Asparagus pea is Lotus Tetragonolobus.
Unlike Psophocarpus tetragonolobus the Asaparagus pea is a dwarf scrawler maybe barely 2 feet tall if you lucky.Lotus Tetragonolobus should be picked at about 1 inch. It is not known if the leaves or flower are edible as I don’t think it’s been tested to be so. Psophocarpus tetragonolobus winged beans are pretty much 100% edible from top to roots.