Welcome to Marrowfat Peas – Home of Mushy Peas!
Welcome to the Marrowfat Peas Authority!
Why Marrowfat Peas? Why this blog? Well, marrowfat peas are the type of peas used in the British favorite “mushy peas” recipe. That . . . and. . . a trip to the United Kingdom. While on a hunt across the UK for the best fish and chips in England, I had the honorable pleasure of stumbling upon the Royal Oak Pub in Winchester, an amazing place that has been in operation for nearly a millenium. Of course, after ordering a proper pint of ale there was only one thing I even noticed on the menu . . . Fish n Chips!!! And along side of this most amazing dish of fried fish was this mushy pea stuff that reminded me of grade-school cafeteria days where nobody ate those gross vegetables that came with the pizza. Not excited in the least about this. But hey, I’m gonna try it. And then it happened. One of those movie-moments like the scene in Ratatouille . . . I was hooked. This stuff was AWESOME! So unlike the traditional peas we get here in the USA, these had rich flavor and color, and a texture that was just perfect. They were so good that I ordered a second portion of just the mushy peas. It wasn’t until much later that I learned the secret to having peas turn out like this – the type of peas! Enter the world of Marrowfat Peas which are completely different than garden peas or other types of peas. There are essentially three major types of peas: Pisum sativum var. sativum, the common garden pea; Pisum sativum var. medullare, the so-called “marrowfat” pea; and Pisum sativum var. saccharatum or axiphium, the sugar pea. I will go into the history of peas later, but there are literally hundreds of strains of peas that are all slightly different. And, because England’s weather is essentially perfect for growing marrow variety peas, and, the United States’ weather is better suited for other types of peas, we just don’t see true mushy peas made from marrowfat peas here in the USA. Sorry people, but unless you’ve been to Britain or a proper British pub, you have likely never had the likes of real mushy peas. Your only choices are to find a British pub or restaurant that has found a source of marrow fat peas for their mushy pea recipe, buy them as canned mushy peas, or buy them online as dried marrowfat peas and cook them at home. Then of course, you could also grow marrowfat peas yourself from heirloom seeds and make your own mushy peas from the ground up! Whatever your pleasure, we hope to provide useful information here for your mushy pea journey. Nobody should be denied the pleasure of true British mushy peas any longer! Have no fear, we will provide mushy pea recipes here, sources for where to buy arrowfat pea seeds for growing, where to buy canned mushy peas, and much more. Have a hap-pea day!
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Great to find this! I’ve been searching for where to buy mushy peas in the usa with no luck. Mushy peas are in every grocery store in England but nowhere to be found here. Thanks for the great info!