Description
Tender sweet peas in a simple, creamy sauce. This comfort food side dish is easy enough for a weeknight, and delicious enough for a special occasion.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 (10-12 ounce) bag frozen peas*
- 2 Tablespoons butter
- 2 Tablespoons gluten-free flour or all-purpose flour*
- 1 1/2 cups half-and-half*
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, or more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, or more to taste
- 1 Tablespoon butter, to finish
Instructions
- Bring Water to a Boil. To start, bring a small saucepan of water to a boil over medium heat. You’ll use this to cook the peas, but you want to wait until the last minute to cook them!
- Make The Cream Sauce. While the water comes to a boil, melt 1 Tablespoon butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add gluten-free flour and whisk 1-2 minutes to toast the flour a bit. (This will help remove any floury taste.) Pour in the cream or half-and-half and whisk until smooth and thickened, 4-5 minutes.
- Season the sauce with salt, pepper, and garlic powder and whisk to combine. Taste and add additional salt, pepper, or garlic, to taste. (If your sauce is thicker than you’d like, you can add another splash of half-and-half here!)
- Cook Peas. Add the frozen peas to the boiling water and cook just 2-3 minutes, or until the peas look vibrant and bright green.
- Combine. Drain peas in a colander or sieve and add the bright green peas to the warm cream sauce. Top with the last 1 Tablespoon butter and gently stir to coat peas evenly. Garnish with additional salt & pepper or fresh herbs, if desired.
- Serve & Store. Enjoy creamed peas warm right away and store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge 2-3 days. The sauce will thicken quite a bit in the fridge, so you can gently warm leftovers on the stove or in the microwave on low power with a splash of water, as needed.
Notes
- Peas. I like petite frozen peas, since they tend to be more tender and sweet. Use what you can find! If using fresh peas, plan to add 2-3 minutes to the cook time, since they take longer to soften than frozen peas.
- Flour. We’re gluten-free so we make gluten-free creamed peas by using gluten-free measure-for measure or 1:1 gluten-free flour. If not gluten-free, regular all-purpose flour will work here!
- Half-and-Half. You can use half-and-half, like we do, or you can use heavy cream for a richer, thicker sauce.
- Variations. Feel free to add a little freshly grated parmesan cheese, fresh herbs (fresh dill, fresh parsley, fresh thyme, or fresh mint), or 2 slices cooked, crumbled bacon.
- Peas Not Very Sweet? You can fake it with a *tiny* pinch of sugar. A little goes a LONG way in this simple side dish, so, when I say pinch, I mean start with 1/16th or 1/8th of a teaspoon and go from there.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American