Peas have a season, and if you’re like me, you only manage to figure out when it is by finding yourself at the farmers market staring at big piles of them, wondering if you’re going to be able to finish shelling a single pound by yourself by the time you leave. The good news is, for the best and biggest sugar snap peas, you can just eat the pods whole. The even better news is that if you cook them until they blister, they’re somehow even more delicious and snackable than if you ate them raw. And the best news is that this takes all of five minutes, start to finish.

This recipe isn’t new. In fact, if you’ve had a Japanese restaurant’s shishito peppers, or blistered green beans with sesame and ginger, or anything cooked in a ridiculously hot pan with a little oil, you already understand. The trick to blistered (or pan-fried or charred) vegetables is that the sugars caramelize, the skins toast, and their textures become more dynamic without having to change much else. And that is indeed all we do here — just a lot of blistering, a little lemon, a little salt, and your favorite way to serve them. I love them as a side dish, but they also make a perfect, healthy snack and I can sometimes finish them all myself before they ever make it to the table. This is, truly, the easiest and most flavorful way to eat them while they’re in season.

Do Ahead: These are best served hot, but even room temperature they’re quite good.

Print Recipe