Few frozen vegetables are more useful and versatile than frozen green peas. These vegetable-rich, naturally plant-based recipes for using frozen green peas will use from 1 cup to an entire bagful.
Frozen peas are especially because fresh peas are only available for a short window in the spring and not widely available. And it takes a lot of peas-in-the-pod to add up to even one cup shelled.
In addition to adding color and flavor to recipes, they’re a good source of a wide array of nutrients. Green peas (which are botanically a legume) are a welcome addition to soups, salads, pastas, and pilafs. Let’s dive in …
Soups Using Green Peas
Cold Green Pea and Cucumber Soup (No-Cook)
This cool green pea and cucumber soup needs very little prep — everything just gets thrown into the blender.
Quick Coconut Green Pea Soup
This vividly hued soup is a good choice when you want a warming vegan bowlful quickly. Featuring frozen green peas and coconut milk, it’s practically ready when you are.
No-Cook Cold Avocado Soup (with Green Peas & Parsley)
What makes this kind of recipe when heat gets to be too much is that it needs no cooking at all. This cold avocado soup, bolstered with peas, adds a gorgeous burst of green to the table.
Vegan Cream of Asparagus Soup
A simple creamy asparagus soup is enhanced with the addition of peas and leafy greens. If ever there was a soup that celebrates spring, it would be this one.
Simple Spring Vegetable Soup
A straightforward spring vegetable soup featuring potatoes, carrots, and peas in a mildly seasoned broth, this is a light first course for an everyday or festive spring meal.
Quick Asian Noodle Bowls with Colorful Vegetables
This quick, easy recipe is an easy delivery system for an array of colorful vegetables. Featuring bean thread noodles, this might just become your go-to recipe when you crave a warming Asian-style dish in minutes.
Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup
Great year-round, this lighter soup is especially welcome in spring and fall and will please any vegetarian or plant-based food fan. You don’t see the peas, but I promise, they’re in there!
Super-Quick Butternut Squash Soup with Spinach & Peas
A quick butternut squash soup that comes together in minutes has to rely on a clever shortcut. And for this one, that’s a carton of butternut squash puree.
Vegan Mac and Cheese Soup
A soothing bowlful in a base of pureed white beans. It’s a favorite comfort food converted into a soup that’s mild and cheesy, yet completely dairy-free.
Spanish Vegetable Stew (Menestra de Verduras)
There are many regional variations of this stew, and can be made with different vegetables according to season. Many traditional versions aren’t vegan, though this one is 100% plant-based!
Pilafs, Pastas & Noodles Using Frozen Peas
Vegan Quinoa Paella
Here’s a quick-to-fix, colorful vegan quinoa paella. Paella is a Spanish pilaf traditionally made with white rice and seafood. We’ll do away with the seafood here, of course, and since we’re dispensing with tradition, let’s do away with rice as well.
Mushroom-Barley Pilaf with Peas and Carrots
A hearty, naturally vegan skillet main dish or side, perfect for warming up on chilly evenings.
Tehri-Inspired Brown Rice and Sweet Potato Pilaf
Inspired by an Indian/Pakistani dish called Tehri, this brown rice and sweet potato pilaf is embellished with green peas and flavored with lots of ginger and cilantro.
Curry-Spiced Cauliflower and Basmati Rice Pilaf
Once you have your rice cooked, this aromatic curry-spiced rice pilaf with cauliflower and peas comes together quickly.
Vegan Hotdog Fried Rice
We’re not making this up! Hotdog fried rice really is a thing, hailing from Chicago, as legend would have it. This plant-based version seems like it shouldn’t work — but does, indeed.
Vegan Pasta Curry with Cauliflower and Red Beans
Discover the offbeat combinations of flavors and textures in this colorful pasta curry — it’s a fantastic addition to your veggie-filled weekday repertoire.
Tomatoes Stuffed with Orzo and Peas
A comforting side dish or light main dish to make any time of year, whenever firm, flavorful tomatoes are available.
Farfalle Pasta with Zucchini, Cherry Tomatoes, and Olives
Just a few simple ingredients go into this easy and tasty farfalle pasta dish that’s good served warm or at room temperature.
Kale Pesto Pasta with Mushroom “Bacon”
The lovely green color of this kale pesto pasta dish is assisted by a small amount of green peas.
Green Noodles
Pasta with broccoli sauce, made even greener with peas, is a simple weeknight dish that offers comfort and veggies in one neat package.
Pasta with Leafy Greens Pesto
Using spinach, arugula, and/or watercress plus a cup of peas for an even greener effect, this pesto is a lighter yet more nourishing than basil pasta. It’s perfect for easy pasta dishes like this one.
Vegan Singapore Noodles (Yellow Curry Rice Noodles)
A tasty and pleasantly offbeat dish, these noodles are seasoned with both soy sauce and curry and embellished with baked tofu, green peas, and bell pepper.
Vegetable Chow Mein
If you’re a fan of stir-fried noodle dishes, this dish will be right up your alley. Easy and adaptable, you can make it a little different each time, according to what vegetables are in your fridge (or even your freezer).
Sesame-Ginger Cold Rice Noodles with Vegetables
This simple dish of cold rice noodles is flavored with bottled or homemade sesame-ginger salad dressing and embellished with colorful vegetables.
Salads Using Frozen Peas
Veganized Midwestern Green Pea & Cheddar Salad
Green pea and cheddar salad is a classic from the U.S. midwest — the kind of recipe that’s served at potlucks and other gatherings. In its original form, it’s by no means vegan (and sometimes not even vegetarian), but this cozy plant-based version of this works exceptionally well.
Cauliflower and Potato Salad with Peas and Olives
Here’s a simple cauliflower and potato salad (combining the two vegetables, not the trendy cauliflower “potato salad” containing no actual potatoes). It’s a hearty cold salad for any time of year.
Spring Pasta Salad with Asparagus and Peas
Filled with spring flavors, here’s a perfect dish for welcoming the season and enjoying into early summer.
Vegan Macaroni Salad with Vegetable Confetti
A simple vegan macaroni salad embellished with colorful vegetables — peas, corn, bell pepper, and carrots — this is reminiscent of the kind sold at deli counters, but with lots more going for it.
Golden and Sweet Potato Salad
A crowd-pleasing potato salad for eaters of all persuasions with its mild, pleasant flavors and enticing colors. It’s a fantastic selection for potlucks, vegan barbecues, and of course, picnics.
Potato and Fennel Salad with Artichoke Hearts
This recipe takes potato salad to another level — it’s a hearty fall and winter potato and fennel salad with a flourish of peas.
Leave a Reply