This Creamed Peas Recipe comes together quickly and so easily — the perfect holiday side dish!
So, I was asking Julie about the different kinds of holiday recipes I wanted to bring over this month, and I was dreaming up some different holiday side dishes. I’m actually not a stuffing eater (what?! I know…), so I was thinking veggies because I love Crock Pot Creamed Corn, The BEST Vegetable Casserole and ooh these Glazed Carrots.
To me, the holidays are all about comfort food, and creamy = comfort, am I right? So I decided on these Creamed Peas, and I didn’t actually tell Julie I’d never had creamed peas before in my life. But it seemed like a good idea at the time.
In my family, when we have potatoes or perogies, we’re not usually serving them with gravy (unless we’re eating turkey or chicken and making gravy with the juices) — we’re serving them with what we call “cream gravy”. Are you guys familiar with cream gravy? It’s something I grew up with, and I’m not sure if it’s more of a cultural thing (I’m Mennonite/Ukrainian/Russian/a bit of everything, or, you know, Canadian), or if it’s something that people are enjoying everywhere. If you’re not familiar with it, you should be.
I’ve always loved when we have cream gravy and peas, and the peas kind of migrate over to the gravy, and everything gets a little saucy. I figured creamed peas must be pretty amazing.
I like to make a lighter “cream” sauce, by using a roux (butter and flour) to thicken low fat milk, you get a nice, thick, creamy sauce to use on just about anything, but with a lot less fat. I figured that would be a good starting point for these creamed peas, and well, I’m always right I was right.
You can adjust the seasonings easily to your taste, adding in herbs or even cheese if you desire. You can also make the sauce ahead and throw it in a slow cooker or crockpot with your frozen peas so that you don’t have to think about it as you prepare the rest of your meal. I’m all about options!
Easy Creamed Peas
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 cups frozen peas
Instructions
- In a medium pot, melt butter. Whisk in flour until smooth.
- Add milk and cook over medium heat, whisking often, until smooth and thickened. Stir in salt and peas, cooking over medium heat until peas are heated through. Adjust seasonings to taste (salt, and pepper or other herbs or spices if desired).
Nutrition
Other side dishes you might enjoy:
Easy Skillet Scalloped Potatoes
I’m not always the biggest fan of peas, but these look so amazing that I think I’d be totally convinced! Love that creamy sauce!
Growing up my mother would always make creamed tuna with peas, and it is delicious!