Arbeyos
This is a bit of a confusing word, as it requires context to know if the speaker is talking about green garden peas (Pisum Sativum) or common vetch (Vicia Sativa)[1]. For our purposes, we are going to assume we are speaking of Garden Peas - the Castellano guisante. L'arbeyu is an integral part of Asturian early spring cuisine. It stars in the dish Arbeyos con Jamón, famous in Lena concejo because of the arbeyos grown in Somerón.
History
Originally a wild plant growing throughout the Mediterranean Basin, there is solid evidence of their use as a foodstuff since the late neolithic era.[2] Grown ini9tially for their dried seeds, the pea was selected into many cultivars from roughly 7500 BCE until 300 BCE.[3] From Roman legions gathering peas to supplement their rations to Charles the Good of Flanders noting their key role in averting famine in 1124, the pea remained a constant and important part of European culinary history.[4] As a cool-season crop, they are an ideal plant for the Asturian climate. Since it rarely gets above 85F in Asturias, even in the hottest parts of the regions, peas grow well almost year-round.[5]
Uses in Asturian Cooking
In the Asturian kitchen, arbeyos take the pride of place that esparragos has in other parts of Spain - as the herald of spring and the beginning of the fullness of gardening season. Nowadays used only fresh (or fresh frozen), they are prepared in a variety of ways. From simply boiled with potatoes (echoes of the southern Appalachian dish Ham, Peas, & New Potatoes[6]) to an essential part of Menestra, to slow cooked with ham or bacon, to boiled and served along with Carne Guisada, the pea is ever-present in the Asturian repertoire.[7]
Recipes
No recipes on this site currently use Arbeyos
- ↑ https://mas.lne.es/diccionario/palabra/38838
- ↑ Zohary, Daniel and Hopf, Maria (2000). Domestication of Plants in the Old World, third edition. Oxford: University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-850356-9. pp. 105–107.
- ↑ Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat, A History of Food, 2nd ed. 2009:38ff.
- ↑ Michel Pitrat and Claude Four, Histoires de légumes: Des origines à l'orée du XXIe siècle, "Le pois au cours des siècles" :353
- ↑ “Pisum Sativum.” Pisum Sativum (Austrian Winter Pea, Austrian Winter Peas, English Pea, English Peas, Field Pea, Field Peas, Green Pea, Green Peas, Pea, Peas) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, N.C. Cooperative Extension, https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/pisum-sativum/.
- ↑ Lundy, Ronni. Victuals: An Appalachian Journey, with Recipes. 2016. pp301
- ↑ Alperi, Magdalena. Guía De La Cocina Asturiana. 1a ed, S. Cañada, 1981.pp 58
