Pea Pods Sabzi (Matar Ke Chilke): Peeling, Soup and Freezing

Pea pods (matar ke chilke) make a good sabzi only when they’re young, green and crisp, and only after you pull off the thin, papery inner lining. Older pods go into soup or stock and get strained. This guide shows how to peel the membrane, which pods to keep, a pea pods sabzi and a soup with exact amounts, how to freeze them, and what to compost.

Can you really eat matar ke chilke?

Yes. Garden pea pods aren’t toxic. The outer green flesh is sweet and grassy. The trouble is the inside. Each pod has a thin, clear, plastic-like lining (the parchment layer) that never softens, however long you cook it.

• Snow peas and sugar snap peas are bred without much of that layer, which is why they’re eaten whole
• Desi shelling peas have a tough one, so they need a little work first
• The first matar of the winter season gives the best pods; late-season pods turn fibrous

If you’re still at the buying stage, see picking sweet matar pods and freezing peas.

What people say, what tradition says, and our honest take

What people say

“Don’t throw away pea peels, they’re full of protein and fibre!” Some videos also claim pod sabzi melts belly fat.

What tradition says

In parts of North India and Pakistan, thrifty cooks have long made matar ke chilke ki sabzi in the peak of winter, peeling the pods by hand while sitting in the sun. In many homes the pods also go to the cattle.

Our honest take Depends

Pods are fibre-rich, but they aren’t a protein food; the protein is in the peas. Pod sabzi is tasty and thrifty when the pods are young. It’s a lot of peeling, though. For many busy families, stock or strained soup is the smarter way to use them. Neither one does anything special to body fat.

How do you peel the inner membrane?

1. Wash the pods under running water, rubbing them between your hands. Drain
2. Hold a pod open, inner side facing you. Bend the pod backwards at the stem end until it cracks
3. The clear inner layer will separate. Pinch it and pull it down the length of the pod in one strip
4. Also pull off the string along the seam, as you would with green beans
5. What’s left is a soft, green outer skin. Chop it finely, about half a cm wide

Expect about 10 to 15 minutes for 250 g of pods. Pods from 1 kg of matar weigh roughly 450 to 550 g; after peeling you’ll have around 250 g of usable green skin.

Recipe: aloo matar chilka sabzi

1. Prepare 250 g peeled, finely chopped pods (from about 1 kg of matar)
2. Heat 2 tbsp oil. Add half a tsp zeera, then 1 medium onion, finely chopped. Cook 4 to 5 minutes until soft
3. Add 1 tsp ginger-garlic paste, 1 green chilli, a quarter tsp haldi, half a tsp red chilli, 1 tsp dhania powder and half a tsp salt. Stir 1 minute
4. Add 1 medium potato (about 150 g) in small cubes and the chopped pods. Stir well
5. Splash in 3 tbsp water, cover and cook on low for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the potato is soft
6. Add a handful of the shelled peas for the last 5 minutes, and finish with a pinch of garam masala

Serves 3 with roti. It tastes like a mild, sweeter version of aloo matar with more bite.

Recipe: pea pod soup (no peeling needed)

1. Wash 300 g pods. Pull off the stem tips. No need to remove the inner layer
2. In 1 tbsp butter or oil, cook 1 small chopped onion and 2 garlic cloves for 3 minutes
3. Add the pods, 1 small potato for body and 750 ml water or stock. Boil, then simmer covered for 20 minutes
4. Blend well, then press through a fine sieve with the back of a spoon. This step removes the fibres. Don’t skip it
5. Season with salt and black pepper. Add a spoon of cream or yogurt if you like

Makes about 3 bowls. Sweet, bright green and smooth. For a baby over 6 months, skip the salt and stock cube and use plain water.

Can you make stock from pea pods?

Yes, and it’s the least work. Simmer a large handful of washed pods with onion skins, a carrot end and a bay leaf in 1 litre of water for 30 minutes. Strain and use within 3 days from the fridge, or freeze. It’s lovely in pulao or a vegetable soup.

How do you freeze pea pods?

1. Peel the membrane and chop, if you want them for sabzi. For soup, leave them whole
2. Blanch in boiling water for 2 minutes
3. Drop into ice water for 2 minutes to stop the cooking. Drain and pat dry
4. Pack flat in zip bags, press out the air and label with the date
5. Use within 2 to 3 months. Cook straight from frozen

Myth: pea pods are a great protein source

They aren’t. The pod is mostly water and fibre. The peas inside hold the protein, and even then, peas are a vegetable rather than a protein staple. Pod dishes add fibre and flavour to a meal; pair them with dal, eggs or chicken for protein.

What should you compost?

• Yellow, dried, spotted or mouldy pods
• The peeled inner membranes and strings
• The pulp left in the sieve after soup

Pods break down fast and are good “green” material in a compost bin. Our bucket and matka compost guide shows how to balance them with dry leaves.

Did you know?

• Snow peas and sugar snaps are eaten pod and all because breeders selected plants with almost no inner parchment layer
• Gregor Mendel worked out the basic rules of inheritance in the 1860s by crossing garden pea plants

For more ways to use the whole vegetable, browse the zero-waste kitchen guides.

Pea pods sabzi: questions people ask