Grey Pea ‘Lollandske rosiner’
At last I had a chance to boil the grey peas. Grey peas was stable food in northern europe before the potato made its way into the kitchens. Since then the use of grey peas have been forgotten. To learn how to cook them, I looked them up in a danish cookbook from 1847 written by Madam Mangor. You might be able to translate it with BabelFish or Google.
But an anarchist live somewhere inside of me, always making me do things a bit different to the recipe.
Grey peas in their own gravy
I soaked the grey peas overnight well covered in tapwater. Changed the water, brougth to boil and added a pinch of baking soda, then gently boiled for two hours. Now the grey peas was tender and had developed their own gravy. We dined on some of it. Next day the gravy had turned in to jelly, but melted quickly on boiling. They tasted even better the second day. Taste was superior to the yellow peas, and to my surprise with no gas problems.
I hope grey peas will one day be awailable in the ordinary supermarkets – ithey are delicious.
PS. Thanks to Poul, who saved ‘Lollandske rosiner’ from extinction, and to Kirsten, who grew and presented this batch of grey peas to me.
In the toad's garden 
October 29, 2008 at 00:54
Thanks for sharing this info and recipe. I have quite a few peas of this type and I never really know what to do with them. I must try this!
October 29, 2008 at 15:02
I am always amazed by your photos. I hope to be able to someday buy these. Because of you and other seedsavers I may just be able to do that!
October 31, 2008 at 23:32
Thanks both of you.
I guess these old varieties of peas will become trendy within 10 years. I hear organic food trendsetters in Denmark start to mention them as the chickpeas of our northern fields. Somebody are working on new recipes for the old peas.
November 4, 2008 at 08:49
The Dutch version of this pea, capucijners, can already be found in supermarkets here as well as Dutch food stores all over the world. They really are delicious!
November 4, 2008 at 18:55
Great, then we have to look out for the capucijners where dutch people go shopping. Wonder if there would be a dutch webbased food store sending to abroad? Guess I should do a google.
April 2, 2009 at 20:34
I would love to buy some seeds. Would you be willing to sell me some?
Thanks
April 2, 2009 at 22:10
Hello Stacy.
How many seeds would you need? For cooking or growing?
December 22, 2009 at 18:04
Does anyone know of a place I can order the grey peas? I live in the U.S. & cannot find any here.
January 15, 2012 at 16:47
you can purchase in U.S. at Holland American Food Co. in grand rapids michigan
March 21, 2012 at 03:47
One of the foods I grew up on in Dutch West Michigan during the 50’s and 60’s was grey peas, called in the local Dutch community “Grau Eertwen” or something like that. The peas were imported from Holland in pound bags.
They were served instead of potatoes and generally eaten with syrup. Or
Grijze erwten as a variant spelling. And yes I grew up in that “community” of Calvinist Dutchmen!
April 4, 2012 at 17:20
Deb thanks for the US source of seed I did not want to burden Soren again for his rare gems. I was looking for a few years at the photo of the pot of grey peas in their own gravy. Hmmm Flavor-mail.
June 26, 2012 at 15:50
Mmmm yes. When I was growing up in England, my mom-and her mom-cooked grey pea stew every week. I loved it. I lived in America for years, and never saw them. I’m back in Europe now (Stockholm) and I want to find some. Does anyone know a source? I don’t have a garden (yet), so it’s just for cooking right now.
October 22, 2012 at 05:43
[…] from Sweden. Before potatoes became a staple food in Northern Europe, these peas were cooked to a very thick consistency (like mashed potatoes) and eaten as a side dish. They are easy to grow, can handle both cold and […]
August 30, 2014 at 11:09
Hi, there, I am from Singapore, I require some grey peas and naked barley seeds to grow for health reason as my immunity system is under water and has major skin prob and require Phyto protein and on top and above I have green fingers, I can be contacted at:
Jane Chia
Block 101 #04-17,
Lorong Sarina,
Casa Sarina
Singapore 416729
Thank you.
August 30, 2014 at 14:37
Hello Jane.
Are you sure grey peas and barley will grow in your climate? These cultivars are adopted to north atlantic climate, very different from your climate. I would expect plants that need greenhouse conditions, or are wery difficult for me to grow, to do well in the tropics.
Best wishes!
November 30, 2014 at 00:24
Here is my grandmother’s recipe for Dutch Grey Peas, dating back to the 1920’s:
1 cup Dutch Grey Peas, soak overnight.
Simmer in about 3 cups of water for a couple of hours or until done.
Dice 6 or more strips of bacon and fry, pouring off fat into pitcher.
Serve peas with bacon sprinkled on top.
Serve with three pitchers: bacon fat, vinegar, and syrup.
The syrup is optional.
I like a lighter version: a tablespoon of bacon chips, 3 tablespoons of the cooking water, and a tablespoon or so of balsamic vinegar.
The taste is absolutely unique, unlike any other dried pea or bean.
It used to be that every supermarket in Grand Rapids had Dutch Grey Peas on the “Dutch foods” shelf. Nowadays, if there is such a shelf at all, it’s only cookies and sweets.
March 25, 2017 at 11:47
Havent had grey peas in quite awhile, should cook up a cup and try them with the bacon.
Another “Dutch treat” in my youth was Leyden/Leiden cheese- a whitish cheese seasoned with caraway seeds. Best eaten in thin slices on warm buttered bread.