Today is Day 16 of the Thug Kitchen Challenge and today I will be reviewing the Grilled Snap peas with Peanut Sauce (found online). There is something about the summer months that have me really craving fresh, crunch produce. The heat just makes me want to eat raw as much as possible. Although these snap peas are grilled, it is ever so slightly leaving it still to have that crunch taste. The bonus is that you get that barbecue flavour and fancy grill marks! Peanut butter is also a staple in my diet, so I was super eager to try this.
At First Glance
This recipe has 12 ingredients (the majority being in the peanut sauce). All the ingredients were easy to find. The only thing I sometimes have trouble with is bamboo skewers. However in the summer months they are a lot easier to spot. The cost is lower, again once the snap peas are in season (so summer months here in Western Canada).
I found the directions easy to follow, however it was a bit misleading with my grill pan. It may be a grill sort of thing? I also found some difficulty with the Apricot French Toast – so perhaps it’s just me! I would say this recipe was not too bad on time either. When the grill is heating up, you can make the dipping sauce (or if you are super smart, make it during prep day!) One note about the peanut sauce. It seemed to separate a bit, so I would suggest blending it with either a blender or food processor to get the consistency as smooth as possible.
The Taste Test
I liked the taste of this, but didn’t love it. I think it was because, as stated earlier, the peanut sauce wasn’t consistently smooth. I found it runny and didn’t stick to the peas, which made it pointless as a dip. Alone, the snap peas were great. I found by slightly grilling the outside, it kept it’s crunch texture but released the sweetness of the peas themselves. It made me want to try them on a veggie kabob, perhaps even the Sweet and Sour Tempeh Kabobs from last week. They weren’t terribly filling, again probably because I didn’t touch the dip, which was where the majority of the protein was found. They tended to soften over time, so I would also eat them right away. Otherwise, pull them off the skewers and eat them with a fork the next day, still great! I also think the sauce tasted better over time. I find with garlic based sauces, the garlic tends to marinate over time and taste even better.
Final Verdict
Would I make them again, yes. The sauce needed some work but like I said, with a blend it would have worked a lot better, or perhaps even with a different sauce. You can’t go too wrong with snap peas! I gave this an overall rating of 85%, so still a great score!
