Field Peas and Snaps

By Millie Peartree

Updated January 21, 2026

Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Ready In
1 hr 10 min
Rating
4(7)
Comments
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Also called cowpeas or southern peas, field peas are actually a variety of beans, often cooked with pork and simply seasoned. As the peas cook in the braising liquid, they become tender, earthy and totally satisfying. The snaps are green beans that are snapped in half (which is where the name “snap beans” comes from), and then simmered along with the peas. Traditionally, snaps were the young green pods of the field peas themselves. Simmering the snaps with the field peas infuses the broth with flavor, just like collard greens and potlikker. This heartwarming dish can be eaten on its own or paired with white rice and cornbread.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings

  • 1 pound dried field peas, cowpeas or black-eyed peas (see Tip)

  • 3 slices thick-cut smoked bacon, roughly chopped

  • 1 large Vidalia onion, roughly chopped

  • ½ teaspoon sugar

  • ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper 

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), plus more to taste

  • ½ teaspoon black pepper

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced

  • 1 pound green beans, stem ends trimmed, snapped in half

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)

19 grams carbs; 7 milligrams cholesterol; 131 calories; 2 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 4 grams fat; 5 grams fiber; 327 milligrams sodium; 5 grams protein; 6 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

    1. Step 1

      In a colander, pick over the peas and discard any misshapen or discolored peas. Rinse well and set aside.

    2. Step 2

      In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown slightly, 3 to 5 minutes. Add onion, sugar, crushed red pepper, salt and black pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until onion is translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, 30 seconds more.

    3. Step 3

      Add the rinsed peas to the bacon mixture, along with cold water as needed to cover the peas (8 to 10 cups). Cover tightly, bring to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes.

    4. Step 4

      Add the green beans and cook for another 15 to 20 minutes, until the peas are tender with a creamy bite and green beans are tender. Taste and readjust seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Serve the peas and snaps with their broth, or serve using a slotted spoon for something less brothy.

Tip

  • While mild-tasting black-eyed peas are widely available, other types of field peas like crowder peas, zipper peas and cream peas are often sold dried in local markets throughout the South (and online), and are worth seeking out for their creamy texture and savory flavor.

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Comments

Pedantic Twit

Green beans are not snaps. When I was a kid growing up in the south, we got fresh field peas in their pods (shells) by the giant handfuls. We shelled the peas out, but some of the pods were immature, couldn't be opened easily, and yielded tiny peas at best. Rather than toss, we pinched the ends off and snapped the pods into inch long "snaps." They tasted nothing like green beans -- even the skinny runts. Alas, the canned "field peas with snaps" contain green beans, not snaps.

CindyE

In the South "Snaps" are usually known as the smaller pea pods that couldn't be shelled. They're snapped into pieces and thrown into the pot along with the rest of the peas. Of course this only works with fresh not dried peas.

aw

@PDX Anarchist Jurisdiction My vegetarian hack for recipes that use bacon / bacon fat is Wrights Liquid smoke for the smoke and a bit of miso for the umami. Use the oil of your choice for the sauté step and add the liquid smoke and miso w the liquid. For field peas, I use bourbon smoked paprika, miso, and a couple of teaspoons of vegetable broth concentrate for flavor depth and a touch of heat. Good luck!

Will

I will serve this as a side with Ms Peartree's Charleston red rice recipe, which is the red rice recipe I always cook and I was born and raised in Charleston.

Janie Weaver

Does anyone remember having shellies?

Janie Weaver

I haven’t made this yet, but intend to. I’m a North Carolinian with a history of cooking southern food. The way to do the green beans is to snap them into thirds. They need to cook for an hour. You can cook them with the peas. Add a small onion cut in half, leave it in so it falls apart and is creamy. Don’t stir it at the end. Just let a lucky few scoop some out. Fry a few strips of bacon in a separate pan and pour the oil from the bacon in the pot. It won’t be much oil, so you don’t have to worry about that. It just adds a little extra flavor. Drain the bacon on paper towels. When ready to eat, crumble the bacon and sprinkle on top. The above is what I’ll do. You can also prepare the green beans the same as above, with the onion and bacon oil, but in a separate pot with enough water to cover. Simmer. Salt and pepper to taste. Be sure and cook them an hour to an hour and 15 minutes! That’s how you make southern green beans. Of course, you can go back a generation or two and use fatback instead of the bacon.

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