Green peas are one of India’s favourite vegetables, from matar paneer to pulao. Fresh peas are in season for only a few months each winter, yet frozen peas are on the menu all year. Here is how a pack of Season’s Delight® frozen green peas goes from a farm in Uttarakhand to your kitchen.
1. Grown in the Tarai, picked in season
Our peas come from growers in the fertile Tarai belt at the foot of the Himalayas, close to our plant in Kichha, Udham Singh Nagar. The main pea harvest runs from December to March. We buy during this harvest window, when the pods are full and the peas are at their sweetest.
2. Same-day intake
Peas lose their natural sweetness quickly once they are picked, so speed matters. Harvested pods reach our plant the same day. Every load is given a lot number at intake, which stays with it all the way to the finished pack, so it can be traced back to its source.
3. Shelling, cleaning and washing
The pods are shelled, and stones, bits of pod and stems are removed. The peas are then washed thoroughly in naturally mineral-rich Himalayan water.
4. Blanching
Next comes blanching: a short, precisely timed dip in hot water. It sets the bright green colour and gets the peas ready to cook, so you can add them to your dish straight from the freezer.
5. Chilling, sorting and grading
Right after blanching, the peas are chilled quickly to stop the cooking. They are inspected on food-grade belts and graded by sieve size, so the peas in each pack are similar in size and cook evenly.
6. Individually quick frozen
The peas then pass through our IQF freezer, where air at about −35 °C to −40 °C freezes each pea separately within minutes. That is why Season’s Delight® peas pour freely from the pack instead of sticking together in a lump. (New to IQF? Read What is IQF?)
7. Packing and cold storage
The frozen peas are weighed, packed and coded with their lot number and best-before date. They are then held in our frozen store at −18 °C or below until they are dispatched. Our plant has 10,000 MT of frozen storage, so we can supply peas all year round.
What’s in the pack
Just green peas. Season’s Delight® frozen green peas contain no preservatives, no added colour and no added salt, and they are made in a 100% vegetarian facility. They come in 200 g, 500 g and 1 kg packs, and in bulk cartons for hotels, caterers, food processors and export buyers.
Tips for cooking frozen peas
- Don’t thaw them. Add them straight from the freezer near the end of cooking.
- For matar paneer or aloo matar, add the peas to the simmering gravy for the last 4–5 minutes.
- For pulao, stir the frozen peas into the rice with the water.
- Keep the pack sealed and frozen at −18 °C, and don’t refreeze peas that have thawed.
Buy frozen green peas from Kiran Foods
We supply Season’s Delight® frozen green peas and our value brand KF’s Taaza (200 g – 5 kg) to retailers, distributors, hotels, caterers and importers. Send us your requirement or call +91 72518 55000 for a quotation.