Frozen Pea Salad, With or Without Feta Cheese

Frozen Pea Salad with Feta Cheese

In planning for the recent memorial service for my best friend’s husband, I needed some really easy, dump-and-mix recipes that tasted delicious. They also had to be made by people who don’t cook very much. And the ingredients would ideally be found at the local warehouse club, since we were cooking for 150 (that number grew to 215 by the day of the service!!)

Oh yeah, there were more variables. They had to be okay made ahead of time. They had to be okay sitting out on the buffet table for an hour or two, in case the speakers went on and on forever (there would be an open mic at the end, so anyone who wanted could say something. We had only guesses as to how long the service would last.)

Food safety was a concern for me. Food cannot sit for more than two hours at temperatures warmer than refrigerated or cooler than hot. Bacteria start to grow that can make people sick, and I wasn’t about to make anyone sick on MY watch!

They had to not need to be heated. We only had a few hotel pans and warming trays, not enough for this large a crowd.

But if we could refrigerate it as we made it, then put some of it out before the service, keep the rest at a safe temperature, and refill as necessary, that would work fine. (We ended up borrowing our own, my neighbors, and other friend’s refrigerator spaces, plus a huge cooler with ice, to keep things properly chilled.)

I found this recipe online, which used frozen peas, feta cheese, and balsamic vinegar. I altered it a bit and came up with the versions we used.

One version was close to the original, with feta cheese. The other could be for vegans, although I opted to use commercial mayonnaise, which has eggs in it. I wasn’t about to prepare gallons of vegan mayonnaise, and we couldn’t afford to buy commercial vegan mayonnaise substitute.

But I am sure you could use a vegan mayonnaise instead. Depending on your product, it might get a bit watery if the mayonnaise breaks down. But the mayo with eggs holds up fine.

Also, I developed a version made with white vinegar, in case we couldn’t get the balsamic. (I’ve planned enough dinner parties based on warehouse club ingredients, only to be shocked to find them not in stock. Then I needed to to change the menu at the last minute. I wanted to avoid that possibility this time!)

The flavor of balsamic vinegar is sweeter than white, so you will need to add some sweetener to balance the flavors.

Frozen Pea Salad With Feta

1 pound frozen peas, thawed
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup minced sweet onion
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 TBS vinegar (white or balsamic)
1/2 cup feta cheese crumbles
sugar or other sweetener, optional*

If your peas are still a bit frozen, they will freeze the ingredients as you mix them, so they need to be mostly or fully thawed.

If you are in a rush, microwave them one or two minutes, to thaw them out enough to use.

Mix all ingredients together. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

*If you are using white vinegar, add a small amount of sugar or other sweetener, to balance the flavors.

Pea Salad (without feta cheese)

Vegan Frozen Pea Salad Without Feta

1 pound frozen peas, thawed
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup minced sweet onion
1/2 cup vegan mayonnaise
2 TBS vinegar (white or balsamic)
salt, to taste
sugar or other sweetener, optional*

If your peas are still a bit frozen, they will freeze the ingredients as you mix them, so they need to be mostly or fully thawed.

If you are in a rush, microwave them one or two minutes, to thaw them out enough to use.

Mix all ingredients together. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

*If you are using white vinegar, add a small amount of sugar or other sweetener, to balance the flavors.

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