Even in an age where genetically modified produce seems to be the norm, it can come as a surprise to discover that the sugar snap pea was bred, not born.
When New York City chef Jonathan Benno learned about the vegetable’s origins, he set out to find a way to celebrate the life’s work of Dr. Calvin Lamborn, who created the sugar snap pea nearly 40 years ago.
“It’s not often that you hear about an ingredient that was created. There’s the tomato, there’s the green bean, it wasn’t until a couple of years ago when I started to see all of these varietals of Dr. Lamborn’s peas that I learned that the sugar snap pea was actually created on a farm in Idaho 40 years ago,” Benno said.
