Photo by Michael Piazza

The first place I went to when I first visited Boston seven years ago was Chinatown. If you take the bus into South Station, when you exit the terminal there is a perfect line of sight down Atlantic, directly in view of the Chinatown Gate. Ever since, that neighborhood has had a place in my life for work, friendships, art, activism and, of course—this is Edible Boston, after all—food.

The Snow Pea Daiquiri is a small tribute to the side dish that I have to order when eating out in Chinatown—snow pea tips. Also known as pea shoots, pea pod stems or pea leaves, a platter of snow pea tips stir fried in oil and garlic will never disappoint (that is, until it’s gone). Raw snow pea tips play well with Clairin Vaval, a phenomenal, aromatic Haitian agricole rhum, in this crisp, spring-forward Daiquiri variation. Grab a bag of tips from the market, add them to your cocktail and save the rest for dinner.

Makes 1 cocktail

1½ ounces Clairin Vaval Haitian Rum
½ ounce snow pea syrup (see recipe below)
½ ounce fresh lime juice
pinch of salt (just the teensiest bit!)

SNOW PEA SYRUP
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup raw, washed snow pea tips

Chill your coupe, Nick and Nora or other preferred cocktail glass in the freezer. Build your cocktail in the shaker. Fill shaker with ice or a large cube and shake well for about 20 seconds. Strain the Daiquiri through a tea strainer into chilled glass. Garnish with a bright flower of your choice, or 3 smaller flowers in your favorite spring colors.

SNOW PEA SYRUP:
Make a batch of 2:1 rich simple syrup using 2 parts sugar to 1 part very hot water. Stir until sugar has dissolved and mixture is clear. Add washed snow pea tips and 1 cup rich simple syrup to blender. Blend until mixture is smooth. Allow syrup to rest at room temperature for 10–20 minutes before straining through a coffee filter, nut milk bag or fine cloth. Syrup can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

This recipe appeared in the Spring 2021 issue as part of a larger story called “A Toast to Togetherness.”