Broad
Beans
· Broad
beans (or fava beans) are tough characters.
They are one of the few vegetables that grow over winter and flower
before the aphids swarm around in late spring.
They were about the only edible beans in Europe until beans such as
‘French’ beans and scarlet runner beans were brought over from the New World.
· They can
be eaten whole as pods when very young and dried to provide beans during
winter. Try to pick the broad beans
before they get too old and develop a brown or worse, a black streak separating
the two halves of the beans. Cook the beans until tender, the older the
longer. Not everyone likes broad beans
but you can make them far more appetizing by removing their tough outer coat
which goes rather grey when cooked.
Although fiddly, it is worth the effort as you will get bright green
succulent morsels that will entice anyone to eat them. It is possible to find double peeled frozen
broad beans in some delicatessens and Asian stores, but if you have a glut of
broad beans don’t let them age on the plants, pick them and double peel them
and freeze them yourself.
· Broad
beans go well with pan fried bacon, pancetta and chorizo sausages and cheeses
with verve such as marinated feta, pecorino and parmesan, as well as lemon
juice, lemon zest, preserved lemons, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, French and
seed mustard, garlic, red onions, pesto, and herbs such as mint, coriander,
flat-leaf parsley, dill, basil, savory or even a little sage or rosemary and
other beans, peas, asparagus, artichokes and zucchini.
· Pan fried
· Sauté
some aromatics such as garlic and onion in some olive oil then add chopped or
sliced bacon, pancetta, chorizo or even ham.
Add cooked and double peeled beans.
You can also add some other green cooked vegetable if you like. Add some chopped herbs and a slurp of olive
oil and squeeze of lemon juice.
· Salads
· Place a
generous amount of cooked double peeled broad beans in a basin. Add some finely
chopped red onion and garlic if you like. Toss in chopped herbs. Add some dressing, and shaved or grated
parmesan or pecorino, or crumbled feta.
Garnish with crispy bacon or pancetta if you like or cubes of bread
fried in olive oil. Try adding baby
spinach, beetroot or rocket leaves to the salad or even watercress. Sliced pear would also go well with the broad
beans and you could add some blue vein cheese for a taste sensation. You can top the salad with slices lamb, rare
beef or chicken.
· Pasta and Grains
· Briefly
sauté, cooked double peeled broad beans and crushed garlic in olive oil or
butter, add some cooked pasta or gnocchi, sour cream and flaked cooked salmon,
garnish with chopped dill. You can add
broad beans to your favourite tomato pasta sauce, use lots of garlic and onion
for flavour, stir in the pasta and garnish with crumbled crispy bacon or
pancetta. Broad beans go well with
grains in dishes such as rice paella, barley and rice pilafs, risottos, or with
couscous. Because of their fairly robust
flavour they go well with pumpkin and sweet potato and spices in casseroles or
tagines
· Broad bean puree
· Broad
beans can be pureed to make dips or to serve as beds or toppings for other
ingredients. You simply put the cooked beans
in a food processor with a little olive oil and lemon juice and puree. Some good ingredients to go into the mix are:
garlic, yoghurt, sour cream, ricotta, feta, finely grated parmesan cheese. You can also make your own falafels and even
freeze the mixture for later use. Puree cooked
broad beans with half their volume of chick peas (ones from a can are good),
spices such as cumin and paprika and herbs such as coriander and parsley, with
finely chopped onion or crushed garlic.
Add some baking powder, about dessertspoon per cup of beans, and season
with salt and pepper. Blend in food
processor, but not too much, as the mixture should have the texture of crunchy
peanut butter and be quite stiff.
Shallow fry in a little oil; use a poaching ring to make a pattie
shape. Serve with labna made by mixing
yoghurt with has been drained in a sieve for a few hours or overnight, with
parsley or finely chopped coriander and the zest of lime or lemon, and salt and
pepper.
- LINKS
- Persian broad beans with dill, feta and fried eggs - great vegetarian meal
- http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/28679/persian+broad+beans+with+dill+feta+fried+eggs
· A tasty
broad bean dip. You can use frozen beans
or freshly cooked beans. Drain off the
water from the cooked beans and onions before adding the other ingredients and
processing.
· A
delicious risotto using broad beans and chorizo – a great flavor combination. You can use fresh, blanched broad beans with
their outer skins removed.
· Fish,
thyme and broad bean pies are easy to make.
Spice them up a little by seasoning with salt and pepper, adding a
little chilli or a dash of mustard.
·
This dish is unusual combination of broad beans, barley and sweet
potato. You can use fresh broad
beans. To speed up the cooking process
cook the broad beans in boiling water until just tender and microwave or steam
the sweet potato until it is just tender then add to the barley and cook until soft. For extra flavor add some cheese at the
end. Parmesan, grated cheddar or feta
would work well.
· This is
a recipe for an Egyptian style falafel.
You can use your own dried broad beans – but before you dry them blanch
them for a couple of minutes and remove their tough outer skins.
· Jamie
Oliver has a great broad bean recipe and gives a few hints on preparing broad
beans.
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