Hannibal Lecter and I love Fava Beans, and sure, I’ll take them with a nice Chianti but I will pass on the liver, thank you very much. After I posted the blog about the delicious Fava Bean Crostini I had at Locanda Verde, I got to thinking that maybe I should post step by step instructions on how to prep Fava beans, it does take a few steps to cook them, and frankly, you shouldn’t shy away from them just for that reason. They are only available for a few weeks in the late spring and early summer so now is a GREAT time to buy and try these tasty little guys.

How do you pick ‘em?

Fava beans, like all legumes, come in a pod about 8-9 inches long. When they are fresh they have a bright green color and are firm to touch. Don’t buy them when they are a dull green or when they are soft and wrinkled.

How do you shell ‘em?

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They are a snap to shell! Just snap down the end of the bean near the string side then give it a pull. The string will peel down till the end of the bean.

Inside you will see these lovely beans! A nice healthy pod contains anywhere from 4-8 beans (it can get pretty packed in there).

Once you have shelled your beans you are ready to cook them. I prefer to steam my beans to keep as much of the nutritional value in tact. I steamed mine for less than 2 minutes and when they are done they look a little shriveled but, they are not done yet ! The outer husk needs to be removed before the beans can be enjoyed!

To remove the peel, just put pressure on the beans and they will pop right out of the waxy cover. Then you are ready to enjoy them. Trust me, they are delish!!!

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This entry was posted on Monday, June 21st, 2010 at 3:44 pm and is filed under Blogroll, Food, Friends. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.