Fava beans

[TheOtherOne]

I just picked some up at the seed share. I've never had them in my life, apparently people make some sort of paste like tofu out of them? Does anyone have any good recipes for the beans? (someone told me the greens are also edible)

I'm probably going to plant them at the same time as my runner beans, unless that's too late for them. Has anyone had these beans? How easy to grow are they?

 

[Mad Oshea]

I have five lbs. of them. I fill a preasure cooker 1/4 with the favs- Finnish the fill with water to 3/4 add one scoop of bacon fat, two ham hocks, salt peper,a dash of clove, dash of ginger,dash nutmeg A tea spoon garilc and one onion. Cook one hr.
There are alot of ways to cook them.

 

[istanbulin]

It's probably one of the easiest growing edible legumes. Actually it's generally seeded in Oct-Dec in Mediterranean but in colder regions March is better, so put them into the soil as soon as possible. Frosts don't hurt the fava bean seeds under the soil and also seedlings are resistant to light frosts (-5 C). It grows fast so it's the first crop of the spring.

Greens are edible but they may cause some side effects, it's callad "favism" because of an enzym deficiency. So, be careful.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose-6-phosphate_dehydrogenase_deficiency

As I know, there's no risk on eating green mature seeds. I like them raw, fresh from the plant.
The "paste" you meant is called "fava", it's not hard to make but a little time consuming. Fava beans (aka broad beans) are also good as artichoke stuffing.

 

[Mad Oshea]

Yes they are good off the vine. They go good with anything I think. Even in a fresh salad. That looks good. Nover thought of artichoke, looks and sounds like a winner.

 

[deluxestogie]

Starting with dry fava beans, you can put them into a Crockpot with plenty of water and some oil before going to bed at night. Allow them to cook on low until dinner the following day. One to two hours before serving, add salt, diced meat, vinegar, etc.

In Barcelona, I was served an entire meal of fava beans cooked in a rich tomato sauce.

Bob

 

[Knucklehead]

See Health Issues. Fava Beans can be dangerous if you are taking certain medication, and raw fava beans can cause problems if you have a particular health issue. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicia_faba

 

[istanbulin]

See the doctor above I've never had a problem by eating raw fava beans, if I eat too much it just increases my blood pressure a little. But, of course, everybody is different.

 

[ne3go]

My island is famous for its fava, has great quality.
The traditional recipe here: Boil the fava in water with onions,salt,pepper and olive oil.The amounts are: 1kg fava-1 kg oil(!)- 1 kg onions cut thin.
You start the boiling only with fava, put it in cold water over fire and remove any foam that comes in the surface, as the temperature rise.
When come to the boiling point, you add the rest of ingrediants and cook them in low fire, for about 1 hour.If you've done right, you will end up with a creamy paste. If you don't, you'll have to use the blender...

Green beans aren't edible here...

 

[Knucklehead]

Quoted from Wikipedia:

Health issues

Broad beans are rich in tyramine, and thus should be avoided by those taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors.[SUP][5][/SUP]
Raw broad beans also contain the alkaloids vicine and convicine which can induce hemolytic anemia in patients with the hereditary condition glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency. This potentially fatal condition is called favism after the fava bean

 

[istanbulin]

My island is famous for its fava, has great quality.
The traditional recipe here: Boil the fava in water with onions,salt,pepper and olive oil.The amounts are: 1kg fava-1 kg oil(!)- 1 kg onions cut thin.
You start the boiling only with fava, put it in cold water over fire and remove any foam that comes in the surface, as the temperature rise.
When come to the boiling point, you add the rest of ingrediants and cook them in low fire, for about 1 hour.If you've done right, you will end up with a creamy paste. If you don't, you'll have to use the blender...

Green beans aren't edible here...

Your fava is different my friend, fava bean (aka broad bean) is Vicia faba but the "fava" (yellow split pea) you have in your area is Lathyrus clymenum and it may not be edible when green. They're very different.

 

[Mad Oshea]

I always skim them when the temp is up (foam) In the pres. cooker I wait five or six min. befor skim. Olive oil helps the break down for a past (mashed bean) I have ate them all My life and get them from the store and fresh from the farmers market. I however prefer the pinto bean and garbonzo bean. Great input Knucks.

 

[istanbulin]

Quoted from Wikipedia:

Health issues

Broad beans are rich in tyramine, and thus should be avoided by those taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors.[SUP][5][/SUP]
Raw broad beans also contain the alkaloids vicine and convicine which can induce hemolytic anemia in patients with the hereditary condition glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency. This potentially fatal condition is called favism after the fava bean

It also says;

The name favism is sometimes used to refer to the enzyme deficiency as a whole, although this is misleading as not all people with G6PD deficiency or Favism will manifest physically observable symptoms to the consumption of broad beans.

I think this issue goes beyond our knowledge and this quotes from wikipedia is fruitless because we don't know anything about the background or researches. May be it's better to not to discuss this here.

 

[Knucklehead]

G6PD.org is probably a better reference than wikipedia: http://www.g6pd.org/en/G6PDDeficiency/SafeUnsafe/DaEvitare_ISS-it

MAOI's are prescribed for depression and some members may be taking it.

I'm not saying don't eat fava beans. I'm just saying that if you have G6PD or if you are taking MAOI's you may want to consult your doctor before eating fava beans.

 

[Mad Oshea]

I agree, Due to We don't want any one in a pickle over food. We ALL here do the same with tobacco on consumption, Green, tea, salads ect. We don't want any one sick for any reason. Thanks Folks . I would ask our Mods. to pull this post on safety only and not on the food reasons. I however eat them and like them. But when a health issue is there -Well PM's are a plus.

 

[ne3go]

Your fava is different my friend, fava bean (aka broad bean) is Vicia faba but the "fava" (yellow split pea) you have in your area is Lathyrus clymenum and it may not be edible when green. They're very different.

Didn't know that! Thanks!

 

[Southern Planter]

They are also the main ingredient in falafle. I have never gotten sick eating them.

 

[TheOtherOne]

I'm glad it was pointed out that health issues may exist, but I mean... don't cheese and most cured meat also contain tyramine? The only thing that really worries me is the MAOI containing rustica plants I'm growing


Thanks for all the recipe ideas. If the green parts of this plant are edible, I might decide to make bean sprouts from them at some point, or falafle.

 

[squeezyjohn]

Everyone who grows food in the UK grows these! We call them broad beans. Planted out in november or early spring - we would hardly ever consider drying them ... when young they are the sweetest taste of late spring/early summer and if you stagger the planting you can enjoy them through to september. If cooked young and fresh by boiling in salted water and served with or without butter - they are absolutely delicious and can accompany any meat.

 

[istanbulin]

I'm glad it was pointed out that health issues may exist, but I mean... don't cheese and most cured meat also contain tyramine? ...

I was about to say same thing as a response to "the health issues" warning, you're absolutely right thyramine exist in a lot of foods.
I'm sure nobody takes serious medication (MAOI or whatever) without a prescription. Doctors warn people about their diets while using medicines and aslo other things about the patient's background. There may be selective medicines too, I don't know. If some people are taking medication without perscription, nobody can help them here because there may be a lot of different interactions with other compounds that can be found in different foods or etc. and also this not our duty here.
This "health issues" warning only works for the people who already know that they have this type of enzyme deficiency, that's all.
Just my two cents.

 

[DGBAMA]

I was about to say same thing as a response to "the health issues" warning, you're absolutely right thyramine exist in a lot of foods.
I'm sure nobody takes serious medication (MAOI or whatever) without a prescription. Doctors warn people about their diets while using medicines and aslo other things about the patient's background. There may be selective medicines too, I don't know. If some people are taking medication without perscription, nobody can help them here because there may be a lot of different interactions with other compounds that can be found in different foods or etc. and also this not our duty here.
This "health issues" warning only works for the people who already know that they have this type of enzyme deficiency, that's all.
Just my two cents.

True, but common sense and personal responsibility for ones own actions are no longer requirements for living (although they should be); hence warnings for everything.