Does anyone have good recipes for fava beans?

Just make sure you serve them with a nice Chianti.

Ingredients

2 pounds fava (broad) beans, shelled (about 2 cups)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/4 cup minced yellow onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 cup vegetable stock, chicken stock or broth

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon chopped fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley

Directions

Bring a large saucepan 3/4 full of water to a boil. Add the fava beans and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and cook for 2 minutes. Drain and rinse immediately with cold water to stop the cooking. To remove the skins, pinch each bean on the side opposite where it was attached to the pod; the bean should slip easily from the skin. Remove and discard the outer skins. Set the beans aside.

In a large saucepan with a tightfitting lid, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until soft and lightly golden, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds; don't let the garlic brown. Add the fava beans and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer, shaking the pan gently from time to time, until the beans are tender, about 15 minutes.

Season with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and the pepper. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve immediately.

Ingredients:

boiling water

salt

ice

tap water

2 lbs fresh fava beans, in the pod (yields about 1 1/2 to 2 cups shelled beans)

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced, to taste

salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1-First, shell the beans from the fava pods (I found it’s sometimes easier - especially if you're new to fava beans - to open the pods when you run the edge of a knife along the seam, cutting away the tough edge so that the pod halves come apart).

2-In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil, then add salt – the amount depends on how much water you have, but it should be very salty, like seawater.

3-In a bowl, combine ice and tap water to make ice water; set aside.

4-Add the shelled beans to the boiling water and let cook for about 3 minutes, then remove from saucepan and immediately plunge into the ice water to halt the cooking.

5-Let the beans cool, then peel the outer skin from each of them.

6-Over medium heat in a skillet, melt together the butter and olive oil, then add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute.

7-Add the peeled fava beans and sauté for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are done to your preference.

8-Season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper, serve, and enjoy!

9-Note: in choosing your fava beans, get the pods that are firm and fresh looking; also, if you’re feeling silly, have these along with your favorite liver dish and a nice Chianti.

10-Note 2: once you've made these basic fava beans, you can add other delicious items such as caramelized onions or fennel, chunky fresh tomatoes, and/or a bit of chopped proscuitto.

11-Note 3: I asked Gabriel if favas could be frozen effectively, and he said that yes, you can shuck them and blanch them for 1 minute at most, then freeze them in a single layer on a sheet in the freezer before putting them into bags; great bright green color and no mushiness in texture; thaw, peel, and use as usual.

Hi Panda,

I have a good recipe for a bean salad. To the cooked fava beans, add a diced onion, a clove of crushed garlic, salt , black pepper, diced sweet beetroot, a good olive oil and red wine vinegar. Mix through, adjust the seasonings to your taste and serve cold as an accompinament