It's the season for the availability of some fresh beans in their pods. I just purchased a pile of Cranberry beans. They are much prettier when raw, as you will see. But much tastier cooked. The first thing to do is shuck the pretty pink-red shells. You'll see some of them are not quite fully formed and green. I usually leave them in but you can decide. Then you can add water and cook them for about 20-25 minutes. Or parboil them if you are going to add them to another dish. Cranberry beans are also known with different names: Borlotti, Roman, Romano, Saluggia, Rosecoco.
Here are some photos of my process:
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| The raw beans in their pods straight from the fields. |
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| The raw beans released from their pods. |
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| The empty pods. |
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| You can simply boil them in water. I added half an onion, a carrot, a couple of unpeeled garlic cloves, a few bay leaves, a few sage leaves, and a glug or two of olive oil. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer gently. |
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| Slowly heating up. |
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| Coming to a boil. |
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| Boiling now. See how the colors are changing. |
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The fully cooked beans covered with olive oil. They are ready to use in other dishes.
Cranberry or Borlotti beans are very compatible with Winter Squash, Kale, jalapeno, garlic, tomatoes. They can be cooked with a soup stock and pureed. Add a mole and stir together with a fresh tomato passata, pour into a claypot and place into the oven. They are also good cold or room temperature mixed with tuna in olive oil.
Once you have all your nice beans in a jar covered with olive oil you can leave them in the fridge for a few days. They make a great addition for a fast meal. If you have some stock in your pantry, pour it into a pot then add some julienned kale, a cut-up carrot, and whatever leftover or frozen vegetables you have. I added a few Brussels sprouts, some corn kernels, frozen peas, garlic pieces. Bring to a boil and as soon as the kale is cooked through pour a serving into a bowl. Add some of the beans and their olive oil. I like to add a good grinding of black pepper! Fast and healthy and filling.
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