Starring on the plate: beans

In late spring, one of the most popular culinary terms is definitely "how to cook green beans". No wonder, since at this time of year every stall is stocked with sacks of beans. How to cook it, what to combine it with, how to store it?

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Beans are legumes rich in protein and folic acid. Due to their high protein and fiber content, beans provide a feeling of satiety for a long time. It is highly valued by people who, for various reasons, do not consume animal protein. Due to the high content of vitamin B12 and folic acid, consumption affects the cardiovascular system. Besides the undoubted health benefits, beans are simply delicious. Very fresh pods can be eaten raw (but don't overdo it, because they are legumes and can be a bit taxing on the intestines).

Beans, like other legumes, can also contribute to the disclosure of favism, i.e. bean diseases. It is a genetic disorder that leads to hemolytic anemia and, in extreme cases, death. Usually the first symptoms are acute abdominal pain, headaches and vomiting - they appear after eating not only beans, but also green beans, peas or chickpeas. It is because of this favoritism that some beans who hate the taste of beans say it is a green toxin. The disease is quite rare, in Poland every thousand people suffer from it, so there is a good chance that you will gladly use the following rules.

How to cook string beans?

We usually buy beans in plastic bags - this is how they are sold on the shelves. It is worth paying attention to whether the vegetable has gone bad (a nose that easily sniffs the contents of the bag can save us from throwing a few zlotys in the trash). Buy beans directly from the farmer whenever possible. I know that for many people this is unrealistic. If you do not have access to such a vegetable, just carefully check the contents of the package and choose the most beautiful specimens on the counter.

Boil green beans in lightly salted boiling water. It is best to pour a lot of water into the pan, add salt and try. It should taste like salty sea water. Add the beans, cook for 3 minutes, drain and quickly place in a bowl of cold water. This will keep it firm. You can also steam the beans for about 4 minutes. In this case, it is also worth putting it in a bowl of ice water for a few minutes to stop the cooking process. Peel cooked beans and eat them right away or add them to your meals.

Bean salad - a little inspiration

Salad with beans, noodles and feta

Composition:

• Xnumx Pasta
• 1 cup beans
• 70 g batch
• 1 lemon
• fresh avocado
• Fresh mint or basil

Beans are a great ingredient for salads. It tastes great in pasta and feta salad. It is enough to cook 200 g of pasta (you can also replace pearl barley or millet), add 1 cup of cooked, chilled and peeled fodder beans, 70 g of chopped cheese, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. and sprinkle with fresh basil or mint. It also tastes great with fresh avocado and colorful cherry tomatoes cut in half. The salad can be made ahead of time and kept in the refrigerator. Perfect for lunchbox.

simple bean salad

Composition:

• 500 g of beans
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lemon
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 green cucumber
• 200g batch
• dill/parsley/mint

A simple version of the bean salad is also delicious. Mix 500 g of cooked and peeled beans with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice, 1 clove of garlic, 1 diced green cucumber, 200 g of chopped feta cheese and a handful of chopped dill, parsley and mint. Mix everything, leave for at least 20 minutes before serving. Of course, we can enrich the salad with pasta and get a hearty meal.

Salad with eggs and beans

Composition:

• 200 g of beans
• 2 eggs
• 3 tablespoons sandwich cheese
• 4 slices of bread
• 1 lemon
• Mayonnaise
• 1 cup spinach
• Parsley / mint

Beans are also delicious with eggs. The egg and bean salad is great, but it tastes even better on rustic toasted bread.

What we need? 200 g boiled beans, 2 hard boiled eggs, 3 tablespoons sandwich cheese (preferably with horseradish), 4 slices of country bread, lemon, mayonnaise and herbs. Let's start with mayonnaise: mix 4 tablespoons of mayonnaise with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and a handful of chopped parsley or coriander. We bake bread in the oven or toaster. Grease with cheese, put slices of hard-boiled eggs on it, grease with mayonnaise with herbs and sprinkle with green beans. We eat with a fork and knife.

How to turn it into a salad? In a simple way. We need some stale or used bread. Tear 3 slices of bread into pieces and place them in a bowl. Add 1 cup washed and dried spinach leaves, 2 cups boiled beans, 2 hard boiled eggs and cut into quarters. Drizzle everything with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and add 3 tablespoons of natural yogurt mixed with a handful of fresh parsley (or mint).

We can add some feta, mozzarella, your favorite nuts and green cucumber - this is one of those salads that you can experiment with and the effect is usually great.

Bean paste - for sandwiches and dumplings

bean hummus

Composition:

• 400 g of beans
• sesame paste tahini
• garlic
• Lemon
• olive oil
• Elastic
• sesame

Beans are a great ingredient for spreads and hummus. Let's start by cooking and cleaning the beans. You cannot do without it. If we want to make bean hummus, we need tahini sesame paste, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, cumin and sesame seeds.

 Mix 400 g of green beans with a blender until smooth with 5 tablespoons of tahini, 5 tablespoons of olive oil, crushed garlic clove, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of cumin. Season with salt if necessary. Place in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Bean curd paste

Composition:

• 300 g of beans
• 200 g of cottage cheese
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 lemon
• green onion / mint

Another bean paste is cottage cheese paste. Mix 300 g cooked broad beans with 200 g cottage cheese, 1 garlic clove, 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest. We mix everything. We can add a tablespoon of chopped green onions or mint to the finished pasta. This pasta is an excellent filling for dumplings.

Bean soup

Composition:

• 500 g of beans
• 2 Season
• 1 potato
• 1 carrots
• piece of celery
• 1 parsley
• 500 ml vegetable/bird broth
• 1 teaspoon cucumber
• Coriander / parsley
• olive oil

Beans can be treated like beans, or simply boiled and peeled, added to vegetable soup or a spring version of pearl barley soup. However, the recipe for the best bean soup comes from Morocco. First, of course, boil, cool and peel 500 g of green beans. Then add the green beans, 2 chopped leeks, 1 potato, 1 carrot, celery slice, and parsley to the pot. Pour in 500 ml vegetable or bird stock and add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon turmeric. Cook over low heat for about 45 minutes. At the end of cooking, add a handful of chopped cilantro and parsley to the soup. Stir soup until smooth. Season with salt to taste. Serve with olive oil, sprinkled with black cumin seeds and a few drops of lemon juice.

Cutlets with bobu

Ingredients:

• 500 g of beans
• Elastic
• Ground coriander
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 potatoes
• wheat roll
• 1 egg (optional)

Beans are great for chops - they are especially tasty accompanied by spices, which are usually added to falafel. Mix 500 g boiled, chilled and peeled beans with 3/4 teaspoon cumin, 3/4 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 cloves of garlic squeezed through a press, 2 boiled potatoes, a roll dipped in water or broth and 1 egg (Egg can be omitted.) It is best to put all the ingredients in a blender bowl and turn into a homogeneous mass. Add 2 handfuls of sunflower seeds to the prepared mass. Form into patties and fry in oil. Served with fresh vegetables and boiled couscous. We can also make large patties and use them as part of a veggie burger.

More texts from the Starring on a Plate series can be found on AvtoTachki Pasje in the Culinary section.