Some help needed please... I now have a huge supply of mature climbing golden French beans (can't remember the variety I'm afraid) as there were far too many to eat in their tender youth. I'm planning to dry the rest for winter soups etc. and all the books say if it's a wet autumn (highly likely) you should cut them off at ground level and hang the whole "vine" somewhere warm and airy indoors. As they are all tightly twisted round their supporting arch (d'oh!) this is impossible so can I just pick all the pods and leave them to dry separately? Could I even shell them first to save space?
Just one more thing - a few of the pods are developing brown splodges which don't look like the natural drying process. Does this mean I should pick them all quickly and will they still be OK to eat?
Thanks!
Pull them..leave them in there pods till the pods rattle, then shell them.. Don't leave them in a heap by the way, seperate them and let air get to them so they dry well otherwise they will go mouldy.
XX Jeannine
Jeannine - is this drying advice just for climbing French beans? I have dwarf ones which are also getting very chunky!
twinkletoes
Thanks for the advice Jeannine - do you mean just uproot the plants and leave them where they are? As I said it's impossible to unravel the whole plant so if you mean bring them under cover, can I just cut off the pods?
Thanks again!
If you can't pull the whole vine pull the pods but leave as much green as you can on them, same goes for dwarfs.. if they are drying I would just pull up the pods anyway but if you feel they need a bit more time on thr plant leave some green on.
This is good for toms too, once the tom plants dies ,stop watering it , if in a pot pull it into a frost free garage , don't worry about light and let it dry out but leave the fruit on it, they do better hanging on a dead plant than off the vine under the bed !!
XX Jeannine
I keep mine for next years growing but do not think it is viable to cook pulses from dried.
The cost of fuel for cooking these days and the need to boil rapidly for ten minutes then simmer for 45 according to the instructions I read.
Quote from: PurpleHeather on October 05, 2008, 08:30:37
I keep mine for next years growing but do not think it is viable to cook pulses from dried.
The cost of fuel for cooking these days and the need to boil rapidly for ten minutes then simmer for 45 according to the instructions I read.
a pressure cooker cuts down the cooking time, in the west indies where dried legumes is a large part of our diet a pressure cooker is a standard pot to have in most kitchens. they are also used to cook most stew meat dishes.
I soak my own beans for 24 hours in cold water, seemed to work last year, frozen them this year 'cos I kept forgetting to do it ;D
Sorry just seen all the replies - thanks very much Jeannine and everyone for all the tips.
I think the pressure cooker idea is brilliant for saving fuel. Something everyone should have these days! I'm surprised manufacturers haven't started pushing their "green" credentials.
Looking forward to warming wintry soups and stews full of creamy beans....mmmmmm ;D.
First off, hello all. I joined the forum a while back but family stuff has prevented me from coming back for a bit.
Just as it happens, I have a question about French beans as well.
We have yellow dwarf French beans, but as we haven't been able to get up the allotment, most of them have gone to seed. Great big fat juicy white beans inside. Are these edible at all as they come out of the pod, or should I just use them for next year's seeds??
hiya, uncle phil, welcome back ;D
weshell all the overgrown beans, apart from the ones for seed, freeze them or eat fresh