Fresh Fava Beans: As Hard to Wrangle as a Grubby Toddler

Fresh Fava Beans: As Hard to Wrangle as a Grubby Toddler

If you've got little kids at home, you've undoubtedly suffered the frustration of prying their clothes off so you can toss them into the bathtub and wash away the bits of food and mud, sticky juice or whatever unidentifiable goo they've been steeping themselves in all day.

I don't know why they put up such a fuss: they're happy once they're in the tub. They style sudsy bouffant hair-dos and beards, splash and slosh around, laugh and sing; but getting them there can be hard work. As with many things, patience is a virtue and once you've transformed your dirty little urchin back into the sweet smelling child that you so adore, you realize that it was worth the time and trouble. Fresh fava beans and filthy children have much in common.

The fava bean (in its more mundane life: the broad bean) is relatively new to the American palate. Only popular in the States for the last few decades, the plant has been cultivated from China to the Mediterranean Sea for thousands of years, and is an integral part of those cuisines. The beans are eaten as a fresh vegetable when picked early in the season and as a dried bean when allowed to mature on the vine.

Fava beans are similar in shape and size to lima beans, but that is where the comparison ends. Vibrant light green, with a fresh grassy flavor, a far less starchy bite than limas and a texture akin to string beans, fresh fava beans are a welcome addition to many summer dishes. They are packed with fiber and protein and are a good source of folate and minerals like zinc, phosphorous, iron and magnesium.