Friday, April 21, 2017

Grilled Fava Beans – Flavor Flav, Indeed

I bet fava beans would be a lot more popular if people knew how to cook them, or even what they were. For many people, these are just those mysterious, semi-scary, oversized green beans that they’re not sure what to do with.

Which is a shame, since they’re not only delicious, and easy to prepare, but also very versatile. Fava beans shine in salads, and pastas, as well as on pizzas.  The also, as I demonstrated the end of the video, make for a wonderful spread.

By the way, the ingredient amounts below are pure guesses, since this is not the kind of recipe we're going to measure stuff for. Let your conscience be your guide, but remember what we're eating is inside that charred pod, so season generously.

Fava beans should be readily available this time of year, especially at farmers markets, where they tend to be much cheaper that your high-end grocery stores. Regardless of where you find them, I really do hope you give this great bean, and even better technique a try soon. Enjoy!


Ingredients for 2 large or 4 small portions:
2 pounds whole fava beans
olive oil, as needed
2 lemons
1 tablespoon kosher salt, divided
3 whole, peeled, bruised garlic cloves
red pepper flakes to taste
2 tablespoons freshly sliced mint leaves

- Grill over high heat for about five minutes per side, or until the pods are soft and charred, and the beans inside are just tender.

WARNING: Some people have an allergy to fava beans. Make sure you don't.

11 comments:

rancholyn said...

Thanks for the lesson...I needed one for Fava Beans...I'm looking forward to trying this recipe...

Unknown said...

I LOVE YOU CHEF JOHN!!!!!!!

Smith1599 said...

#Show the Lemon....:P

Unknown said...

Can I serve this with some liver and chianti?

beemo said...

I share your love of the fava bean, I hope to try this if I can find some. By the way have you ever tried roasted-salted fava beans as a snack? If you like that sort of thing, you should give them a try, they usually seem to be called 'broad beans' on their various packagings. Find them at an Asian grocery shop.

Unknown said...

Fun fact: Cassoulet in it's original form was made with fava beans not Tarbais beans.

Unknown said...

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paulcantcook said...

Hey CJ, I am not big on avocados, and looking at your spread makes me think of favamole. But I was unclear if your spread was just the husks, or the beans and husks... thoughts???

Just some guy said...

I've never even seen fava beans and only knew of them thanks to a certain movie. Now I really want to give this a try. I hope I can find some.

Weaver said...

Love your videos and recipes. Every one I’ve tried has been deliciously successful. Can’t say that about some of the other food blogging chefs. My question: Since I don’t like messing with the grill in the Philadelphia winter, can this be done in the broiler?

Weaver said...

Love your videos and recipes. Every one I’ve tried has been deliciously successful. Can’t say that about some of the other food blogging chefs. My question: Since I don’t like messing with the grill in the Philadelphia winter, can this be done in the broiler?