How to Prepare Fresh Fava Beans 如何處理新鮮蠶豆

Some of you may not be very familiar with fava beans. They're also called broad beans, and are a great addition for vegetarians and vegans. They're high in protein, fiber, isoflavonoids, calcium, potassium, magnesium, and contain a good amount of folates, vitamin B6 and thiamin also. You can buy them in dried form, but why miss out on the opportunity to have them fresh when their season comes? They look, taste and feel totally different when they're fresh.  I know it's quite a process to go through, and it takes a lot of bean pods to make enough beans, but believe me, you'll be happy you did!

 
1. Snap the tip of the fava bean and gently pull the string down to open the bean pod.

2. Heat a small pot of water. Open the pod and remove the beans. (I know you think it's over, but be patient! Since the bean has a thick outer skin, you'll need to blanch it to remove the skin.)

3. When the pot of water comes to a boil, add a pinch of salt. Blanch the beans for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. *If the beans are large, you may want to let them blanch a bit longer.

4. Prepare a bowl of ice water. Strain the fava beans, then transfer the blanched beans to the bowl to stop them from cooking.

5. Peel off the outer layer, and you'll see the vibrant green little bean inside. That's when you'll smile!

                                                                                               - Yvonne

 

許多朋友們也許對蠶豆不是很熟悉，它含有非常豐富的蛋白質、纖維、異黃酮、葉酸, 鈣，鉀、鎂、及維他命B1、B2。是吃素者很好的蛋白質來源。雖然在準備過程上較花時間，市面上也可以買到乾蠶豆，但是當難得的蠶豆季節來臨之時，看到那鮮綠色新鮮的豆莢，還真令人難以被誘惑。新鮮的蠶豆吃起來較鮮美也較嫩，放在嘴裡有讓人幸福的感覺，很值得一試喔！ヾ(￣∇￣=ﾉ

1. 將頭折斷，再將連接頭的線輕輕的往下拉以打開豆莢。

2. 燒一鍋水。把豆莢打開，拿出所有的豆子。(別以為做了這步驟就ok囉 (^-^) 由於蠶豆有一層厚厚的外皮，要先把外皮處理掉才能用來做菜哦！)

3. 之前準備的水燒開後，加入少許海鹽。將蠶豆放入鍋中燙一下 (約30秒至1分鐘)。

4. 在一個大碗內放入水及冰塊，將燙過的蠶豆放入碗中冰鎮以停止繼續加熱。

5. 將蠶豆外層的皮稍微撥開，用手指把豆子擠出，就大功告成^ ^

                                                                                               - Yvonne