Mange tout

[Lesley Jay]

I knew I had read it somewhere so I have had a read. In Thompson and Morgan they warn never to eat french bean pods raw.

[blossom]

Thanks for that. I don't like beans so didn't pay much attention to the ones they were eating raw. Other half wants me to grow some next year though, so which are the ones you can eat raw? They were eating the whole thing, not just the beans.
thanks

[Alice]

Lesley, did they say why not to eat raw ?

[smallblueplanet]

"Less than half a dozen kidney beans (phaseolus vulgaris) can make you as sick as a parrot. Surprised? Well, you would be, seeing that you’ve probably had nearly as many chilli con carnes as you’ve had hot dinners with no ill effects … apart from maybe a bit of wind. But don’t be fooled – those innocent looking red beans harbour the potential for hours of torture. The evil force within them are lectins, also called phytohaemagglutinins, a type of protein found in many types of beans. Kidney beans have the highest concentration of lectins.

Why are lectins so terrible? For two main reasons: they bind to intestinal cells preventing nutrient absorption and, when they enter the blood stream, they also bind to red blood cells. This causes the red blood cells to clump together, a process referred to as “agglutination”, rendering them useless. Symptoms of “red kidney bean poisoning” occur 1-3 hours after consumption, entailing extreme nausea, severe vomiting, followed by diarrhoea and abdominal pain. Recovery is usually rapid, and sets in after 3-4 hours.

You’re probably still wondering why this has never happened to you. The answer is simple: lectins are inactivated during cooking. Tinned kidney beans are always cooked, and when buying them dried, they are soaked and boiled before eating. It takes only four to five raw kidney beans to trigger symptoms – and, paradoxically, undercooked beans are worse than raw beans. You should, for example, never use dried or raw beans in a slow cooker, which cooks foods at low temperatures over extended time periods. Heating kidney beans to only 80°C (i.e. below boiling point) can turn them five times more toxic. To be on the safe side, you should soak dried kidney beans in water for at least 5 hours, pour away the water, and then boil them for at least one hour in fresh water. Raw beans need to be boiled for a minimum of ten minutes. Even green beans, such as French or runner beans, contain a small amount of lectins and should not be eaten raw.

The good news is that there is some interesting research going on in trying to find medical applications for lectins. Two promising areas are HIV and cancer, for which the selective toxicity of lectins may be harnessed."

Curse of the lectins

[Lesley Jay]

That excellent SBP. Now we all know the reason why not to eat raw beans.

[FoxHillGardener]

Hmph. I've been eating raw French beans for years and shall continue to do so. They taste lovely straight off the plant, or, if they get to the kitchen, with ripe tomatoes and some nice, vinegary dressing

[bramble]

SBP,, a very interesting article. anyone who does'nt take it on board is very silly.

[blossom]

What is the difference between french beans and runner beans? I don't really like beans, but my other half has asked me to grow green beans next year, but has no idea which ones he means. Doh. Just says you eat the whole thing.

[Lesley Jay]

Then it is french beans you want to grow Blossom. You eat the pod whole before the beans have had chance to grow inside. There are dwarf ones or climbing varieties. Kenyan Safari is a very nice dwarf bean. They grow pencil thick. Blue Lake is a nice climbing french bean. At the end of the season if you leave some to grow properly and dry out on the plant you get haricot beans.

[WiZeR]

so i take it runner beans you wait until the beans have formed before eating? Never cooked with them myself.

[Lesley Jay]

I normally wait until the beans are just starting to form Wizer. If you leave runner beans growing too long they go stringy. You can let the beans grow properly at the end of the season. Leave the pods on the plant to dry out and shell them.

[Shortie]

I've never used dried beans before (except as seeds for the following year)... what do they get used in and do you need to pre-soak them?

[Lesley Jay]

You do need to pre soak them. Anthony Worral Thompson says to soak them over night, rinse the beans and discard any that have floated to the top. Cover with cold water and simmer for 45 minutes. Drain and cover again with fresh water and cook for 1 1/2 hours until tender.
Delia says with soya beans, red and white kidney beans to cover with cold water, boil for 10 minutes and then leave to soak for 2 hours.
Use the beans in stews and casseroles. So soak them and then throw into a casserole and cook until the beans are tender.
Soaking the beans is to rehydrate them and this releases indigestible sugars, raffinose and stachyose.
I have been told that borlotti beans once dried can be frozen and then just added to stews with no need to soak.

[Shortie]

Ooo thanks! I've been thinking of growing drying beans next year but had no idea what to put them in or how to cook them.... think I've just been persuaded

[lyndap]

Tried my first mangetout raw today. Yum.I think I could get used to eating them like this.I grow them for my daughter and eldest son cos they like them, but I wasn't keen.I'll have to plant more next year now you have started me on raw ones!!!