Broad beans are the original European bean, a basic foodstuff long before the discovery of the New World and runner and haricot type beans.
Broad beans are either Longpod, with pods reaching over a foot long containing eight or ten beans, or the Windsor with shorter, fatter pods containing only four to six beans.
The Windsor types are generally considered to have the better flavour, although the yield is smaller
Skinning broad beans transforms them from health food to luxury, converting even broad bean haters.
After shelling the beans, boil them for a minute or two, then drain them. Slit the grey skin and pop the inner bean out.
This sounds labour intensive, and it is, but is worth every minute for the sweet, bright green little nugget which emerges from its tough and bitter coat.
Whether or not they need further cooking will depend on the age and freshness of the beans: taste one and see if it is good, or still a little hard.
Once skinned, the resulting pile of beans may look rather small, but broad beans have a strong flavour, and hold their own in a mixed dish.
1 1/2 kg (3 lb) broad beans in the shell produces 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) shelled beans and two-thirds of that amount of skinned beans.
Choose firm green pods, unmarked with black, which is generally a sign of ageing.
Another sign of too-old beans is that the 'scar', the mark left where the bean joins the pod, is black not white. Black-scarred beans must be skinned, or they will be too tough.
Broad beans are in season from mid June to early September.
