Originating from Asia and the Middle East, the bean is cultivated worldwide for its taste and nutritional virtues. Rich in carbohydrates, it is classified among starchy foods. Its varieties are numerous, offering pods and grains of different sizes and colours, ranging from white to brown.
The bean can be consumed raw or cooked, but its preparation can be time-consuming: first, it needs to be shelled, then the second skin of each grain must be removed. For a snack with salt, like radishes, it is preferable to harvest it young, which avoids this additional step. Generally, 1 kg of fresh beans yields about 250 g of peeled beans.
Its cultivation is simple, especially in poor, clayey, and moist soils, where it thrives particularly well. Undemanding Vicia faba does not need rich soils and tolerates cool temperatures, allowing sowing from February in most regions.
The harvesting of beans depends on how you want to consume them: young and raw, cooked, or dry. Fresh beans can be stored in the refrigerator for a few days, but can also be dried at room temperature or frozen.
Small gardening tip: beans often attract black aphids, which quickly invade the plants. To ward them off without using insecticides, a spray of water mixed with black soap (2 tablespoons per litre) is very effective.
