Purple Baby French Beans
Inventory, lb : 0
Description/Taste
Baby Purple French beans are long and narrow with an attractive dark purple exterior tint. For best flavor and texture they should be picked when they are four inches in length or shorter. Their interior is vibrant green and contains a few petite, soft seeds or immature beans. Offering a vegetal flavor with a just right hint of sweetness, its crisp texture is best lightly cooked. The color of baby Purple French beans comes from plant pigments called anthocyanins. Once fully cooked the color of the beans will change from purple to a muted green. Quickly blanching can help preserve some of the purple color as well as some of the nutrients. Beans can also be picked when young and tenderer and served raw to preserve their vibrant purple hue. When buying beans look for pods that have a velvety feel and are free of bruises, pods should also snap when you bend them.
Seasons/Availability
Baby Purple French beans are available in the summer and early fall months.
Current Facts
Baby Purple French beans, botanically known as part of Phaseolus vulgaris, are classified as an edible pod bean or green bean. Depending upon variety pod beans such as the baby Purple French can be grown either as a climbing pole bean or a dwarf bush bean. There are hundreds of varieties of green beans on the market today. Even types that start out yellow or purple and then turn green when cooked, as in the case of the baby Purple French bean, are still considered a green bean type culinarily because they are consumed at a “green” or immature stage. Today one of the most popular beans on the market, green beans have gotten a bad rap flavor wise in recent years as many supermarket found strains are bred to withstand travel and storage which can impact flavor and texture significantly. Varieties such as the baby Purple French that are most commonly found in gardens, small farms and farmers markets are a treat for the palate and a reminder of what a classic green bean should taste like.
Nutritional Value
Baby Purple French beans offer vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, niacin, vitamin K, riboflavin, fiber and vitamin B6. When compared to dried and fresh shell beans green bean types offer less starch and protein as a result of their immature seeds or inner beans. To receive the highest nutritional benefits beans should be just lightly cooked or consumed raw.
Applications
The baby Purple French bean's pod loses its intense color during cooking. Do not overcook to maintain its crisp-tender bite. To protect freshness and nutrients when cooking stick to a quick steam or simmer in water then blanch in an ice bath. Add lightly cooked or raw beans to green, pasta and potato salads. Serve raw beans alongside dips as a crudité. Baby French Purple beans can be added last minute when finishing a stir-fry or sauté. Their flavor pairs well with citrus, mushrooms, fried onions, red bell pepper, potato, almonds, hazelnuts, bacon, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar, cream based sauces, gorgonzola cheese and roasted beef and poultry. To store keep beans refrigerated and wrapped in plastic, best if used within three to four days.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
When originally grown all green beans had strings that ran both sides of the pod and needed to be removed prior to consumption, as a result many beans such as the baby Purple French bean are often referred to still today as “string beans”. In 1894 plant scientists found a way to breed out the string making beans much easier to prepare. Another nickname, “snap bean” is sometimes used as a result of the crisp snapping noise the bean makes when breaking off the stem end of the pod.
Geography/History
Green bean type beans such as the baby Purple French bean are believed to have originated in southern Mexico and the tropical regions of Honduras, Guatemala and Costa Rica. From there they spread throughout North and South America and after European explorers arrived in America, eventually to Europe. Baby Purple French beans prefer warm growing conditions with well-draining soil and like most beans are not frost tolerant. Baby Purple French beans are best harvested when four to five inches in length before seeds have a chance to fully mature, this will encourage plants to produce multiple crops throughout the season.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Purple Baby French Beans. One
is easiest, three is harder.| Sailu's Kitchen |
|
Beans Pakodi Kura ~ French Beans Fritters Stir Fry |
| Teczcape |
|
French Bean Omelet |
| Noob Cook |
|
French Beans with Egg |
| My Carolina Kitchen |
|
Green Bean Salad Dressed with a French Vinaigrette |
