Finger Lickin' Good Grilled Fava Beans


Once upon a time, while cleaning out my kitchen pantry I encountered a jarful of dried organic fava beans that had been around longer than I could remember. When in doubt throw it out, right?  Back then I had a productive vegetable garden, was an avid composter, and my favorite place to throw away anything organic was in the ground. It was the dead of winter in the bay area, a short rainy break between two gorgeous seasons. As I watched my hyacinths and tulips come up, I remember seeing vigorous sturdy stalks emerge. It wasn't unusual to see foreign plants sprout from the ground because I threw just about everything into the garden, and often lost track of what was in the ground. Very soon those stalks sent out beautiful white viola-like looking flowers, which eventually gave way to generous fava beans that fanned upwards much like the way bananas grow. It was an incredible surprise to me. Later on that Spring I had more fresh fava beans than I knew what to do with, and let me tell you after that season, I've become one fast moving mother shucker.



Many people think that fava beans are a laborious vegetable that yield paltry results. I might agree with the former, but whole-heartily disagree with the latter. A good simple recipe makes all the difference. This is a fun recipe that I ran into on 101 Cookbooks about a year ago, and continues to be my favorite easy peasy recipe for preparing fava beans.  The directions are simple: rinse the bean pods, toss with olive oil and sea salt, and grill until charred on the outside.  If you don't have a grill like me, spread the oil-coated fava beans across a baking sheet, place in the middle of the oven and turn on the broiler to high, allowing the pod to blister, roughly 4-8 minutes on each side.


Plate once charred and blistered on both sides.  Squeeze some fresh lemon juice, top with shaved hard Italian cheese, chopped parsley, red pepper flakes, if desired, and sprinkle again with coarse sea salt.  Pinch off and slip out the waxy sack that holds each buttery bean, and pop in your mouth one at a time. Finger licking is highly encouraged. 

52 comments:

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

I love to cook everything on the BBQ but never would have thought og this.Great idea:D

Simply Life said...

oh those do look great!

Belinda @zomppa said...

I've been eyeing fava beans but not sure what to do with them, so thank you!

Beth said...

I don't think I've ever bought fava beans at the farmer's market, because i've never know what to do with them. Thanks for the idea!

Mari Nuñez said...

Looks Delicious, I am definitely going to try it!

tasteofbeirut said...

I saw this method too and promised myself I would make it this way! Great idea.

Claudia said...

Oh you very smart mother shucker. What a grand idea - wish I had thought of it. I will be doing this soon.

Cocina Savant said...

This is a splendid use for those fresh fave beans I keep running across. I have used canned but never fresh as bad as that sounds. Hope you had a great holiday weekend.

Deana Sidney said...

Num, that's all you do? What a wonderful way to do them... I just had a big bundle but I do love them so... sometimes just mush them with garlic and oil and rosemary and spread it on bread... I bet these roasted ones would do that beautifully!!

ann low said...

Thanks! I must try this method for sure ;))

Pam said...

They look delicious. I've never roasted them and must give it a go! Thanks!

kat said...

We used to get those in SF at the Farmers Market & this would have been a much better way to prepare them!

Heather S-G said...

How cool! I've never actually seen fava's growing. Sounds like a delicious way to prepare them...I wonder if our Farmer's Market has any? Huh. I'll be looking for sure =)

MaryMoh said...

I have seen this but have not tried this. Look very delicious. Would love to try next time. Thanks for sharing.

Inspired by eRecipeCards said...

wow 14 comments and I get to be the first smartass to ask if you served it with a little chianti

Cool Lassi(e) said...

Looks awesome. Very easy too..I like easy to make recipes.

Nancy said...

The favas really look delicious prepared this way - and much easier to cook them in the pods! I'll have to try this under the broiler some time. Hopefully the farmers market near me will have fava beans soon...

sophia said...

Wow, how cool is that? you just threw it away, but it blossomed into more wonderful fava beans for you. I've never tried them, but you have inspired me to seek them out!

Emily said...

Those fava beans look amazing. I laughed at your "mother shucker" comment. :-)

Fresh Local and Best said...

Thanks Em, was hoping someone other than me would find that amusing.

Joanne said...

These look awesome and are so much easier than shucking each and every fava pod. I love it!

Haddock said...

Beans has always been my fav.

Lori said...

You know, I have never had fava beans. I'm not opposed, just have never had the opportunity. What a great idea to grill them! Sounds like a lot easier to work with too.

Sherry said...

LOVE this idea! Can't wait to try it!

TKW said...

YUM! Do you think this technique would work with edamame?

Fresh Local and Best said...

Thanks for your enthusiasm for this recipe everyone!

TKW I'm not sure whether grilling will work for edamame. I'm afraid that the fur on fresh edamame pods will catch fire from the flames in the oven or the grill.

Tina said...

That is such a neat story about the fava beans. I enjoyed that. Good recipe too!

Juliana said...

Oh! I never cooked fava bean this way...will definitely try it...it sure looks delicious :-) Love the color of it!

Kim said...

I have been looking for fava beans at the farmer's markets but have been unable to find them. If I do, I will definitely try this preparation.

Deb in Hawaii said...

Such a simple and delicious-sounding way to fix favas. If I can get some this year I am coking them this way. ;-)

Gera@SweetsFoodsBlog said...

Interesting & yummy approach to cook that fava beans, bookmarked for when I’ll have some at my kitchen :)

Have a great week!

Gera

Reeni said...

These look wonderful! And I vowed to tackle grilling this summer...these will definitely be on my dinner table.

Erica said...

Wow this sounds really good – thanks for the idea!So tasty and delicious!

Eddie Howard said...

I definitely agree that fava beans are well worth the effort! I had never thought of grilling them; that sounds like a great idea.

The Duo Dishes said...

OK, so neither one of us will probably grow fava beans, but we can totally grill them. This is easy easy!

Sook said...

Those beans look so healthy and tasty too, Christine!

theUngourmet said...

I keep eying the fava beans at the market but haven't purchased any because I wasn't sure what I would do with them. I'd love to try your recipe, it looks terrific!

A Canadian Foodie said...

Grilled asparagus changed my life... and my local market has these, so I will try them. Simple is always best. Thanks for the tips!
:)
Valerie

SavoringTime in the Kitchen said...

Would you believe I've never tasted a fava bean? After seeing your grilled beauties I need to change that.

The Diva on a Diet said...

What a great recipe, FLB! I had no idea you could grill a/o broil the favas. Love the touch of lemon & parm at the end too. Yum!

nancy at good food matters said...

I love this simple recipe, but I love your story of the surprise favas growing up and flourishing even more!

Mimi said...

Thanks! Now I know what to do with the fava beans my daughter brought home.
Mimi

Andrea@WellnessNotes said...

What a fun way to make fava beans!

Sally @ My Custard Pie said...

You've just given me a Eureka moment for 2 things. a) I had never thought of using the barbecue in this way and it's inspired me b) I now know what fava beans are - they are what we call broad beans in UK. Cheers!

Marc @ NoRecipes said...

Great idea! I love fava beans but double shelling them is such a pain. This puts the work on the person eating them which is a great idea:-)

Stella said...

Hey Christine, this is a wonderful recipe and for my favorite bean (smile). By the way, that's awesome that fava beans sprouted in your garden on accident b/c of your compost pile. What a nice surprise!

OysterCulture said...

Yum - this just sounds so tasty and fun, and with the salt on the outside it reminds me of oversized edame. What a great idea.

Mardi Michels said...

I have been wanting to try fresh fava beans - have seen them around the markets a lot lately!

sweetlife said...

oh I love this, i would love these on the grill, love the grill charred flavor on veggies, great recipe


ps I recently saw you on another blog, where you met up with some friends and the hubbys' joined along, girl your goregous!!
sweetlife

Chef Dennis Littley said...

incredible images!!! and pretty much everything tastes good grilled, but fava beans is definitely a new one for me!
thanks for sharing!!!

The Food Hunter said...

This is great. Thanks

eleni said...

What an excellent idea... I love fava beans, I cook them in many and various ways, but never thought of this one... bravo!!