My basic recipe for cooking hulled or shelled dried fava beans, perfect as a soup or as a base for appetizers, first or main courses.
I prefer dried fava beans with the skin for their higher fiber content: cooking dried fava beans in a pressure cooker | with skin or hulled, but if I use a regular pot I cook the hulled or shelled dried fava beans obtaining a fava bean puree.
If you need to reduce fiber, hulled fava beans are the alternative to whole fava beans with the skin.
Cooking hulled or shelled dried fava beans with soaking
Remember that dried legumes require a soaking of 12–24 hours, during which it is good to change the water a couple of times and then rinse them well before cooking.
Choosing fava beans
I prefer to buy locally sourced fava beans: Modica or Leonforte.
Cooking with an IMCO pot or a traditional pot, a pressure cooker is not necessary.
FAVA BEANS AND DIABETES
glycemic index fava beans GI 40.
The glycemic index of fava beans is higher than that of other legumes and increases with cooking.
Can I eat fava beans? This is a question you should ask your diabetologist.
Can people with diabetes eat fava beans? Follow your meal plan; ours includes them.
That said, here are my personal notes on the subject.
Usually, in cases of hyperglycemia, prediabetes and type 2 diabetes cooked fava beans can be consumed without exceeding portion sizes.
Also, as Professor Enzo Bonora generally suggests, it is useful to learn how each food affects your own blood glucose.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Rest time: 12 Hours
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Cooking time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: 2People
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- dried split fava beans (hulled, 2 servings, weight according to your meal plan)
- 1 bouillon cube (homemade vegetable bouillon, optional)
- water
- to taste salt
- 1 drizzle extra virgin olive oil (to be added raw)
Suggested tools
- 1 Colander fine mesh
- 1 Bowl or salad bowl
- 1 Pot IMCO or regular
- Immersion blender
Preparation
Spread the hulled fava beans out on a work surface and check them carefully, removing any impurities or small stones.
Soaking is used to make the fava beans soft and to leach anti-nutrient substances into the water.
The soaking water must not be used for cooking.– wash and rinse the hulled fava beans well until the water runs clear;
– soak for about 12 hours, changing the water a couple of times;
– rinse the hydrated hulled fava beans well before cooking.Waste-saving tips
Use a colander to drain the legumes and collect the soaking water to water plants; not for food use.The hydrated and cleaned hulled fava beans are ready to be poured into the pot.
In a pot, add:
– the fava beans;
– a vegetable bouillon cube [optional];
and cover with water.I use an IMCO pot, a precious gift from my mother-in-law, which allows cooking to continue with the heat retained after turning off the flame.
With an IMCO pot
Cover with the lid and bring to a boil.
When a thread of steam escapes, turn off the flame.With a traditional pot
Continue cooking over low heat.Regardless of the pot
Be careful about foam formation and remove it with a skimmer.
Check the cooking of the fava beans and if necessary add more water.
Continue cooking the fava beans for 20 to 40 minutes and beyond, until you get the desired texture: soft fava beans that fall apart, a coarse puree or blend with an immersion blender.Add the salt now and not at the start of cooking to avoid the outer skin of the legumes from hardening and making cooking longer.
Your hulled or shelled dried fava beans are ready.
In the basic recipe they are perfect as a soup or as a base for appetizers, first or main courses.
Plate and finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil added raw to enjoy them at their best.
Enjoy your meal!
Cooked hulled fava beans and fava bean puree tend to thicken as they cool.
To bring them back to the right consistency, add about 1/3 cup (3.4 fl oz) of water and bring back to a boil.If you need to reduce fiber, hulled fava beans are the alternative to whole fava beans with the skin.
This process is also valid for whole lentils with skin, hulled lentils and split peas or mixed legumes.
For chickpeas, beans and fava beans with skin however I prefer to use the pressure cooker: it reduces cooking times and makes them softer and more digestible.– Cooking dried fava beans in a pressure cooker | with skin or hulled.
Storage, tips and variations
Being a basic recipe I cook the fava beans simply.
If you prefer, you can add wild fennel.
Store cooked fava beans in airtight containers:
– in the fridge up to 2–3 days;
– in the freezer up to 3 months.
Let the fava beans cool completely and portion them.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Fava beans and diabetes
glycemic index fava beans GI 40.
The glycemic index of fava beans is higher than that of other legumes and increases with cooking.
Can I eat fava beans? This is a question you should ask your diabetologist.
Can people with diabetes eat fava beans? Follow your meal plan; ours includes them.
That said, here are my personal notes on the subject.
Usually, in cases of hyperglycemia, prediabetes and type 2 diabetes cooked fava beans can be consumed without exceeding portion sizes.
Also, as Professor Enzo Bonora generally suggests, it is useful to learn how each food affects your own blood glucose.Tips on how to combine legumes
– legumes + cereals [example: bread, pasta or rice], choose preferably whole grain cereals;
– legumes + proteins.
Respect the proportions and combinations indicated in your meal plan.
To explore the topic further read the article by clicking on the following link: combining legumes in the diet.How can I be sure that the legumes are of Italian origin?
Often legumes are grown abroad and packaged in Italy.
Carefully check that the packages state:
Origin: Italy; Grown in Italy; 100% Italian product.
The wording “EU” or “non-EU” means they come from other countries, for example Canada.
