I have some beanish questions for you.
These borlotti beans planted later in the season are podding up well. I planned to dry these and use in cooking. Do I leave them on the plant, or pick and dry them? How do I dry them?
Then there are the lazy housewife beans that have produced so well for so long. I cannot recommend these highly enough.
I would like to save some as seed for next year and have left pods on the vines for this purpose.
But now what do I do?
For saving beans for planting, I used to leave the plants until they were crispy...that way I knew the pods were really dry...but I am sure there are other ways, because you are probably wanting to pick them and use the space to plant other things now....
ReplyDeleteYou just have to let them go dry on the bush. Shell the beans out onto some newspaper and leave them in a dry place for a day or two and then you can store them away. Keep an eye on them for any mold in storage. If you do then just bring them out for another couple of days of drying. if you can pick them on a hot dry day.
ReplyDeleteI live in subtropical northern NSW, where you can always expect an unexpected week of rain :) so I tend to pick my beans when the shell is thin and yellowing, but before they go brown and crisp. That way I minimise the risk of them going mouldy. I shell them then just leave them in a colander on the verandah till they are hard enough to resist a fingernail leaving a mark, then store them in a glass jar. Same process for eating or planting.
ReplyDeleteI would leave the pods on the vine for as lomg as possible, and then finish off the drying process in the airing-cupboard. When the pods are dry and crispy and brown, open them up and extract the beans. Dry the loose beans for another day or so in the airing-cupboard or in the sunshine, before storing them in an airtight container in a dark place. Dried beans will keep for ages (a year at least). [More stuff on my blog - search for "Borlotti"...]
ReplyDeleteLove your misty valley Hazel!
ReplyDeleteI have been picking mine and eating them in stirfry and soups but am hoping to dry some too so the info above has been helpful
ReplyDeleteI love the borlotti ones, and I still haven't sent away for any of the lazy housewife ones... perhaps I don't want the reminder!
ReplyDeleteI am currently growing beans that I saved from last year - I feel like a vegetable grandmother. I let mine dry out on the plant too, nice and easy to pick and pop out. Have fun with your borlottis, and make sure you let us know what you do with them :)
Just pick and dry in a dry place either in the pod or podded.
ReplyDeleteThank you all for your advice about drying the beans. Those lazy housewives are making a mockery of their name. I notice that there are still new beans setting along side the big ones I have left. There are a few good feeds in those vines yet!
ReplyDeleteIn France they eat beans at 3 stages .... green, whole pods (like we do).... then shelled, (like we do with peas,) when the beans swell and the pods get tough but are still green... then after the pods and the beans inside are completely dried on the vine (at this stage they need soaking etc).
ReplyDeleteI'm so jealous that you still have beans in the garden!!
ReplyDeleteI harvested the last of my beans a couple of weeks ago (I had borlotti and cannelini). I like to let them dry on the plant first. However once I'd picked them they sat in my basket for days before I shelled them and in that time they continued to dry and a lot of the pods cracked open, so I'd say picking them while still slightly leathery and then letting them dry indoors would be fine. If the pods and beans are still soft/juicy you might need to cook them fresh.
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