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Runner Beans |
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Late summer and early autumn are the classic "runner bean season".
The season starts with fresh, young beans, with delicious, soft pods. And it ends with rather tough, stringy pods and oversized beans.
Chances are you'll love your runner beans early in the season but might not be quite so keen by the end.
We get so many of them in our veg box that we've had to get creative with how we use them, to prevent "runner bean fatigue"...
So here are some interesting runner bean facts and a list of all the runner bean recipes we've tested.
Go straight to:
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About Runner Beans |
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Originally from South America, runner beans are one of the most common garden vegetables in the UK.
They are a traditional British vegetable and brighten up your garden with orange flowers preceding the long green beans.
They're easy to grow and have been cultivated for thousands of years.
The main season for runner beans is from June to September - depending on the weather...
They're a good source of viyamin C, protein and also folic acid, yet 100g of steamed beans contain less than 20 calories!
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How To Choose |
Early in the season, the pods are large but the beans are quite small and flat. These will be tender runner beans, suitable for stir fries and quick cooking.
Later in the season, the beans will have developed a tougher, more Stringy skin. The pods take much longer to cook and may even get to the size where you'd rather just eat the beans and leave the pods.
Choose pods that feel firm and are undamaged. |
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How To Store |
Store the pods in a cool, dry place for 3-4 days.
We tend to keep them in a paper bag in a vegetable drawer, rather than in the fridge. The moist climate in the fridge seems to make runner beans go soft quite quickly.
You can also freeze them. Cut them into chunks and cook them in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain well and freeze in bags. |
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How To Use |
You can either make a runner bean part of a complete recipe or serve it as a side vegetable.
Runner beans are usually "topped and tailed" (cut off the ends) and then either cut into chunks (1 to 2 inches long) or sliced finely.
If you slice them finely, cooking them is as simple as boiling in water for 3-4 minutes until tender.
If they have got to the tough and stringy stage, you can remove the strings by topping and tailing each bean and then slicing off the long edges. It's a bit more work, but makes them infinitely more edible! Even so, they might take up to 10 minutes to cook. |
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Suggested Recipes | |
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| Autumn Vegetable Stir Fry |
This is a quick and easy way of using up any leftovers in your autumn veg box. We've listed the ingredients we most commonly use, but you can adapt this recipe to suit whatever you've got spare.
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| Garlic Runner Beans |
The garlic and butter beans add a creamy flavour to the runner beans. This is a lovely way to serve runner beans, particularly if you're getting bored with just steaming or boiling them.
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| Lentil Dahl |
This is a warming autumn supper, packed with nutrients from the lentils and veggies, giving your system a real boost.
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| Lentil Spag Bol |
Spaghetti Bolognese doesn't have to be reserved for meat-eaters. If you fancy a change, this veggie option is delicious. And it's a good way of using up spare veg box tomatoes and onions. See the variations for ideas of how to use up spare carrots, mushrooms or even runner beans in this dish.
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| Red Onion Risotto |
You can use red onions in place of white onions in most recipes. But here's one that we've developed specially for in-season red onions. It's great with added spinach, black nero cabbage or even kale.
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| Runner Bean Stir Fry |
A deliciously quick and easy recipe for runner beans. The ginger and soy in the sauce go well with the sesame seeds and the kidney beans add a wonderful colour and extra protein.
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| Secret Vegetable Pasta |
This pasta recipe is a great way of using up seasonal veg box leftovers. And it's a great way of sneaking in some extra veggies without any fussy eaters noticing! This version uses runner beans and courgettes.
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| Spiced Runner Beans |
Finely sliced runner beans are such a tender and delicious vegetable and these Indian-style spices really bring out the flavour. Quick to make and excellent with rice or to accompany other Indian dishes.
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| Thai Style Squash Curry |
This curry is easy to make and pretty quick. Just make the paste, chop the veggies and cook it all in a wok (or large frying pan) with the coconut milk. Works well with pumpkin, too.
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| Traditional Runner Beans |
This is a quick and simple way of cooking in-season runner beans.
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| Vegetable Tempura |
Although it's deep-fried, as long as the oil is hot enough and you drain the tempura after cooking, it's not that bad...! Quick, delicious and a nice change from sticking your veg in a curry!
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| Warm Summer Courgette & Runner Bean Salad With Artichoke Hearts |
This delicious summer salad is best served warm. The courgettes and runner beans take on a buttery flavour, enhanced by the creaminess of the artichoke hearts.
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Got one? Send us your runner bean recipe!
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