I tried a new vegetable this week, and besides being an excellent euphemism for male genitalia, it’s also quite delicious.
The Chinese long bean, also called the yard-long bean, asparagus bean, and snake bean, is exactly what the name says. Each bean is a good two feet long, twisted and corkscrewed like a green bean put through a taffy puller.
My CSA planted a small crop as an experiment this year (it was their first time growing them), and I got a whole bunch of these in last week’s bag. (David and Margaret Ann, if you’re reading this, I hope you grow more next year!)
It turns out the Chinese long bean is a vigna unguiculata, the same botanical species as black-eyed peas and other field peas. But these are picked when the peas are immature and the pods are still edible, just like green beans. And you use them just like green beans, too (though you should probably cut them into green-bean-sized pieces first). Chinese long beans taste, unsurprisingly, just like green beans as well, though a bit sweeter and less stringy.
I’ve seen Chinese long beans at a couple of the Asian markets in town (Red Pearl definitely has them), and you can also check the Snow’s Bend Farm booth at the Pepper Place Farmer’s Market.
To cook these monsters, Nadria found an excellent vegetarian recipe from The New York Times: Greek Stewed Green Beans and Yellow Squash with Tomatoes. It’s a CSA lifesaver, using both squash and tomatoes, the veggies you always seem to end up with too much of this time of year.
The long stewing makes the squash and beans soft and tender, and the tomatoes break down into a rich, sweet sauce that’s complimented by whatever fresh herbs you throw in. (We used parsley, mint, and dill because we happened to have all three on hand.) More than anything else, this dish reminded me of the green beans you get at the Lebanese Food Festival held here in Birmingham each spring.
Greek Stewed Green Beans and Yellow Squash with Tomatoes Recipe