Long Beans

Season: Summer

Storage: Store in crisper in a plastic bag for up to 5-7 days.

Other Names: Yard Beans, Yard Long Beans, Chinese Long Bean, Snake Bean, Asian Green Bean

Fun Facts: There is no mistaking how long beans got their name – they can grow up to 3 feet long! Native to southern Asia, they are sometimes called “Chinese Snake Bean”. You can cook these similarly to a green bean, just trim them to the desired length and enjoy.

Get local long beans by joining our Farm Share or shopping at farmer’s markets, then share your favorite preparations through our Facebook page.

Summer Bean Breakfast Salad with Soft-Boiled Eggs and Green Goddess Dressing

Recipe from thekitchn

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup Greek yogurt (preferably whole milk)

  • 4 medium scallions, ends trimmed, chopped

  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro (about 1/4 bunch)

  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped parsley (stems and all, about 1/4 bunch)

  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

  • 1 small shallot, chopped (about 2 tablespoons)

  • 2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

  • 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise

  • Sea salt or kosher salt

  • 1 pound green beans, stem ends trimmed, cut into 3-inch long pieces

  • 8 ounces sugar snap peas

  • 8 ounces edamame in their pods, thawed if frozen

  • 4 large eggs

  • 4 small French radishes

  • Lemon juice

Instructions

  • Make the dressing: Place the yogurt, scallions, cilantro, parsley, dill, shallot, lemon juice, and vinegar in a food processor fitted with the blade attachment or blender. Pulse, scraping down the sides as needed, until smooth. Add the mayonnaise and process or blend until smooth. Transfer to a container and refrigerate.

  • Bring a 3-quart pot of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons salt. Make and ice bath by filling a large bowl halfway with ice and adding some water. Blanch the green beans in the boiling water 1 minute. Use a slotted spoon to transfer to the ice bath. Blacn the sugar snap peas for 1 minute, then transfer to the ice bath. If using thawed, pre-cooked edamame, there’s no need to cook them. For fresh edamame, blanch 3 to 4 minutes, then transfer to the ice bath.

  • Drain the beans and pat dry with a clean kitchen towel. Shell the edamame from their pods.

  • Steam or soft-boil the eggs 6 to 8 minutes, then immerse in the ice bath for 10 minutes. (6 minutes will yield a very soft yolk, 7 yields a jammy yolk, and 8 yields a just-set yolk.)

  • Slice the radishes lengthwise, then toss with a pinch of sea salt and a squeeze of lemon.

  • To assemble: toss the blanched beans with the radishes. Peel and halve an egg. Sprinkle with sea salt. Drizzle the salad all over with the green goddess dressing. 

I find this salad needs plenty of salt; serve with a small bowl of sea salt alongside.

Note: Make ahead: Prepped vegetables and cooked eggs can be kept sealed in a paper towel-lined container for up to 3 days.

Chinese Long Bean Recipe

Recipe by Jaden Hair from “Steamy Kitchen”

Ingredients

  • 1 pound Chinese Long Beans washed and trimmed to 3″ lengths

  • 1 tablespoon cooking oil

  • 2 teaspoons minced garlic

  • 1/4 cup water

  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce

  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce

Instructions

  • Heat up your wok, add oil. When shimmering, add minced garlic. Fry just for a few seconds until fragrant. You want to make sure that you don’t wait too long before adding the garlic to the oil, otherwise the oil will be too hot and the garlic will burn.

  • Add your long beans, fry in wok for 30 seconds, tossing the garlicky oil all over the beans.

  • Add water, oyster sauce and soy sauce. Cover the wok. Let the beans steam for 5 minutes on medium heat.

  • Check to see if beans are almost tender, but not too soft. If not, re-cover and steam an additional 1 minute.

  • Uncover, let the rest of the liquid evaporate, about an additional minute.

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