Beans, Boiled French
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
In a large pot, bring 1 gallon of water to a boil.
Add 1 heaped tablespoon of coarse sea salt and a small piece of baking soda.
Prepare the beans by cutting off the heads and tails, and removing the strings from the sides.
Cut each bean into 4 or 6 pieces, lengthwise and at a slant.
Cook and serve
Add the prepared beans to the boiling water and cook until tender.
Drain and serve.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Young french beans
- Provide the main vegetable; they soften during boiling and become tender while keeping their bright green colour.
- Baking soda
- Raises the water's alkalinity, which helps beans keep a bright green colour during cooking.
The step that matters
Add the beans to the boiling water and cook until tender. The water must be at a full boil when the beans go in so cooking resumes quickly. Slow cooking in cooler water can dull the colour and leave beans soggy. Boiling briefly and draining promptly keeps them crisp-tender.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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