French Beans
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Cut off the stalks and strip the beans.
Soak the beans in cold water with a little salt for 1 hour.
Cut the soaked beans into shreds.
Cook
Put the shreds in boiling water with a little salt and baking soda if needed.
Boil for about 25 minutes or until soft.
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
- Fresh young beans
- Provide the main vegetable, which softens into a tender texture when boiled.
- Baking soda
- Raises the water's alkalinity, helping hard water keep the beans tender and green.
The step that matters
Boil until soft. Beans need enough time in boiling water to break down their fibrous cell walls. Stopping early leaves them tough, so check for softness rather than relying only on the clock.
“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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