In her book, The Art of Simple Food, Alice Waters calls fava beans "the harbinger of spring" and notes that they "do require a bit of preparation, but their delicate taste and splash of color are well worth the effort." What she meant to say was: if you are making a fava bean dish, set aside an hour, be prepared for cramping fingers, and don't be disappointed when you see the scant fruits of your labor.
Holy cow, did it take too much time to prep these beans! I will admit, the salad, with the buttery, creamy beans and salty pancetta, topped with refreshing mint and lemon, was delicious, but not an hour's worth of deliciousness.
Here's the drill:
I bought two pounds of fava beans in the pod. First I shelled them. Ms. Waters says that "popping the beans from their thick soft pods is an enjoyable group project that even little children can enjoy." I think what she meant was, don't attempt any recipes with fava beans unless you have at least five children to put to work.
Then I blanched them for one minute. (The easy part.)
Next, I peeled them out of their jackets. This was really the most time consuming part: peeling those little green jackets off the bean. Imagine being the butler at the White House and having to remove the jackets of two hundred guests (only these guests are stuck in their jackets and you literally have to peel them out). My complaints on twitter brought this tip from @gastropoda: grill the pods whole, then eat the smoky beans whole. No peeling necessary!
Here's my mint plant. Isn't she pretty? I want to let her loose in my yard, but Marcus says no. Fields of mint is what I'm aiming for. I have to admit, my mint plant was one of the reasons I tried this recipe.
Fava Beans with Pancetta, Mint, and Lemon
Adapted from Fine Cooking
Services 2 as a side dish
Ingredients
4 ounces pancetta
1 clove garlic, minced
2 pounds fresh fava beans in pod, shelled, blanched, and peeled; yields about 1 cup of beans
1 tsp. kosher salt (to taste)
1 squeeze of 1 lemon
6 large mint leaves, finely chopped
Directions
Shelling and peeling favas: (1) to shell favas break open the pods. Sometimes you can slide your finger along one side, opening the seam as you would a zipper, but other times you just have to break the pod apart in pieces. (2) blanch the favas in boiling water for one minute, drain, and cool under running water. (3) favas have one slightly flattened, slightly wider end with a mark where it was attached to the shell. Grasp the fava between your fingers with the mark facing up, and with the thumbnail of your other hand, tear into the marked end and peel back. Pinch gently and the fava will slid right out.
In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add pancetta and saute for 1 minute. Add garlic and saute, stirring constantly, until it's very fragrant and just beginning to brown, another 1 minute. Add the fava beans, season with salt, and saute until the favas are heated and coated well with pan contents, another two minutes. (Some of the beans will turn a lighter color.) Add the lemon, turn off eat, stir. Add mint and stir. Serve immediately.
