BROAD BEAN

Faba beans grow upright, ranging from one to 1.5 meters tall. They are annual legume with one or more strong hollow erect stems. Faba beans have strong taproot, compound leaves and large, white flowers with dark purple markings.

A flower cluster may produce one to four pods. The pods are large (up to 10 cm long and one to two cm wide) and green, turning dark at maturity; from brown to black. There are three to four oblong/oval seeds contained within each pod. Flowering occurs in 45-60 days and faba bean requires 110-130 days to mature.

The bushel weight of faba bean is 60 pounds. Known also as Vicia Faba, species of bean native to North Africa, Southwest and Southeast of Asia. Also, Faba is more tolerant to acidic soils than most legumes.

Characteristics

• Fava beans (broad beans in the UK) are large, flattened light green pods usually eaten shelled for their delicious beans.
• Broad beans possess thick indigestible cover that is generally shelled to extract broad, thick, and flat seeds (beans) inside.

Uses

• Broad beans are eaten while still young and tender
• Beans can be fried causing the skin to split open, and then salted and/or spiced to produce a savory, crunchy snack. These are popular in China, Malaysia, Colombia, Peru (habas saladas), Guatemala (habas), Mexico (habas con chile), Gilan (North of Iran) and Thailand (where their name means “open-mouth nut”).