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Dried Fava Beans - How To Peel & Cook

Dried fava beans photographed uncooked in a white bowl.

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Cooking dried fava beans require a few easy steps. You will have the best creamy and buttery texture when cooked after this preparation.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound (450 g) dried fava beans

Instructions

  1. Put the dry fava beans into a large bowl or pot and fill it with water. Let them sit at least 6-7 hours or overnight. 
  2. After soaking the beans, drain and rinse them well. Discard the soaking water.
  3. Pinch each bean with your thumb and forefinger, it will easily pop out of the skin. You can use your nail to start the peeling as you do when peeling fresh favas.
  4. Put them back into the pot. Fill the pot with water. You can use 7-8 cups of water for 1-2 cups of peeled beans. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer for 40-50 minutes or until tender. They should be tender but not mushy. Drain and let them cool.
  5. Use them in your cooking.

Notes

  1. Quick soaking method: If you don’t have time for overnight soaking, you can use this method. But it still requires about 1 hour. Put the beans into a pot and fill it with water, covering by 6-7 inches of water. Bring them to a boil, let simmer for 5 minutes and remove from the heat. Let them sit covered for 1 hour. And continue with the steps after soaking.
  2. If you buy canned fava beans, they are probably peeled and you won’t need the steps above. Just drain and rinse them and use in your cooking.
  3. If split dried fava beans are what you have, you should soak them in the same way described above, but don’t need the peeling step. Split fava beans are already peeled, so they are a great time saver.
  4. You can store cooked dried fava beans in the fridge for up to a week or freeze them for up to 6 months. Make sure that they cool completely. To freeze the beans, resealable freezer bags are the best. You can measure 1 or 2 cups of beans in each bag. When ready to use, thaw them in hot water and then use in recipes.

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