[Lulu]

I am growing these for the first time ( 50 p seed sale madness!) and they have done really well.  The beans are currently green with purple splotches on them.  When do I pick them and then what do I do with them??  Can you eat them like runner beans although  I wanted to dry the beans for stews etc  - what is the best way of doing that?

Thanks Lulu

[snowdrops]

Yes I pick them now as runners & then later I leave them for drying. I always feel that if you leave the first beans on any of them to get big it can stop the plants producing, so I pick my first ones of any beans really small.

[pigguns]

I've got loads this year too! I think they are wasted as runners when there are loads of those around right now and cheap as chips. 

I like them fresh bean stage in stews and pasta sauces.  They don't make it to being dried    Wait until they are cream & red pods and you can see the beans.   At least a month I should think.

[Lulu]

Thanks -will take a look tomorrow

[tosca100]

I grew them for the first time this year too....so nice to have space for new things. I was eating them as runners while they were young as it made a nice change from peas and broad beans, but as soon as the French beans started producing I let them swell. I podded and froze a box for those times when I forget to soak then left the rest till the pods were dry and starting to split. Those ones went in the sun for a couple of days and are now in the dry store, the ones which were a bit late..ie still colour on the pods..went on to a tray but with the humidity here and the fact that they were still not properly dry they started sprouting and are now with the chooks.

[Ema]

I'm growing these for the first time this year also from the 50p sale! There doing brilliantly I've had a good 6 beans from each plant and they’re so tasty and none of the roughness of runners. I'm not sure any will make it to dried bean stage. There also so much easier than having sticks and tying in.

[marcofez]

I keep feeding everytime I water to encourage more pod creation and then wait till mine are at the drying out stage. Pick them and dry out some more for storage. Mainly use them for one of my favourite and easy pasta dishes "pasta e fagioli" (pasta and beans )

[Lulu]

When is the best time to pick them for drying and how do you dry them?  I've been to the Lottie and they are past the runner bean stage - I opened one and it had nice little white beans inside.  They are going purple splotch.  Is it just as easy to freeze them and if it is do just pod them and freeze them?  Sorry to ask so many questions but they look really good and I don't want to waste them

[sunshineband]

I wait until the beans are full size (ie the size of the ones I sowed) then pick off the pods, and lay them out on newspaper on a tray in the garden in the sunshine until the pods curl open or rattle. I then take out the beans and let these dry for another day or two and keep them in a screw top jar until I am going to cook them.

Seems to work OK 

[marcofez]

I wait until the beans are full size (ie the size of the ones I sowed) then pick off the pods, and lay them out on newspaper on a tray in the garden in the sunshine until the pods curl open or rattle. I then take out the beans and let these dry for another day or two and keep them in a screw top jar until I am going to cook them.

Seems to work OK 

I do more or less as sunshineband does. No need to freeze them!

[Salmo]

I am growing the dwarf version. The small ones have been good as whole pods eaten green but they soon get tough. Planted at the same time as dwarf Kenya beans they were cropping a week or so earlier so filled a gap.

Presumably the next stage is to pod the beans green and eat them as a vegetable as you do peas/ broad beans. Freezing them at this stage seems an attractive proposition.

I have dried borlottis before but they tend to stay in the jar unused.

[Lulu]

Will give it a go Sunny.  Its exciting trying something new.  I like endamma beans - anyone grown them?

[snowdrops]

Yes I grew them last year,but didn't get to pick them fresh to eat, so I dried them & sowed some this year. Growing well again, a funny hairy leaf. I've got loads of seeds in the shed, well if they are still ok that is. Pm me & I'll send you some if you like.

[chrisnchris]

Yes I grew them last year,but didn't get to pick them fresh to eat, so I dried them & sowed some this year. Growing well again, a funny hairy leaf. I've got loads of seeds in the shed, well if they are still ok that is. Pm me & I'll send you some if you like.

Yes please snowdrops, that's a generous offer.
My runners are the only thing that's worth a mention this year, so perhaps I might be successful with these as well.

Thanks.
Chris

[gypsy]

I freeze borlotti beans, I prefer them to when they have been dried. My daughter and me say it makes them more of a creamy texture