[AlaninCarlisle]

I've enjoyed a fantastic crop in late summer but have sadly just ditched the remaining heavily-laden plants as the individual beans in the pods now have tough indigestible skins. Is there an easy way of dealing with these beans that I can employ next year?

[New shoot]

If any beans or peas get like that I usually leave them to actually dry on the plants.

You can soak them overnight and then precook them to add them into stews, soups or chilli.  An easier thing I usually do is boil soaked beans for 10 minutes, then chuck in the slow cooker with whatever I have got going in there.