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Fava Bean Recipes

March 29, 2016
Photo: Kang Kim
Fresh beans bring verdant brightness to all things spring.
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Fava Bean and Mushroom Crostini

Photo: Jennifer Causey
View Recipe: Fava Bean and Mushroom Crostini
Tender, sweet fava beans are the ultimate signal of the spring season. They take a little extra work to prep (pulling them from their big green pods and then peeling the individual beans). But they’re well worth the effort.

Nutty fava beans get the spotlight here in this festive spring appetizer. Lemon and goat cheese balance the deep umami notes from the mushrooms.

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Farfalle with Fava Beans, Morel Mushrooms, and Mascarpone

Photo: Francesco Tonelli
View Recipe: Farfalle with Fava Beans, Morel Mushrooms, and Mascarpone

You can also use shiitake mushrooms and edamame, good year-round alternatives to springtime morels and fava beans.

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Braised Artichokes, Favas, and Carrots in Creamy Lemon Sauce with Fennel

Photo: Iain Bagwell
View Recipe: Braised Artichokes, Favas, and Carrots in Creamy Lemon Sauce with Fennel

This is a kind of springtime Greek ratatouille. We love the artichokes in this dish—they add their unique flavor and somehow make everything taste just a little sweeter. The olive oil emulsifies with the braising liquid to create a silky sauce that deliciously coats the bright spring veggies. Thin lemon slices, charred and caramelized in a cast-iron pan, make a nice garnish.

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Summer Corn and Shrimp Succotash

Photo: Randy Mayor
View Recipe: Summer Corn and Shrimp Succotash

This succotash is richly satisfying yet healthy and not heavy. Fresh beans bring verdant brightness, while briny shrimp marry perfectly with sweet corn.

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Summer Bean Salad

Photo: Iain Bagwell
View Recipe: Summer Bean Salad

If you purchase whole fava bean pods, you'll need to shell them and then peel the beans: Blanch shelled beans in boiling water for a few seconds, remove to a bowl of ice water, drain, and slip off the opaque skins. You can also substitute shelled edamame.

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Fava Bean Salad with Fennel and Radish

Photo: Jennifer Causey
View Recipe: Fava Bean Salad with Fennel and Radish

Sprinkling favas into a salad is one of the simplest ways to showcase their nutty, slightly sweet flavor and tender, creamy texture. Favas are blanched very briefly for this salad. Cook time depends on how young the raw favas are—if they’re tender enough, they don’t need to be cooked at all. Here, we pair the beans in traditional Italian fashion with salty sheep’s-milk cheese and fresh lemon juice, adding a little more of spring’s bounty with peppery radish slices. Shaved fennel adds fragrant crunch, while the walnuts give the salad a little weightiness, making it that much more satisfying.

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Spring Pasta with Fava Beans and Peas

Photo: Kang Kim
View Recipe: Spring Pasta with Fava Beans and Peas

The vibrant colors of spring shine in this elegant, seasonal pasta dish. Choose firm, bright fava bean pods free of black marks—avoid pods on which the outline of the beans inside is pronounced, indicating older favas.

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