Harvesting Green Beans at the Right Time for Peak Flavor!

You should usually try and harvest your beans when the plants are dry. Let the morning dew evaporate before harvesting.

The bean pods do not need to reach a certain length before harvesting them. Some of the pods will be long and thin, others will be short and fat. The size variance will not affect the flavor of the green bean. The more important factor is texture.

The green bean pods should be firm, crisp, and show no visible bulges. A bulge will indicate that the green bean is over-ripe. It will still taste good but might have a limp texture. A perfectly ripe green bean will make a snapping noise when broken into pieces. This is why some folks call green beans "snap beans".

After harvesting green beans, store them on the kitchen counter with the stems on. Once you remove the stems, keep them in the refrigerator.

The stems usually snap off easily. The long, fibrous strip that runs the length of the pod should also be removed. Some new hybrid varieties of green beans do not have this fibrous strip. The beans can then be snapped into any size you like.

If you want to wait more than a few days before eating your freshly picked beans, blanch them in boiling water for 3 minutes. Then plunge the beans into ice water for 3 minutes. This will help the beans retain their bright, green color. Place the cooled beans in an air tight bag and put them in the freezer. They will keep for up to 1 year.

If you want dry shell beans, just remove the seeds from the inside of each bean, rinse them off, dry with paper towels and place them in a food dehydrator until dry. If you don't have a dehydrator, rinse them off and use a paper towel to get all the excess water off. Then place them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the oven on the top rack, but leave the oven off. Instead, just turn on the oven light. The ambient heat from the light will dry out the beans in 36 hours or so. Then you can take the dried beans and store them in an airtight bag, canister or jar.

After the growing season is over, pull the green bean plants up by the roots and add them to your compost pile.

Now that you have a bunch of green beans, you should be ready for a few recipe ideas...