Thursday 26 January 2012

BROADening my pallet…....


When I was a boy I was always given broad beans to eat I HATED them my farther loves them which is why  we had them so often, and a consequence of this I haven’t eaten them since. When I was younger I also disliked tomatoes and beetroot but are now 2 of my most adored vegetables, so this year I am going to give them a second chance and see if I have changed my mind.
As a chef I cook with them all the time and to a chef the broad bean represents the start of the British growing season proper. They lend them self well to most things but a dish I always go back to is a spring veg risotto simple light and shows off all the early produce, and against the white of the risotto rice really shows of the bean and makes it the star of the show.
So last Thursday I got cracking and me and my 3 year old daughter sowed our board beans, she love’s helping Daddy in the garden and she is in charge of putting the seeds in the seed trays then I poke them down.


I am growing a variety called masterpiece Green long pod has anyone else grown this variety before? What’s it like? 
If anyone has any good advice on growing these then I am all ears, what they like dislike and when to pick them.
I suppose that’s why an allotment is so good as you can afford to try new things and experiment a little with vegetables that otherwise you would give a miss, and getting my children involved in growing and seeing vegetables grow they are more inclined to eat them as they have helped them in some way, that’s what I believe anyway.

11 comments:

  1. I'm the same as you in respect of the children and the main reason why I'm starting out on this venture and blogging about it.

    If I can get my children more interested in growing the vegetables I'm hopeful that they may eat some if it. Well that and of course it will become a hobby that I'm hoping will keep me in the 'outdoors' for longer and maybe a bit fitter.

    Good luck with your seed vs set 'fight' and I'm looking forward to the outcome!

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    1. yes my children really love a day down the plot. they have there own area for a good dig and they can grow what they want.

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  2. I grew Masterpiece Green Long Pod last year and found they cropped really well.

    One trick I picked up with Broad beans (only works on broad beans, not other beans), is once they have their first few leaves properly out (usually 1-2 inches high), cut out the tips. This will encourage them to send out new stems, so you will get more broad beans that way. I tried this the first time last year and had a massive success with it, I had a crop of c. 8kg of broad beans. I did grow other varieties too.

    Good luck - broad beans are really yummy in my view, one of my favourite veg. I hope you find you like them after growing them!

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    1. thanks for the tip didnt know that, the beans were a gift so my friend got a good variety then i hope.
      I hope i havent been put off them for life thanks to my childhood! lol

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  3. Strange how everybody has their different way of growing. Our broad beans just get transplanted out of their planting cells into the plot and left to get on with it. I've been pleased with Masterpiece Green Longpod. My advice - pick when very young. I reckon if you have to remove the skin from the bean after shelling it then it's been picked too old.

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  4. We grow Broad Beans although I can only eat them after the skins have been removed.
    My only tip would be to make sure they are staked and given support. They can be a wonderful wind break for more delicate plants too.

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  5. If I am growing the tall types I always grow them in a block, and as they grow, put a cane at each corner with string so they won't topple over when it gets windy.

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  6. And I didn't like onions as a child - I used to pick them out of stews! There are not many vegetables I don't like now. Although taste buds do change as you get older.

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  7. Growing your own is a great way to get kids (and others) to eat their veggies. Would you believe that my hubby wouldn't touch vegetables until I got my allotment. It's so weird now when I'm dishing up to put vegetables on all four plates. My kids are older than your's, 16 and 13, but I wish I'd got my allotment when they were younger. Not only will growing your own encourage your kids to eat their vegetables, but it gives you a hobby that you can do together, as well as teaching them where their food comes from. It's amazing how many kids don't know how a potato is grown.

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  8. thanks everyone some really useful tips there i will be sure to use them when growing them. I will report back once grown to give you mt verdict on them and even share a recipe or too. thanks again :-)

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  9. I love them but the family don't. Much better when skinned. Not tried that variety. Just transplant them give taller varieties some support and pinch out the tips when they're flowering to avoid the worst of the blackfly. That's all I do and I've had a decent crop so far.

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