Bored with Runner Beans

[MrsJ1]

I love runner beans and we grow them every year. Have been eating them with nearly every meal for what seems like months. Have given loads away. I hate them when they've been frozen. Have had them with crispy bacon bits and a poached egg on top (lovely) but, does anyone have any other ideas for serving them, other than sliced and boiled?

[madmaggot]

I also grow runner beans but I don't think I could ever get fed up with them.
I would be happy with a plate full of piping hot runner beans with a knob of butter on top, every day! However for some unknown reason my OH insists on having meat and new potatoes with them.

[carmalee]

I love lightly grilled/roasted almonds with French beans - see no reason why it won't be just as delicious with steamed runner beans.

[Clanad]

Here in the U.S., what you call runner beans are, I suspect, our pole beans. They vine up a pole rather than on a bush. Here, the pole varieties tend to be much longer than the ordinary bush bean. That makes for a very good spicy pickled bean home canned recipe as seen here:

Ingredients:
3 lbs Young green beans
4 long, thin Red chiles (fresh or dried)
4 large Garlic cloves
1 tbsp Peppercorns (white, black, green or a mixture)
1/4 cup loosely-packed fresh dill sprigs (or 4 tbsp dried dill weed)
2 1/2 cup Water
2 1/2 cup White wine vinegar
1/4 cup Salt

How to:
Trim and remove strings from the beans. Rinse well and set aside.

Sterilize jars and lids in boiling water. When jars are cool enough to handle, fill each upright with beans until they are snug. Insert chiles and garlic cloves (preferably around outside so they can be seen). Divide peppercorns and dill among jars.

Separately bring the water, vinegar and salt to a boil in a non-reactive sauce pan. Ladle the hot brine over the beans leaving about 1/2-inch head space.

Wipe jar edge clean and screw on sterilized lid and band according to manufacturers instructions.
Process in a boiling water bath for 12 minutes. Remove and allow to cool completely at room temperature away from drafts.
Check lids to make sure proper seal has been attained.
Store for at least one month before using to allow flavours to develop.
They're very attractive with the red chiles showing through and we give them as Christmas gifts each year as well as eat 'em...

[Androcles]

Stir fry them in a chinese, put them in a Spanish Omlette with potatoes, onions, red pepper onion and garlic.

We have loads of beans and blanch them for two minutes and then freeze dry on the top freezer tray for 35 minutes, then put into a selfsealing bag. Use direct from the bag and we find they still retain most of the flavour and a bit of crunch.

[Whoever]

I just love them with fried tomatoes. Chop the beans and cook separately for about 5 minutes, throw them into the frying pan with the chopped tomatoes which have been simmering down until all the juices are soft and running. Delicious with either grated cheddar sprinkled on top or with some crispy bacon and some bread to mop up the juices. The secret with freezing them is definitely to keep them in large chunks, blanch for 2 minutes, dry them with a clean tea towel or kitchen paper and freeze them loose on an open tray for about 40 minutes. At this point they are frozen hard but not all stuck together, and you can bag them up and just take a handful out as needed. I would never ever bag them up and freeze them while moist again as this is what reduces the flavour and turns them to mush. Dry freezing keeps them in a much better condition.

[MrsJ1]

Wow - thanks for all the tips. I think all these recipes will just about see us through to the end of the season!