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Fava Beans Delivery or Pickup
The Instacart guide to fava bean products
With the convenient Instacart app, you can get your favorite fava beans or fava bean products delivered, or you can pick up your order curbside at a store nearby. Get started now and choose whatever you need from nearby stores.
About fava beans
Fava beans, also called broad beans, are some of the oldest legumes cultivated by humans. "Fava" is the Italian word for bean, and these beans have a flat, oval shape. They've been part of people's diets in the Middle East for thousands of years. There are references to fava beans in the Talmud, and they were a main source of protein for the ancient Israelites.
People usually harvest fava beans in spring, and you can eat them cooked or raw. They can help prevent weeds and erosion and fertilize the soil, and the pretty red or purple flowers have a strong sweet scent that attracts bees and other pollinators.
People sometimes eat the young pods, and they look a lot like green beans. However, most beans are given time to mature and then removed from the pod. You can order fresh, frozen, canned, or dried fava beans on Instacart. They're more expensive than some other types of beans, but they're favorites of chefs.
How to pick out fava beans
Look for firm, bright green bean pods that have small bumps from the beans inside. Younger, smaller bean pods usually taste less bitter than older beans, but people enjoy both varieties. Look for fava bean pods without yellow or brown spots. Since you can't eat the pods unless they're very young, it takes one or two pounds of fresh beans to make a serving for one person.
If your fava beans are fresh, you should remove them from the pods. Snap off one end of each pod. When you remove it, a fiber on the side of the pod should “unzip,” letting you open the pods and remove the beans easily. Like the pods, the beans are bright green when they're fresh or frozen. After they dry, they turn beige or light brown.
Types of fava beans
Several varieties of fava beans are available through Instacart. Agua Dulce fava beans come from Spain, and they have large, broad pods. They were first produced commercially in the 18th century, and they're popular in the southwestern U.S., the part of the country that Spain and Mexico once occupied. Windsor Long Pod fava beans come from England. Martoc fava beans only have one or two beans per pod, but they taste great.
Fava Beans Near Me
Buy your favorite Fava Beans online with Instacart. Order Fava Beans from local and national retailers near you and enjoy on-demand, contactless delivery or pickup within 2 hours.
FAQs about fava beans
To make fava beans edible, you'll need to remove the clear, waxy shells on the individual beans, as well as the green pods. Place the beans in boiling water for around 30 seconds, then remove them and transfer them to ice water to stop cooking. You should be able to remove the coatings on the beans easily.
Then, you can steam them with olive oil, salt, and lemon juice, fold them into mashed potatoes or hummus, add them to a salad, or place them in a stew. To cook dried fava beans, soak them in room temperature water for 8 to 24 hours. Then, cook them the same way you would cook fresh beans. You won't need to remove the coverings on dried, frozen, or canned beans, and you can also make fava bean flour from dried fava beans.
For most people, fava beans are a very healthy choice. Fava beans are high in protein and fiber, and they can help your digestion and make you feel fuller. They also have iron, magnesium, phosphorous, manganese, and various antioxidants that could help protect you from cancer and heart disease.
People with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency (G6PDD), a rare genetic disorder, shouldn't eat fava beans because they can't digest some of their components. These chemicals can build up and eventually lead to anemia and kidney failure. People on some types of antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications, and mood stabilizers should avoid fava beans because they can interact with the drugs and cause high blood pressure.
Dried fava beans and lima beans look almost exactly alike, but they have some important differences. Lima beans are native to South American, and they're named after Lima, Peru. When they're fresh, fava beans are larger and greener than lima beans. They have a firmer texture and a stronger taste when cooked, and lima beans are softer and starchier. If you have trouble finding fava beans, you can substitute lima beans in many dishes.
When you place your fava bean order through Instacart, an experienced Instacart shopper will get it to you on the same day! Ordering fruits and vegetables through Instacart can help you save valuable time and make your day easier.