Runner bean
Phaseolus coccineus · Legume
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The runner bean (Phaseolus coccineus), also called the scarlet runner bean, is a vigorous climbing legume grown for its large, broad, flat green pods, which are picked young and eaten whole — sliced into long ribbons and cooked as a vegetable. Coarser, beanier and more robustly flavoured than the slender French (green) bean, it is a mainstay of British and European kitchen gardens and a fixture of the late-summer allotment.
Picking a good onedrag
Snapping fresh, just pickedLeathery, stringy, over-grown
Market freshEveryday bestThe all-rounder. String the seams, slice, and cook it soft - a quick blanch or a gentle steam is not enough to count as cooked.
The bendSnaps, but the break is quieter and drier
Pod surfaceGood green, a shade duller at the seam
Seeds insideFaint even bulges down the pod
Stalk endCut face pale, drying at the rim
What you get from one
88%
Edible part
About 880 g a kilo, tips, tails and strings off. Borrowed from USDA's snap bean (SR 11052, 12% refuse: ends, strings, trimmings) - USDA has no runner-bean record, and a runner's coarser seam string means treat 88% as a ceiling.
Keeping ittap a temperature
Chilling sensitive: under 5 C the pod goes opaque and pits, and AH-66 gives only about 2 days at 1 C. A cold fridge shelf is already too cold - use the warmest one.
95-100%
Humidity
Perforated bag, warm shelf
Airflow