That was a question I asked about a year and a half ago when our chef friend Ian had them on the daily special’s menu. It turns out sea beans are a very mild tasting, salty sea vegetable. The flavor it not at all like seaweed, it is very mild and reminds me of the taste of baby spinach, only less intense.
When I saw the sea beans yesterday at Wegman’s I knew I had to buy them. I remembered Ian telling me to soak them to remove some of the salty flavor so when I got home I tasted one raw. Wow, are they salty! Today the sea beans soaked in cold water in the refrigerator for about 6 hours. When I tasted them again they were less salty, but still salty. So I decided to quickly blanch them to see if I could encourage more of the salt to come out without making them mushy. I blanched the beans in simmering water for about 45 seconds and they were less salty.
I served them over rice that I didn’t salt so that together the salinity would be correct. I also added sliced almonds on top (unpictured because I didn’t like the way they looked in the photo). We had this will thinly sliced porky seitan on the side.
If you haven’t tried sea beans please consider them. They are high in protein and have a very pleasant and mild taste. The texture is most similar to a very thin asparagus. Most importantly they don’t take long to make. A quick blanch of less than a minute and they are ready.
Wow, I haven't even had breakfast yet and I've already learned a new thing today! :-) I love sea vegetables and use quite a few of them, but had never heard of sea beans! They sound wonderful so I'm now on a mission to find a source. Thank you for this informative post!
ReplyDeleteLaloofah,
ReplyDeleteI am glad I could share something new with you. The first time I had them was last year and I instantly fell in love with them. They are tender, and a little crisp and have a nice mild flavor. Typically they are served with fish.
If you find a mail order source please let me know what it is. I don't think my local Wegman's is going to carry these all the time. The hubby and I may run out there today and buy more while they still have them.
Happy Holidays,
Alicia
Interesting. Thanks for sharing. I might try these now that I know more!
ReplyDeleteHeather,
ReplyDeleteHave you seen them for sale? If yes, please share where. I have a suspicion they won't be at my local Wegman's all the time.
thanks and happy holidays,
Alicia
The sea beans look very good. I think I've seen similar things washed up on the beaches around here.
ReplyDeleteBTW: I made your porky seitan cutlets last night...we're going to have them for tonight's dinner.
Rose,
ReplyDeleteYou may have seen the exact thing washed up on the beach. I seem to think I remember reading they are on both coasts. Not certain about that though.
Dan and I really love them. They have a pleasant mild flavor and a nice texture that is almost crunchy. Not at all "seaweedy".
Alicia
I've seen those before and thought maybe they were like green beans. Looks great.
ReplyDeletehey those sound really good, no nutritionals? lol that might be hard to find:)
ReplyDeleteMichelle,
ReplyDeleteI have seen a few different nutritional numbers. Since they weren't consistent I wanted to wait until I found a reliable source before I published. You know me well.
Merry Christmas to you, Walter and the animals,
Alicia
Hey, Alicia!
ReplyDeleteWell, I haven't had much luck finding a source for these, but I certainly have been learning a lot about them in my search! For one thing, they go by several different names, and I had the most luck looking under "Sea Asparagus." ("Sea beans" often turned up the polished bead-like seeds used for crafts!)
I found this place that sells them fresh in the summer, frozen the rest of the time (but only in 5-pound packages), or pickled in a jar (or a case of jars). But I'd say that at $65 (plus shipping, no doubt) for 5 pounds, shipped from British Columbia, you need to hasten back to Wegman's pronto! (And make the cashier wonder about the sudden run on sea beans!) ;-)
I'll keep looking as I have time, but it appears summer is the best time to find them, when they're freshly harvested. It also appears it helps to live near the coast, so now I know why I've never seen them in these parts!
Laurie,
ReplyDeleteSea asparagus is a perfect name for the sea beans. The hubby and I are going to make another sea bean run this weekend. The price you found for 5 pounds sounds reasonable. The sea beans at Wegman's were $14.99 a pound.
If you have any chef friends they may be able to order you some through their food distributors. That is my fall back position when Wegman's doesn't have them.
talk to you soon,
Alicia