It’s Not Truly Summer Until You’ve Had These Beans

Welcome to our summer produce series. Every week until the end of August, we’re highlighting the most in-season fruit or veggie of the moment, as handpicked by the experts at Natoora. You can learn more about the company and how they work with farmers in our first piece of the series.

The first time I had Romano beans was at Chef Missy Robbins’s pasta-focused restaurant Misi when it opened back in 2018. I can’t remember exactly how they were prepared back then, but they are still on the menu as an antipasto, grilled and dressed with a garlic vinaigrette and chilies. It’s not a vegetable you see that often, but when the hottest days of summer finally arrive, Romano beans start to hit August menus with a fervor.

“A harbinger of summer, unlike peas and fava beans, green Romano beans fare well in heat,” says Natoora brand manager Phoebe Creaghan. “Yellow Romano beans struggle in intense heat and sun, so expect those to be less abundant over the coming weeks.”

Romano beans are in the same family as string beans, and they’re usually four to six inches long with a broad, flat shape. Natoora sources their crop from farmer Zaid Kurdieh, owner of the organic Norwich Meadows Farm in Norwich, NY. “Zaid’s beans grow thinner and more tender than run-of-the-mill Romanos, partly because of varietal selection, partly because of the effect of gravity as they grow on trellises.”

Romano beans are one of those fleeting ingredients that are a really special treat at this time of year. If you come across them at your local grocer or farmers market, here’s how to make the most of them, courtesy of Natoora:

• What to look for when shopping: Long and flat beans with a smooth, bright green exterior. Inside are petite underdeveloped seeds or beans.

• How to store for maximum freshness: They dehydrate quickly, so keep cold and covered in the fridge.

• How to use: Raw, blanched, grilled or braised

The Recipe

I fell in love with Chef Renee Erickson’s cooking when I went to her restaurant The Whale Wins in Seattle. The way she works with vegetables and seafood is an inspiration that I am constantly trying to emulate in my own kitchen. Not to mention, she was one of the experts I spoke to when researching the Chefs to Watch in 2024 article, and she’s just an absolute joy to speak with. Erickson is coming out with a gorgeous cookbook, Sunlight & Breadcrumbs: Making Food with Creativity & Curiosity, this fall, and I got a special sneak peek at it this week.

As I was paging through the recipes, lo and behold, right there in the “Anchovies Make (Almost) Everything Better” chapter was a recipe for Braised Romano Beans with Anchovy, Chile Flakes and Fancy Olive Oil.

“I’ve never been a string bean lover, but Romano-style beans, which I discovered in my restaurant work and travels, are so full of luscious flavor,” Erickson writes in the introduction to the recipe. “They are cooked with a very different mindset: not quickly blanched for crisp texture but slowly braised in a flavorful broth until they are silky and yielding. When I first visited Italy, long-cooked vegetables (with plenty of olive oil!) were new to me. You lose the bright color of a quick blanch, but in exchange, you get a velvety, rich flavor and texture, as perfectly satisfying as a meaty braise.”

Along with anchovies and chile flakes, lemon and basil add a brightness to the dish that would be a perfect complement to grilled meat and fish. Erickson recommends pulling the tough strings from the Romano beans, noting that they “are even sturdier than those on string beans,” so be diligent about cleaning them.

Other than that, I recommend getting to your farmers market this week while this of-the-moment ingredient is still at its prime.

Braised Romano Beans with Anchovy, Chile Flakes and Fancy Olive Oil

Servings: 4 to 6

Ingredients

• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 6 anchovy fillets, chopped
• 1 cup olive oil
• 2 lbs. Romano beans of any color, stemmed and strings removed, whole or cut into thirds
• Peel of 1 lemon, thinly sliced
• 1.5 tsp. salt, plus more as needed
• Large pinch of red chile flakes
• 10 basil leaves, plus more for garnish
• Fancy olive oil, to drizzle
• Flaky salt, to serve

Directions

1. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-low heat, warm the garlic and anchovies in the olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add a 1/2 cup water, the beans, lemon peel, fine sea salt and chile flakes and give them a good stir. Cover and cook for about 1 hour, stirring every 5 to 10 minutes, until they are completely soft.
2. Add the basil leaves and remove from heat. Let the basil infuse for at least 10 minutes, then serve. The beans can also be served at room temperature or refrigerated overnight. Don’t serve them cold, though — rewarm them if you have refrigerated

1. them. Garnish the beans with additional basil leaves

1. (torn, if large), fancy olive oil and flaky salt just before serving.

Excerpt from the upcoming cookbook Sunlight & Breadcrumbs (Abrams) by Renee Erickson with Sara Dickerman, on-sale September 24 © 2024 Renee Erickson