Once you try this delicious Fava Bean Puree, you’ll be wondering where it was all your life. It’s easy to fall in love with the fresh, nutty flavor of this bean puree and want to make it all the time.
» You might also like this classic hummus recipe.
If you love hummus, you’re really going to love fava bean puree. While hummus is made with garbanzo beans (aka chickpeas), fava bean puree is made with fava beans (aka broad beans). The texture is very similar and the taste is extraordinary.
We started making this puree after one of our friends made it for a supper club dinner. The broad beans blended with a flavorful, high-quality olive oil was just incredible. I couldn’t get enough of it.
What Are Fava Beans?
Fava beans are the dried fruit of fresh broad beans. I definitely was confused by this when I first started becoming familiar with broad beans. You can use either dried fava beans or fresh broad beans for this recipe.
Broad beans come in long thick pods, like green beans, and contain flat, bright green beans that are about the size of edamame beans or lima beans. The beans have a tough, clear skin that needs to be removed before eating, like garbanzo beans do.
How to Cook & Peel Fava Beans
- Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil. Drop the beans into the boiling water, and cook them for 5 minutes. Drain the water and transfer the beans to a bowl of cold water. Allow the beans to cool for several minutes.
- Slip off the skin of the fava bean by pinching the top of the bean and squeezing gently.
Ingredients You Need
- Fava beans – You can find dried fava beans that can be rehydrated and cooked, just like chickpeas. You can also buy fresh or frozen broad beans. If you buy them in the pod, make sure you feel the size of the bean inside the pod to ensure it’s large enough. Some pods contain very small beans.
- Lemon juice – Always use fresh squeezed lemon juice
- Extra virgin olive oil – The quality of the olive oil is very important because it’s one of the main ingredients. A low-quality or flavorless olive oil won’t add the amazing character and flavor that this puree requires.
- Seasonings: Salt, garlic, ground black pepper, cumin
- Baguette or Crostini – sliced and toasted
How to Make Fava Bean Puree
Fava beans contain a thick shell that needs to be removed after cooking, before you can puree them. It seems like a lot of work… okay, it’s a lot of work! But it’s necessary. Don’t skip this step or your puree won’t have a very good texture.
Add all of the ingredients (except the baguette, of course) to a food processor or stick blender attachment. Puree until the mixture is just slightly chunky, like hummus.
When you’ve got it to the texture you like, you should taste it and adjust the seasoning to suit your taste. I always find that it needs a little bit more salt or a little bit more olive oil. Adjust it until it tastes delicious. If it doesn’t taste delicious and you’re not sure why, it’s almost always due to lack of salt.
Serve the puree with toasted crostinis. It also goes really well with veggies, like celery, carrot chips, and radishes.
To make crostini, see this recipe. It’s just lightly toasted slices of baguette.
Questions About Fava Bean Puree
Can I use dried fava beans?
You can use dried fava beans if you can’t find fresh or frozen ones. The best ones to use are fresh, but frozen fava beans are great too. Dried beans will give you a more yellow color, rather than a bright green color. Be sure to rehydrate the beans by soaking them for the right amount of time. Here’s a cooking guide.
Are fava beans the same as broad beans?
Yes. They are the same bean. Oftentimes, fava beans refer to dried beans, while broad beans refer to fresh beans, but that’s not always the case.
Can I make this recipe in advance?
Yes, you can prepare this recipe a few days in advance of when you want to serve it. It keeps well in the refrigerator. You can make it up to 5 days in advance and still have it be delicious. If you want, you can freeze the puree in an air-tight container or bag with the air squeezed out. It will keep for at least 2-3 months.
To thaw, just bring it back up to temperature in the refrigerator and serve as usual.
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Easy & Delicious Fava Bean Puree
Ingredients
- 1 cup fava beans broad beans, cooked and shelled
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice fresh squeezed
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil high-quality
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 bagette sliced and toasted
Instructions
- Add all of the ingredients (except the baguette) to a food processor or stick blender attachment. Puree until just slightly chunky. Adjust seasoning to taste. Serve with toasted crostinis.
Equipment Needed
Nutrition
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Laura is a home cook who loves making new recipes and finding new favorite things to eat, whether at home or abroad. She also runs a popular travel blog and spends a lot of her time traveling for food.