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Green beans -phaseolus vulgaris- come from the New World, where they were grown before the Spanish arrived in Mexico and Peru. The conquistadors brought them back to Spain because the plant held up well during the long voyage at sea. The beans soon acclimated to Spain and were well received, although it was not until the late 17th century that people in the rest of Europe started eating them.

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Main varieties
The most popular green beans are the wide, flat ones, known in Spain as jud�as perona. Thin and tender, they are a common ingredient in Valencian paella. The round variety is known here as the jud�a bobby. They are also tasty but the texture is a bit coarser. There are also tiny green beans which offer the best of both worlds, but they tend to be imported and cost more than 6 euros per kilo. Without a doubt the most tender and tasty variety are the wide, flat yellow beans. They are popular in the north of Spain, but have raised eyebrows among consumers in some towns in the mountainous region north of Madrid. But this wariness quickly vanished once people tasted the vegetable.

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Summer is the best time for green beans, although you can buy them year round thanks to greenhouses and imports from South America. But the quality and price of these beans is not always the best. The only problem with green beans are the tough strands of fiber that run along the edge, and which turn thicker the longer the beans are allowed to grow before harvest. To make sure the beans are fresh, snap one in two with your fingers: if it breaks cleanly, the edges look juicy and have no discernible strings, the beans are ready to eat.

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Nutritional value
From a nutritional standpoint, green beans have only 30 calories per 100 grams of bean, are rich in fiber and vitamins, including provitamin A, all the B vitamins, C and E. They also contribute many minerals and oligo-elements, making them highly nutritional. But keep in mind you should not eat them raw because the starch they contain makes the beans harder to digest.

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Another good thing about these beans is their versatility in the kitchen. You can cook them quickly - in about 10 minutes, depending on the kind of bean - by steaming them or boiling them with a bit of salt. To help them keep their attractive green colour after being cooked, chill them in cold water. This gives a good result. Forget that old trick of adding bicarbonate of soda to the cooking water. Although this does keep them green, it affects their texture and the beans lose nutrients.��

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Green beans are best in simple, lightly seasoned recipes that don't mask their delicate flavor. Bits of serrano-style ham, shrimp, or shavings of duck pat� are enough to dress them up for the culinary festivities. Garlic, tomato and olive oil always work well with green beans. And always eat the beans as quickly as possible after cooking them. After two or three days in the refrigerator, they start to lose their qualities.

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