Our late planting of rattlesnake beans are really starting to come in. We really like the bean, in fact, The Deer Hunter has convinced me to plant mostly rattlesnake beans next summer instead of the greasy beans that usually make up the majority of our green bean plantings.
Rattlesnake beans can be eaten the same way as other beans. I love them when they are cooked in the traditional Appalachian manner—in other words cooked until soft.
This is the second summer we’ve canned rattlesnake beans and they work well for that too.
One way that rattlesnake beans are often cooked that we have not tried, is to let the pod grow really large, hull out the bean, and allow it to dry for future use.
Rattlesnake beans are a fairly long bean with many of them growing to over seven inches. When they first start growing, like other beans, they are flat since the bean hasn’t really matured inside the pod. When picked at this early tender stage the beans are really good roasted in the oven.
After stringing the young beans I toss them with a little olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and roast at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes or to your desired doneness.
They take on a sweetness when roasted and using them in their early stage of growth makes for a very tender roasted green bean.
Last night’s video: Pushing Through and Getting Things Done in Appalachia.
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I love roasted vegetables, have potatoes, turnips and carrots roasting in the oven right now. I have never had rattlesnake beans (or roasted green beans for that matter) but will have to give them a try next year.
Sounds delicious! We cook fresh asparagus that way too.
I’ve never had rattlesnake beans. The name always turned me off of wanting to grow them. I will say they have really produced well for you and the roasted ones look tasty.
Good morning Tipper, Matt and girls, I enjoyed last night’s video as usual. I pray you and Matt are feeling better. Prayers for you to regain your strength as I know you will. This post about beans, mother and I love the rattlesnake veins. Dad’s favorite was the peanut Bean. I enjoy any kind of roasted vegetables. I like to put a mixture of them on a flat pan and roast them. Mix, like you suggested, with oil, salt and pepper and sometimes I like to use some Italian seasoning. Not much, but it does give a good flavor to them. You are such a fortunate lady. You have a wonderful husband, two beautiful girls and an extremely wonderful much desired lifestyle. How I wished I could still Garden. But since my mother died in 2018 I just don’t have the desire anymore nor the physical ability. I tried grow bags this year but it didn’t work out. But anyway I sure do enjoy watching you guys.
And I would walkrr over hills and through hollers to get a piece of that Arsh Potato Black Walnut cake. We also put black walnuts in our corn bread when we can get them
Ray, I don’t know where you live but if you will come to my house, I will give as many black walnuts as you want. You will have too beat the squirrels to them. I have never heard of putting walnuts in cornbread. I like a black walnut cake or ice cream. Have not had either one in a long time.
We also cook our green beans til soft, ala, the mountain way. The only way we like them harder is when they’re roasted
I LOVE green beans and it looks like you have been blessed with a bountiful harvest!! Like you we always cooked them for hours. I would rather have a big plate of green beans, onion and cornbread than any steak or lobster, etc. I just love green beans!! You taught me something new, as I have never roasted my green beans. I have carrots but not green beans. By the way, lol, I thought yesterday I better make some more cornbread muffins cause I eat a lot of cornbread with my vegetables:) Now that I don’t cook for so many, I have found I can make a lot of cornbread muffins, put them in a zip lock bag and freeze. I can take one or two out for supper, place in microwave for about 25 sec and I’ve got steaming cornbread for supper.
Sorry to hear you all have been on the puny side. I hope you get to feeling a lot better this week and I sure hope Granny doesn’t get it.
I’ve never heard anyone mention using the pod of a really big bean that you remove the beans from. I had a bunch of them that had played a good game of hide and seek but didn’t use them as tI thought hey would be too tough. Wish I had known about this a couple weeks ago! Can you explain further on how to cook them?
Mary-you discard the hulls and then after the beans have dried you can cook them as you would other dried beans 🙂 Or if you only have a few big beans you can add the to your other green beans and cook them. We call green beans that have a lot of shelled out beans in them shellies 🙂
Hi Tipper, when I do roasted beans I follow your same recipe. I caramelize a big pan of onions till they are nice and golden brown and top the roasted beans with them. I usually make the onions ahead so I don’t rush the cooking. It really takes the beans over the top. Thanks for giving me a lovely way to start my day every morning, Peggy .
Rattlesnake beans are the only ones we grow as well. Last year I tried them out for the first time along with our usual Bluelake bush beans. My husband loved them! Picking them is so easy, they were cleaner and tasted so good, so we never looked back to the Bluelake. This year we had 6 quad pods of beans growing and I canned over 40 quarts and pints for our future use. I love how productive this particular greenbean is.
To try something different, I started letting the beans pods mature out and I’ve been shelling them for dried beans. I now have about 5 pounds and will have more soon. Some I will separate out for seed for next years crop, but we will eat the rest in future batches of ham and beans.
I love green beans, I could eat them til they come out my ears 🙂
Rattlesnake bean seeds are on my list for next year’s garden.
Those green beans look really nice. One of my favorite dishes is green beans cooked up Appalachian style with new potatoes, onion and a bit of seasoning meat. I can make a meal of a good helping of those with some buttered cornbread.
Tipper, off subject here, but I have a new baby black kitten who was very sick so I brought her home and she’s very sweet and loving too. Well I named her ZIPPER in honor of my friend Tipper so I hope you’re sorta flattered… lol The Rattlesnake beans tenderly baked sound not only delicious but a great and easy way to get a dinner side done! I like the Rattlesnake beans young because all that HAIRY business on the strings of a big bean makes me sort of nauseated and to see them in somebody’s home made beans (I had a cousin’s wife who canned stringy beans and we all dreaded them) so I’m a grab while they’re young and not tough as leather bean eater. I would like to dry Rattlesnake beans, but haven’t had that many to bother with. My Cherokee trail beans and Rattlesnake beans got canned together and I guarantee nobody will be the wiser… you talk about a beautiful jar of green beans that’s them!!!
Oh, yum! Thanks to you and the Deer Hunter for introducing the Rattlesnake Beans to your fans. I have these seeds now, anticipating my Spring planting.
They sound delicious, I have a fondness for roasted veggies of all sorts. It does seem to bring out the sweetness. I am hoping to plant a garden this coming season and they will be on my list to plant
Your post with the pictures of your pears reminded me of the case of pears I have tucked away that I did several years ago. The pears that I used were the kind you pictured that I was lucky enough to pick down in Florida, hard as a walnut. I took them back to Blue Ridge and my husband and I try preserving them. He began peeling them with an apple peeler, I cut and chunked and with ever level, placed in a 5 gallon ‘Lowes’ bucket and not knowing what I was doing, placed a layer then sprinkled sugar, another layer and sugar and so on til the bucket was almost full. The next day, transferred those to a large pot and began to slowly cooked them til they were softened somewhat. Have no idea how much the ratio of sugar to pears was, but they sure do taste like pear preserves. What made it fun was that the hubby and I worked it out so well, even though he doesn’t eat pears…go figure. Thanks again for your informative and entertaining post and videos.
After you roast them, they are ready to eat? You don’t have to do any further cooking? That sounds like something I would like.
I love to roast my vegetables with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. I use to only roast Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, and squashes. This summer I added green beans – and I love them cooked that way. When cooked on the stove, I like my green beans cooked a long time, too. I am glad you have fallen in love with the rattlesnake bean that your commenter sent. I have not tried them, but I like the name because I grew up at the foot of Rattlesnake Mountain in El Cajon (CA). I enjoyed this wonderful post, Tipper!
Donna. : )