Fava Beans and fresh corn

When I watched Silence of the Lambs years ago I had no idea what Hannibal Lector was talking about when he mentioned eating fava beans. Only last year was I properly introduced to this amazing if slightly difficult bean. 

Fava beans have been around for over 5000 years and a diet staple for much of the rest of the world through the ages. It seems that they are finally catching on here in the US - slowly. 

Fava beans come in these big floppy green pods about 3-5 inches long. They are filled with what looks like cotton batting that the actual beans nestle in. But don't get to excited yet - after opening these thick, stringy pods the beans themselves still need blancehd to loosed then waxy coating on each individual bean. See what I mean by difficult? I find this process to be relaxing in a sort of "turn off your brain" kind of way. 

Once you get the beans loose you have these brilliant green beans with a buttery texture and a slightly bitter, nutty flavor. 

We are growing fava beans in our garden. But that seemed so far away I could not resist them at our local co-op. I filled up a bag and grabbed a fresh ear of corn. Thinking I could throw the two together for an easy side dish for dinner. 

After getting the beans out of their pods, blanched, cooled and peeled I turned to the corn. I shucked it, rinsed it and then sliced it off the cob.

I heated a cast iron skilled to medium heat and threw in the corn. No oil - just on the bottom. Looking to get the grilled effect in the skillet. Don't stir - you will be tempted. We are not stir frying - we want dark bits which will mean sweet pan roasted corn.

With these two amazing ingredients I only needed salt, pepper a dash of olive oil and a sprinkle of red wine vinegar. A perfect summer night side dish.