Legumes - The Manual of Seed Saving - page 141

An heirloom recipe
The foundation of Ritschert , a hearty stew, is broad beans, millet, and pearl barley (barley that
has been hulled and polished to remove the bran), to which is added cured pork or roast goose
and bones (marrow bones, knuckles, feet, etc.), to provide gelatin for the broth—not that this
dish is intended to be like a soup; rather, it is reduced in the oven to a soft, grainy mush. Greens,
salt, pepper, garlic, onions, vinegar, and herbs provide the seasoning.
Archaeological finds in abandoned underground shelters in the salt mines of Hallstatt, Aus-
tria, show that broad beans, millet, and barley were the primary foodstuffs of ancient salt miners.
This Styrian stew matches their diet so perfectly, it is hard to resist the conclusion that this is a
3,000-year-old culinary tradition (Arche Noah 2001).
The seed-borne broad bean true mosaic virus is spread by aphids. Leaves show a mosaic-like bright-
ening, and the plants are noticeably vertical and misshapen. Remove affected plants; the virus can also
affect other legumes.
Downy mildew (fungus: Peronospora viciae ) also overwinters on infected plant material in the soil.
It is most likely to spread at temperatures of 60-68°F (15-20°C). The stands most at risk are those
where the fungus starts spreading early in the growing season. Symptoms: reddish brown, irregularly
formed spots, first on the undersides of leaves, later all over; bright layer of spores on undersides of
leaves. Leaf and stem rust of beans ( Uromyces spp.) is not seed-borne. Symptoms: small brown sporo-
carps (fungal fruiting bodies) on leaves and pods.
Check harvested seeds for broad bean weevil ( Bruchus rufimanus ) infestation and remove affected
seeds. For more details on killing bean weevils, see the earlier entry on the common bean.
CULTIVATION HISTORY Though the wild ancestor of the fava bean is unknown, it is presumed to have
been domesticated in the Near East or eastern Mediterranean region. The oldest fava bean find is from
the 7th century BC in Israel. Its introduction into central Europe did not occur until the late Bronze
Age. There are many fava bean finds from the first millennium AD from Austria, southwest Germany,
Switzerland, and east Germany. Until the 16th and 17th centuries, when the common bean arrived and
“demoted” them, fava beans were among the most important crop plants. In certain areas in Greece,
southern Italy, Portugal, Great Britain, France, northern Germany, and also in a few valleys in the Alps
of South Tyrol, Italy (Ulental, for example), broad beans are still grown and eaten in traditional dishes.
Over the course of the 20th century, fava beans were rediscovered in central European cuisine, and
they continue popular.
PEA
Pisum sativum
Peas can be categorized in many different ways. We will divide them here into three categories. The
first, shell peas (convar. medullare ) have seeds that (when they are dry) are wrinkled. The pods of shell
peas have a parchment layer; they are harvested green and shelled, and they are the pea for freezing