snake beans

​You may recall me mentioning in yesterday’s post that I planted a tray of snake beans into the garden (see photo of my seedlings).  I managed to plant the rest of my punnets today.  Snake beans need a very hot long summer in order to grow and crop, so I wouldn’t bother if your climate is only marginal.  I can get away with growing them in Auckland but even then, I wouldn’t say they exactly crop prolifically.  They tend to crop quite late in the season too – expect to be harvesting snake beans in March and April.  It’s still not too late to get snake beans going if you haven’t already.  I already had seeds left over from last year when I ran my little plant nursery.  Manukau is a very cosmopolitan area and snake beans were one of my best sellers.  I had to purchase a big bulk bag from Kings Seeds to keep up with customer demands!

The advice contained in my earlier post on growing beans applies, but here are a few more tips:

•          Because they only thrive in hot weather, snake beans aren’t something you want to start too early.  Mid-November to early December is perfect
•          As snake bean seeds are smaller than regular beans and require very hot weather to grow, it might be better to raise them in punnets first and then transplant them into the garden when they’re large enough, rather than sowing them direct.  I used a heat pad when I sowed mine in mid-November, as night time temperatures can still be quite cool then
•          Snake beans can get quite tall and heavy, so they require some support.  This year, I’m growing them against a trellis at the back of the house
•          Mix some compost and slow release fertiliser designed for fruiting plants into the soil prior to planting
•          Protect young seedlings from slugs and snails
•          Liquid feed plants weekly to encourage growth and flowering.  I’m going to use some of my Yates Thrive Tomato liquid fertiliser on mine
•          The flowers on the plants need to be pollinated in order to crop.  Try to attract bees to the garden to help with this by planting colourful flowers nearby, such as sunflowers, dahlias and zinnias
•          Harvest beans regularly to encourage further fruiting

We enjoy making thai fish cakes with our snake beans.  Here is the recipe we like using.

Ingredients

•          500g firm white fish fillets, coarsely chopped (we like using hoki)
•          ½ cup fresh coriander leaves
•          35 g (1/4 cup) cornflour
•          2 tablespoons fish sauce
•          2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce
•          1 egg, lightly whisked
•          3 green shallots, ends trimmed, finely chopped
•          50g snake beans, finely chopped
•          Lime wedges, to serve
•          Sweet chilli sauce, extra, to serve
•          Bread crumbs (to bind)

​Method
1.       Cook the fish first
2.       Place the fish in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth.  Add the coriander, cornflour, fish sauce, sweet chilli sauce and egg, and process until well combined
3.       Transfer the fish mixture to a large bowl.  Add the shallot and beans and stir until well combined.  Divide the fish mixture into equal portions and shape into patties.  Spray with some oil.  Bake in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 25 minutes
4.       Serve with lime wedges and extra sweet chilli sauce.  Enjoy!