SC - Re: SC mashing favas (food mill styles)

[LrdRas at aol.com]

In a message dated 3/15/01 3:41:59 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
olwentheodd at hotmail.com writes:

<< I'm confused.  If all you folks can't figure out how to make non-lumpy 
beans 
 with all these modern appliances, then don't you think that mashing them 
 with a potato masher type thing that they probably did back when left the 
 things lumpy anyway??
 Olwen >>

Well., said. :-) Following this post I was confused that the original sender 
was concerned with  the beans being 'grainy' after mashing. I don't think the 
poster  was saying they were lumpy so much as not smooth on the tongue.

In the meantime, I have mashed favas, mature yard long beans and black eyed 
peas (all Vigna varieties). I also mashed kidney beans, canelli beans and 
great nothern beans (all Phaseolus varieties). The results were that the 
Vigna species, without exception tended toward graininess whlie the Phaseolus 
varieties temnded toward smoothness. I think that the objection to graininess 
is a result of the poster being more familiar with the characteristics of 
cooked Phaseolus varieties instead of the Old World Vigna varieties. 
Graininess after mashing seems to be an inherent character of the former 
beans while New World beans tend toward a smoother product when mashed.

Ras