The Hull Truth

Another note on fava beans and their skins. Like letter-writer Nancy Harmon Jenkins (June 2), I too was curious about the pleasures of eating, and the pitfalls of preparing, fava beans that you described on May 19. I’ve never eaten favas in Spain, Italy or Lebanon, though I have struggled to prepare the few fistfuls I’ve purchased over the years at the Santa Monica farmers market.

This spring, as a member of the Moore Ranch Community Supported Agriculture project, I received several bags of fava beans in my weekly share. These favas popped effortlessly from pod to pan--no tough inner skin at all. After reading your story on May 19, I queried Steve Moore as to the seemingly miraculous skin-free properties of his favas. He replied that he grew a variety of fava called Bell Beans, which have a much thinner skin than the more common lima bean-like fava.

The question is, does the presence or absence of that inner skin have to do with age or variety? Or both?

NAOMI GLAUBERMAN

Venice