French Beans

Ingredients

• French beans
• spring water
• some salt

Instructions

1. Cut off the stalk end of the beans first, then turn to the point and strip off the strings. If the beans are not quite fresh, have a bowl of spring water with a little salt dissolved in it standing before you; as you cleanse and trim each bean, throw it into the salt water.
2. Once all beans are trimmed, put them on the fire in boiling water with some salt. Boil for fifteen to twenty minutes, then take one out and taste it to check for tenderness. As soon as they are tender, remove them and throw them into a colander to drain.
3. When the beans are young, send them up whole—this is much the best method, as their delicate flavour and colour are much better preserved. When they are a little more grown, cut them lengthwise in thin slices after stringing. For common tables they may be split and divided across, though those who are particular do not use them at such a growth as to require splitting.