Beans (Fresh)
French, or String or "Snap" Beans.
Break off the tops and bottoms and "string" carefully. Then pare both edges with a sharp knife, to be certain that no remnant of the tough fibre remains. Not one cook in a hundred performs this duty as deftly and thoroughly as it should be done. I have heard several gentlemen say that they could always tell, after the first mouthful, whether the mistress or the hireling had "strung" the beans. It is a tedious and disagreeable business, this pulling bits of woody thread out of one's mouth when he wants to enjoy his dinner.
--- From page 148-49 of the book, "Common Sense in the Household: A Manual of Practical Housewifery" by Marion Harland. Published in Toronto by Rose Publishing Company, circa 1900.
Break off the tops and bottoms and "string" carefully. Then pare both edges with a sharp knife, to be certain that no remnant of the tough fibre remains. Not one cook in a hundred performs this duty as deftly and thoroughly as it should be done. I have heard several gentlemen say that they could always tell, after the first mouthful, whether the mistress or the hireling had "strung" the beans. It is a tedious and disagreeable business, this pulling bits of woody thread out of one's mouth when he wants to enjoy his dinner.
--- From page 148-49 of the book, "Common Sense in the Household: A Manual of Practical Housewifery" by Marion Harland. Published in Toronto by Rose Publishing Company, circa 1900.
