Green beans are a common staple on our dining tables, but news of food poisoning from them occurs from time to time. According to Guangdong's历年 (历年 - past years) surveillance reports on foodborne diseases, food poisoning caused by green beans in January usually accounts for over 50% of the total poisoning cases for that month. How can we cook green beans safely?
Beware of 2 ways of eating green beans that can easily cause poisoning
Green beans, also known as kidney beans, string beans, or lima beans, are a vegetable commonly consumed nationwide. Poisoning from green beans is also a relatively common type of natural food toxin poisoning. According to actual investigations of poisoning cases, improper cooking is the main cause, mostly due to stir-frying or boiling until not thoroughly cooked. Raw green beans contain saponins, which are highly irritating to the mucous membranes of the digestive tract; in addition, they may also contain phytohemagglutinin and trypsin inhibitors, both of which can cause food poisoning.
The incubation period for poisoning from ingesting undercooked green beans is several tens of minutes, generally not exceeding 5 hours, and mainly presents with gastroenteritis symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Vomiting can occur a few times to as many as several dozen times. Other symptoms include dizziness, headache, chest tightness, cold sweats, and palpitations, with a burning sensation in the stomach. The course of the illness is generally several hours or 1-2 days.
Experts remind that green beans should not be cooked by methods like cold mixing (凉拌) or deep-frying. The restaurant dish "dry-fried green beans" (干煸四季豆) is the most dangerous because many chefs, to save time, use a high-temperature, short-time deep-frying method. Experts advise everyone to be cautious if they encounter green beans in a restaurant that are brightly colored and vibrant green, have a crisp and hard texture, and even have a raw taste.
4 small tips for cooking green beans
When cooking green beans in general, they should first be blanched in boiling water, then stir-fried in a wok, until the green beans are no longer "vibrantly green" but have turned a darker color or slightly yellow. When selecting and cooking green beans, pay attention to the following four points:
1. When buying green beans, choose fresh ones; the longer they are stored, the higher the content of toxins like saponins.
2. Before cooking, cut off both ends of the green beans, as these parts contain more toxins.
3. When cooking, reduce the use of methods like cold mixing and deep-frying, especially dry-fried green beans, because high-temperature, short-time deep-frying actually makes it harder to cook them through.
4. If the green beans are still vibrant green, have a crisp and hard texture, and even have a raw taste, they should not be eaten.
Next, let's share a healthy and safe, homemade recipe for dry-fried green beans.
Homemade Recipe for Dry-Fried Green Beans
[Ingredients] Green beans, garlic, salt, light soy sauce, cooking oil
[Method]
1. Wash and clean the green beans, place them in boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes, then remove and rinse with cold water.
2. Peel and crush the garlic.
3. Heat oil in a wok, add the crushed garlic and stir-fry over low heat until fragrant, then add the green beans.
4. Stir-fry the green beans over low heat until they are golden brown on both sides.
5. Add an appropriate amount of salt and light soy sauce, and mix well to serve.