Yardlong beans or Long green beans are legumes cultivated to be eaten as green pods. It is known by many different names bora, bodi, long-podded cowpea, asparagus bean, pea bean, snake bean, or Chinese long bean.It is 35-75 cm long and widely grown in the warmer parts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and southern China.

They are used as vegetables if picked before they mature otherwise used in soups as dry beans. The plants take longer to reach maturity than bush beans, but once producing, the beans are quick-growing and daily checking/harvesting is often a necessity.

They are eaten raw or cooked. They are cut into small pieces and cooked with potatoes. They are also stir-fried in Chinese cuisine. In Philippines, eaten stir-fried with soya sauce, garlic, and hot pepper or are stewed.

Nutritional Facts

• good source of protein, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, iron, phosphorus, and potassium, and a very good source for vitamin C, folate, magnesium, and manganese.

Some of the recipes are:

• Sauteed Chinese Long Beans
• Spicy Stir-Fried Chinese Long Beans with Peanuts
• Stir Fried Chinese Long Beans with Garlic
• Hunan cured ham with pickled yardlong beans
• Yardlong beans with potatoes
• Pork and yardlong beans fried in phrik khing paste