Lima Beans, the best for less

If you are a lima bean person, and who isn’t, why not purchase the best?

I have not had good luck with the frozen limas. Walmart.com will sell you a single 15.25 oz. can of lima beans for south of two bucks, $1.62 to be exact. That is a lot less than the Amazon price.

You can buy just a single can and then, if they are not to your taste, no big loss. And we are talking Del Monte Quality Harvest Selects Green Lima Beans, the #1 rated canned lima beans.

I have already had good fortune with the Libby’s canned corn, so I’m now thinking “succotash”! :grinning:

The road to succotash starts here

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Do you mean that, with all that land, you didn’t grow any corn, lima beans, or green beans? :open_mouth:

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First, I own less than 100 acres of land. There are people around here who own a square mile or more.

Second, I grow only hay and trees . . . . well, OK, maybe some apples, pears, and a little asparagus. The apples are looking promising this year. But I’m no farmer; I’m not that smart. And you have to have smarts to be a farmer. That is one reason I live in the midst of a bunch of farmers instead of in a city or suburb. They know stuff I do not know and they know how to do stuff I am unable to do.

Bottom line, if I can buy lima beans on the cheap, I grab 'em. I ordered some of the subject beans yesterday. We shall see if they are soft and tasty, or hard and nasty. I do not like hard lima beans.

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You dont have to be a farmer to have a backyard garden. And you have plenty of ‘backyard’ to do it. I’m also surprised you dont grow that kind of stuff for personal use.

You clearly have no grasp of the high skill level it takes to grow superb lima beans. And I’m right there with you. I could not grow a superior lima bean if my life depended on it.

I content myself with paying homage to those who DO know how to grow great lima beans . . . by buying their products!

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I have a couple of apple trees, but they never produce big nice fruit. My 1 pear tree died. But asparagus is something beautiful to watch growing. We are not that far from the “asparagus capital” California.

It takes time to get an asparagus garden to really start producing fine gras. Mine are envied by all friends and family. :blush: Around Easter my asparagus is beautiful and requested by all. BUT you must harvest every day. Fast growing!!

But as shinobi said, big time farmers are different. We do ok, but my home garden is special. (no Lima beans)

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Lima beans, no, I have no clue. But you could easily grow corn, potatoes, tomatoes, squashes, green beans, peas, cucumbers, etc, etc, etc. And I cannot imagine how fresh grown, same-day picked anything is not better than what you get out of a can at the grocery store…

My point was, most of the knowledge required to be a “farmer” is knowing how to grow and harvest stuff in bulk. Lots and lots of laypersons, with no unique knowledge, grow food for their personal use. I reckon most backyard garden produce is in fact superior to the professionally farmed stuff.

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I can grow lima beans, but the high skill/workload is picking them. The only reason I grew purple hull peas was that they were easier to pick than green peas. My eyes are no longer good enough to discern the green pea/bean pods from the vines/bushes.

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Unless you can get it from the professional farm on the day of picking. :smile:

I’m worried this forum has jumped the shark if we really need a thread telling us that a can of lima beans is cheaper at the grocery store than amazon.

And no mention that the 15.25oz can used to be 16oz? You’re slipping @shinobi !

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Lima bean update:

My enthusiasm, as expressed in the OP, has cooled down just a bit.

My limas came in . . . just a single can. Used 'em to make succotash. The other ingredients were Libby’s canned whole kernel corn, some red and green peppers, a bit of garlic fried up with the peppers, butter, and freshly ground pepper.

The limas were so salty I had to rinse them with warm water three times before using them. I also rinsed the corn in an effort, as with the lima beans, to tone down the wildly excessive saltiness. I did not add any salt to the succotash, relying instead on the residual salt in the limas and corn, and on the salt in the butter.

Bottom line, the succotash was OK, rating maybe a C+ or B-. Would I make it again? I might, perhaps adding more peppers next time.

The limas themselves were of the smaller variety . . . not as small as baby limas but certainly not the large Fordhook beans either and not close. They were soft and decent . . but not great.

Succotash is best served as a side dish alongside a starch, e.g., mashed potatoes. I did not prepare a starch this time, and I might have rated the succotash higher had I done so. But here’s the thing:

As one who eats (almost) only fresh and frozen vegetables, it is difficult for me to warm up to anything canned. I do routinely eat canned, sliced, beets in salads. The canned corn is good in fritters.
On rare occasion I will cook up a roux and throw in some canned peas. And of course canned pumpkin is a staple. But that is about it for canned stuff despite the fact I consume a mainly plant-based diet.

So maybe I need to try again with frozen lima beans to see if I can achieve a better outcome. At least they are not laced with salt.

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Add a slice, or two, of potato. It absorbs the salt. – Don’t eat the potato. :smile:

Beets are very easy to grow. They take a long time to cook, though.

Hush puppies don’t need anything added to make them good. A hush puppy is a fritter, right?:slight_smile:

If you can make a roux, all you need to add are spices, broth, okra and meat or seafood (or both). Time will take care of the rest. :smile:

Genesis, before the edits, began with “In the Beginning, there was a roux” :smile:

I know this is a Lima Bean experience but now we have additional insights.

Honkinggoose you amaze me, a beautiful dish of okra soup. One of my favorites. Okra is another vegetable that’s easy to grow. Lots of sun needed.
But my really favorite way of cooking okra is to fry a batch. First of all you must cut into small pieces, dip the pieces in egg batter, then in corn meal. Toss pieces into a hot skillet of oil. Fry until crispy.

Good southern food.

The dish shinobi mentioned of Lima beans, corn and peas left me wondering?? I actually don’t believe it’s going to happen at my table. First of all canned peas, maybe frozen peas substituted might work.

Anyway, something other than Afghanistan issues?? :blush:

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Kindly reread my earlier post. There are no peas in my succotash. I wrote corn, limas, peppers, garlic, pepper, butter.

No peas. I have never heard of anyone putting peas in succotash.

Sorry shinobi, I didn’t reread your recipe. But your succotash sounds good, forget the peas part. I like the extra ingredients, fresh peppers etc.

So is the hot deal that @shinobi is making this and selling it a good price? :slight_smile:

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I’ve always loved lima beans. Only once was I able to get some at a local farmer’s market. The fresh ones were amazing!

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It’s wonderful and a staple at most fairs in the south. Once you eat a good gumbo, I’m sure you’ll think that is the best use of okra, by far. It’s not bad pickled, either. :smile:

Now back to your regular Food Network programming.