Sea Beans?
I’m not sure how I ever lived in the deserts of Phoenix and the Middle East. We’ve had a heat wave in Seattle the past week or so, with temperatures getting into the high 80s and low 90s. I’ve been miserable. Non-stop sweating. My apartment feels like a furnace, and it doesn’t cool down much at night.
Yesterday I couldn’t bear the thought of going back to my apartment to sit in front of a hot computer, so I ducked into Corvus, my favorite local restaurant/bar. I don’t eat there often because the Levantine menu veers a little more towards meat, but Serene, Isaac, Winston, and Lee (sp?) serve up some delicious food. Usually it’s just a cold beer and an appetizer for me.
Yesterday I wanted something really light so I got the special – heirloom tomato, sea beans, goat cheese, and a fig balsamic…vinaigrette? It was delicious. I had to ask people what sea beans are, because they sure don’t seem like beans. I found a good description at Specialty Produce.
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“Sea Beans are perhaps more commonly known by their botanical name: Salicornia. Though the succulent is also known as Sea Asparagus, Pickleweed, Marsh Samphire, Glasswort or Saltwort depending on where in the world you are. Salicornia means “salt horn” a reference to both the shape and taste of the sea vegetable. Sea Beans are commonly found along the coast, growing wild in the salty soil and even inland growing in the muddy banks of salt flats and marshes. Sea Beans have found a place on restaurant dishes in coastal cities thanks in part to an increase in popularity of foraged items and farmer’s markets. They are often used as a substitute for green beans or wax beans.”
Corvus, Capitol Hill, July 2018.