Guest Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Please can someone tell me whether raw runner beans are poisonous. I have read conflicting information about this. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 I had no idea - but having just 'googled' it would seem so :blink: Have to know now why you are asking - what are you planning? :1b Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 I had no idea - but having just 'googled' it would seem so :blink: Have to know now why you are asking - what are you planning? :1b I have been using 'The Hairy Toe' story (which the children just can't get enough of!). So, as a learning provocative, I found a basket, added French beans and a hairy toe (made from a sculptured candle and covered with dark brown llama fleece - oh, I then added a toe nail - cut from a plastic milk bottle); they loved it and have been acting out the story all week. Our topic is 'machines' and next week - 'machines of the past', so I wanted to have runner beans in the 'discovery desk' and to use an old cast iron bean slicer (supervised of course) so that we could look at the sliced runner beans. But I guess, if they are poisonous, then it will have to be 'supervised' only and not used in the 'discovery desk' (perhaps I could cook them first? ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 (edited) All sounds brilliant! :1b Just 'popped back' to say......if supervised and they can wash hands afterwards I don't think that i would be too worried - lots of things can be poisonous daffodil bulbs spring to mind - but my children plant them every year :1b Edited January 31, 2013 by sunnyday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lashes2508 Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 they are not poisonous but like kidney beans and other beans contain higher levels of lectins - the lectins are carb binding and too many may cause nausea, diahorrea - cooking help reduce the lectins so prob best to blanch them first - we may be happy to gnaw on them and give them to own children but may be best to use them cooked - blanch in boiling water quickly and hopefully still stay hard enough to slice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enuffsenuf Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 re the above as with any aspect of play (I am assuming you are going to plant them) then we would simply do a risk/benefit assessment with the children...ie what are the risk of using runner beans (eating....in all my years I have NEVER had a child try to eat one because they don't look very appetising) (poking up nose/ear etc) versus the benefits...learning about how things grow etc etc so on and so forth. So long as your staff are vigilent then they should be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Thank you everyone for your help :wub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchie Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 I hope not, I eat them raw, and my little grandson just loves to pick them off the vine and eat them. he like me loves his raw veg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redjayne Posted February 1, 2013 Share Posted February 1, 2013 Not sure if you mean the seed or bean ? I have eaten them raw for years _ the dried seed I assume would be like dried kidney beans and may be toxic if in the dry state but fine if boiled ( not that you would want to !) How would restaurants etc be able to serve them lightly steamed or stir fried, or even raw in salads if they were poisonous ? :blink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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