What are "velske bønner"?

They are the broad beans / string beans as they were called in 1914. The recipe uses 1 liter of beans together with 2 carrots and ¼ liter of peas (yellow split peas).

Should the beans be cooked in salted water?

The original puts the beans into boiling, salted water, but the note points out that legumes should not be cooked in salt or hard water — that takes considerably longer. So salt preferably only once the beans are cooked. If the water is hard, add a little baking soda.

How is the soup thickened?

40 g wheat flour is stirred into ½ liter milk and added once the beans are cooked. The soup then simmers 10 minutes before being seasoned with pepper, salt, and 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley.

How long does the dish take?

Allow around 80 minutes total, including cleaning the vegetables, cooking the beans, and 10 minutes of simmering after thickening. The recipe serves 6.

Green Bean Soup (Velsk Bønnesuppe)

Name: Green Bean Soup (Velsk Bønnesuppe)
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Norwegian
Ingredients: 1 l runner beans (broad flat beans, cleaned); 2 pcs carrots (cleaned and cut up); 2.5 dl split peas (yellow peas); 2 l water; 40 g wheat flour; 5 dl milk; salt (to taste, preferably added at the end); pepper; 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley

Green bean soup (velsk bønnesuppe) from Erken's Stor kokebok 1914: broad string beans are cooked with carrots and split peas in 2 liters of water, thickened with wheat flour stirred into milk, simmered 10 minutes and seasoned with pepper and parsley. Erken warns against cooking legumes in hard or salted water.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 42 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

"Vælske bønner" are the broad, flat beans (snap beans/string beans) that were common in Norwegian kitchen gardens. Erken adds a note that legumes should not be cooked in hard or salted water.

How to make it

1
Prepare the beans
Clean and wash the beans well.
2
Cook the soup
Put the beans into the boiling water together with the cleaned, cut-up carrots and the peas, and cook until the beans are tender. If the water is hard, you can add a little baking soda; salt preferably only once the beans are cooked.
3
Thicken the soup
Stir the wheat flour into the milk and thin it into the soup. Let the soup simmer for 10 minutes.
4
Season
Season with salt and pepper and stir in the finely chopped parsley before serving.

Changes from the original

Measurements have been converted to modern units, "vælske bønner" given as broad string beans and "pilerter" as split peas. The method has been divided into numbered steps in modern Norwegian.

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Time machine – what changed?

Pick two editions and see what Henriette Schønberg Erken added, removed or changed between them.

From1914 1949 Modernised

To1914 1949 Modernised

Modernised → 1949 (proofread, p. 53)~91% of the text changedremovedadded

1 l velske bønner (brede snittbønner, rensede). 2 stk gulrøtter (rensede og oppskårne). 2,5 dl spalterter (pilerter). 2 l vann. 40 g hvetemel. 5 dl melk. salt (etter smak, tilsettes helst til slutt). pepper. 1 ss finhakket persille. Rens og vask bønnene godt.. Legg bønnene Bønnene renses, vaskes, settes over varmen i det ~~kokende vannet~~ kokende, saltede vann sammen med de rensede, ~~oppskårne gulrøttene og ertene,~~ opskårne gulerøtter og ~~kok til bønnene er møre. Er vannet hardt, kan du tilsette litt natron; salt helst først når~~ pillerter. Når bønnene er ~~kokt.. Rør hvetemelet ut i melken og spe det inn i suppen. La suppen småkoke i 10 minutter.. Smak til~~ kokt, has en jevning på av melet, utrørt med ~~salt og~~ melken; småkoker 10 minutter, tilsettes pepper og ~~rør inn den finhakkede persillen før servering.~~ finhakket persille.

Note on Modernised

Mål er omregnet til moderne enheter, «vælske bønner» oppgitt som brede snittbønner og «pilerter» som spaltede erter. Fremgangsmåten er delt i nummererte trinn på moderne norsk.

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Frequently asked questions

What are "velske bønner"?: They are the broad beans / string beans as they were called in 1914. The recipe uses 1 liter of beans together with 2 carrots and ¼ liter of peas (yellow split peas).
Should the beans be cooked in salted water?: The original puts the beans into boiling, salted water, but the note points out that legumes should not be cooked in salt or hard water — that takes considerably longer. So salt preferably only once the beans are cooked. If the water is hard, add a little baking soda.
How is the soup thickened?: 40 g wheat flour is stirred into ½ liter milk and added once the beans are cooked. The soup then simmers 10 minutes before being seasoned with pepper, salt, and 1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley.
How long does the dish take?: Allow around 80 minutes total, including cleaning the vegetables, cooking the beans, and 10 minutes of simmering after thickening. The recipe serves 6.

Equipment for this dish

Cast-iron cookware set →Cast iron handles long, slow simmering – just what soups and stocks need.Engrospris.no

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