fava bean

fava bean A broad bean to which many people react adversely. Fava beans look like large, tan lima beans. They are popular in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines, are eaten raw when very young, can be cooked in soups and many other dishes, or may be made into fava brittle candy. Fava beans are the main commercial source of the drug L-dopa. Also known as broad beans. See also favism.