Variety

White Czar

A heritage white-flowered runner — milder flavour, can be dried as a haricot bean

White Czar is a heritage runner bean with white flowers rather than the usual scarlet, and a slightly milder, more refined flavour. Uniquely useful in that the mature seeds can be dried and used as haricot-style beans — a dual-purpose crop. The pods are shorter and more compact than standard runner beans with a cleaner, slightly less grassy flavour that some prefer to traditional varieties.

Flavour

Slightly milder and less grassy than scarlet-flowered runners — cleaner and more refined in character. The white flowers are a visual curiosity in the garden. When the seeds are allowed to dry fully in the pod and collected as dried beans, they have a mild, buttery flavour reminiscent of a haricot bean.

In the kitchen

Use as standard runner beans when harvested young. Allow mature pods to dry on the plant and harvest the seeds for use as dried white beans in stews and soups. The dried beans are particularly good in a classic cassoulet-style preparation alongside smoked pork and confit duck — a BBQ-adjacent dish with deep flavour.

Growing

Grow as standard runner beans. The white flowers are less attractive to bees than scarlet varieties in some conditions — hand-pollinate if fruit set is poor. Slightly less vigorous than Scarlet Emperor. Allow some pods to remain on the plant until fully dried and papery for the dried bean harvest. A heritage variety with limited seed supplier availability — source from specialist heritage catalogues.