The Sorana bean is a climbing pulse plant belonging to the Phaseolus vulgaris L family. The cultivated plant often reaches more than five metres in height and with its typical lance-shaped leaves it weaves its way from left to right along the supports fixed in the ground. The bean can be a milky white colour with pale pearly veins or, due to the ancient red typical of Sorana, a reddy colour with darker veins. In the first case it has an irregular and squashed shape (which is where the name piatellino, the name it is known by locally, comes from piatto = flat, ino = small) and it is small in size. The second, on the other hand, has a more cylindrical shape and is bigger. But the main thing they can be told apart by is the taste. The tender and delicate Sorana bean has a thin and smooth skin which becomes imperceptible after cooking and becomes part of the pulp. It is a particularly sought-after food not only because it is a delight for senses but also because it is easy to digest. As with all pulses, this kind of bean provides a great deal of energy, proteins and a reasonable amount of mineral salts. When dried it contains about 23 more proteins than cereals, but less than animal products. The beans do not lose their nutritional value during cooking. In order not to diminish their quality, it is advisable to soak the beans in cold wafer the evening before cooking them and then boil them in the same water, preferably in a glass bottle with a wide mouth which is
called a gozzo in Pescia, or in a traditional terracotta pan.