French Beans Calories & Nutrition Calculator

Raw French beans deliver 43mcg vitamin K per 100g — 36% of the 120mcg daily value. This is unusually high for a non-leafy vegetable. For comparison, carrots have 13mcg, tomatoes have 8mcg, and bell peppers have 7mcg per 100g. Among green vegetables that aren't leafy greens, French beans are one of the richest vitamin K sources ^[1].

Cooking actually increases the concentration: boiled French beans have 47.9mcg vitamin K per 100g (40% DV) because mild water loss concentrates the fat-soluble vitamin. One cup of cooked French beans (125g) provides approximately 60mcg vitamin K — half the daily value from a single side dish.

For food journaling, vitamin K is French beans' most notable micronutrient contribution by daily value percentage. If tracking vitamin K intake, note that French beans pair well with a small amount of oil or butter — the fat supports absorption of this fat-soluble vitamin. Even 1 teaspoon of oil is sufficient.

Raw French beans have 2.7g fiber per 100g, but boiled and drained French beans have 3.2g per 100g — an 18% increase. This is the opposite of what happens in most vegetables: ash gourd drops from 2.9g to 1.0g, and broccoli stays flat at 2.6g. The increase occurs because French beans lose proportionally more water than fiber during cooking, concentrating the fiber per gram ^[1][2].

One cup of cooked French beans (125g) provides 4.0g fiber — 14% of the daily recommended 28g. The fiber is predominantly insoluble (from cell walls of the bean pods), giving cooked French beans their characteristic firm-tender texture that distinguishes them from softer vegetables.

For nutrition journaling, use the cooked fiber value (3.2g/100g) for stir-fries and boiled preparations. If eating French beans raw (in salads or as snacks), the fiber per gram is slightly lower at 2.7g/100g. Either way, French beans are a solid mid-tier fiber source — higher than most gourds but below legumes.

French beans sit at 31 kcal per 100g raw — higher than cucumber (15 kcal), celery (16 kcal), and the gourd family (13–20 kcal), but significantly lower than peas (81 kcal), corn (86 kcal), or potatoes (77 kcal). Cooked French beans are 35 kcal per 100g — a modest 13% increase from water loss ^[1][2].

The calorie composition is 76% from carbohydrates, 19% from protein, and 5% from fat — a balanced vegetable profile. One cup of cooked French beans (125g) has approximately 44 kcal — roughly the energy in a single salted cracker. A generous 200g cooked serving contributes 70 kcal before oil or butter.

For food journaling, French beans are low enough in calories to be tracked loosely in most diets. A typical Indian sabzi using 200g French beans with 1 tablespoon oil totals approximately 190 kcal — the oil contributes 120 kcal (63%) while the beans contribute 70 kcal (37%).

Boiling French beans creates contrasting mineral changes: potassium drops 31% (211mg raw → 146mg cooked per 100g) while calcium increases 19% (37mg → 44mg). The potassium leaches into cooking water (as it does in most boiled vegetables), but calcium, being less water-soluble, concentrates as the beans lose moisture ^[1][2].

Manganese also concentrates: 0.22mg raw rises to 0.28mg cooked per 100g (a 27% increase). This means cooked French beans provide 12% of the daily manganese value per 100g — a notable contribution for a low-calorie vegetable. Iron, conversely, drops from 1.03mg to 0.65mg (a 37% loss).

For food journaling, if tracking potassium, use the raw value (211mg) for salads and the cooked value (146mg) for boiled/steamed preparations. If steaming instead of boiling, potassium retention is better (approximately 180–190mg). The cooking method meaningfully changes the mineral profile you should log.

Raw French beans have 3.3g sugars per 100g — a glucose-fructose split of approximately 1.5g and 1.4g respectively, with 0.36g sucrose and 0.88g starch. This sugar content is higher than most green vegetables: raw spinach has 0.4g, raw broccoli has 1.7g, and raw green bell peppers have 2.4g sugars per 100g ^[1].

The natural sweetness (combined with mild bitterness-free flavor) is why French beans are among the most universally accepted vegetables across age groups and cuisines. Cooking increases sugars to 3.6g per 100g as starch partially converts to sugars during heat exposure.

For food journaling, the 3.3g sugar contributes approximately 13 kcal per 100g — nearly half of French beans' total 31 kcal. While this is nutritionally insignificant in any diet, it explains why French beans taste perceptibly sweeter than bitter gourd (0g sugar), ridge gourd, or leafy greens.