Broad Bean, also known in the culinary sense as the Vicia faba, Fava bean, or Faba bean is a species of flowering plant in the pea and bean family Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated as a crop for human consumption. The beans, with the outer seed coat removed, can be eaten raw or cooked. In young plants, the outer seed coat can be eaten, and in very young plants, the seed pod can be eaten.