December 06, 2014
Edamamaniac
I’ve recently become obsessed with edamame, eating it in salads, pasta dishes, or just on its own. I decided to do some research on the vegetable? Pea? Bean? Because clearly I knew nothing about this delicious… food substance. Basically, edamame is soybeans harvested while still young and not yet hardened, giving them their green colour, it’s then parboiled and frozen to maintain freshness. Here’s some other fun facts and everything you need to know about edamame:
Health benefits:
- Good source of vitamin A, C, iron, folate, and calcium
- 9 grams of fibre and 11 grams of protein per ½ cup shelled edamame
- Contains all nine essential amino acids, so it is a complete protein
- Rich source of manganese and copper, helping metabolize fats and carbs
- Can lower cholesterol and blood pressure
- Can reduce hot flashes during menopause
- Heart healthy!
- Full of antioxidants, which can repair the skin among other things
- Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil, lightly salt it if you wish.
- Add in the desired amount of edamame and boil 5-8 minutes for fresh, 3-5 minutes for frozen (depending on how firm you want them).
- Strain and spice to your liking. Enjoy!
- Boil the edamame pods, by following the directions above.
- Strain and run under cold water until they are cool enough to handle.
- Simply squeeze the beans out of the pods, using your fingers. If they don’t pop out easily, just rip the stem part off, pop the pod open and drop the beans out, as in this video: