Edamame

Edamame. Freshly steamed in their pods and served piping hot, flecked with small shards of sea salt – what a perfect aperitif to a traditional Japanese sushi meal. If you are a sushi lover, like me, you’ve most likely had edamame prepared this way at an Asian restaurant. As common as edamame are today on menus of all genres of cuisine, many people haven’t a clue what they actually are, they just enjoy eating (or don’t enjoy eating) these “green pods” when they go out to dinner.

For you curious edamame eaters out there, edamame are premature soybeans that are harvested on the cusp of ripening. Usually they are kept in their fuzzy pods and boiled or steamed with salt, but I have also had dry roasted edamame, where the soybeans are essentially dehydrated of their natural moisture and become a delicious, crunchy snack.

Because they are nonetheless soybeans, edamame are an excellent source of plant protein, packed with all the nutritional benefits of soy: heart-healthy mono- and polyunsaturated fats, fiber, calcium, iron, vitamin C, and vitamin A. These little legumes make a great addition to pasta salads, rice dishes, Asian-style noodles, and soups. They can even be substituted for other beans, like black beans or garbanzo beans, in vegetarian burger or hummus recipes.

Here is my recipe for hummus with homemade tahini. I’ve tweaked it a little using half garbanzo beans and half edamame beans, shelled from their pods of course, to give this classic Mediterranean dip an unconventional flair.

• For the hummus:
• 1 (15 oz.) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 1/2 cups shelled edamame, cooked and cooled
• 4 Tbsp. lemon juice
• 2/3 cup cold water
• 1/4-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• salt to taste
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro or parsley
• 1 recipe for homemade tahini, recipe follows
• For the homemade tahini:
• 4 Tbsp. sesame seeds
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• pinch of salt
• To make the tahini, combine the sesame seeds, sesame oil, lemon juice, and salt using a mortar and pestle. Mash the ingredients together until they form a paste. Then, to make the hummus, combine the tahini, garbanzo beans, lemon juice, cold water, cumin, salt, lemon zest, and cilantro (or parsley) in a food processor. Continue blending the hummus and slowly stream in the extra virgin olive oil. The dip should be smooth and have a delicate green hue from the edamame and herbs. Taste the hummus to see if the salt level needs to be adjusted. Serve with brown rice chips and carrot sticks.