Beans

2024 Author: Jasmine Walkman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 08:29

Beans / Vicia Faba L. / is an annual herbaceous plant of the large legume family. It is distributed throughout Europe, Asia, South America and Africa. Beans are believed to have been known for another 5,000 years.

Traces of its cultivation have been found in ancient Egypt, China and the ruins of Troy. It was highly valued because, in addition to being easy to grow, it is useful and quickly satiating, which is why it is consumed mainly by the lower strata. In ancient times, beans were used as a symbol of death, so they were not consumed by priests.

Nowadays, beans are grown in limited quantities, mainly as an early vegetable crop. In Bulgaria, the beans were most likely brought from Greece.

Beans have a very well-developed central root, which reaches a depth of 1 meter. Its leaves are paired and the flowers are white, with a characteristic dark spot. The flowers of beans are very fragrant and rich in nectar. The fruit of the bean is a pepper, which in its mature state is fragile and green, suitable for human consumption.

The length of the pepper is different, reaching 5 to 15 cm, depending on the variety of beans. As it matures, the pepper becomes tough and hard, and the green color gradually disappears and turns brown. Bean seeds are flat and large, have an irregular shape, and their color is different - from light yellow to brown-green. The color of the seeds itself changes over time, eventually becoming brownish-black.

Beans is one of the most resistant to cold. It can withstand up to minus four degrees. It also tolerates high temperatures, is not demanding in terms of light.

Types of beans

Large-seeded beans - it is medium early and very high yielding. Its stem branches at the base, reaching a height of 1.5 meters. The flowers, fruits and seeds of this bean are large. The weight of 1 kg of seeds varies from 800 g to 2 kg.

Middle seed beans - it is very productive.

It is widespread as a field culture, and morphologically it occupies an intermediate position between large and small-seeded beans. The mass of 1 kg of seeds reaches 800 g.

Small-seeded beans - it is less common than other varieties. It ripens early, but is low yielding. Often its stem is unbranched and reaches a height of 1 meter. Its fruits and seeds are small. The weight of 1 kg of seeds is from 200 to 500 g.

Composition of beans

Beans have a very diverse composition, which makes it a valuable food for health. Green pepper beans contain from 16 to 20% dry matter, up to 5.4% nitrogen, up to 0.3% fat, 2.6% sugars, about 25 mg of vitamin C. Beans also have a very rich mineral composition. It contains calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, iron, sulfur and a bunch of trace elements such as manganese, which are valuable in the formation of blood and other enzyme systems in the body. It is rich in protein, carotene, vitamin A, B1, B2, and E.

100 g of raw beans contain 72 calories, 0.6 g of fat, 11.7 g of carbohydrates and 5.6 g of fat.

Selection and storage of beans

Beans are harvested when the peppers are still tender, juicy, without fibers and with barely formed seeds. When the beans are coarse, they get an unpleasant taste and are not recommended for consumption.

When buying beans, also make sure that it has a nice green color, because the brown beans are already too ripe, tough and hard. Beans are a very volatile product, so they do not allow too long storage. It is best to cook on the day of purchase, or the next day at the latest. It is suitable for freezing in the freezer.

Beans in cooking

As it turned out, the most delicious is the young one beans. It can be added to soups and salads, as well as any dishes that include other legumes, such as peas and beans. This means that you can use beans by substituting peas and beans. Its big advantage is the fast cooking.

One of the easiest ways to make beans is to boil them in salted water with a little oil. Beans are widely used in Arabic cuisine, which is why you can find it in a number of Arabic shops in dried form.

The taste of beans is complemented very well by onions, garlic, paprika. Young beans can be cooked with stew pods, similar to green beans. In this form it breeds very quickly, so care must be taken not to overcook. The delicious stew with beans can be supplemented with a handful of junk, which is added at the end of cooking. If you have well-ripened beans, cook only the beans by removing the pod, because it is very hard and not tasty.

Benefits of beans

Beans does not contain cholesterol, which is why it is very useful in diseases of the cardiovascular system. It regulates the work of the digestive system, thanks to the cellulose contained in it significantly accelerates metabolic processes.

The latter fact determines its use in diets for weight loss. Beans contain the natural amino acid L-dopa, which has been used to treat Parkinson's disease. This amino acid can help control hypertension.

Beans are very rich in tyramine - an acid that when ingested in the brain stimulates the release of the hormone norepinephrine in the brain. This has an arousing and invigorating effect. Eat beans against drowsiness, but only during the day. Late in the evening it will have the opposite effect and will prevent you from falling asleep.