extra= is an East Asian dish prepared with immature in their pods, which are boiled or steamed, and may be served with salt or other condiments. The dish has become popular across the world because it is rich in vitamins, dietary fiber, and isoflavones.[
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Edamame is a common side dish in Japanese cuisine and as an appetizer to alcoholic beverages such as beer or shōchū. As an ingredient, edamame is found in both sweet and savory dishes such as takikomi gohan, tempura, and zunda-mochi.
Name
In Japanese, the name
edamame is commonly used to refer to the dish. It literally means "stem beans" (枝
eda = "branch" or "stem" + 豆
mame = "bean"), because the beans were often sold while still attached to the stem.
In Chinese language, maodou is used commonly to refer to the dish, which literally means "fur " (毛 máo = "fur" + 豆 dòu = "bean").
History
Soybeans were first cultivated in China some 7000 years ago, while the earliest documented reference to the term "edamame" dates from the year 1275, when the Japanese monk
Nichiren wrote a note thanking a parishioner for the gift of "edamame" he had left at the temple.
[ History of Edamame, Green Vegetable Soybeans, and Vegetable-Type Soybeans (1275–2009).]
In 1406, during the
Ming dynasty in China, the leaves of the soybeans were eaten and during outbreaks of famine; it was recommended that citizens eat the beans whole or use them ground up and added to flour. Centuries later, in China, in 1620, they are referred to again, but as
maodou, which translates to the term "hairy bean". They are found in the records of the Runan vegetable gardens, where they are stated as having a medicinal purpose, as well as being a snack food. Edamame appeared in
haikai verse in Japanese in the
Edo period (1603–1868), with one example as early as 1638.
They were first recognized in the United States in 1855, when a farmer commented on the difficulties he had shelling them after harvest. In March 1923, the immature soybean is first referred to in text in the United States in the book "The Soybean" by C. V. Piper and Joseph W. Morse. In this book, they are first pictured and shown as being eaten out of open shell pods. The first nutritional facts about them are published and some recipes are included, as they were a new type of vegetable to the public.
[ The earliest recorded usage in English of the word edamame is in 1951 in the journal Folklore Studies.]
Writing in the New York Times in 1999, food writer Florence Fabricant reported that frozen edamame beans were starting to be sold in supermarkets and speciality food retailers in New York and New Jersey.
In 2008, the first soybeans grown in Europe were sold in grocery stores as edamame and eaten as an alternative source of protein.
Preparation
Harvesting
Edamame is typically harvested by hand to avoid damaging the crop's stems and leaves.[ Other factors contributing to edamame's flavor include free such as glutamic acid, aspartic acid, and alanine. Often these unbound amino acids decrease as the pods fully expand and ripen.][
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Cooking
Pods may be boiled in water, steamed, or microwaved. The ends of the pod are sometimes cut before boiling or steaming. The most common preparations use salt for taste, either dissolved in the boiling water before introducing the soybean pods or added after cooking.
Edamame is a popular side dish at Japanese izakaya restaurants with local varieties being in demand, depending on the season.
Storage
Edamame purchased fresh is preferably eaten the same day, with flavor Biodegradation being noticeable in as few as 10 hours after harvest.[ However, fresh edamame will stay edible for three days when stored in the refrigerator. Damaged pods brown more rapidly however, mainly due to the enzyme polyphenol oxidase.][ If stored fresh, the pods should be kept humid to prevent discoloration and wilting. This can be accomplished by wrapping the pods in plastic or another material which traps moisture.
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Freezing fresh edamame is another option for maintaining good quality over a few months.
Eating
Edamame can come in two forms: pods or beans. Edamame beans are easy to eat and can be cooked just like any other type of beans. The edamame pods require using the teeth or fingers to slide the edamame beans into the mouth, after which the pods (or shells) are discarded.
File:Edamame from Asakuma Sushi & Poke.jpg
File:Wok-fried edamame by joyosity.jpg
File:Lunch at Kaze Sushi.jpg|With sushi
File:Bento Box Israel.jpg|In a bento
Nutrition
The United States Department of Agriculture states that edamame beans are a "soybean that can be eaten fresh and are best known as a snack with a nutritional punch".[ USDA government article about edamame .] Frozen, prepared edamame beans are 73% water, 12% protein, 9% , and 5% fat. A 100-gram reference serving of edamame provides of food energy, and rich amounts (20% or more the Daily Value, DV) of protein, dietary fiber, and , particularly Folic acid (78% DV), manganese (49% DV), and vitamin K (26% DV) (table). The fat content in edamame supplies 361 mg of omega-3 fatty acids and 1794 mg of omega-6 fatty acids.
Allergy
Edamame is soy and is classed as a major food allergen, and must be clearly identified on all food ingredient labels of pre-packed foods for sale within the UK and EU.
External links
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The Soybean Piper, C. V. (Charles Vancouver)., Morse, W. Joseph. (1923). New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, Inc.
