Power Veggie: Beans
added 08/29/10
What’s so great about beans? Maybe the question to ask is, “What isn’t great about them?” Their benefits to health are amazing.
Let’s Talk About Power Veggies: Beans
To clarify, we are talking canned beans and dry packaged beans and legumes. Specifically including:
- Black-eyed
- Great Northern
- Pinto
- Kidney
- Black
- Cranberry
- Limas
- Garbanzos
- Navy
- Soy
- Lentils
- Split Peas
There is wide agreement on the benefits of beans to health. The National Research Council, the World Health Organization, the World Cancer Relief Fund, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the U.S. Surgeon General, have reviewed the scientific evidence and concluded that eating beans is important for maintaining health and may reduce the risk of heart disease and certain cancers. Studies suggest beans may be useful in managing diabetes, may cut risk for high blood pressure and may help in losing weight.
The 2005 U.S. Government’s Dietary Guidelines recommend that adults consume three cups of cooked dry beans a week. That averages about ½ cup a day. Adding beans to your diet is one of the best ways you can boost your nutrition. As an added bonus, the protein and fiber in beans help you to feel satisfied for longer.
What can be confusing for folks is that beans and peas appear in two food groups in the new MyPyramid: the Meat & Beans group and the Vegetables group. So a person could make the mistake of thinking- if they’ve had meat, they don’t need beans- but you really miss out if that’s how you approach this food. Beans are a power vegetable that you should try to fit in several times a week.
Here are some ideas for adding the benefits of beans to your week:
- Baked beans
- Refried beans with rice or in a taco or burrito
- Split pea soup
- Tomato and lentil soup
- Minestrone and bean soup
- Tofu
- Tempeh
- Roasted soybeans or other beans (see recipe below)
- A Falafel patty (made with garbanzo bean flour)
- Hummus (made with garbanzo beans)
- Three bean salad
- Black beans, brown rice, corn and tomato salad
- Bean burger
Why Beans Are a POWER Veggie
Beans are a top source of a number of vital nutrients, including some hard to get ones such as fiber, potassium, and magnesium for adults, adolescents and children; and folate and iron for women of childbearing age who may become pregnant.
Beans are low in calories, very low in fat, and cholesterol-free. A half-cup serving of beans contains less than one-half gram of mostly polyunsaturated fat, as well as an average of 25 grams of the “complex carbohydrates” we need to eat more of.
They are a truly nutrient-dense food. For only 100 to 120 calories in a half-cup serving of beans you get the following eight key nutrients:
- Folate–Helps the body form red blood cells and may reduce risk of birth defects.
- Fiber– A half-cup serving of cooked dry beans provides about 25-30% of the Daily Value of dietary fiber. Fiber may reduce risk of heart disease and certain cancers. Helps maintain a healthy intestinal tract. Beans contain both kinds of fiber: insoluble, the kind that keeps you regular and soluble, the kind that lowers your blood cholesterol levels.
- Manganese– Needed for proper bone and cartilage and connective tissue development, and for normal brain and nerve function. It is important in fat and carbohydrate metabolism, calcium absorption, and blood sugar regulation.
- Protein– Each half-cup serving of dry beans provides six to seven grams of protein. Protein is essential for growth and maintenance of bones and muscle and for hormone and enzyme function.
- Magnesium–Contributes to the makeup of teeth and bones, activates enzymes, contributes to energy production, and helps regulate nutrient levels in the body.
- Copper –Essential for the production of red blood cells, proper nervous system function, and bone and connective tissue formation.
- Iron –Important component of red blood cells, carrying oxygen to every cell in the body.
- Potassium –Essential mineral for the proper function of all cells, tissues, and organs. Potassium is crucial to heart function and plays a key role in maintaining healthy blood pressure levels.
In addition, beans are a good source of several B vitamins: thiamin (B1), niacin (B3)–, and pyridoxine (B6),–Important for metabolizing the carbohydrates we eat to produce energy and for proper brain and immune function.
And That’s Not All
Phytochemicals– Beans are rich in these compounds in plants that are beneficial to health. Beans contain several types of phytochemicals: lignans and flavonoids which may help to reduce cancer risk and plant stanol esters, or phytosterols, which may help reduce blood cholesterol levels.
Worried About “Gas”?
These tips can help to reduce the “gassy” side effects some people get:
- Rinse canned beans in a colander. This removes some of the complex sugars that bacteria in your colon love to feast on, producing methane (gas).
- Gradually increase the amount of beans in your diet to give your body a chance to adjust to them. For example, start with one-fourth cup of beans sprinkled on top of a salad or added to a serving of soup.
- Try Beano™, a product available in liquid or tablet form, found in grocery stores and pharmacies. You take it with your first bite of food. It contains an enzyme that breaks down the gas-producing carbohydrates in beans.
- If you are cooking dry beans from scratch, discard the soaking water and rinse beans thoroughly before cooking them. Or try sprouting your dry beans before cooking. Sprouting is another way to remove some of the complex sugars that can result in gas.
How to Sprout Dry Beans
In a large cooking pot, soak dry beans for 8-12 hours, then drain, rinse and cover them. Rinse the beans twice a day until a ‘tail’ emerges from the end of the bean. You can use sprouted beans as soon as this ‘tail’ is visible or wait until it grows as long as ¼ the length of the bean. When ready to cook, cover the sprouted beans with water, bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Sprouted beans cook in just a few minutes.
Roasted Garbanzo Beans (Chick Peas)
Makes about 1-1/2 cups
Ingredients:
- 15.5 oz. can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash or other low sodium seasoning blend
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400° F.
In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients very well.
Spread the seasoned beans evenly on a baking sheet with an edge or a jelly roll pan and bake for approximately 40-45 minutes.
Stir the beans at 15-20 minutes intervals. After about 40 minutes taste one for doneness. If not done –continue to roast, checking every couple of minutes until they are done to your preference.
Then let cool and enjoy!
