Green soybean: all the properties and benefits.

Its real name is mung bean and although it has nothing to do with soybeans, it is the legume richest in protein after it. A star of Indian cuisine, he prepares tasty and easy-to-digest dishes.

If beans could have identity crises, that would be the mung bean problem. It is called by countless names, its botanical family has been changed and it has even been confused with a non-existent “green soybean”. Even what are often marketed as “bean sprouts” are actually mung sprouts.

The first botanical names of the plant were Phaseolus aureus and Phaseolus radiatus, within the family that hosts most of the American beans, but recently it has been transferred to the family of Vignawith the last name radiatewhich names the autochthonous beans of Asia, Africa and the Mediterranean shore.

Therefore, the current scientific name of the mung bean is Radiata vine, but to finish complicating the picture, it turns out that there is a bean named Phaseolus mungo or Vigna mungo, which among us and in other countries is the so-called Urd or Urud bean, oblong in shape and much darker in color.

Such twists of the tongue do not prevent mung beans, shiny dark green on the outside and deep yellow on the inside, from being a valuable food, loaded with protein, minerals and vitamins. They have a sweet flavor tinged with freshness, They are soft and easily digested. In addition, they are a very versatile ingredient that adapts to both stews and salads.

Mung beans, which grow in warm regions, were first cultivated in India more than 5,000 years ago. Some 2,000 years later they arrived in China, where they discovered that by making them germinate they became a delicious and crunchy ingredient that, raw, cooked or lightly fried, was adapted to a multitude of dishes.

Mung bean properties

Rich in protein and a wide range of vitamins and minerals, green soybeans or mung beans are considered a true nutritional luxury.

quality proteins

The mung bean is a great source of protein as it provides no less than 25 g per 100 g (30 g if peeled). In addition, it provides carbohydrates, fiber and a minimum amount of fat.

Because they are especially rich in the amino acid lysine, which is in short supply in many grains, mung beans are ideal for maximizing protein in meals. vegetarian-based diets.

Some nutritionists consider them especially suitable for children in poor areas, as they are a healthy and cheap alternative to meat.

By the way, one theory claims that the combination of proteins and fats from African mung-like legumes was the decisive factor that allowed hominids to develop a large brain.

The mung beans also have an easily digestible protein – especially if they are eaten in sprout form – because the shell is much thinner than that of soybeans and other legumes, and tends to cause less flatulence.

essential minerals

It stands out for its richness and variety of minerals. It is rich, above all, in magnesium, it also provides considerable doses of iron, and is a good source of phosphorus, which nourishes the bones and is involved in energy production.

complex carbohydrates

62% of dried mung beans are carbohydrates that They are slowly transformed into energy. It’s the type of complex sugars that provide quality fuel for daily activities and prevent insulin resistance, diabetes, obesity, and mood swings.

energy vitamins

The mung bean provides very remarkable amounts of folic acid, as well as other B vitamins, including B1, B3 and B6, which help to better assimilate carbohydrates.

Particularly noteworthy is the content of vitamin B1 (0.27 mg/100 g, which would cover 23% of the recommended daily dose in an adult, vitamin B6 (17%) and vitamin B3 (8%).
In addition, it provides abundant folic acid (see box on the left), which protects the nervous system and is essential for tissue renewal and growth, and small but significant amounts of the coagulant vitamin K and antioxidant nutrients such as vitamin E. and beta carotene.

Fiber

The mungo peel also provides a significant dose of fiber (16% by weight), essential to regulate the speed of intestinal transit and to feed the bacterial flora It intervenes in the assimilation of nutrients and in the immune system.

green bean benefits

Thanks to its nutritional composition, the presence of green beans in the diet only has positive consequences.

For children, youth and athletes

The abundance of protein, energy and micronutrients makes it an ideal food in growth stages, because it contributes to the development of tissues and organs. It is also suitable for people who make great physical efforts.

Since it hardly provides fat or cholesterol, it promotes adequate levels of triglycerides and cholesterol in the blood.

It is also considered that lecithin is indicated for people who perform intellectual work.

good for the bones

It provides in considerable doses the three essential minerals for the development and constant regeneration of bones: calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.

Green soybeans in the kitchen

In the market you can find whole, split and even peeled mung beans, which favors their digestion. But the most common way to consume them in the West is in sprout salad, which is eaten raw or somewhat cooked and can be prepared at home very easily.

By germinating, the beans multiply their concentration of nutrients and are pre-digested. The sprouts, crunchy, sweeter and more digestive, also have other advantages: they have vitamin c (unlike dry beans) and vital elements that disappear during cooking.

how they are cooked

To aid digestion and reduce cooking time, you need to soak them before cooking, even if only for a few hours, as they soften faster than other beans.

After that time, they should be rinsed and drained well. Likewise, to destroy the indigestible lectins that most legumes usually contain in their skin, they must be added to the pot with still cold water.

To cook the mung beans, add three measures (by volume) of water or broth for each measure of dry legume. If it is a soup, a ratio of five to one is calculated.

Let them boil over high heat, uncovered, for 2 or 3 minutes and then let them cook over low heat, adding a little cold water from time to time, until the legume is cooked.

It is important to remove it from the heat in time, just before the skin opens, allowing the cooking to finish off the stove. This prevents it from falling apart and turning into a puree, since after a certain point of cooking the mung bean softens very quickly.

To make it more digestive

A tasty way to facilitate its digestion is to season it with dill, fennel, cumin or thyme. The recipe can also be flavored with bay leaf, mint or parsley, and like the rest of the beans, it accepts spices and spicy ingredients very well.

As it is a consistent food, it should always be prepared accompanied by plenty of vegetables, a good salad or some cereal. As a legume, it combines well with almost all vegetables, especially spinach, chard or cabbage, and with roots such as parsnips or carrots.

While they are cooking, it is better not to stir them to prevent them from falling apart and, above all, add the salt at the end, when they are almost cooked, so that they do not harden.

What foods does it go with?

With them one of the versions of the dahla staple dish from the foothills of the Himalayas to Kerala, where mung beans are mixed with rice porridge (kanji).

The delicate flavor of the mung bean does not dominate in the dishes and has the great virtue of impregnating itself well with the flavors and aromas of the foods that accompany it.

For this reason, it is excellent in preparations of slow and long cooking, such as stews and stews, properly spiced and with a good proportion of vegetables or cereals that complement it from the nutritional point of view.

But the mungs allow you to create a wide variety of dishes beyond the consistent stews with cereals and vegetables of the time. One of the most classic and complete is the kitcharithe basis of Ayurvedic or yoga cures, which simply combines white or brown basmati rice with mung beans.

They are also used to prepare soups and creams, cold or warm salads, and stir-fries with sprouts.