Beans and legumes are nutritional wonders disguised in lowly form. Dried beans and peas, collectively known as pulses or legumes, are storehouses of concentrated nutrients, especially protein and dietary fiber.

Their nutritional endowment has to do with the fact that legumes are seeds; they contain all that is needed to reproduce themselves, along with enough nutrients to sustain the new plant until it can draw its own nutrients from the soil.

Legumes are unique because, nutritionally, they belong to both the protein and vegetable food groups. They have no cholesterol, are high in fiber, and are naturally low in fat. They are also good sources of a variety of minerals and antioxidants. When included in the diet, legumes can help reduce the risk of heart disease and some cancers. They are a good choice for people who must control blood sugar, and a good option for a meatless meal. They are so healthful, in fact, that Walk Kansas team members are challenged this week to make three recipes with beans for the “Bean Power Mini-Challenge.”

The protein in legumes, like most vegetable products, is “incomplete,” lacking in one or more essential amino acids. However, this deficiency can easily be overcome by serving beans with grains, nuts, or a small amount of lean meat. These foods provide the missing amino acids to complete the protein.

In addition to protein, legumes are well-stocked with complex carbohydrates, B vitamins, and minerals such as zinc, potassium, magnesium, calcium and iron. In fact, a cup of cooked beans supplies about 25 percent of the daily value for iron for women, 40 percent for men. Eating foods rich in vitamin C along with beans helps to increase the absorbability of the type of iron in beans.

Legumes are second only to wheat bran as the best plant source of dietary fiber. Both types of fiber, soluble and insoluble, are present. Soluble fiber has been shown to help lower blood cholesterol levels and control blood sugar; insoluble fiber increases bulk, alleviates some digestive disorders, and may help to prevent colon cancer.
Beans and legumes come in a few different shapes and a rainbow of colors. Archaeological evidence shows that they are among the oldest agricultural crops, dating back perhaps ten thousand years. They have been found in Egyptian tombs and are frequently referred to in the Bible.

With their rich nutritional value and long history, beans and legumes are a wise food buy– the cheapest protein source of all with no waste. They are easy to cook, tremendously versatile, and they keep well.

There are many ways to add legumes to your diet. At the salad bar, add garbanzo and kidney beans; add lentils to spaghetti sauce; include beans and lentils when making soup, stew, or a casserole. Enjoy hummus as a snack with vegetable dippers and whole-grain pita bread or crackers, and spread on a sandwich or wrap. Prepare legumes as a side dish, and explore how other cultures feature beans by trying an ethnic recipe. You’ll find other ideas in the 33-page booklet “Cooking With Beans and Legumes” on our website at www.ellis.ksu.edu under Health & Nutrition.

If you kitchen bean vocabulary is limited to chili and bean dip for chips, then it’s time to learn more about the powerful punch packed by this humble food.

Linda K. Beech is Ellis County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences.