Edamame is a bright green bean, that looks a little bit like fava, which is the basis for all soy products. Edamame beans as part of a balanced diet have been a staple of Asian cuisine for centuries.
In this article, we’ll explain all of the health benefits associated with edamame and the risks associated with it. We’ll go through edamame’s nutritional profile, so you can discover how it’s vitamin and mineral content supports you in a healthy lifestyle. Finally, we’ll advise you how to cook with edamame.
Benefits of consuming edamame
Edamame has many benefits for health and wellness, including:
- High protein content. Soy is renowned for being a great source of plant-based protein. Edamame beans are what’s known as a whole protein source, as they contain every amino acid your body needs to function.1
- Lower cholesterol. High cholesterol is associated with a wide variety of adverse health outcomes.2 Soy consumption is connected with lower overall cholesterol, and it significantly lowers the ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol, which poses the most significant risk to your heart.3
- Doesn’t raise blood sugar levels. Frequent blood sugar spikes (from carbohydrate consumption) are strongly correlated with chronic disease risk.4 Soy products do not cause blood sugar to spike.5
- Support bone health. Studies suggest that soy consumption encourages bones to retain density and strength as we age.6
Potential risks of consuming edamame
Edamame is unique among beans due to its isoflavones content. Isoflavones are essentially naturally occurring estrogens.7 Excessive soy consumption has been connected with male feminisation.8 However, scientists believe this is more a consequence of large quantities consumed, rather than the feminising effects of soy.9
Edamame nutrition profile
A 172g portion of edamame contains:10
- 287% of your daily recommended molybdenum. Molybdenum helps our genetic material repair itself.11
- 78% of your daily recommended copper. Copper helps contribute to normal iron transport around the body and normal hair and skin pigmentation.12
- 62% of your daily recommended manganese. Manganese helps our bodies convert food into energy.13
How to cook edamame
You can enjoy edamame as they are, perhaps stirred into a stir fry or curry. Or carry a little pot of edamame on the go to enjoy a delicious snack between meals.
Alternatively, you can enjoy one of the many products derived from edamame, including tofu, soy sauce, miso, and tempeh. You might like to cook tofu and tempeh like a piece of meat to use in curries, rice dishes, and even burgers. Use miso or say sauce to add a deep umami flavour to broths.
Last updated: 3 November 2020
Sources
1 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2071798/
2 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27292972
3 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7596371/
4 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18377788/
5 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17192192/
6 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17577003/
7 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1480510/
8 https://journals.aace.com/doi/10.4158/EP.14.4.415?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%20%200pubmed
9 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5188409/
10 http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=79
11 https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/others/
12 https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/others/
13 https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/others/
