Edamame: 60 Tempting Recipes Featuring America's Hottest New Vegetable

60 Tempting Recipes Featuring America's Hottest New Vegetable

The popularity of soy products continues to grow as more and more research extols the health benefits of soy. Now a new member of the family has taken tofu, tempeh, and soy milk by storm. Edamame, the most exciting soy product ever to hit restaurants and grocery stores, is quickly gaining attention. These fresh, green soybeans look a lot like peas in a pod, but unlike peas, they have a nutty taste and a firm texture. The Japanese traditionally snack on these little beans right from the pod, often along with cold beer. This is how edamame were first introduced to the United States. Pubs and bars, mostly in East and West Coast cities, started serving them in place of peanuts. A new craze was born, and Americans have taken notice in a big way.

But there's no reason to stop with appetizers. Here these tasty beans are highlighted in 60 recipes ranging from appetizers and soups to salads, side dishes, and a host of main dishes. Whet your taste buds with Grilled Tomatoes with Edamame and Goat Cheese, Grilled Flank Steak with Jeweled Salsa, Creamy Risotto, Balsamic-Glazed Winter Vegetables, or Warm Scallop and Edamame Salad. Not just delicious, these recipes are packed with nutrients. The daily recommended 25 grams of isoflavones to help prevent heart disease are exceeded as these sweet, nutty beans provide 35 grams per half-cup. Not only abundant in isoflavones, edamame are the most nutritious form of soy because they contain fiber, vitamin A, calcium, and various phytochemicals. But the health benefits are just a bonus, because the recipes in this book are ones that any chef would be proud to serve. No crunchy granola here, but instead rich appetizers such as Guacamole, creamy soups such as Thai Seafood Soup, flavorful side dishes such as Creamy Risotto, and hearty main dishes such as Asian Salmon and Wasabi Mashed Potatoes.

Although the market has many soy cookbooks, this is the first book to focus completely on edamame-- America's hottest new vegetable.

Anne Egan is a cookbook editor, author, and member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals. Over the past 17 years, she has developed thousands of recipes that have appeared in Good Housekeeping, Working Mother, Redbook, Fitness, First for Women, Prevention, and Woman's World magazines. She and her daughter live in Pennsylvania, where they enjoy preparing edamame recipes.