The bean: traditional Mexican food.
Did you know that there are about 150 varieties of beans in the world and almost half of them are found in Mexico? This legume is not only a very nutritious and delicious food, but it is also rich in history.
Your story.
There isn't a single Mexican who hasn't tried beans in some form, as they have been present in our diet since pre-Hispanic times. Although even in European countries they have peculiar ways of preparing beans (such as the typical baked beans of the traditional English breakfast), it is a food that identifies us when we think of Mexican food . It has its origins in our country, and today it is still a pillar in Mexican cuisine; Every year almost 10 kilos of beans per capita are consumed.
Until a few years ago, it was held that the origin of the bean was Andean, however, some researchers took on the task of studying the genome of this legume and discovered that it originated in Mesoamerica; a few thousand years later, the Mesoamerican wild bean gave rise to the Andean variety, and these diversified into the hundreds of varieties that exist today.
Benefits of beans
Whether as an accompaniment to any meal, in bean soup, tlacoyos, pot beans, enfrijoladas, even in desserts (yes, in desserts! You will soon find a sweet recipe with beans around here that will surprise you), the beans contain countless nutrients:
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Complex carbohydrates
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Thiamine
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Riboflavin
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Niacin
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Folic acid
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Complex B
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Iron
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Magnesium
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Potassium
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Zinc
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Calcium
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Phosphorus
The role of beans in the environment
It is an environmentally friendly legume – its environmental impact is extremely low compared to the production of animal protein; To produce a kilo of beef, 18 times more water is used than to produce a kilo of beans, and the same goes for carbon emissions, which are only a tiny fraction of those produced by the cattle industry.
Grown not only for its seeds but also for its fruit (green beans), it is as important as corn since, in addition to being both a pillar in our diet, it provides the corn crop with nitrogen when planted together , which prevents pests and provides nutrients to the soil to produce healthier plants.
Black Bean
Coming from varieties of the legume Phaseolus vulgaris, the black bean is used in many countries of Central and South America, and is the most demanded in our country, being an important part of gastronomy in central and southeastern Mexico; It is produced mainly in the states of Chiapas and Veracruz.
In the south of the country, it is widely used in different stews and traditional dishes, such as espelón tamales, panuchos, beans with pork, among many other delicacies of the gastronomy of this region. Have you tried any of them?
If you feel inspired by the gastronomic tradition of beans and want to cook a recipe with this element, make sure you buy your ingredients of the best quality and from Mexican producers .
You can find our variety of black beans at Walmart, H-E-B, laComer, CityClub and Alsuper. Don't forget to tag us on social media! We want to know first-hand the favorite dishes of our consumers.
