![]() Today, an arbor of hyacinth beans still produces abundant purple pea flowers and fat magenta bean pods in a corner of the historic home’s vegetable garden. These beans, or perhaps another twining vine that resembled them, were grown in 1812 at his Virginia plantation, Monticello. In America, hyacinth beans are commonly associated with Thomas Jefferson. In India, the leaves are sometimes added to curries. People in these countries eat young hyacinth bean pods raw or steamed, and in Asia both the beans and flowers are often used to make noodles, or a fermented product comparable to soybean tofu. Hyacinth beans originated in tropical regions of Africa, and date back to the New Stone Age in India, as well.Ĭertain cultivars are still grown and cooked in both areas, and in the tropics of Asia and Australia. You may want to enjoy only the young shoots or blossoms – both are edible, and make a great addition to salads or soups. If you’re interested in hyacinth beans as a food source, you do have options. Only properly (and repeatedly) cooked mature hyacinth beans are edible, and cooks will tell you they also produce a pretty strong odor during the process. ![]() Please use extreme caution if you plan to attempt this. To bring them down to a level that won’t cause vomiting, breathing problems, and possibly seizures, you must soak the beans and cook them in two changes of water. ![]() The culprit is the mature hyacinth bean’s cyanogenic glucoside levels. While you can enjoy the young shoots or the blooms as salad extras or edible garnishes, the mature or dried beans are toxic. There is one drawback to growing hyacinth beans as part of a vegetable plot. Want to start your own celebration of purple? Read on to learn how hyacinth beans can benefit your home and garden at every stage. Each pod is three to six inches long, and contrasts dramatically with the foliage. These clusters grow on short stalks and later form purple pods that are just as gorgeous. It then blooms profusely, with flowers that resemble sweet peas in purple, white, rose, or light red hues. A beloved cultivar still grown at Monticello, the historic home of third president of the US, Thomas Jefferson, the hyacinth bean first shows off with violet-tinged green leaves, each with three leaflets in an oval or triangle formation. ![]()
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