Soybean

Also soya bean. A legume, Glycine max, native to East Asia. Soybeans have been cultivated in China for more than 3,000 years, since the Chou dynasty; it is one of the oldest plants cultivated by humans. The Chinese considered soybeans one of the five grains of life, along with rice, barley, wheat and millet. The cultivation of soybeans was introduced to Europe at the beginning of the 18th century by a German botanist and in the Americas in the the late 18th-century, but mass production of soybeans only started in the U.S. in the 1930s. Today, the U.S. produces 50 percent of the world production. The discovery of margarine was due in part to research that started with the production of soybean oil. If the beans are harvested young, before they become oily and starchy, they can be eaten with or without the outer skin.

Soy flour has no gluten and consequently cannot rise, although it has two to three times more protein than wheat flour. The flour is usually used in baking or to thicken sauces, but its strong flavor requires that only small quantities be used in any given recipe. If roasted, the beans can be a coffee substitute, with a faint similarity in flavor. Soy milk, which is extracted from the beans, looks like and can be used instead of cow's milk.

Setsubun is the Japanese bean-throwing festival held every February 3rd to herald the coming of spring: each family member scatters roasted soybeans inside and outside the house while chanting to cleanse away the evil spirit of winter and invite spring in. Then, to ensure good fortune for the coming year, each person eats the same number of beans as his or her age.

---