Fava beans are also known as broad beans. These beans are springtime crops, and people grow and eat them all over the world. Nowadays, fava beans are most popular in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, South American, and African cuisines.
Why are fava beans so popular? The central fact is the nutrition in it. Yes, nutrition in fava beans is a lot of, that’s why these beans are most popular. Besides, they are sweet and creamy in texture. People also use it to make stews, pasta, soups, and falafel. Elsewhere, they can be enjoyed in various forms and loaded with vitamins, minerals, fibers, and protein to offer impressive health effects.
Today we will discuss the core nutrition in fava beans with health benefits and where do fava beans come from. Along with it, you also will come to know about how to grow fava beans? All the necessary information is here with Faqs too. Let’s grab the details.
From where do fava beans come?
Fava beans, scientifically called Vicia faba, originated in Israel are the beans that are naturally pale green and resemble lima beans. However, they don’t taste similar and are also different in texture and cooking process.
People essentially ate these beans in the U.S. in Italian, Greek cuisines, or Spanish until recently. Fava bean history is lengthy and exciting. Fava bean history has many surprises and deeds, including the prohibition made by the sixth century B.C. But, presently, they are most famous for their delicious taste and smooth texture.
“Frequently eaten in cuisines of the Middle East, Europe, South America, and Africa, fava beans are high in protein and fiber and rich in antioxidants. Los Angeles Times, JULIE GIUFFRIDA
APRIL 6, 2021.”
How to grow fava beans?
Fava beans need a long and fantastic growing season. They can’t grow well in hot, dry weather. Once USDA regions, six and up, are planted in the fall season and developed through the winter.
Once the soil has dried out during the snowy winters, they are produced, usually sometime in April. Then the fava bean seeds typically germinate in 7 to 14 days. You can also speed up germination by soaking the seeds in water for an hour before sowing. It would help if you sowed the seeds directly about 2 inches deep, spaced need 4 to 6 inches apart.
You can also grow them on hills, five to six seeds per hill, with ridges spaced, need 4 feet apart. We should stake taller varieties while young. Even the more minor types can use a little support because the shells can become heavy.
Many gardeners like to pinch the growing tip or cut off the top stem and two sets of leaves once the beans form on the lower portion of the plant. Following this process helps you an earlier harvest and keeps the centers of the plants open to airflow and sunshine, which help avoid fungus diseases and insect problems.
Nutrition in fava Beans:
Fava beans have hardly any fat or cholesterol and contain a high amount of thiamin, vitamin K, vitamin B-6, potassium, copper, selenium, zinc, and magnesium. There is also a good source of lean protein. Fava beans can be eaten raw or cooked in both ways, though you must blanch the bean pods first, and the mature seeds should shell out before eating.
“Rotating staple crops such as barley, wheat, and rapeseed with nitrogen-fixing legumes such as green lentils and fava beans offers “significant environmental benefits,” according to the study led by Bangor University.” I NEWS, by Madeleine Cuff, Environment Reporter, Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems.
Eating cooked or fresh fava beans can significantly increase your folate, iron, manganese, and dietary fiber intake in your body; here is the name of all key vitamins and minerals that can benefit your health in numerous ways.
Folate:
You will find folate high in number in fava beans. A cup of cooked fava beans(170gm) contains 177 micrograms of folate. On the other hand, the Fresh raw one provides even more, with 634 micrograms of folate in every cup. It fulfills 40% of the daily food value.
Health benefits:
- Folate belongs to the B family of vitamins and is vital for energy metabolism.
- It supports the function of the nervous system.
- It also aids in the synthesis of DNA, RNA, and red blood cells.
- Regularly intake of fava bean can decrease the risk of heart disease, cancer, and depression.
- Pregnant women can boost their health with a high percentage of folate.
- Children also can get rid of congenital disabilities through this vitamin.
Iron:
If a man Consumes a cup of cooked fava beans, it provides them with 32 percent of their RDA of iron and women with 14 percent. Every 100gm raw broad beans contain 1.6mg of iron.
Health benefits:
- lack of sufficient iron is responsible for anemia or neurological problems.
- The iron in fava beans is in non-heme form.
- The body can’t easily absorb Non-heme iron as the heme form of iron found in meat, fish, and poultry.
Manganese:
Fava beans are an excellent source of manganese, and every cooked cup of beans provides you with 1.6 micrograms of manganese. This amount is nearly 100 percent of the RDA for women and 70 for men. It also provides 8% of the daily need for manganese.
Health benefits:
- Manganese also supports the function of the nervous, immune, and endocrine systems.
- It helps to produce superoxide dismutase, an enzyme that is also a powerful antioxidant.
- A diet high in manganese may help prevent arthritis, osteoporosis, and diabetes.
- manganese also works best to decrease the severity of the premenstrual syndrome,
Dietary Fiber:
A cup of cooked fava beans fulfills 37 percent of an adult’s daily requirement of dietary fiber, while a cup of fresh, raw fava beans provides 150 percent of the condition.
Health benefits:
- Like all beans and legumes, fava beans contain both soluble and insoluble fiber.
- Eating plenty of insoluble fiber promotes digestive system health.
- Also, prevent colon cancer.
- Soluble fiber intake may decrease the risk of high blood cholesterol and diabetes.
- A high-fiber diet may also help prevent obesity, stroke, and heart disease.
Other main nutrition in raw, cooked, boiled, and dry fava beans:
You can enjoy fava beans both as raw, cooked, or boiled, and the nutrition also varies. Now, let’s know at a glance the main nutrition facts of raw, cooked, and boiled fava beans in every 100gm.
Nutrition facts of raw fava beans:
In 100 grams, raw broad beans have the following nutrition:
- Calories: 82
- Total Fat: 0.7g
- Saturated Fat: 0.1g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
- Sodium : 25mg
- Potassium : 332 mg
- Total carbohydrate:17.6 g
- Dietary fiber :0g
- Sugars :0g
- Protein:7.9g
Vitamin and minerals:
Vitamin A is 7%, vitamin C is 6% , Calcium is 4% ,Iron is 9 %, Thiamin is 9 % , Riboflavin is 17%, Vitamin B6 5%, Niacin is 11% , Magnesium is 8%, Phosphorus is 13 %, Zinc is 7 %, Copper is 20 %, Pantothenic Acid is 2 %.
Cooked Fava Beans Nutrition Fact:
From 100 gm fava beans, you will get the following nutrition:
- Calories: 104
- Total Fat: 0.4g
- Sodium: 416mg
- Carbohydrates: 16.8 g
- Net carbs 12g
- Sugar 1.6g
- Fiber 4.8 g
- Protein 8g
Vitamins and Mineral:
- Vitamin A: 0mg, Vitamin C 1.9 mg, Calcium 32 mg, Iron 2.2 mg.
Boiled Fava Beans Nutrition Fact:
- Calories: 110
- Carbs: 19.7 g
- Fiber: 5.4 g
- Protein: 7.6 g
- Fat: 0.4g
- Saturated fat: 0.1 g
- Polyunsaturated fat 0.2 g
- Monounsaturated fat 0.1g
- Cholesterol : 0mg
- Sodium: 5mg
- Total carbohydrate: 19.7 g
- Dietary Fiber: 5.4 g
- Sugars: 1.8g
Dry Fava Beans Nutrition fact:
- Calories: 352.7
- Total Fat: 1.3g
- Sodium : 12.6 mg
- Potassium : 1070.8 mg
- Carbohydrates:57.9 g
- Net carbs:32.8 g
- Sugar: 2.5g
- Fiber: 25.2g
- Protein: 25.2 g
- Calcium 100.8 mg.
Faqs:
Can you eat broad beans raw?
One can enjoy fava beans raw, but it is best to cook them before eating, especially for digestion and lectin content.
Are fava beans good for diabetes?
Fava beans are low on the Glycemic index and can help in better management of diabetes. The high fiber content of Fava beans also makes them fit for ingesting by people with diabetes. Fiber helps to slow down the release of glucose in the blood, which can help manage the condition better.
The side effects of fava beans:
Though there are so many significant health benefits of fava beans, some health concerns should be kept in mind.
Favism is a genetic health illness that causes allergic symptoms due to the consumption of fava beans. If you breathe in, the pollen can also cause favism. These types of allergic reactions are noticeable in the absence of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD).
Besides, fava beans contain a high amount of complex carbohydrates, and henceforth excess consumption can cause pain in the abdomen and gastric problems.
Fava beans are rich in tyramine, and people of monoamine oxidase (MAOI) should avoid fava beans.
The high amounts of levodopa in fava beans can result in a vitamin B6 deficiency, leading to depression.
Overall, though this side effect is infrequent, one should check a physician if he/she notices any allergic reactions to overwhelming fava beans. We can say that the nutrition in fava beans is a lot if you consume it in a moderate number considering side effects.
Apart from that, every people should add this to their diet chart for better health. Moreover, while buying also you need to choose small fresh pods rather than the old ones as they lose their flavor.