This easy recipe is all about how to make lupini beans, turmus in Arabic. These crunchy beans are a tasty and healthy snack that are low in fat and high in protein and fiber.
Lupini, also called lupin beans, are a type of legume that is eaten as a snack. They are often sold by street vendors in Palestine and are similar to hamleh, which are roasted green chickpeas.
I grew up munching on those beans or serve them as part of mezze. They are often paired with beer or arak (arak is an Arabic alcohol drink with a licorice taste).
Plus, lupini beans are low in carbs and high in fiber. They’re also a great source of protein and are thought to lower cholesterol and clean blood vessels. They are packed with antioxidants and can help prevent inflammation. [feast_advanced_jump_to].
Lupini beans, also known as lupins, are a delicious legume that can be a nutritious addition to any diet. Though not as widely used as other beans, lupini beans have been cultivated and enjoyed around the world for thousands of years. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to cook lupini beans, with tips for soaking, boiling, brining, and enjoying these nutritious legumes.
Lupini beans are the seeds of the lupinus plant, a legume in the Fabaceae family. There are over 200 species of lupins, but the most commonly cultivated type is the white lupin (Lupinus albus). Lupini beans have been enjoyed since ancient times around the Mediterranean and in South America.
Though they have a slightly bitter taste, lupini beans are very nutritious. They are an excellent source of protein, fiber, and essential vitamins and minerals like manganese, copper, phosphorus, and iron. Lupini beans also contain beneficial compounds like omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants.
So if you’re looking for a healthy, protein-packed legume to add variety to your diet, lupini beans are a great choice Here’s how to prepare them.
Step 1 – Soak the Beans
Before cooking lupini beans, they need to be soaked to begin softening the outer shell Soaking also helps remove phytic acid and other anti-nutrients that can inhibit nutrient absorption
To soak lupini beans:
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Pick over the beans and rinse them under cool running water. Discard any beans that are discolored or shriveled.
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Place the beans in a large bowl and cover with at least 2-3 inches of water.
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Let soak at room temperature for at least 12 hours and up to 24. To further enhance nutrient absorption, change the water halfway through soaking.
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Drain and rinse the beans thoroughly before cooking.
Soaking lupini beans significantly reduces cooking time while making them easier to digest.
Step 2 – Cook the Beans
There are a few methods for cooking soaked lupini beans:
On the Stovetop:
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Place the soaked, drained beans in a saucepan and cover with fresh water by 2-3 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat.
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Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until beans are very tender. Check water levels occasionally and replenish with hot water as needed to keep beans submerged.
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When done, drain beans and either serve immediately or proceed to brining.
In a Pressure Cooker:
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Add soaked beans to pressure cooker pot and cover with 2-3 inches of fresh water.
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Lock lid in place and bring to high pressure over medium-high heat. Cook for 25-30 minutes.
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Allow pressure to release naturally before opening lid. Drain beans.
In a Slow Cooker:
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Combine drained soaked beans with enough water to cover by 2-3 inches in slow cooker.
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Cook on low heat for 7-8 hours. Check occasionally and add more hot water if needed.
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When done, drain beans. They can be served immediately or brined.
No matter which cooking method you use, lupini beans are ready when extremely soft and tender. Cooking times can vary based on the age of the beans.
Step 3 – Brine the Beans (Optional)
While lupini beans can be eaten right after cooking, many people prefer to brine them first. Brining helps further soften the skins and infuses flavor.
To brine lupini beans:
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In a medium saucepan, combine 4 cups water and 1/4 cup sea salt. Bring to a boil to dissolve salt.
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Remove from heat and add cooked, drained beans. Beans should be fully submerged.
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Cover and let sit at room temperature for 24-48 hours.
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Drain, rinse beans, and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
The brining process gives lupini beans a mild, salty flavor and more tender texture. It helps balance out any residual bitterness.
Step 4 – Remove Skins
Before eating lupini beans, the skins need to be removed. There are a couple easy methods for this:
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Gently squeeze each bean between your fingers until the skin splits and the bean pops out into your mouth. Discard skins.
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Place beans on a baking sheet and bake at 400°F for about 15 minutes to further dry and loosen skins. Let beans cool slightly before squeezing out.
Removing the skins prevents an unpleasant texture and exposes the creamy, mild interior of the lupini beans. Kids often enjoy participating in squeezing the skins off before eating.
How to Eat Lupini Beans
Once cooked and skinned, lupini beans can be eaten as a snack, appetizer, salad topping or ingredient in many dishes. Here are some delicious ways to enjoy them:
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Sprinkle with olive oil, salt, garlic powder, oregano and black pepper for a quick snack.
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Toss with mixed greens, diced tomatoes, olives, feta and balsamic vinaigrette for a Mediterranean salad.
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Add to tuna or chicken salad recipes for extra protein and nutrition.
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Mix into pesto sauce and use as a sandwich spread or pasta topper.
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Use in place of or along with chickpeas in hummus and other dips.
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Blend with tahini, garlic and lemon juice as the base for lupini bean hummus.
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Sauté with onions, bell peppers, tomatoes and Cajun seasoning for a heart vegetable skillet.
With their mild, nutty taste, lupini beans make a great plant-based addition to many savory dishes. Let your imagination run wild!
Tips for Cooking Lupini Beans
Follow these tips for perfectly cooked lupini beans every time:
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Look for plump, uniformly sized beans without splits, cracks or holes. Avoid old, shriveled beans.
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Sort through and rinse beans before soaking to remove any grit or debris.
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Soak beans for at least 12 hours and up to 24 for ideal cooking results.
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Discard soaking water, rinse beans and use fresh water for cooking.
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Cook low and slow. Simmering beans over medium or medium-low heat ensures even cooking.
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Keep an eye on water level as beans cook and replenish with boiling water as needed.
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Beans are done when very tender all the way through. Taste test a bean after 45 minutes before continuing cooking.
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For creamier texture, stir cooked beans well before brining or serving to release starch.
With a little practice, you’ll be able to cook up the perfect pot of lupini beans to enjoy in all sorts of recipes.
The Many Benefits of Lupini Beans
In addition to their great taste, lupini beans offer many nutritional perks. Here are some of the top health benefits these beans provide:
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Excellent source of plant-based protein – 1 cup of cooked beans contains about 12 grams.
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High in fiber – over 10 grams per cup to support healthy digestion.
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Rich in manganese, phosphorus, copper, iron and other minerals.
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Contains beneficial omega-3 fatty acids like ALA.
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May help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and reduce heart disease risk.
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Helps control blood sugar due to slow-release carbs and protein.
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Antioxidants help neutralize damaging free radicals in the body.
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Very low in fat and calories – only about 120 per cooked cup.
With all these advantages, lupini beans are an amazing addition to a well-balanced, nutritious diet. Their unique taste and texture can enhance many recipes.
Enjoy the Flavor and Nutrition of Lupini Beans
If you’ve never tried lupini beans before, cooking up a batch may open your eyes to just how tasty and versatile these legumes can be. Their mild, nutty flavor and substantial texture work well in Mediterranean dishes, salads, dips and more.
By properly soaking, cooking and brining lupini beans, you can enjoy their full nutritional benefits too. The steps are simple and the homemade results are so much fresher than store-bought canned varieties.
So give lupini beans a chance to become your new favorite legume. Your body will thank you for the boost of plant-based protein, fiber and essential vitamins and minerals these beans provide.
How To Eat Lupini Beans?
Make a small hole in the shell with your teeth, then pull the softer part of the lupini bean out of the skin to eat. At first taste, the texture feels like a cross between a bean and a nut.
People enjoy snacking on lupini similar to snacking on any nuts or popcorn.
- Once the lupini beans are no longer bitter, put them in a large glass bowl or mason jars and fill them with tap water. Then, add salt (about 1 teaspoon of sea salt for the whole batch) and put them in the fridge.
- The beans will stay fresh in the fridge for two to four weeks. The lupini beans don’t need to be rinsed anymore at this point.
- If you don’t have a pressure cooker, boil the beans for up to an hour on medium-low heat.
- What we want is lupin that is crunchy and tender, not soft and mushy.
- Remember that taking off the skin is the best way to eat these. The skin can be eaten, but most people would rather not. Just tear a small hole in the skin with your teeth, and it will come right off!
- To serve, you can sprinkle ground cumin, extra virgin olive oil, or a squeeze of lemon juice over the lupini beans.
- Lupini beans are poisonous before they are soaked, so don’t eat them before they are soaked.
Yes, while most beans, and lupinis are keto-friendly if you control the portion size. Since they have just 3. 8 grams of total carbs and 1. 1 grams of fiber, the net carbs in lupini beans are low — just 2. 7 grams net carbs per ¼ cup serving.
Lupines are rich in essential minerals, iron, calcium, and incomplete protein. They are gluten-free.
Yes, you can buy brined lupini beans in a glass jar at most Middle Eastern grocery stores.
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What Are Lupini Beans?
Lupini beans come from the seeds of the lupin plant, which is in the genus Lupinus. These beans are popular in many Middle Eastern countries as well as in Italy, Portugal, and Greece.
Lupini beans (sometimes called lupins, lupine beans, or lupin beans) are part of the legume family. From the beginning of time, they have been popular in the Mediterranean, Latin America, and North Africa. They have a nutty flavor similar to chickpeas or fava beans.
People in North Africa and the Middle East have always eaten cooked lupines that have been salted well. If you’re already in the Middle East, you can buy some pre-cooked lupines in an open-air market.
Lupini beans are large, flat, oval-shaped seeds with a yellow or white color. They have thick, tough skin and a rich, starchy interior. The beans are typically harvested when fully matured and then prepared for consumption.
See the picture on the right? The seeds are very pale, round, and pretty flat when they are dry. Once the lupini have been reconstituted (left), they become plump with a deep yellowish color.
However, its important to note that lupini beans contain bitter alkaloids, that give them a bitter taste. Soaking lupini beans in water for a long time gets rid of the bitter taste and makes them safe to eat.
In traditional cooking, the dried lupini beans are soaked in water overnight. The next day, they are boiled until soft, and then they are soaked again in water for several days, with the water being changed often to get rid of the bitter compounds. This process helps leach out the alkaloids and reduce the bitterness.
Then when ready to serve rinse the water and season with salt.
Once prepared, lupini beans have a firm texture and a slightly nutty flavor. They are often consumed as a snack, similar to nuts.
It’s important to remember that lupini beans taste and feel different from other beans and legumes. They aren’t as well known or eaten around the world, but they’ve been used in Mediterranean cooking for a long time.
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Large Bowl – For soaking dry lupini beans.
Pressure Cooker – To cook the lupini beans.
- You can find dry lupini beans at any Middle Eastern grocery store.
- Sea Salt – to sprinkle over the beans.
Full ingredients, measurements, and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 1 | In a large bowl place dry lupini beans and cover with enough water.
Step 2 | Soak overnight or up to 24 hours.
Step 3: Take them out of the water and rinse them. Put them in a pressure cooker and add fresh water until they are fully submerged. Seal the lid and cook over medium-high heat.
Step 4 | Drain, and rinse the cooked beans, and replace with fresh tap water. Then place them in a large container and refrigerate.
Step 5: Keep draining, rinsing, and filling with fresh tap water every day or other two.
LUPINI / LUPIN BEANS HOW TO COOK?
FAQ
What is the best way to eat lupini beans?
How do you get the bitterness out of lupini beans?
Do you eat the skin of lupini beans?
How do Italians eat lupini?