Growing up in India, one of my favorite things to eat was bhel.
Bhel is Indian street food that you commonly enjoy off the carts by the street. My mom would warn me not to eat off the carts (she was worried I would get a stomach bug) but I did anyway because bhel from a street cart is the most zesty, delicious flavor explosion ever. And tbh, I did occasionally get a stomach bug but it was totally worth it LOL. Kinda kidding but not really!
I wanted to recreate bhel here in my Brooklyn kitchen but I wanted to take it in a more nutrient-dense direction and the idea for this edamame bhel was born. Now I don’t think there is quite as controversial or confusing a subject in nutrition as soy and therefore, before I proceed with this delicious recipe, I have to address the soy fears and misinformation (edamame are soy beans).
The fears around soy stem from in vitro and animal studies looking at very large (I repeat, very large) concentrations of soy isoflavones on the growth of cancer cells. This led to the sensationalist headlines like “Soy Causes Cancer” Or “Soy intake is responsible for breast cancer”.
If you look at the the body of evidence as a whole and particularly the human data, the opposite appears to be true! Soy consumption in dietary amounts (not high high concentrations in a petri dish) is actually associated with reduced risks of cancer particularly breast cancer (PMID 35241506) and lower risk of breast cancer recurrence in those already diagnosed with breast cancer (PMID 19221874). Not to mention other health benefits of soy isoflavones for bone health and cardiovascular disease risk. Soy isoflavones are also being studied for beneficial effects on peri/menopause symptoms. Also, soy is an excellent source of plant proten with all essential amino acids in the right amounts. Woohoo!
When choosing soy, stick to 1-3 servings per day and choose unprocessed soy like organic tofu, tempeh, natto, soy milk and edamame! Now that that’s out of the way, let’s make that ZESTY edamame bhel.
RECIPE
Yield
4 snack servings
Ingredients
2 cups cooked shelled edamame
1 shallot, finely chopped
1-2 green chilies, finely chopped (optional)
1 persian cucumber, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/4 cup chopped cherry tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
Squeeze of 1 lime
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander
A large pinch or two of cayenne or chili powder
1 teaspoon chaat masala (optional)
Salt to taste
3 tablespoons tamarind date chutney (available online or an Indian grocery store)
2 tablespoons shelled pistachios
2 tablespoons pomegranate seeds
1/4 cup Sev (Indian snack – optional for crunch)
Method
Mix the edamame, chopped veggies, cilantro, lime, spices and salt and mix well adjusting the salt to taste.
Pour in the tamarind date chutney and mix well to combine. Top with the pistachios, pomegranate seeds and sev and serve right away.
