How To Boil Edamame (2012-08-03)
Not only are fresh soy beans nutritious, they are very tasty if cooked right. Japanese like to eat them as "beer nuts" especially in summer when they are in season.
Two major points when cooking raw edamame. Firstly, they must be
cooked in sufficiently salted water. The saltiness of the water
that clings to the beans when cooked brings out the sweetness of the
beans. Secondly, you must never overcook the beans.
Over-boiled edamame release amino acid which makes them taste
coppery. Bloody-tasting mealy edamame is horrible.
This is how you cook edamame the correct way (measure everything
correctly and use a timer):
Ingredients: One bunch fresh edamame, pods removed from the stems
yielding about 400gm pods, kosher salt.
- Snip off both ends of the pods.
- Massage 1Tbsp salt into the pods, set aside for 1 hour.
- Bring 1600ml water with 5 Tbsp salt to the boil, add the pods.
- Cook exactly 4 minutes, turn off heat. Let them sit in the water for exactly 30 seconds.
- Drain pods. Do not rinse them. Spread them onto a flat surface.
- Cool quickly by placing them in front of a fan.
- Serve warm or cold.
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