Sweet Summer Mung Bean Soup…!

Asian countries have really pushed beans  – particularly those of the mung variety – to their edible limits. Not only is it standard to steam, squeeze, and squash them into sweet pastes, but you might even catch yourself eating them in unexpected – if not altogether unrecognizable – forms, such as noodles and popsicles…!

Mung beans are nutritionally cracked out. They are good for your heart, your blood, your brain, your metabolism, and your fertility, and are low in everything that the health-conscious of us would want a food to be low in.

But mung beans were considered vital to one’s physical well-being way before all of its nutrients were scientifically dissected. See, Chinese medicine subscribes to the concept of certain foods contributing to varying levels of ‘heat’ in the body which can in turn, totally affect the condition of one’s health. The heat in your body ought to be balanced for optimal health – too hot and you might find yourself with feeling feverish and dry, too cold and you’ll be weak and lethargic. Mung beans are a ‘cold’ food, meaning that they’ll restore cool down your body, which is particularly susceptible to over-heating during the summer. So keeping with the theme of super simple bean recipes, what better way to cool yourself down than a sweet, cold, and refreshing soup?

Mung Bean Soup Recipe

Time: 1.5 hours + chilling time, 99% of which requires no conscious thought.
Equipment: Strainer; large pot
Ingredients:
Makes 12 servings

• 1 (14 oz.) package dry mung beans
• 4-5 cups water, depending how you like it
• 1/2 cup sugar (any kind), or to taste

Instructions:

1. Rinse mung beans
2. Dump them in the pot with the water; bring to a boil
3. Reduce heat; simmer for 1.5 hours. You want to continue simmering until the  beans to have cracked out of their shells, but stop before they lose their form and become mushy.
4. Add sugar and stir until fully combined
5. Pop in the fridge until completely chilled, or add ice cubes to expedite the process.
6. Slurp up and enjoy for days, ’cause this recipe makes a lot.

Anybody have any family recipes based on old wives’ tales about health? Do they work?

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