Veggies can be hard to get down if you are four, eight, or ten years old.  Therefore, when I find one that my kids will eat, I jump up and down in the grocery aisle.  You will especially like this new veggie, as it is pronounced [atta-mommy] and spelled edamame.  (Okay, that’s how this family pronounces the veggie.  The package says [et-uh-mam-ee])

Here’s a steamy picture.

They are the new trendy thing to eat, so if you want to be new and trendy you will eat them.  You can find them in the frozen produce aisle.  I just stick the bag in the microwave and cook them on high for a few minutes (4-ish).   I don’t know if you can do that with every bag, but so far it hasn’t melted on me.

Then I dump them in a bowl and add Kosher salt.  You will want to use Kosher salt because (here’s a nugget of knowledge) Kosher salt tastes saltier than regular salt because of the shape of the crystals.  Kosher salt has larger pyramid-shaped crystals that dissolve faster and cling better, so Kosher salt tastes saltier.  Remember, it just tastes saltier.  There are equal amounts of salt in Kosher salt and table salt if you are weighing them.  Now here is where it can get confusing, if you measure them both in a cup, Kosher salt has larger crystals and doesn’t pack together as close as table salt, so in a cup of Kosher salt and in a cup of table salt, there is actually more salt in the cup of table salt.  So when measured by volume, Kosher salt actually contains less salt–remember table salt packs together better so more fits in a cup.  Did you get all that?  Is it important?  No!  I just like little nuggets of knowledge.

So Kosher salt is great for seasoning meats, however, you usually don’t want to use it in baked goods.  (You might get a little crunch of salt.)  Kosher salt also doesn’t contain iodine (we need this for our thyroid) which was added by the FDA in 1924 in order to prevent goiter.  Now I don’t even know what goiter is, so it must be working.

Enough about salt.  Get on to the “atta-mommy”.   Edamame is Japanese for “Beans on the twig.”   Edamame is eaten like an unshelled peanut.  You “bite out” the bean inside, but don’t eat the outer shell/husk.  So your plate ends up looking a bit like this.  (Notice the bean in the middle of the plate.)

Now that we are official Food Snobs lets take a look at what Edamame is in its other, more recognizable form.

Yep, it’s just soybeans that are harvested while they are still green and then boiled.  Atta-mommy, tell them the truth.  But that doesn’t mean we can’t like them.  They are an excellent, low-fat source of protein and fiber.  But best of all, they are easy, cheap, fun to eat, and yummy.

So now you don’t have to say “eda-whaty?”  But you are an official Food Snob and can correctly pronounce this new, trendy food “Atta-mommy.”  (Okay, okay, it is really pronounced more like [etta-mommy]).

Hope you love them lots.

-rebecca

P.S.  I have found that edamame in the frozen food section of Meijers or Walmart runs about $2.00.  Edamame in the frozen food section of Whole Foods runs about $5.00.

P.P.S. Most restaurants serve edamame with sea salt, however, I don’t have it on hand so I use Kosher salt.  I guess that means I can’t really be considered a Food Snob.

(So, what are your thoughts.  Are you an edamame convert?)