Lima Being

Take a good look:

Not too scary, right? Kind of cute even. And packed with molybdenum! Who knew?

Or maybe you still secretly believe that lima beans are a crime against childhood, and reflexively want to brush them off your plate into the waiting napkin on your lap. If so, there’s still time to reconsider, with fresh beans still in the market:

One interesting fact: lima beans really are named after Lima, Peru. Archeology places them as far back as 7,000 years. They migrated north through Mexico and the Caribbean, and slave traders spread them further to tropical Africa and ultimately Asia, where they’ve become a staple. Some wild and tropical varieties are known to release toxic levels of cyanide when the pod is ruptured, which is destroyed by cooking. This has been bred out of commercial varieties, but still, no reason to eat them raw.

Fresh limas—smaller “baby lima beans” and larger, tastier Fordhooks—show up in farmer’s markets in the summer through the fall, ready to marry with the season’s corn in classic succotash (substitute limas for the edamame in the recipe). Look for curved, tight pods with a bright green color. Once shelled, the beans should be plump with a smooth green or greenish skin, and have a creamy, vegetal goodness. Goodness, indeed: lima beans are a high-protein, high-fiber, low GI carb. In other words, eat ‘em to your heart’s content.

Fresh Corn & Lima Bean Chowder

We made this with our last batch—kind of winging it, but very tasty. Ingredients: 4-6 ears of corn; 1 qt fresh lima beans; half-dozen boiling potatoes; 1/4 pound bacon, optional; half a large onion; half a large red pepper; sprig or two fresh thyme; milk and/or heavy cream; butter; salt and pepper. Step 1: prep everything, shucking the corn then scraping the kernels off the cob, shelling the beans, cutting the potatoes into small cubes, dicing the onion and red pepper, cutting the bacon into half-inch pieces if using. Step 2: place corn cobs in 3 cups of water, bring to a boil, lower the heat to medium, add the beans, and cook until crisp-tender, about 15 minutes (check after five, as bean cooking time will vary), then strain, saving both the beans and reserving the cooking liquid . Step 3: slowly cook the bacon in a large saucepan until browned, discard most but not all the fat and reserve bacon, or skip and go to: Step 4: melt a knob of butter in the same pan, add onion and cook until starting to soften, then add red pepper and cook until both onion and pepper are soft, then add the corn cooking liquid, thyme, and the potatoes, bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are tender. If you have an immersion blender, remove thyme sprigs then give the soup a few spins to half-puree the vegetables and thicken the soup. Step 5: add corn and a cup or so of milk to the soup, simmer until the corn is crisp-tender, then add the beans, the bacon if using, half a cup or more of cream, and season generously with salt and pepper, heat through and serve. Optional: Garnish with a chiffonade of fresh basil. Sweet and chunky.