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Survey: Lima Beans: Love 'Em or Hate 'Em?

2008_12_10-limabeanbutton.jpgRemember the book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day? Alexander has already endured several assaults on his patience and then, to top it all off, "there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV." Lima beans are the de facto "ew" vegetable; we're convinced people refuse them solely on reputation. We happen to adore them, but we have a family member who claims they taste like soap. What about you?Get our thoughts on how to prepare them, below...

 
 

Lima beans are something we rarely see sold fresh. And we don't buy them dried, either. We prefer frozen ones, which we boil with chicken broth or water until they are very soft and have absorbed most of the liquid. These are not beans that should be served al dente, and, like most beans, they need a lot of salt.

We like ours cooked with bacon or ham, and we love mushy lima beans mixed with brown rice for a vegetarian dinner. They are very filling, comforting, and easy to make.

A few recipes we'd like to try:


How do you cook lima beans?

Related: Tip: How to Use Frozen Edamame

(Image: I Love Lima Beans button, $5.24 at Cafe Press)

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Surveys, Ingredients - Vegetables, lima beans

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Comments (20)

I usually just buy them frozen in a bag. I boil them for a few minutes, drain them and then add a bit of olive oil, s&p and bohnenkraut (an herb I purchased while living in Germany that's very similar Thyme). But that's it! I just had it the other night.

The Germans make them with heavy cream and bacon - and who can blame them? Everyone knows that everything's better with bacon. =)

posted by daynanayna on December 10th 2008 at 2:39pm
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You should look into the book "A Bad Case of the Stripes," by David Shannon. It's about a little girl who begins morphing into all sorts of things when she is embarassed to admit she loves lima beans.

posted by mmclau28 on December 10th 2008 at 2:56pm
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not LOVE but I like 'em. I recently discovered 'Christmas' Limas which I thought were lovely and picked up a bag. I added them into Israeli Couscous with Chard

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/pasta/recipe-israeli-couscous-with-chard-033651

was very delish :)

posted by VeryDelishVeg on December 10th 2008 at 3:00pm
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Lima beans = nasty

posted by ronzorelli on December 10th 2008 at 3:14pm
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I ask this question seriously: what's the point of lima beans? My siblings and I hated them as kids but my mom insisted on serving them. I thought they must be some kind of superfood, but they're not high in any one vitamin or protein-rich or anything like that. Why eat them?

posted by cml43 on December 10th 2008 at 3:21pm
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One cup of cooked lima beans provides 13 grams of fiber, that's 52.6% of the DV. Lima beans are good sources of folate, protein, potassium, iron, copper, phosphorus, magnesium and thiamin.

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=59#nutritionalprofile

posted by VeryDelishVeg on December 10th 2008 at 3:30pm
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Dislike. It's more a texture issue than a taste issue. They always make me feel like I'm eating a plate full of antacid tablets.

posted by shikaakwa on December 10th 2008 at 3:44pm
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I've always liked them. We eat them just like we do edamame - boiled and then topped with really good sea salt.

posted by katey m on December 10th 2008 at 4:11pm
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I was at a function last night and the hostess served a lima bean dip. I was delicious and a hit, though if you'd done a straw poll beforehand I'm sure 90% of the attendants would have said they hate lima beans. My grandmother's over done boiled beans? Blech (sorry Gram!), but this dip? Yum!

posted by Squirrely on December 10th 2008 at 4:15pm
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Love em with tons of butter and pepper.

posted by CDC on December 10th 2008 at 4:31pm
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If there were an "extreme loathing" choice in the survey I would have chosen that.

These little bits o' Satan are barely one notch above Durian - at least they don't stink.

posted by Plaid Ninja on December 10th 2008 at 5:02pm
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When I make crab soup, lima beans are my second favorite ingredient, after crab itself. The beans absorb the flavors of the broth and take on a silky texture. Delicious!

posted by Julie on December 10th 2008 at 7:17pm
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Love lima beans--with garlic, lemon, and olive oil!

posted by L1bby on December 10th 2008 at 7:32pm
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Whenever I used to have them, I thought they were just okay. Not disgusting, not something I'd seek out.

Now, though, whenever my mother-in-law makes them, I'm eager to eat. She's a wonderful cook and can make the simplest things taste like a food for the gods. Lentils, chickpeas, lima beans, potatoes, peas, or cabbage. Cream of wheat. With just a few ingredients, and her magic touch. I don't know how she does it. She's given me a couple lessons, and when I've made the same recipes, they've usually turned out tasty, but they're also always missing a little something.

posted by Jenny B on December 10th 2008 at 8:13pm
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No!...and you can't make me.

posted by miabica on December 10th 2008 at 9:02pm
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How are limas different from butterbeans? Cause I'm totally anti the first and all about the second.

posted by Pixiedyke on December 10th 2008 at 9:49pm
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Oy, I'd rather have edamame. Or peas. Or sugar peas or snap peas or any other kind of bean! The taste is so-so, but I don't enjoy the texture at all, no matter how many different preparations I've tried. It's one of the very few foods I don't enjoy.

posted by OneWallKitchen on December 11th 2008 at 10:36am
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I especially love fresh lima beans which I can get for just a couple of weeks in the summer at the farmers' market. I eagerly await their appearance.

posted by Jeanne on December 11th 2008 at 4:44pm
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So please help me here, I'm pretty sure that lima beans here are the same as broad beans in the uk? My dad insisted on growing them and freezing them, I think I've only had them frozen and they are awful.

posted by jennywenny on December 12th 2008 at 2:57pm
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one word. prebranac. the best way to have lima beans ever.

posted by pinstripeprincess on December 17th 2008 at 2:23pm
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