The winged bean is a climbing legume with edible leaves, flowers, pods, and roots. It is easy to grow and highly nutritious, with origins in Southeast Asia. It can be used as an alternative to popular vegetables and was once hailed as a wonder crop.
The winged bean, also known as the goa bean, four anchor bean, and asparagus pea, is a climbing vegetable with large, twisted leaves that can reach heights of more than 13 feet (4 m). It is a type of legume related to soy that looks like a pole bean. It has white, pink or light blue flowers and four-sided rectangular pods with winged edges. The pods can be red, purple, or green and usually grow to 8 inches (about 20 cm) long. Winged bean roots produce carrot-sized tubers with white flesh.
Every part of the winged bean is edible. The pods have a sweet taste similar to peas. The leaves taste like spinach when cooked. Winged pea flowers taste like mushrooms and can be used as a food coloring. Its roots produce tubers that taste like potatoes early in the season, flavored with nuts.
Recipes include stir-fried winged beans, tempura, and salads. When refrigerated and wrapped in plastic, winged beans can last up to three days. They can serve as an alternative to more popular vegetables such as asparagus, soybeans and spinach.
Growing winged beans is simple given the right conditions. The plant can be grown in backyard land, between fields or on fences. The seeds grow rapidly, especially when planted at the beginning of the rainy season. Posts or supports will allow for more plant growth and multiple crop yields. Winged beans are largely weed and pest resistant and make good cover plants for large plantings.
During the 1970s and early 1980s, farmers and agricultural scientists hailed the winged bean as a wonder crop due to its high concentration of protein, vitamins, and minerals. Almost all parts of the plant have been studied and shown to have abundant nutritional value. It was dubbed a supermarket on a stalk by the National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences.
The exact geographical origin of the winged bean is unknown. Authorities have speculated that it may have come from Papua New Guinea, Madagascar or India. Most winged beans are now grown in Southeast Asia, especially Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines. Some varieties are grown as far west as India and Bangladesh. The humidity and abundant rainfall in these tropical countries favor the growth of winged beans.
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