What Is Soybeans (daizu) and How Can I Use It?

Soybeans (daizu) is easier to cook with than it looks. Here's how to choose, use, and store it, what to substitute, and 33 recipes to get you started.

Key Points

Soybeans (daizu) are the bean behind tofu, miso, soy sauce, tempeh, and soy milk.
They hold more complete protein than any other bean, making them a vegetarian staple.
Dried soybeans are stubborn: soak overnight, then simmer 2 to 3 hours until fully tender.
The young green pods are edamame, which boil in about 5 minutes and taste sweet.
Navy or great northern beans swap in for a softer pot; chickpeas match the protein and bite.

What is soybeans (daizu)?

Soybeans are the small, round beans that quietly power a huge chunk of the kitchen. The Japanese call the dried bean daizu. You may never cook the whole bean often, yet you eat it constantly as tofu, miso, soy sauce, tempeh, and soy milk.

The fresh green pod, picked young, is edamame. The mature bean dries to a hard ivory or yellow seed that needs long cooking before it softens.

What makes soybeans special is protein. They carry more complete protein than any other bean, which is why they became the backbone of so many meat-free dishes.

Cooking With Soybeans

Dried soybeans are the most stubborn bean in the pantry. They need a full overnight soak and a long simmer, often 2 to 3 hours, before they turn tender. That is far longer than navy or pinto beans. See beans for the general soaking method.

Their flavor is mild and a touch nutty, with a firm, almost crunchy bite even when cooked. That bite is why they hold up in baked dishes like Boston Baked Soybeans, a high-protein riff on the classic bean pot.

Most home cooks meet soybeans in ground or processed form. Cooked and mashed, they bind vegetarian patties such as the Burger Mix (Vegetarian) and add body to a Soysage (Vegan). They also stretch a pot of Vegetable Stew with Soybeans without any meat.

Young green soybeans, or edamame, cook in minutes. Boil the pods in salted water for about 5 minutes, then pop the beans out, as in an Edamame Veggie Burger. They are sweeter and far quicker than the dried bean.

Pairings and Common Mistakes

Soybeans take to bold, savory company. Soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame, chili, miso, and smoked pork all play to their nutty base. A long braise with tomato and molasses works too, the same way it does for navy beans.

The most common mistake is undercooking. Soybeans stay unpleasantly firm and a little raw-tasting if you rush them, and raw soy is hard to digest. Cook them fully until a bean smashes easily between two fingers.

The second mistake is skipping the foam. Dried soybeans throw off a lot of starchy foam as they boil. Skim it and change the soaking water to cut the gassiness they are famous for.

Salt late, once the beans are soft. Salting early can keep these tough beans firm even longer.

Substitutes

For a pot of beans, navy or great northern beans are the easy swap. They cook softer and faster, so you lose the firm bite but keep a mild, creamy bean. White beans also fold into burgers and stews in place of mashed soybeans.

If you are after the protein and nuttiness specifically, cooked chickpeas come closest in texture and hold their shape the same way.

For edamame, frozen baby lima beans or green peas give a similar sweet pop, though neither matches the soybean's firmness.

Buying and Storing

Dried soybeans turn up in health-food aisles and Asian markets, sold yellow or black. Look for whole, bright beans with no shriveling. Edamame is almost always sold frozen, either in the pod or already shelled, and that is the most reliable way to buy it.

Store dried soybeans in an airtight jar somewhere cool and dark, where they keep for a year or more. Like all dried beans, old ones never soften properly, and soybeans are slow enough already, so buy fresh stock and use it within the year.

Keep frozen edamame in the freezer until you cook it, and once boiled, eat shelled beans within a couple of days. Cooked soybeans freeze well, so batch-cook and stash them, since the long simmer is the only real hassle with this bean.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 1 cup (186g)

Amount per Serving

Calories 773Calories from Fat 333

% Daily Value *

Total Fat 37.1g 57%

Saturated Fat 5.4g 27%

Trans Fat ~

Cholesterol 0mg 0%

Sodium 3mg 0%

Total Carbohydrate 56.1g 19%

Dietary Fiber 17g 69%

Sugars ~

Protein 67.9g

Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 19%

Calcium 52% • Iron 162%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your caloric needs.

recipeland.com/nutrition

Quick facts

Food group: Soybeans (daizu) is a member of the Legumes and Legume Products US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.

In Chinese: 大豆（傣族）
British (UK) term: Soybeans (daizu)
en français: soja (daizu)
en español: soja (daizu)

How much does soybeans (daizu) weigh?

Amount	Weight
1 cup	186 grams

Legumes and Legume Products

Beans 235 Beans with pork, canned 45 Beans, dried 19 Black beans 445 Black beans, dried 29 Great northern beans 58 Kidney beans, canned 128 Red kidney beans 519 Red beans 47 Navy beans, dried 26

Recipes using soybeans (daizu)

There are 33 recipes that contain this ingredient.

“The Simple 7” Linked to Blood Clot Prevention

Think Twice Before That Daily Glass of Wine!

Is It Really Gluten Sensitivity??

More health news

Global Obesity on the Rise, Despite Increased Exercise Rates

Top 5 Ways to Tell You Need More Protein

Should You Cut Fat or Carbs?