diminished their consumption of animal protein still neglect the use of beans, to their nutritional detriment. All legumes are very high in protein. When raw, in fact, they have the highest protein content of all natural foods( some aged cheeses may contain a bit more, but cheese is a concentrated“ partial” food insofar as it is made from milk by discarding the whey):
GRAMS OF PROTEIN IN 100 GRAMS RAW a
In cooked legumes— which is how we eat them— the protein content is lower, whereas in cooked meat it is higher:
GRAMS OF PROTEIN IN 100 GRAMS COOKED a Red Beans Brown Rice Meat
7.8 2.5 28 – 30
The discrepancy occurs because beans and grains are cooked in water and thus diluted; meat, on the other hand, loses water during cooking, and its nutrient elements thus become more concentrated. But before we jump to our conditioned belief that“ more is better,” let’ s remember, mother’ s milk contains only 1.1 grams of protein per 100 grams. As daily fare, therefore, it might be more appropriate for us to choose foods with a lower protein content. Because of their protein content, beans are body-building, warming foods. They provide us with the protein needed for body repair without saddling us with the cholesterol, fat, and toxic nitrogen by-products of meats. The warming effects of beans manifest themselves especially in such dishes as soups, stews, and casseroles— classic standbys for cold winter evenings before the advent of central heating. The one exception is soybeans, which have been classified as cooling. 29 Soybeans are quite different from other legumes. Extensively used in the Orient in various fermented and aged forms( miso, natto, shoyu, tempeh, tofu), the soybean has been called“ the vegetable cow” due to its nutritional versatility. It is the highest in protein among all beans; its proportion of essential amino acids is close to that of animal products, and therefore it is considered to be a“ complete protein.” As a result, the nutrition-conscious movement that has been developing over the past ten to fifteen years has elevated soybeans to a lofty status, and soy products such as tofu, miso, and tempeh have been enthusiastically adopted by natural cooks( among whom I count myself). Yet the enthusiasm can go too far. I once had as a student a man who always looked profoundly pale. When I inquired about his diet, it turned out that he was eating five or six cakes of tofu daily. He reasoned, as many people do, that because it is a“ good source of protein,” the more he ate of it, the better. His meals, even his snacks, consisted of a slab of tofu, a piece of bread, some lettuce and sprouts, and dressing. When he cut down on tofu and began to consume regular cooked beans, whole grains, and a variety of vegetables, his color improved vastly, as did his energy and general health. Although tofu is“ high in protein,” it is not a whole food. It contains 28 percent less iron, only 10 percent of the fiber and B vitamins, and none of the vitamins A and C found in cooked whole soybeans( the“ whole food”). The traditional Japanese diet that includes tofu and other soybean products uses these in small amounts; rice, not tofu, is the staple food. Interestingly, the Japanese also use seaweed as a daily food: Miso soup with tofu is made with seaweed stock, sushi is rolled in nori seaweed, and other sea vegetables such as agar, hi-ziki, and wakame are consumed regularly. This custom begins to make sense when we find out that soybeans contain a thyroid-depressing element; 30 seaweeds, being rich in iodine, a mineral needed for proper thyroid function, counterbalance that effect. Folklore has it that appreciable quantities of soybeans and their products, especially tofu, can lower, or cool, sexual energy. Research done at the universities of Illinois and of Kansas has shown that soybeans may interfere with the absorption of zinc. 31 As zinc is one of the minerals most strongly associated with the healthy functioning of the sex glands, this bit of folk wisdom appears realistic. It is therefore possible that a meal consisting of soyburgers, tofu fries, soymilk shake, and a slice of tofu cream pie may cause as many, though different, problems as the original fast-food meal it tries to replace. Traditional diets use beans of all kinds with grains in a proportion of roughly one part beans to two parts grain. 32 The macrobiotic diet suggests one part beans to five or six parts grain.