Whether you are cutting down on meat for health or environmental reasons, eating more beans and other pulses is a simple and sustainable way to achieve your goal.
Whether you are cutting down on meat for health or environmental reasons, adding more beans and other pulses to your diet is a simple and sustainable way to achieve your goal.
Pulses are the edible seeds of plants in the legume family. They are part of a large and versatile food group that includes: dry beans, lentils, dry peas and chickpeas. Nutrient-rich and affordable, pulses are a sustainable source of protein that is well worth including in your diet.
Small but mighty, pulses have so much to offer. The latest ‘Anything is Pulse-able’ campaign from Eating Better aims to highlight some of the benefits of eating more beans and pulses as well as demonstrate the versatility of cooking with pulses, and show that in fact … anything is ‘pulse-able!
Pulses are good for your health
Pulses do not only count towards 1 of your 5-a-day, but they are also a good source of protein and a very good source of dietary fibre. Regular consumption can help lower your blood pressure as well as your risk of heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and bowel cancer.
Pulses are also a significant source of vitamins and minerals, such as iron, zinc, folate, and magnesium.
Pairing pulses with grains or seeds (such as “Hummus and Pita Bread” or “Beans and Rice”), enhances their nutritional profile to provide a complete plant-based protein source.
Keeping you fuller for longer, pulses are low in fat and have a low glycaemic index which is ideal if you are watching your waistline.
Pulses are affordable
With the current cost of living crisis, pulses offer an affordable alternative to meat and fish. Eating Better calculated that, on average, pulses cost less than £2 per meal for a family of four.
If you are looking to save money, why not swap 50% of the meat for cooked pulses in recipes such as chillis, lasagna, shepherd’s pies, and bolognese? Chances are, no one will notice the difference!
Go one step further and give your favourite meat dishes a plant-based makeover by swapping all of the meat for some hearty and filling beans, peas, lentils, or chickpeas.
Conveniently, you will find a lot of cooked pulses readily available in tins. However, if you eat pulses regularly, you might find it even more cost-efficient to buy dry pulses and batch-cooked them. Once cooked they can be frozen in portion-sized bags for up to 6 months.
Pulses are good for the environment
Pulses have lower carbon and water footprints than animal protein sources.
As explained on Eating Better‘s website “compared to other sources of protein, plant proteins produce very low levels of GHG emissions. Producing 1kg of beans, one of the most commonly consumed pulses, emits around 2kg of CO2e. In comparison, 1kg of beef from a non-dairy herd produces 100kg of CO2e. Even chicken, which on average is the lowest emission meat, produces 10kg CO2e per kilogram”.
Growing pulses also directly benefits soil quality by fixing nitrogen and protecting soil microbes, reducing the need for synthetic fertilisers.
Meat production requires large amounts of water while pulses have a low water footprint, with some crops striving in semi-arid regions or even tolerating droughts.
I love cooking with pulses and you can find my recipes here including chillis, stews, curries, salads, and so on. Below, you will have some easy tips on how to add more beans and pulses to your diet.
5 Simple Ways To Eat More Beans and Other Pulses
– TOPPINGS –
Roasted chickpeas make a delicious high-protein crunchy topping for salads, soups, or rice dishes like in my Golden Rice Bowl with Kale and Harissa Chickpeas. It is a really easy and simple way to add interesting texture. All you have to do is toss the chickpeas in spices and oil, before frying them in a pan or roasting them in the oven.
– SOUPS –
I love adding beans or lentils to soups to make them extra creamy without the need for dairy. White beans, such as cannellini beans work a treat in the Celeriac Soup below. And red lentils give a wonderful silky texture to this Red Lentil and Carrot Coconut Soup.
– BURGERS –
Looking for ways to give your plant-based burgers a hearty texture? Beans, lentils, or chickpeas are your answers as in this Black Bean & Watercress Burger by Love Watercress recipe.
– EGG REPLACEMENT –
Both derived from chickpeas, chickpea flour and gram flour are great thickening and binding agents. They can replace eggs in plant-based recipes such as these Courgette & Corn Fritters
– DIPS & SPREADS –
Chickpea hummus, broad bean dips or lentil pâtés can all be whipped up in no time and make great additions to lunch boxes as well as healthy snacks. Check out this delicious Fermented Foods Hummus by Dunja Gulin.
If you are looking for more recipe ideas make sure to check out the ‘Anything is Pulse-able’ campaign from Eating Better.
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