Tepary bean

Phaseolus acutifolius · Legume

40 pairings

The tepary bean is the small, hardy seed of Phaseolus acutifolius, a desert-adapted legume native to the Sonoran Desert of the US Southwest and northern Mexico. Among the most drought- and heat-tolerant beans on Earth, it is a staple of the Tohono O'odham and other Indigenous peoples, prized for a dense, sweet, faintly earthy-nutty flavour.

Picking a good onedrag

Small, stony and soundFaded, holed or musty

Cupboard stockStill not food raw: soak, drain, hard boil in fresh water, then the long simmer. It holds its shape to the end - that is the point of it.Everyday best

Coat and colourColour a shade duller, a few off-tone seeds in the scoop

Whole seedsSound seeds with the odd chipped coat or loose half

In the handHard through, the rattle a shade duller

At the mouth of the bagQuiet and papery, nothing sour or damp behind it

What to look for, from small, stony and sound to faded, holed or musty.

Preparing