| Prep: 20 mins | Cook: 2 hours | Difficulty: Medium | Serves: 6 |
Using placeholder values for the Hyacinth Bean Soup recipe as the exact nutritional content can vary. The nutritional information should be calculated based on the used ingredients:
| kcal | fat | saturates | carbs |
| 300 | 1g | 0g | 72g |
| sugars | fibre | protein | salt |
| 42g | 8g | 12g | 0.02g |
Having spent a glorious childhood in the sunny landscapes of California, I attribute my love for fresh, nourishing ingredients to my West Coast upbringing. One such recipe where this love is truly reflected is the incredibly vibrant Hyacinth Bean Soup.
With its extraordinary medley of fruits, beans, and the aromatic touch of vanilla, the Hyacinth Bean Soup is a delight to both, prepare and savour. The recipe brings forth a sensory experience that blends my Gujarati roots, which revel in the essence of vegetarian dishes, with my spirit of Californian vitality. As I watch my two boys play gleefully, I always strive, as a mother, to incorporate meals that are satisfying, delicious, yet nutritionally dense. This soup does just that.
Heart-Warming Blends
The tradition of soup-making holds a sweet, nostalgic charm for me. It is a process, an adventure, a heartfelt ritual, imparting character to common, everyday ingredients by pure transformation: by cutting, dicing, shredding, simmering. This ritual of making the Hyacinth Bean Soup, therefore, turns into a labor of love, instilled with the thrilling excitement of adding a host of different fruits to the hearty base of hyacinth beans. My family particularly adores the playful sweetness of the honey, cutting through the earthy beans and mingling effortlessly with the tart mix of berries and citrus.
Sazzing up to Health
Let’s take a moment and appreciate how good this soup is for your health. The richness of antioxidants in the colorful array of fruits, plus the dose of high fibre in hyacinth beans, gifts this soup its nutrition-packed profile. Not to mention the added immune-boosting magic of the citrus, and honey’s anti-inflammatory properties. This soup is a veritable feast that teases the palate and nurtures the body.
This soup, being slightly on the sweet side, reminds me faintly of the chilled Spanish Gazpacho. Its pleasing tang and natural sweetness, could make it an excellent alternative to the conventional dessert, or you could even serve it alongside a spicy, robust curry to balance the heat. Trust me, Hyacinic Bean Soup is an adventurous addition to your repertoire that would prompt your guests to keep guessing the ingredients!
Whip this up next time and join me in my culinary journey, where dishes like the Hyacinth Bean Soup create a vibrant fusion of my West Coast-Gujarati heritage. As a parting note, here’s an image of my version of the Hyacinth Bean Soup that I prepared last weekend. Quite a labor of love, isn’t it?
What You’ll Need
- 1.5 cups of dried hyacinth beans
- 6 cups of water
- 2 cups mixed berries (like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)
- 1 large apple – peeled, cored and chopped
- 1 large banana – peeled and sliced
- 1 cup of chopped pineapple
- 1/2 cup of orange juice
- 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
- 1/2 cup of honey
- 1 cup of granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
- A dash of salt
Method
Step One
Begin by taking your dried hyacinth beans and soaking them overnight. This step is important as it helps in softening the beans, making them easier to cook the next day.
Step Two
In a large pot, add 6 cups of water and the pre-soaked hyacinth beans. Bring it to a simmer and let it cook until the beans are tender. This may take approximately 1-2 hours. Be sure to stir occasionally and add more water if needed.
Step Three
While the beans are cooking, prepare your fruit. Wash the mixed berries, peel and chop the apple, peel and slice the banana, and chop the pineapple. Keep these aside until needed.
Step Four
Once the hyacinth beans are tender, add the mixed berries, apple, banana, and pineapple chunks to the pot. Stir everything together well so that it can start to combine.
Step Five
Next, add the orange and lemon juice to the pot. The acidity in these juices will help to balance out the sweetness of the other ingredients.
Step Six
Then you can add the honey, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract to the pot. Stir everything well to ensure the sugar is dissolved completely and the flavors are well combined. At this stage, also add a dash of salt to help lift all the flavors.
Step Seven
Let the soup simmer for another 15-20 minutes. This will help all the flavors meld together and create a deliciously sweet and fruity hyacinth bean soup. Once the soup has simmered, it is ready to serve. Enjoy hot or chilled as you prefer.
