Edamame Succotash

It’s feeling warm again and I feel like eating light food and salads, so I decided to make an Edamame Succotash.  This is a dish that I often get when I run into Whole Foods Market to pick up a quick bite for lunch.  I love everything they have there from the produce, cheese, meats, prepared foods and honestly there really isn’t anything I don’t like there.  Everything they have is superb! 

In fact, while I was picking up some items to grill for dinner this evening I needed more ground cumin and noticed it said “non-irradiated” on the bottle.  You’ll know what I’m talking about if you read my previous blog post.

If you’ve never tried Edamame before you might be wondering what it is.  Edamame is a green vegetable more commonly known as a soybean, harvested at the peak of ripening right before it reaches the “hardening” time.

The word Edamame means “Beans on Branches,” and it grows in clusters on bushy branches. To retain the freshness and its natural flavor, it is parboiled and quick-frozen.

Edamame which is high in protein is consumed as a snack, a vegetable dish, used in soups or processed into sweets. As a snack, the pods are lightly boiled in salted water, and then the seeds are squeezed directly from the pods into the mouth with the fingers. 

The recipe below however, uses just the shelled edamame bean not the pod.  These can be found just that way, in packages, in the frozen food section of your supermarket.

I hope if you try the Edamame Succotash, you like it.  Instead of using lima beans as in the traditional dish, Edamame (soy beans) have been replaced.  Plus the added dried cranberries give it a little bit of a sweet flavor while the chili sauce gives it a bit of a kick.

As always if there’s something in the ingredients for this dish or any I post, that you don’t like, then replace it with something that appeals to your palate.

This is delicious served on the side, as a meal with chicken added, although, you don’t need to add anything, since it’s already packed with protein.

Edamame Succotash
serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 (4 ounce) packages gourmet mushroom blend or fresh mushroom variety, coarsely chopped

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt, to taste
Ground pepper, to taste
1 (16 ounce) package Edamame shelled soy beans, thawed
2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup roasted red peppers, diced (use fresh or jarred if you prefer)

Dressing:

2 tablespoons Sweet Chili Sauce
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon Thai Red Curry Paste
2 tablespoons  Mirin
1 1/2 tablespoons Toasted Sesame Oil

Directions:

Sauté mushrooms over medium-high heat in olive oil with salt and pepper for 7 to 8 minutes or until mushrooms give up their liquid. Place edamame and corn in a large serving bowl. Add hot cooked mushrooms, cranberries and peppers.

Make dressing by whisking together Thai sweet red chili sauce, Thai red curry paste, mirin, and toasted seame oil. Gently toss together and adjust seasoning to taste.

Enjoy!