Edamame

If peanuts is considered to be the typical beer snack in the US, I think edamame is the closest thing to that in Japan. The English translation of edamame is "boiled soy bean in pod" or "green soy beans."

I haven't met anyone that doesn't like edamame (but I know plenty of people that doesn't like peanuts or worse, allergic to it), except one of my American friends that visited me in Japan a couple of years ago.

I told him, "you gotta try edamame, it's really good," and he tried to decline politely, "actually I've tried it before at some Japanese restaurant in Texas, and I didn' t like it." What? How could he not like it? He must've had some weird ones from Texas.

I still ordered it and when the waitress brought a bowl full of edamame, I insisted that he try them again. He hesitated but said, "okay, fine" and picked one up. Instead of taking the peas out of the pod, he stuffed the whole thing in his mouth!!! I was so shocked that I couldn't say anything for a second, until he spitted it out saying, "yeah, I don't like these too much." Then I burst out laughing, and after I calmed down, I explained to him that you don't eat the pod/shell part. "Ah, much better. These actually taste pretty good," he commented. So, I still don't know anyone that doesn't like edamame.

If you are familiar with edamame, you are probably thinking, "how can you introduce how to make edamame?! That's like introducing how to make an instant noodle!" but recently I found out that a lot of people didn't know how to go about eating edamame at home. Basically, all you need is a bag of frozen edamame and some hot water. It's that easy. I told you this is the "easy Japanese recipe" site.

IN JAPANESE: Edamame
CATEGORY: Side-dish
COOKING METHOD: Stirfry
DIFFICULTY: Easy
SERVES: 2 people
LENGTH OF TIME: 5 min

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 bag of frozen edamame
some salt

HOW TO:
The most important thing is finding a bag of frozen edamame. Most Asian supermarket should carry it in their frozen food section.

Boil water in a pan with some salt, and pour about 1/4 of the bag (for two people, roughly).

Some should start floating, but it's probably ready to eat in 3 to 4 minutes. Remember, when you buy it frozen, it's already cooked, so all you are doing is defrosting it in the hot water, so there's no need to overcook.

Drain the water out, and serve on a bowl. I usually sprinkle some salt on top when I serve. Don't forget to have an extra bowl out on the table for the pod/shell.