Poppin' Edamames

In keeping with my healthy 'meatout' pledge made more than 10 days ago, I've been trying to eat light and green. And when work has been hectic, added with extra hours spent moving into new premises at work, fuss-free cooking is the only bearable option if we choose to dine at home in the evenings.

To say I'm fond of edamame [eh-dah-MAH-meh] (fresh green soybeans) is an understatement, especially when popping cooked edamame beans right into my mouth ranks as one of my top addictive activities over the kitchen sink. When the edamame is sweet with just that right amount of vege-crispness and a slight nutty flavor, adding them to a pasta dish with a chopped tomato sauce takes that addiction to another level!

Edamame is the young green soybean which is harvested just before it matures, and in our local supermarkets can usually be found in the frozen vegetables section. Sold in their furry pods, the edamame is usually boiled in salted water for 5 to 8 minutes to cook them. After draining and rinsing in cold running water to maintain its bright attractive green color, just lightly squeeze the pods and the green beans start popping out of their pods. Rich in vegetable protein, high in fiber content and abundant with vitamins, it's a healthy snack, and in fact goes quite well with a chilled light beer.

This edamame-tomato pasta is one of those quick fixes that apart from being absolutely easy to make, tastes good and is really healthy.

• cook the frozen edamame as aforesaid (a packet of frozen edamame should yield enough for 2 to 3 persons for this pasta dish, even after taking into account the few shelled edamame beans that may end up directly in the gullet-trap immediately upon shelling)
  
• chop up 2 big tomatoes, which have been blanched and skinned
• cook the farfallini (mini bow-tie shaped or butterfly-shaped pasta) according to packet's instructions (you can replace the farfallini with penne)
• heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil together with a tablespoon of butter in a saucepan over a low fire and add some chopped garlic
• add the chopped tomatoes together with 4 to 6 tablespoons of tomato puree
• add half a cup of water to the mixture and let sauce reduce
• after 5 minutes or so, add the shelled edamame to the mixture and stir for a few minutes to mix thoroughly and to heat through
• add the cooked farfallini to the edamame-tomato sauce and season with salt and ground black pepper
  

Hopefully, this last picture will compel you to hunt down that packet of frozen edamame in the supermarket and indulge in a bout of nutritious addiction!