I have been looking forward to this week for sometime.

Today’s Market Matters is turning its sights on the moong bean, the mash bean. Sometimes called munggo or monggo.  Green gram, golden gram, and green soy.

But you may know it as the Mighty Mung Bean!

Yep this is the bean responsible for the ubiquitous bean-sprout of salad bar fame! But I think it is much more interesting fresh; un-sprouted, simply dressed and served with something pert and pretty (but not too cute sweet).

This is my favorite bean, hands down. With out a doubt. I have never met a legume I couldn’t love so this bold proclamation is really saying something!

In India the bean is cultivated during two main growing seasons. Rabi, which begins in November; and the wet monsoonal season known as Kharif, which starts in March. March? This is March!

The local California Farmer’s Markets are featuring an interesting and gorgeous array of fresh dried beans right now. Lots of beans can be found year round here in Southern California. But certain heirloom varieties are much more seasonal and it’s worth being on the look out for them at the Farmers Markets.

One of these beans is a tepary bean. It’s a Native American heirloom. In fact it’s the only truly native bean to North America. Which makes it particularly interesting to me.

Tepary beans were a dietary staple of the Native Americans living in The Sonoran Dessert. Along with corn and squash it is considered one of the “Three Sisters” and was one of their major sources of protein and digestible carbohydrates. With the loss of their Native lands and cultivation practices the tepary bean was nearly lost as a species. But it was rediscovered growing wild in Arizona in the 1980’s. And lucky for you (and me!) these delicious, beans are experiencing a veritable vegetal revitalization!