Mesquite Beans
We have a pretty good crop of Mesquite Beans this year. My grandfather often told me that the Mesquite Bean is one of natures checks and balances. In dry years when the crops were bad, the Mesquite Trees put forth an abundance of beans for sustenance. I have only ate mesquite beans once. When I was very young a great aunt made up a big pot of these beans. I don't remember it being very tasty but in the old days it had to beat starving to death.
26 Comments:
for the life of me i cant ever remember seeing a mesquite tree bean...damn...how cool...wonder if my old home town of mesquite took it's name from the tree? should have called it mesquite bean, texas..
I have no idea what mesquite beans are, but in the old days people ate all kinds of junk that nobody would dream of eating now. Of course, I am sure old timers would turn their nose at all the chemicals and crap that we now readily put into our bodies, eh? Is that really your garden Fuzz? If so, quite impressive.
Is that the plant from whence comes the fabulous mesquite charcoal that makes my bbq taste the best? The chunks of mesquite charcoal are huge - as if from a tree trunk or huge branch. I've never heard of the beans... do they taste like green beans? The plants in the picture look like pepper trees.
Granny, I do believe that is why the town is so named.
Dear Jane, mesquite trees grow wild. Once long ago there were no mesquites here but the cattle on drives from Mexico dropped the seeds out on their way north. They are a very big problem. They have enormous root systems and suck up a lot of water.
Terry, that's the stuff. They can make very big pretty trees but most of the time out in the pasture their are nothing but small brush.
Mimi, they grow wild and I bbq with them all the time although when I get some pecan wood that is what I would rather use. Any tree that produces a fruit or nut makes for good q'ing.
Mesquite, Texas (suburb of Dallas) is probably near the northeast limit of mesquite territory, although the tree/bush is tolerant of winter temperatures as low as 5 degrees Fahrenheit.
Size of the mesquite tree/bush is very much dependent upon annual rainfall. In the vicinity of I-35, mesquite tends to grow to tree sizes (up to 20 feet), but in the trans Pecos region of west Texas, the mesquite bush rarely grows taller than 8 feet, but crowds out anything taller due to its extreme drought tolerance.
Mesquite charcoal almost certainly comes from the eastern regions, as trunks of mesquite in west Texas are very rarely thicker than 4 inches. Mesquite is also common in New Mexico and Arizona, but I don't know much about their growing conditions. The mesquite flavor can also be achieved just by adding a few mesquite bean pods to any charcoal fire.
When we were growing up in eastern New Mexico in the 40's and 50's, we would chew on the pulp of the mesquite beans. We didn't eat the pulp but suck out the sweet juice. They were abundant in the empty lots of town. As the town developed, the mesquite bushes were almost eradicated and the city would spray insecticide on the remaining few.
Mesquite trees grow well into east Texas. We are 60 miles east of Mesquite, TX, and have tons of mesquite trees on our 42 acres. We gathered a lot of mesquite beans this year and I have made many batches of jelly and butter. I have also dried the beans (to kill the beetle larvae) and have ground the beans into a course flour for baking. There are many mesquite bean meal recipes to be found on the Internet, and mesquite is delicious. The flavor of the jelly reminds one of a spiced honey. No spices are used though. We have honey mesquite in this area and different trees have different levels of sweet. The older trees seem to have the sweetest beans, and these are good to eat straight from the tree. Be warned, you will be spitting seeds. They are too hard to chew. Mesquite is good for those who have troubles with their blood sugar. It has a low glycemic index and makes a delicious tea too.
mesquite seeds. is it possible that we could come to an arrangement and i could get you to ship me a pound or two of seed. i live in near where little house on the prarrie was written in missouri and i would love to try and grow mesquite here. i use to eat the seed pods when i was little.
mry
ozark grandma
you need my e mail to respond
mry.wlsn@yahoo.com
we search to see if they sold hem on line and never found any where. they sell the flour from it.
ozark grandma
I sincerely doubt that mesquite would grow in Missouri. If you don't have wild mesquite in your area, it's very likely it gets too cold for the mesquite. I know y'all get a lot more snow and cold than we do down here. Also, before you go planting any seeds you might check with your county extension office. Mesquite is considered an invasive species in some states and there are laws regulating such.
From Traceeeee:
Funny thing about mesquite trees, at least the older ones....They are not fooled by early spring's nice weather. They always ALWAYS know if it's going to freeze one more time. Here in West Texas (I live in Abilene) we watch the mesquites in the spring. Every other tree may think it's Spring and start to leaf out, but if the mesquites are still bare, don't put your Winter coat away!
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I chew the mesquite pods to suck out the sweetness. I then spit the seeds in a bag just like chewing tobacco. mmmmmmmm
I have Mesquite Bean Jelly and Syrup for sale if you are wanting to taste this delicious flavor. I would liken it to a honey apple flavor. I live in Utah, and I pick my beans from St. George, UT area, however I first started making this when I lived in TX.
I own a small home business "Lost Creek Jellies and Preserves", where I home can jellies,jams and syrups from hand picked wild berriesin the mountains of Utah and Idaho. It is a seasonal business. You can contact me at: Lostcreekjellies@gmail.com
Or (801)821-1592
(I do not have a website yet)
Prices: Jelly 6oz jar $6.00/Syrup 8oz bottle $8.00 plus postage.
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