Winged bean facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Winged bean
Winged bean flowers, leaves, and seeds
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Subfamily:	Faboideae
Tribe:	Phaseoleae
Genus:	Psophocarpus
Species:	P. tetragonolobus
Binomial name
Psophocarpus tetragonolobus (L.) D.C.

The winged bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus) is a special plant from warm, tropical places. People also call it the cigarillas, goa bean, or dragon bean. It's a type of legume, which means it's related to peas and beans.

Farmers and people in South Asia really like the winged bean. It's known for being useful in many ways and for being strong against plant diseases. Every part of this plant is packed with nutrients and can be eaten! For example, you can eat the leaves like spinach. The flowers are great in salads, and the roots can be eaten raw or cooked. The seeds are similar to soybeans and can be used in many dishes.

Even though it's not used everywhere yet, the winged bean could become a very important food crop. It grows well in tropical areas of Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

What Does the Winged Bean Look Like?

The winged bean plant grows like a vine. Its climbing stems and leaves can reach up to 10 to 13 feet (3 to 4 meters) tall. It's a perennial plant, meaning it can live for many years. However, people often grow it as an annual, which means it grows for one season. This plant is usually much taller and bigger than the common bean.

Its leaves can be up to 6 inches (15 cm) long. They come in different shapes, like oval or triangle-shaped. The leaves also vary in their shade of green. The stem is usually green, but sometimes it can be purple. The plant has large, pale blue flowers.

The Bean Pods and Seeds

The bean pods can be smooth or a bit rough. They are usually 6 to 9 inches (15 to 22 cm) long. They have a unique shape, looking like a rectangle if you cut them across. They also have four frilly wings running along their length. When the pods are young, their skin is waxy, and the inside is a bit see-through. The pods can be cream, green, pink, or purple.

When the pods are fully ripe, they turn a brownish color and split open. This releases the seeds, which are the beans themselves. The seeds are often round, but can also be oval or rectangular. They might be white, cream, tan, or brown. These beans are very similar to soybeans in how you use them and how much protein they have. They contain about 30% to 39% protein!

Where Does the Winged Bean Grow?

The winged bean likely first came from New Guinea. Today, it grows a lot in hot, humid countries near the equator. You can find it in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and tropical Africa. It's well-known in Southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea, but it's usually grown on a small scale.

This plant prefers open areas and old garden spots. You won't find it as much in thick forests.

Life Cycle of the Winged Bean

The winged bean usually pollinates itself, but sometimes it can mix with other plants, creating new types. If you live in a tropical place, you don't need to do much to the seeds before planting. However, scratching the seeds a little can help them sprout faster. Soaking the seeds in water can also speed up sprouting. Young plants usually pop out of the ground in about five to seven days.

Winged beans can grow as fast as other similar plants, like soy. The plants start to flower about 40 to 140 days after you plant the seeds. The pods become full-sized about two weeks after the flowers are pollinated. After three weeks, the pod becomes tough and fibrous. After six weeks, the seeds inside are ready to be picked.

Growing Conditions

Winged beans growing in a garden in Alpine, New Jersey, US

The winged bean loves hot weather and humidity, but it can adapt to different places. It can even grow well in heavy rainfall, which makes it a good plant for people in the African tropics.

For the best growth, winged beans need humidity. However, they don't like too much or too little water. The perfect temperature for growing them is around 77°F (25°C). Colder temperatures can stop the seeds from sprouting, and very hot temperatures can lower how much the plant produces.

Even small changes in the weather can affect how much winged bean you get. Growing them in slightly cooler temperatures can make the roots bigger. For the most beans, the soil should stay moist while the plant grows. Even though it's a tropical plant, it can grow in dry places if it gets enough water. If the plant grows during a drier part of the year, it can produce more.

The winged bean is also a great "cover crop." This means planting it can help stop weeds from growing. It can also make poor soil better by adding nitrogen to it when the plant is mixed back into the ground. This is because the plant has special bacteria on its roots that help it get nitrogen from the air.

How We Use Winged Beans

As we mentioned, you can eat every part of the winged bean plant! The leaves, flowers, roots, and bean pods can be eaten raw or cooked. The pods are even tasty when they are raw and not fully ripe. The seeds need to be cooked before you eat them.

All these parts have important nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, and iron. The young, tender pods are the most popular part to eat. They taste best when they are less than 1 inch (2.5 cm) long. You can usually harvest them about three months after planting.

The flowers are sometimes used to add color to rice and pastries. The young leaves can be picked and cooked like spinach. The roots are full of nutrients and have a nutty taste. They contain about 20% protein, which is more protein than many other root vegetables. The leaves and flowers are also high in protein, with about 10–15%.

The seeds are very rich in protein (about 35%) and fat (about 18%). They need to be cooked for two to three hours. This cooking helps remove substances that can make them hard to digest. You can eat the seeds dried or roasted. If you dry and grind them, they make a useful flour. You can even brew them to make a drink similar to coffee.

The beans are also rich in tocopherols, which are antioxidants that help your body use vitamin A. You can even make milk from winged beans by blending them with water. This milk is similar to soy milk, but it doesn't have that strong "beany" flavor. The taste of raw winged beans is a bit like asparagus.

You can find smoked pods, dried seeds, cooked or uncooked roots, and leaves for sale in markets in South East and South Asia. The mature seeds can be quite expensive.

Winged Bean as Animal Food

The winged bean is also a good food source for many animals. This includes farm animals like cows and goats, chickens, fish, and other livestock.

For feeding fish on farms, winged bean can be a cheaper way to get protein. In Africa, fish food is often hard to find and expensive. The African sharptooth catfish, a popular food fish in Africa, can eat winged bean. In the highlands of Papua New Guinea, where winged beans grow well, the bean husks are fed to pigs as an extra part of their diet.

Images for kids

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  Winged bean pods

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  A young Burmese woman sells winged bean roots at a market in Mandalay

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  Boiled winged bean roots served as a snack in Burma

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  Ginataang sigarilyas, a Filipino dish of winged bean (sigarilyas) in coconut milk