Todd Moody wrote:
>Some legumes are in fact edible raw, and other primates
>actually eat them during part of the year. Immature ones
>generally have fewer toxins and antinutrients, and are edible.
>Snow peas, for example. (etc.)
>Having said all that, it's pretty clear that legumes were not a
>*staple* food during paleolithic times. Like nuts and berries,
>and probably certain grains, they would only have been eaten
>during a short period of time of the year, when the beans were at
>just the right stage of immaturity. So I tend to think of
>legumes as minor "adjunct" foods.
Thanks, Todd; great info! I see it pretty much the same as you do. I think
many people can do fine with a smidgen of legumes but others need to avoid
at all costs. So do what's right for you. Maybe Ray feels pain in his
joints after a $.99 bag o' peanuts. I don't, so I eat them every now and
then. But when I go to a Mexican restaurant to enjoy fajitas without the
tortillas and promise myself just a bite or two of beans, it's very, very
hard to stop. And I immediately begin to feel bloated. And we all know
that beans are the musical food.
So yeah, I eat a few peanuts. Don't keep them in the house, though. But if
I've got a hankering for a dee-LISH-us Thai dish, I cook up some chicken and
onions, smother 'em in coconut milk and some (gasp!) peanut butter, then add
some curry and I'm a very happy girl. To each her own. But I would argue
that since legumes were only available part of the year they should only be
a rare side dish. It seems to add up.
Dori Zook
Denver, Co
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