Harvest Ingredient 18: New World Beans

By "New World Beans" I am specifically referring to the genus Phaseolus, which has a whopping 50 different species, ALL of the native to the New World.  This includes the white bean cultivars Navy, Pea Bean and Great Northern beans already discussed earlier this month.  In addition to these beans, the family also includes well known Kidney bean cultivars, red beans, Lima & butter  beans, pink beans, new world black beans (as distinct from Asia types used in China for seasoning), and the all important "painted beans"--the most well known of which is the pinto bean.

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Of the 50 types of Phaseolus, what is remarkable, is the geographic distribution of the different types; ranging from Jacob's Cattle beans native to Maine, to the Tongue of Fire that is native to Tierra del Feugo on the very southern tip of South America.  Just about everyone indigenous community that practiced farming of any sort had some type of Phaseolus growing in their gardens.  They are all very pretty beans, but all quite distinctive.  Below are photos of some of the beans that are still commercially available, either packaged as food or as seeds that can be planted in the home garden.

Anasazi Beans--Southwest

Appaloosa Beans--Southeast

Bayo Beans--Northern Mexico

Black Turtle Beans--Central America

Bolitas--Mexico

Cow Bean--Northern Mexico & Texas

Calypso Bean--Caribbean

Chili Bean

Christmas Lima--South America

Cranberry Beans--Massachusettes 

European Soldier Bean--despite it's name, it's actually from New England

Eye Of The Goat Bean--Baja California

Flageolet AKA Haricot Verde--Aztec, Central Mexico

Great Northern Bean--Northeast USA

Jackson Wonder Bean--Georgia USA, recent hybrid

Lima Beans, Peru

Lingot beans--southern South America

Marrrow Beans--Native Communities Eastern USA

Maicoba AKA Peruvian Bean

Mortgage Runner Beans, directly from Native gardens, Southwest USA

Navy Beans--Eastern USA

Pinto Bean--Southwest USA & Mexico

Rattlesnake Bean, a Pinto Hybrid, USA

Red Ball Beans--Central/South  Anerica

Red Bean--Mexico

Red Kidney Bean--Pan New World

Scarlet Runner Bean--Central America to Central Mexico

Steuben Yellow Eye Bean--Maine

Tepary Bean--Sonoran Desert USA/Mexico

Tolosana Beans--Western and Northwest USA

Tongue of Fire Bean--Tierra del Fuego--Chile 

Trout Bean, Hybridized from Jacob's Cattle in Germany.

Vallarta Bean--Central & Western Mexico

White Kidney Bean

Yellow Indian Woman Bean--Montana