National Baked Bean Month

July is National Baked Bean Month in the United States.

Baked beans have a name that does not actually describe them accurately, for they are stewed, not baked. They are served in a sauce.

There are many different varieties and types of baked beans across the world, which use some of the many different varieties of bean available. In the UK, the most popular type of canned baked bean is that based on the American Heinz Baked Beanz, and its derivatives and imitators. These baked beans are haricot beans which have been stewed in a tomato and sugar sauce. They are an important part of the Full English breakfast, are frequently eaten on toast, and are actually more popular in the UK than they are in the US.

Tinned baked beans are available in many different types. They can come in different sauces, be made from different varieties of beans - sometimes several in one tin - and can have other ingredients added to them. Small sausages added to cans of baked beans are popular in the UK.

National Eat Beans Day

July 3rd is National Eat Beans Day in the United States.

There are many more different types of beans to eat than Heinz Baked Beans, even if the latter may be one of the best known types. The term "bean" is used to describe the seed of a wide variety of plants, some of which are eaten by people, some by animals and some by both. Some beans are not described as such, such as the peanut.

Beans are generally a quite nutritious food - and a useful part of any vegetarian diet, with soybeans being a favourite - which contain soluble fibre and protein. Not every bean can be eaten as-is - some, such as red kidney beans, contain harmful toxins which must be destroyed by cooking before the bean can be eaten.

Beans can be eaten both hot and cold; they are a good addition to salad dishes.

National Bean Day

National Bean Day is on January 6th in the United States.

This is a day that celebrates the bean - not the Japanese Setsubun, the Bean Throwing Festival, which is celebrated the day before spring.

Beans come in many different varieties, and the name primarily refers to large plant seeds of the Fabaceae family, which is also known as Leguminosae, and the word "legume" refers to some of the plants and seeds in that family.

There are many tens of thousands of different types of beans, many of which are used for both human and animal food, and beans are one of the longest-cultivated plants. Broad beans, which are also known as fava beans, have been grown in Thailand since the early seventh millennium BCE. Some of the bean types that are most commonly eaten are the aforementioned broad, or fava, bean, runner beans, lentils, soybeans, red kidney beans and peanuts. Yes, peanuts are another so-called nut which isn't actually a nut; they are instead a type of bean. Another common type is the haricot, or navy, bean, which is the type of bean most commonly used commercially to make baked beans.

Some of the commonly eaten bean types contain a toxin, such as red kidney beans. This toxin needs to be removed by proper preparation and cooking of the beans, or they can be dangerous.

Beans of all types have a range of nutritional properties. They also tend to be a good source of protein; this makes them useful in a vegetarian or vegan diet, which may otherwise lack needed protein.