| Notes |
The pinto bean (Spanish: frijol pinto, literally "painted bean") is named for its mottled skin (compare pinto horse), hence it is a type of mottled bean. It is the most common bean in the United States[7] and northwestern Mexico,[8] and is most often eaten whole in broth or mashed and refried. Either whole or mashed, it is a common filling for burritos. The young pods may also be used as green beans.; In the southwest United States, the pinto bean is an important symbol of regional identity, especially among Mexican Americans.[citation needed] Along with the chile/chilli, it is one of the official state vegetables of New Mexico (under the name frijol). The prepared beans are commonly known as frijoles. This type of bean is also referred to as "Cowboy Beans" in Texas, all along the Mexican border and wherever Mexican cowboys were employed. In areas where Mexican cowboys did not travel on the trails north from Texas, it was probably not known.; This is the bean most commonly used for refried beans (fresh or canned) and in many dishes at Tex-Mex restaurants. Rice and pinto beans served with cornbread or corn tortillas are often a staple meal where there is limited money for meat; the amino acids in this combination make it a complete protein source. This variety is often used in chili con carne, although the kidney bean, black bean, and many others may also be used in other locales (see below).; In the southeastern part of the United States, pinto beans were once a staple of the poor (usually eaten with cornbread, milk, and cabbage), especially during the winter months. Some churches in rural areas still sponsor "pinto bean suppers" for social gatherings and fund raisers.; ; The P. lunatus is of Andean and Mesoamerican origin. Two separate domestication events are believed to have occurred. The first, taking place in the Andes around 2000 BC[citation needed], produced a large-seeded variety (Lima type), while the second, taking place most likely in Mesoamerica around AD 800, produced a small-seeded variety (Sieva type). By 1301, cultivation had spread to North America, and in the sixteenth century the plant arrived and began to be cultivated in the Eastern Hemisphere.; The small-seeded wild form (Sieva type) is found distributed from Mexico to Argentina, generally below 1600 meters above sea level, while the large-seeded wild form (Lima type) is found distributed in the north of Peru, between 320 and 2030 meters above sea level.; The Moche Culture (1-800 AD) cultivated all of the lima beans and often depicted them in their art.[1] During the Spanish Viceroyalty of Peru, lima beans were exported to the rest of the Americas and Europe, since the boxes of such goods had their place of origin labeled "Lima - Peru", the beans got named as such.; The term butter bean is widely used for a large, flat and white variety of lima bean (P. lunatus var. macrocarpus, or P. limensis[2]).; In the Southern United States the Sieva type are traditionally called butter beans, also otherwise known as the Dixie or Henderson type. In that area, lima beans and butter beans are seen as two distinct types of beans.; Both bush and pole (vine) varieties exist, the latter from one to four meters in height. The bush varieties mature earlier than the pole varieties. The pods are up to 15 cm long. The mature seeds are 1 to 3 cm long and oval to kidney shaped. In most varieties the seeds are quite flat, but in the "potato" varieties the shape approaches spherical. White seeds are common, but black, red, orange and variously mottled seeds are also known. The immature seeds are uniformly green. Lima beans typically yield 2900 to 5000 kilograms of seed and 3000 to 8000 kilograms of biomass per hectare.; ; ; Harot p.14 “called by us Beanes, because in greatnesse & partly in shape, they are like to the Beanes in England; saving that they are flatter, of more divers colours, an some pide.” Leaf and stem are much different. “In taste . . . as good as our English peaze.”; Bellis perhaps a guess can be made as to which type of bean this was, certainly it was a cultivated variety – not native – most likely Phaseolus lunatus L. (see below); Lawson; p.82 “Bushel-Bean, which is a spontaneous product.” Grown on poles, “Bean is white and mottled, with a purple figure on each side of it, like an Ear.” They are very flat, and are eaten as the Windsor-Bean is, . . . either by themselves, or with Meat.”; “The Kidney-Beans were here before the English came, being very plentiful in the Indian Corn-Fields.”; Ewan (Banister); p.229 [Phaseoli varii.] Various legumes not further identified by Banister, but Phaseolus lunatus L. in the Sieva or small seed form was disbursed northward from Guatamala to Virginia in pre-Columbian times, (W.W. Mackie, Hilgardia 15 (1943). ; Phaseolus vulgaris L. was represented by several forms cultivated by the Indians.; Jaques; p.73 Phaseolus lunatus L. Seiva Bean “resembles Lima bean . . . likely of American origin . . . seeds are flat and thin . . . they are often white, sometimes marked with red or brown in whole or part.; p.71 Phaseolus vulgaris L. Kidney-Bean “common garden bean, climbing and twining.”; ; |
