"Phytates" In Legumes - Removing Them?

[DMF]

Phytates are "anti-nutients" found in legumes. They supposedly combine with essentials minerals and wash them away in the digestive tract. But I've heard there's a way to remove them - but not sure how. Anyone know?

 

[narouz]

Phytates are "anti-nutients" found in legumes. They supposedly combine with essentials minerals and wash them away in the digestive tract. But I've heard there's a way to remove them - but not sure how. Anyone know?

DMF--
Unfortunately (for us bean lovers) Peat has said,
and I can't tell you off the top of my head where,
that beans have a lot of not great stuff in them for human,
and that even when processed with different "technologies"
(he means like cooking or soaking in lime or whatever)
the result is still not great.

Steinbeck used to say that
a man with a sack of dried beans
has nothing to worry about.
I always liked that mythology.
Alas...I guess the fact trumps the myth, here.

 

[Luann]

Always loved that Steinbeck quote : )
If you were going to consume beans in light of what Narouz said:
soak 2 days in FILTERED water. can't stress filtered enough.
cook, then salt-mash-airlock them in mason jars, a study said this will remove almost all the phytate.

 

[Luann]

Always loved that Steinbeck quote : )
If you were going to consume beans in light of what Narouz said:
soak 2 days in FILTERED water. can't stress filtered enough.
cook, then salt-mash-airlock them in mason jars, a study said this will remove almost all the phytate.

I"ll quote the study soon-ish

 

[thebigpeatowski]

I have always liked beans...navy bean soup, black beans, refried beans, baked beans....mmmmm, yummy.

I quit eating all legumes several years ago due to severe gut issues. Well, I put them to the test recently to see if my guts could handle it and they did!!! I ate an entire can of organic black beans (rinsed) with no intestinal issues whatsoever.....they were so delicious and now I want to add them back in to my diet.

Is there a truly safe manner in which to prepare/cook beans so I might enjoy them on a regular basis? I don't want to risk malnourishment in any way, but I'd love to know if eating them can really be accomplished safely...thank you in advance.

 

[Giraffe]

Is there a truly safe manner in which to prepare/cook beans so I might enjoy them on a regular basis? I don't want to risk malnourishment in any way, but I'd love to know if eating them can really be accomplished safely...thank you in advance.

Soaking and pressure cooking can reduce nasty stuff quite a bit.

Optimum domestic processing and cooking methods for reducing the polyphenolic (antinutrient) content of pigeon peas. - PubMed - NCBI

"Pressure cooking of soaked-dehulled seeds was found to be the most effective method, followed by sprouting for 48 h, ordinary cooking of soaked-dehulled seeds, and pressure cooking of soaked whole seeds followed by sprouting for 36 h."

Changes in phytates and HCl extractability of calcium, phosphorus, and iron of soaked, dehulled, cooked, and sprouted pigeon pea cultivar (UPAS-120). - PubMed - NCBI

"Germination (48 h) was found to be the best method for decreasing the phytic acid content, i.e. 35 to 39 percent less than the control and significantly (p < 0.05) increasing the non-phytate phosphorus and HCl-extractable phosphorus. Pressure cooking of soaked-dehulled pigeon pea also rendered equally good results. The calcium, phosphorus, and iron contents of pigeon pea seeds were 197.3, 473.1, and 9.91 mg/100 g, respectively; some losses varying from 3 to 9 percent were noticed when the legume was subjected to soaking, cooking, and germination but the maximum losses, i.e. 23 percent, occurred when the seeds were dehulled. However, HCl-extractability of Ca, P, and Fe improved to a significant extent when the pigeon pea seeds were soaked, soaked-dehulled, cooked and sprouted which may have been due to decrease in the phytate content followed by processing and cooking."

Saponins In Food


Don't make legumes center stage in your diet.

A review of phytate, iron, zinc, and calcium concentrations in plant-based complementary foods used in low-income countries and implications for bi... - PubMed - NCBI

"Phytate concentrations were highest in complementary foods based on unrefined cereals and legumes (approximately 600 mg/100 g dry weight), followed by refined cereals (approximately 100 mg/100 g dry weight) and then starchy roots and tubers (< 20 mg/100 g dry weight); mineral concentrations followed the same trend."

"Dephytinization, either in the household or commercially, can potentially enhance mineral absorption in high-phytate complementary foods, although probably not enough to overcome the shortfalls in iron, zinc, and calcium content of plant-based complementary foods used in low-income countries."

 

[Hugh Johnson]

Fermenting also works. Or not eating legumes.

I have always liked beans...navy bean soup, black beans, refried beans, baked beans....mmmmm, yummy.

I quit eating all legumes several years ago due to severe gut issues. Well, I put them to the test recently to see if my guts could handle it and they did!!! I ate an entire can of organic black beans (rinsed) with no intestinal issues whatsoever.....they were so delicious and now I want to add them back in to my diet.

Is there a truly safe manner in which to prepare/cook beans so I might enjoy them on a regular basis? I don't want to risk malnourishment in any way, but I'd love to know if eating them can really be accomplished safely...thank you in advance.

They only affect nutrition of that one meal. Assuming the rest of the diet is OK, it won't cause any more malnutrition than ice cream.

 

[thebigpeatowski]

... Assuming the rest of the diet is OK, it won't cause any more malnutrition than ice cream.

Ice cream causes malnutrition? I was NOT aware of that....

My diet is very good, I was just trying to branch out a bit, more variety so to speak. I'm growing tired of milk, cheese and OJ (never thought I say those words).

Doesn't sound like beans should be on the menu too often though.

 

[Hugh Johnson]

Ice cream causes malnutrition? I was NOT aware of that....

My diet is very good, I was just trying to branch out a bit, more variety so to speak. I'm growing tired of milk, cheese and OJ (never thought I say those words).

Doesn't sound like beans should be on the menu too often though.

No, but has lots of calories and usually little micronutrient. Phytic acid causes a meal to effectively have less micronutrient.

 

[Owen B]

Phytates are "anti-nutients" found in legumes. They supposedly combine with essentials minerals and wash them away in the digestive tract. But I've heard there's a way to remove them - but not sure how. Anyone know?

At the Weston A Price site, they talk about soaking grains and legumes in an acid medium: lemon juice or yogurt (started with warm water).