Last week the USDA rolled out its revised food pyramid containing guidance for what Americans aspiring to good health should eat, replacing the “MyPlate” visual that had been in place since 2011. Plenty of dietitians and other clinically-qualified commentators have already assessed the graphics and contents (TL;DR: very mixed reviews.) I won’t spend a whole lot of time here telling you whether I think the guidance is good or bad - except for one thing:
USDA, I find your lack of beans disturbing.
Sure, there’s a little bowl of what I’m told is rice with beans in the lower left, just before the “you’re not cute enough for this club” line under which the whole grains are segregated. But you’d be forgiven for missing it and instead taking home the message that you’d be better off eating a block of Swiss cheese. And although I’d be the last person to pretend cheese isn’t delicious - and even good for you! - the mountain of evidence1 in favor of legumes amounts to - if you’ll forgive me - more than a hill of beans.
When the guidelines came out, I joked to a friend that I might just make 2026 the Year of the Bean for recipe development purposes. And while I’m not committing to that bit just yet (no promises), I thought the timing presented a golden opportunity to make good use of the last of a bag of adzuki beans that’s been hiding in my pantry for at least five years (another great things about beans - they’re practically apocalypse-proof! If that happens to be something on your mind these days.)
Below, a simple winter curry with squash, coconut milk, and peppers. A few notes:
I’m recommending delicata squash since you can just cut the whole thing up, skin and all - but use whatever you like! I actually used a long-in-the-tooth acorn squash that had been hanging out on my counter (the peel was a little chewy, but hey: fiber!) - but kabocha or butternut would be nice here too.
I used red bell peppers to contrast with my green jalapeño - when I’m cooking with both sweet and hot peppers, I do like a little visual differentiation to avoid unpleasant surprises. That’s just my preference though - use any peppers you like!
I recommend serving this with brown rice and some type of green vegetable - here, I’ve got just a little Napa cabbage with rice vinegar and salt. If you’re a cilantro person, that would also be good. Do whatever you like - although I always strongly recommend playing the “how many colors can I get on this plate?” game - especially during a winter that, for many reasons, feels particularly
grey.
Adzuki Bean Curry with Winter Squash (about 6 servings)
1 1/2 cups dry adzuki beans
1 delicata squash (or other 2-3 pound winter squash of choice), seeded and cubed*
2 bell peppers, any color, sliced into thin strips
1-2 hot peppers of choice (I used 1 jalapeño), diced
1 can full-fat coconut milk
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 T grated fresh ginger
1 T cumin seeds
1 T ground coriander
1-2 t chili flakes (I like gochugaru)
2 t turmeric powder
1/2 t amchur (optional)
2 T neutral oil (such as avocado)
2 T lime juice
Salt to taste (about 1/2-1 t)
Directions
The night before cooking, soak the adzuki beans (at least 8 hours)
Drain and rinse the soaked beans. Add to a pot with fresh water to cover by about 1 inch; simmer until soft, about an hour.
Heat the oil in pot. Add the ginger and garlic; stir until fragrant (don’t burn the garlic!) Add the coriander and cumin and continue to stir. Add the hot peppers and stir a bit more.
Add the coconut milk, pepper flakes, turmeric, and cubed squash. Simmer until squash is fork tender, about half an hour.
About 20 minutes into cooking time, add the bell peppers and cooked beans.
Add amchur (if using), lime juice, and salt to taste.
Turn off your phone; turn on some music; enjoy slowly with rice, your choice of green vegetable, and good company.
Here’s just one study to get you started: https://apjcn.qdu.edu.cn/13_2_8.pdf
Yum yum yum.
My favorite step here is Step 7!