[fullstop]

Perhaps someone in the industry can chime in, but I had read that the soybeans that the US primarily grows and previously sold to China were used for pig feed. In my mind I pictured it like "cow corn" -- humans technically can eat it, but it's chewy and not very good.

Are there different grades of soybean?

[9rx]

> humans technically can eat it, but it's chewy and not very good.

Not just technically. It is a relatively common food. A fair bit of it is crushed (i.e. turned into cooking oil). But it is also a product used in a number of processed foods, tofu, etc. Granted, it does seem to be eaten less commonly in the USA, but is more often used in Asian cuisines.

> Are there different grades of soybean?

All crops have different grades. Poor weather conditions is the most likely reason for a downgrade.

[bluGill]

There are different grades with different properties. However very few are consumed by humans. When sold for humans it is called edamame.

The most common use is crush the beans, and collect the oil feeding the rest to pigs. If you read the ingredients at the grocery store, soy bean oil comes up a lot. Soy bean oil is also often used in diesel engines after processing.

[BobaFloutist]

You can also buy dry soy beans. They're not popular human food not because they taste bad or are hard to eat, but because they take so damn long to cook. However, stick them in an Instant Pot for an hour, and you can walk away while they cook.

They're mild, a little nutty, but also a little waxier in texture than most beans (similar to edamame in that way, but closer to other beans than edamame when they're cooked from dried).

I still haven't found a great use for them other than as a slightly weird substitute for other beans, because there's not a lot of recipes around for them (because they historically took like 3 hours to cook), but I personally enjoy them just fine.

[walthamstow]

> When sold for humans it is called edamame.

or tofu, soy sauce, miso, natto, tianmianjiang, a thousand other things made from soybeans

[aziaziazi]

Tempeh (the cousin of natto) is delicious too and can be used in a variety of recipes from grilled to stew to ice creams.

[bluGill]

all of them are heavily processed and don't look like soy beans. (not everything heavily processed is unhealthy)

[9rx]

Natto still looks like soybeans when they arrive on your plate. They are fermented, but calling that heavily processed seems like a stretch.

[cute_boi]

i don't think tofu is heavily processed...

Thanks.

[9rx]

> When sold for humans it is called edamame.

Edamame is limited to special varieties that are harvested before ripening, which isn't the soybeans those supplanting wheat will be growing. You're probably thinking of tofu, natto, or something in that vein.

[bluGill]

Most of those things don't look like soy beans. (then again almost nobody is eating unprocessed wheat either)

[estebank]

Steak doesn't look like a cow either.

[aziaziazi]

> unprocessed wheat either

Bulgur is a staple in many regions. It's a groat so technically slightly precessed but many consider it whole.

[fullstop]

My wife couldn't understand why I didn't care for edamame. After 40+ years on this planet I finally figured out that I really struggle to digest soy protein. They sneak that stuff in everywhere, but I do my best to avoid it.

[wholinator2]

Yes, the modern food landscape is a horrific catastrophe for anyone with serious dietary restrictions. It's actually disgusting how many things i used to eat have gone the way of soy/sorbitol and completely fucked their product just to pinch pennies. It happens to something i like about 3 or 4 times a year. They sneak those things in and i am unsuspectingly poisoned for weeks. It's one of the things about the modern world i despise the most. I'd trade the modern food choice for that of the 1800s just to be able to eat any of it. And the sysco-ification of all local restaurants is just as bad if not worse. Sysco doesn't give a Fuck about the quality, they'll put as much filler and fake shit as they can cram in and then the restaurants i can trust grows smaller and smaller every year. I'd have to be rich to be able to eat out! It didn't used to be like this >:(

[fullstop]

Ah, so you've also given up on chocolate-coated-anything, any packaged desserts, etc?

As much as it bothers me, I do feel like I've had a healthier diet since cutting out soy. It's not the soy itself which makes these things unhealthy but rather that it's used as a filler in processed foods.

I'll be honest, though, I do miss Nutella.

[forshaper]

I would appreciate tofu being cheaper than pork again.

[persedes]

It is...? H-mart + Wegmans has tofu at ~$2.5 for a 400g block. The cheapest bulk pork is at $2.6, but most portions / cuts sell at $4.

[mekdoonggi]

Costco has tofu for $1.50/block in my area.

[forshaper]

Must just be my relatively rural area, then.