Soybean

Soybean
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Genus: Glycine
Species:
G. max
Binomial name
Glycine max
Synonyms[1]
  • Dolichos soja L.
  • Glycine angustifolia Miq.
  • Glycine gracilis Skvortsov
  • Glycine hispida (Moench) Maxim.
  • Glycine soja sensu auct.
  • Phaseolus max L.
  • Soja angustifolia Miq.
  • Soja hispida Moench
  • Soja japonica Savi
  • Soja max (L.) Piper
  • Soja soja H. Karst.
  • Soja viridis Savi
Soybean
Chinese name
Chinese大豆
Literal meaning"large bean"
Southern Chinese name
Traditional Chinese黃豆
Simplified Chinese黄豆
Literal meaning"yellow bean"
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabetđậu tương (or đỗ tương)
đậu nành
Chữ Hán豆漿
Chữ Nôm豆𥢃
Korean name
Hangul대두 (or 메주콩)
Hanja大豆
Japanese name
Kanji大豆[2]
Kanaダイズ
Beans in a supermarket in China
Beans for sale at a supermarket in China

The soybean, soy bean, or soya bean (Glycine max)[3] is a species of legume native to East Asia, widely grown for its edible bean, which has numerous uses.

Traditional unfermented food uses of soybeans include soy milk, from which tofu and tofu skin are made. Fermented soy foods include soy sauce, fermented bean paste, nattō, and tempeh. Fat-free (defatted) soybean meal is a significant and cheap source of protein for animal feeds and many packaged meals. For example, soybean products, such as textured vegetable protein (TVP), are ingredients in many meat and dairy substitutes.[4]

Soybeans contain significant amounts of phytic acid, dietary minerals and B vitamins. Soy vegetable oil, used in food and industrial applications, is another product of processing the soybean crop. Soybean is the most important protein source for feed farm animals (that in turn yields animal protein for human consumption).[5]

  1. ^ "Glycine max". Encyclopedia of Life (EoL). Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  2. ^ Generally written in katakana, not kanji.
  3. ^ "Glycine max". Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database. Retrieved February 16, 2012.
  4. ^ Riaz, Mian N. (2006). Soy Applications in Food. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-2981-4.
  5. ^ "Soybean meal". Retrieved April 16, 2019.