Differences Between Peas and Beans (2024)

FAQs

Differences Between Peas and Beans? ›

Peas are generally round while beans have a wider variety of shapes. Color also varies considerably with non-pea beans. Peas don't usually vary that much in color – they're mostly green. The stem of a pea plant is typically hollow, while beans have a solid stem structure.

Beans and peas are unique because they can belong to 2 different MyPlate groups -- protein foods or vegetables. Basically, you can count them as whatever you need them to be the most. If you get plenty of vegetables, count beans and peas as protein foods.

Therefore, beans, peas, and lentils are also considered part of the vegetable group. Individuals can count beans, peas, and lentils as either a vegetable or a protein food. Beans include varieties such as kidney beans, pinto beans, white beans, black beans, lima beans, and fava beans.

What is the Difference Between Beans and Legumes? Legumes are plants that bear fruit that grows in pods. Beans are the seed from different varieties of plants, although typically the whole plant is referred to as beans. In other words: all beans are legumes, but legumes aren't necessarily beans.

Answer and Explanation:

The similarities between the seed of pea and bean are: They both belong to the Leguminosae family that is both are legumes. Seeds of peas and beans are edible and contain high nutrients like protein, fat, and fiber.

Peas and beans do look very similar and fall under the general seed family, but they aren't the same. Peas are generally round while beans have a wider variety of shapes. Color also varies considerably with non-pea beans. Peas don't usually vary that much in color – they're mostly green.

They are considered different from beans by the botanical scientists due to their embryonic leaves called cotyledons. When these round globular peas are split in half, they are called split peas. Lentils are the whole or split bean of a lens-shaped seed that comes from a pod.

In other words: all beans are legumes, but all legumes aren't necessarily beans. This explains, for instance, why green beans aren't actually beans in the technical sense. Because the fruit of the green bean plant is in a pod, green beans are actually just legumes, not beans.

Green peas and green (string) beans are not part of this subgroup because their nutrition is more like foods in other vegetable subgroups. Green peas and green lima beans are in the Starchy Vegetables subgroup. Green (string) beans are in the Other Vegetables subgroup.

On the surface, peas and beans are quite similar. They're both legumes, which means they're born of the fertilized ovary of a flower and sprout pods which contain seeds. They even share the same plant family, namely Leguminosae. However, beans and peas come from a completely different genus and species.

Is edamame a pea or a bean? ›

Edamame is a bean and therefore a legume. However, legumes vary in their nutritional profile. Compared with pulses, such as lentils, edamame provides a similar amount of protein per 100 calories, but edamame have a higher fat and lower fiber content.

One of their most identifiable differentiating factors is their stem—a pea has a hollowed-out stem, whereas a bean has a more solid stem. Seems minor, right? Well, that's because it is.

Black-eyed peas (Vigna unguiculata) are a variety of cowpea and are part of the family of beans & peas (Leguminosae or Fabaceae). Although called a pea, it is actually a bean. Both peas and beans are legumes, and both have edible seeds and pods.

Broad beans (with the skins removed) are a more labour-intense alternative and shelled edamame beans could be another possibility. Both of these lack the sweetness of peas, so if used we would suggest being very careful about the amount of salt added at step 3.

The most important thing to keep in mind (and the biggest reason for the complication) is that beans are first and foremost classified as a legume. A legume is a plant that bears “fruit” inside of a pod. Beans are harvested and come from a pod, making them a legume.

Beans are unique among plant foods due to their high protein content. For this reason, they're considered an important protein source for vegetarians. Beans come in many varieties. They're packed with protein and fiber while low in fat and calories.

Peas are a good source of vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, thiamine (B1), iron and phosphorus. They are also rich in protein, carbohydrate and fibre and low in fat. A 100 calories serving of peas contains more protein than a whole egg or tablespoon of peanut butter.

Like vegetables – beans, peas, and lentils are excellent sources of fiber, folate, and potassium. And like protein foods – they are excellent sources of plant protein, also providing iron and zinc.

Beans provide protein, fiber, folate, iron, potassium and magnesium while containing little or no total fat, trans fat, sodium and cholesterol [5, 6].