(Vigna unguiculata ssp. unguiculata)
Black-eyed beans or peas, cowpea, black-eyed suzies, Southern peas, lobia dal, lady peas, cream peas, brown-eyed peas, crowder peas
Black-eyed beans are small, creamy white, with a black mark at the sprouting point, making them easily recognized.
They have a pleasant flavour and a light texture that becomes pinkish when cooked. Since they have a thinner skin than most beans, they cook up quickly without the need for presoaking.
Since this bean is from the same genus (Vigna) as the mung bean and other Chinese legumes, it is naturally thought to have originated in there before making its way to Arabic countries and into Africa.
It was introduced to the West about the 18th century through the slave trade. It still remains an important food in Africa, but now also found growing throughout the tropics and the Southern US states.
Used fresh or dried, these beans are also canned on a large scale in the US. Over 90% of the beans are grown in California and shipped all over the world.
Although it is closely related to the yard-long bean,
the black-eyed bean is almost always found in the dried form and not in the pod.
However, the young pods and the leafy shoots can be eaten as a fresh vegetable.
Black-eyed or yellow-eyed peas are sometimes confused with black beans; and, although they are called peas, they are really beans and should be treated as such.
