Why not grow your proteins at home?

Every year, I find something new to grow in our vegetable patch. This year, it is the popular channa aka chickpeas. Last December, I found some fresh green channa being sold in carts.

These raw green channa are nutty and crunchy and usually consumed right from the pods. They can also be added raw to salads, cooked and added to gravies. I had missed these delectable pods during the Covid years and was thrilled to find them.

Also, an unexpected health issue popped up at the end of last year, and I was advised to consume more proteins. Looking at the bag full of chickpeas I was holding, the gardener in me asked, why not grow your proteins at home?

In my quest for home-grown protein, I settled on a few other candidates as well: Avarekaalu (hyacinth bean), Avarekayi (broad bean), and Thugarikayi (pigeon peas).

With peas and beans in hand, I was particularly excited about the prospect of a year-round supply from these pods, although it’s important to note that while pigeon peas can indeed produce crops over multiple seasons in tropical climates, making them more perennial, hyacinth beans are typically grown as annuals in our region.

Despite this, their vibrant yield during the growing season more than compensates for their annual cycle. Both broad beans and chickpeas, being true annuals, complete their life cycle in one year, offering a bounty of nutritious pods.