Mesquite beans make a lovely gluten-free meal or flour. Sweet. A tad nutty flavored. Some people say somewhat carob-like. They have a delightful taste all their own. Just like we said in the post about verdolagas when asked what they taste like. Shrug. They taste like themselves.
Cover image: Serving Suggestion. Serve these pancakes with a nice dollop of applesauce on top. It’s one way to thwart cravings for candy sweet syrup – plus get some fruit in the morning.
Trying Mesquite? Start Simple
Try the new food and wait a up to a day to see how your body reacts.
You have already tested every single food you commonly eat. Maybe you just don’t think about it that testing. You were too young to remember doing most of it. All of us went through food testing back when our age was measured in months. Parents fed us babies only one new food in a 24 hour period. Then they got to change diapers and decide if they would ever feed you that food again in your life!
Since most of us adult people don’t wear diapers, nor want to, let’s follow that old rule from childhood. Only one new food at a time. One way to start simple is with the mesquite pancakes we share here. Eat a few and see how your body likes the mesquite. Reminder that not everyone can eat all beans. Some people need to Beware of Beans.
If you find you enjoy mesquite beans, you can easily start your own at home, or in your neighborhood. Some guerrilla planting of a tree that can also feed people is not amiss in my book. How to Grow Mesquite on Gardening With Soule.
Forage Mesquite
We offer a carefully researched article Safely Harvest Mesquite. We stress the fact that the pods should be harvested off the tree, not the ground. Soil contains all manner of bacteria and fungal spores that are not healthy for humans to eat.
I did get into a quite a discussion about harvesting mesquite with an earnest young man. He felt that he should be able to simply harvest the mesquite beans off the ground because that is how the O’odham did it in the old days – before germ theory came along. I am glad to say that he rationally discussed his ideas rather than adamantly feeling his way was correct. We both went away from the discourse with ample food for thought.
Harvest Mesquite Off Trees
Yes, collect the ripe pods off the trees before they fall onto the soil. This was how it was done and is considered safest.
Point. Wind blows in the desert. Soil particles, bacteria, fungal spores, are all carried in the air and can land on mesquite beans.
Counterpoint. This is one reason we do NOT wash our mesquite pods. We do not want the fungus to start growing. The early people did not wash their beans either.
Point. Life was tough, you would not leave bounty behind.
Counterpoint. The early people lived in the desert, not in a city. There were many animals sharing the land. Mesquite pods did not lie on the ground for more than a day or so. Rabbits, coyotes, deer, and all manner of wildlife would come to mesquite bosques to eat of the bounty. Desert fox would climb the mesquite trees to feast.
Desert peoples were trying to beat the wildlife to the bounty, and that was to harvest pods off the trees. Low laying branches were prodded with long sticks to encourage beans to fall. The children were tasked with scurrying around to gather these fallen pods. The pods did not lay on the ground and get rained on. This leads back to not washing beans.
Inspect Your Pods
It’s not about clean. Back in the day, before the labor of hand pounding mesquite beans into meal started, you selected full, healthy looking pods.
Today – before you grind you mesquite pods inspect them for uniform color and no black mold or other damage.
Point. Holes from bruchid beetles leaving are normal. Since it is evidence of the beetle leaving the pod – is still good to eat.
Counterpoint. Indeed. One or two holes may be okay, but many holes in a pod means that the mesquite beans inside the pods – the part full of healthy protein – are eaten and gone.
Counterpoint 2. When a bug eats it’s food, it leaves behind frass. A certain amount of insect frass is not considered harmful. Indeed a certain amount of frass is legally allowed in human flour, along with insect parts, not to mention “evidence” of mice and rats, including hairs and excrement. I try not to let my mind dwell on this.
Please consider the above additional points and counterpoints as you forage, process, and use the products of the land.
Mesquite Pancakes
Dry Ingredients 1/3 cup wheat flour 1 cup mesquite flour or meal 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt Wet Ingredients 2 eggs, well beaten 1 1/4 cup milk 2 Tablespoons melted butter or oil
Directions
Step one. Two Bowls.
Start with two different bowls. Mix the wet ingredients in the larger bowl. Mix the egg first and scramble well, then add the milk and butter.
The dry ingredients (flours, baking powder, salt) should be fluffed together in a smaller bowl. Stir with fingers or a fork to distribute the baking powder evenly and give you a chance to break up any clumps.
Some people like to put the salt in with the wet ingredients to make sure it gets dissolved. I have never found this to be an issue.
Step two. Combine.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ones and mix just enough to get them moist. The baking powder will start to react and you see bubbles on the mix.
Step three. Cook ’em Up!
Spoon batter onto/into hot buttered or oiled griddle or skillet. When bubbles form on the surface, flip the pancake. Flip only once. Uncle Smokey has much to say on this topic and we will try to get him to discuss this soon.
Step four. Serve.
You can serve with maple syrup or honey, or maybe jelly or jam. I find they are sweet enough to eat as they are. Honestly, I often munch them before they get to the plate.
Adjustments. It’s not your fault.
This recipe is a general guide to amounts and generally works. But.
Eggs vary in size and moisture content. Older eggs are often dryer than fresh.
Mesquite meal varies in it’s ability to absorb moisture. This is depending on the tree and also depending on the grind. Is it more mealy or more like flour?
Trouble 1. Pancake batter is too dense and your pancakes too thick and don’t cook through well. Add more milk – but just a touch at a time – to thin it.
Trouble 2. Pancakes are too thin and runny. Add more mesquite flour to soak up the moisture. Be patient, it might take a few moments.
Trouble 3. Pancakes don’t fluff or bubble. No fix for this. Your baking powder is old and tired. NEXT time add more which can make the pancakes bitter. Best just throw the can out and buy fresh. Baking powder only lasts about a year before getting all tired out.
Use Sourdough Discard
I have been experimenting with this and hope to have a recipe for you all soon. Basically don’t add any flour, use discard instead. Use less milk. It seems to still need baking powder, but also some sweetening to taste good.
More Mesquite Recipes
Please see our page on Foraging. We do try to keep updating as we add new bounty to forage.
Mesquite Atole (a drink)
Gluten-Free Mesquite Apple Muffins
general Forage & Use Mesquite
Thanks for reading!
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About the Author of this Article:
Jacqueline A. Soule, Ph.D. is an Ethnobotanist, Associate Researcher at the University of Arizona Herbarium, and former Chair of the Desert Legume Program (DELEP) Advisory Board. Mesquite are one of the many legumes used by humans over the aeons. She is author of 17 books, countless articles, and is a popular public speaker. She researches traditional uses of plants by local peoples and writes about growing and using plants of the Sonoran Desert for two sites
gardeningwithsoule.net
here at savorthesouthwest.net
Copyright
© Article copyright Jacqueline A. Soule. All rights reserved. You must ask permission to republish an entire blog post or article. Okay to use a short excerpt – but you must give proper credit to Savor the Southwest. You must include a link to the original post on this site. No stealing photos.
Disclaimer
The authors of this website have researched the edibility of the materials we discuss, however, humans vary in their ability to tolerate different foods, drinks, and herbs. Individuals consuming flowers, plants, animals or derivatives mentioned in this blog do so entirely at their own risk. The authors on this site cannot be held responsible for any adverse reaction. In case of doubt please consult your medical practitioner.
YES! Using sourdough discard with mesquite is fantastic. top with a sauce made from canagrie and we had a Sonoran breakfast that can’t be beat!