Archaeo-botanical finds in India, dating prior to 1500 BC, offer tantalizing clues to lablab’s culinary journey from Africa, where its use and cultivation appear to be in decline.
Why lablab as a vegetable is unappreciated in mainstream US (read non-immigrant) culinary and farming culture remains a mystery.
The jewel-hued flowers and amethyst pods of purple varieties (there are also green pods and white flowers) of Lablab purpureus are usually marketed in the US as “decorative”—short-hand for don’t-eat-them-or-you’ll-die.
Like lima beans, cassava, and bamboo shoots (and the seeds of apples, pears, and stone fruits), lablab beans contain natural plant toxins called cyanogenic glucosides, which are water-soluble. So they must be soaked to remove the toxins. Lablab also contains a trypsin inhibitor, as do soy beans; it is destroyed by heat.
The key to enjoying lablab is in the preparation. As with most beans and many legumes, they must be cooked.
The edible flowers are safe and quite delicious, raw. So snack away on those.
Edible lablab flowers and rose petals atop deviled eggs.
Lablab is a short-lived perennial only in USDA zones 10 – 11. In cooler zones, grow it as an annual. Sow the soaked seeds directly in-ground or in a large pot; they resent transplanting.