What Is The Difference Between Lima Beans And Butter Beans

The large lima bean is called fordhook or butter bean or madagascar bean and the smaller lima bean is called baby lima henderson dixie.

As anon49947 describes they are best cooked with a hamhock or other pork product. It seems like a lot of people don t like lima beans. Lima beans are a bit bitter and butter beans colored like butter0 are more mellow like navy beans in a way. Lima beans are more than just related to butter beans they are the same thing.

And southern u s these beans are called butter beans due to their similar consistency to butter. They may have been from the same family but the butter bean was different and to our taste vastly superior. Flavor and texture of bean varieties. The main difference between lima beans and butter beans is that lima beans are green and small whereas butter beans are yellow and large.

The beans are named after lima the capital of peru. Butter beans may be a type of lima beans but when eaten they are large typically 1 5 inch or more in length and usually a creamy tan to light brown color. Lima beans are the butt of every joke about a disgusting thing your mom forced you to eat as a child. Maybe you re an adventurous chef the sort who knows the difference between all kinds of butters or who can wax poetic about different types of mushrooms or maybe you re more like us someone who likes to keep things simple in the kitchen and pull out a can of beans to help kick off a recipe.

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In the south lima beans are often called butter beans and in the uk they almost exclusively refer to them as butter beans. Butter beans are creamy and elegant and tossed with heirloom tomatoes. The culinary terminology used in the united kingdom differentiates between lima and butter beans more in line with the southern united states distinction where lima beans that are dried larger and light yellow are referred to as butter beans and the smaller green bean is called a baby or junior lima bean. Although the fordhook might appear to be a mature baby lima the two are in fact separate varieties.

Lima beans and butter beans are two terms interchangeably used to describe phaseolus lunatus a type of beans. I ve lived in the south for 60 years and lima beans are the smaller green bean. Below is a photo of large lima bean and baby lima. In the american south as well as in the u k they are most commonly referred to as butter beans rather than lima beans.

Anon63980 february 4 2010. There is a distinct difference in lima beans and butter beans.