Can You Even Call Yourself Chinese Without Eating 10+ Types of Beans?

The World’s Table Begins with China’s Little Beans

10 February 2025 marks the seventh World Pulses Day. This year’s theme is “Pulses: Bringing Diversity to Agrifood Systems” — grow beans, eat beans, embrace diverse agriculture, live healthily.

Soya beans, edamame and black beans are everyday ingredients at the table, yet all of these beans actually originate from China.

Little Beans, Big History

The history of beans in China stretches back thousands of years, with the Chinese first cultivating and eating pulses millennia ago. Among them, the soya bean was the earliest to be cultivated in China and remains a vital food and cash crop to this day. Mung beans, adzuki beans and broad beans all play important roles in Chinese culinary culture.

In traditional farming culture, the soya bean was not only a key source of nourishment but also essential to the cycling of nutrients in the soil. Soya beans form a symbiotic relationship with rhizobium bacteria, naturally supplying nitrogen to the earth. This innate nitrogen fixation played a crucial part in the development of crop rotation.

Little Beans, Conquering the World

Beans followed the routes of trade and human migration, spreading from China to the far corners of the globe. During the Han Dynasty, with the opening of the Silk Road, Chinese crops began flowing westward, and the soya bean may well have been among them. Beans have since taken root across Asia, Europe, the Americas and even Africa, embedding themselves in local food cultures. For example, when the soya bean reached Japan, it became the foundation for miso, tofu and other important fermented foods. Meanwhile, the Aztecs of the Americas cultivated black beans and borlotti beans. Beyond the soya bean, other pulses such as adzuki beans, mung beans and peas have, over the centuries, travelled with trade and migration to every corner of the world, becoming indispensable ingredients in diverse cuisines. Japan and Korea, influenced by China, developed a rich array of bean-based foods; and during the Ming and Qing dynasties, Chinese immigrants brought their bean-based culinary traditions to Southeast Asia, shaping local food cultures.

Little Beans, Seeing the World

Little beans, big world — don’t underestimate these humble beans, for they have been key players in human history, culture and cuisine. Want to know how beans have shaped the world? We have handpicked a few books about pulses and hope you will enjoy your beans while reading up on the extraordinary influence they have had on the world.

Jin Yamei: The Zhejiang Woman Who Stepped Onto the World Stage

The First to Bring Traditional Chinese Bean Products to America

Jin Yamei, a woman who stepped from China onto the world stage, was not only among the first Chinese women to pursue higher education in the United States but also a pioneer of Western medicine in China. She also held a little-known title—the first person to introduce traditional Chinese bean products to America.

Throughout her career, spanning work in both China and the United States, Jin Yamei poured extraordinary energy into building the reputation of “Chinese cheese” in America. She strove to break down cultural barriers and encourage mainstream American society to embrace bean-based foods commonly found on Chinese dining tables—soy milk, bean sprouts, tofu, fermented bean curd, and even the pungent stinky tofu. (Source: Global Crossroads)

Magic Bean: The Rise of Soybeans in America

How did a crop born in China ignite an agricultural and culinary revolution in America?

Matthew Roth, whose research focuses on American history, currently serves as Associate Director of the Andrea Mitchell Center for Democracy at the University of Pennsylvania, where he teaches environmental history, and is a contributor to several journals.

The soybean we take for granted today has a history marked by surprising phases in its spread and development. In 1900, China was the world’s leading producer of soybeans. By 2000, the soybean had become America’s most important cash crop, with cultivated area second only to corn. Through vivid and meticulous research, Matthew Roth reveals the soybean’s significance in science, agriculture, the environment and technology. (Source: Commercial Press)

Chinese Tofu

Wherever Chinese people gather, there is tofu. Alongside stir-fries or in soups, paired with meats or vegetables, it suits every dish;
in bitterness, sweetness, sourness or heat, it bends to any wish.

Chinese Tofu is a comprehensive volume on the subject. Beyond simple tofu menus, it features essays, historical research, proverbs, poetry, legends and interviews—all devoted to tofu. The contributors include not only Lin Haiyin but also writers from China, Japan, Korea, the United States and Germany. The writers poured their imaginations into capturing the tofu in their hearts, lending the book not only the practicality of a menu but also literary depth—making it a Chinese Tofu that speaks to both mind and soul. (Source: Guangxi Normal University Press)

The Farmer Seed Network has been dedicated to the conservation and utilisation of indigenous beans since 2015. With the support of the Vanke Foundation, it launched the “Little Beans, Big Health” initiative, exploring the connections between beans and themes such as biodiversity, food culture, ecological conservation and climate change.

The soya bean, an ancient seed originating from China, carries within it not only centuries of farming wisdom but also our food, health and folk traditions. We have travelled across China, tracing the diversity of native beans and exploring how they nourish the land, sustain communities and reshape our relationship with food. From field to table, this is not merely a meditation on sustainable food but a rediscovery of local flavours and wholesome eating.

On World Pulses Day, join us in revisiting the stories of little beans from across China.

We have gathered the local tales above into the following booklet, available in both Chinese and English editions. Feel free to click and read.

Beans in Progress: The Sino-German Tofu Network

The concept of the Tofu Network grew out of the collaborative work of the Sino-German Agricultural Biodiversity Network. Experts from China and Germany jointly proposed the establishment of the Tofu Network to foster deeper exchange and cooperation in agricultural biodiversity, with a particular focus on issues surrounding soya bean and tofu food culture. The Tofu Network is dedicated to raising public awareness of the rich heritage of traditional soya bean and tofu food culture, while promoting the conservation, utilisation and stewardship of local soya bean varieties in China and around the world, and exploring innovative pathways for integrating traditional food culture with the green transition in agriculture.

With the support of the Sino-German Agricultural Centre, the Farmer Seed Network commissioned Zhi Nanmen Market to conduct a study on Chinese tofu, writing and compiling the report “Chinese Tofu: Preliminary Research on the Sino-German Tofu Network”. The report traces the evolution of tofu across China’s history and culture, focusing on the diversity of tofu across different agro-ecological regions and revealing its multifaceted contributions to local food cultures, economic development and biodiversity conservation. The study also explores the potential of tofu as a bridge for international cooperation, highlighting its vital role in building sustainable agri-food systems.