Snack on these fiery and spicy edamame sautéed with chili paste, garlic, and miso. It’s intensely delicious. You won’t be able to stop eating these!
Today I’m bringing you one of the tastiest and healthiest things to snack on—Spicy Edamame. Typically enjoyed with salt and pepper, these young soybeans are the next-level yumminess when spiced up with a little heat and packed with savory, umami goodness. Trust me, you’d be obsessed!
Table of Contents
What Are Edamame?
Edamame beans are green soybeans, with a sweet, mild, and buttery taste. The two main ways to enjoy edamame: in pods or shelled. In Japan, edamame beans are often boiled in salted water in their pods and served as appetizers. Between sips of beer, you pop the beans out to eat before the main course is served.
You can easily find frozen edamame in pods and shelled edamame sold in plastic bags in the freezer aisle at most grocery stores.
See also The Health Benefits and How to Cook Edamame (The Authentic Japanese Method).
Why You’ll Love Spicy Edamame
- Low carb, low-calorie, high protein, rich in fiber and nutrients.
- Perfect healthy snack or as an appetizer for all occasions: movie nights, game days, home parties, etc.
- Super simple to make and irresistibly delicious!
How to Make Spicy Edamame
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Frozen edamame pods – I recommend using the edamame pods for this recipe. Even though you could still use the flavorings for shelled edamame, they are more suitable for use in salads, rice bowls, noodles, etc.
- Neutral flavored oil
- Garlic
- Chili paste – I used sambal oelek to add heat, but you can use Sriracha or other brands of garlic chili sauce.
- Miso (Japanese fermented soybean paste)
- Soy sauce
- Mirin (Japanese rice wine) – You can use a little bit of sugar or maple syrup.
Overview: Cooking Steps
- Cook edamame according to package instruction.
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan and cook the garlic until fragrant. Add the chili paste, miso, soy sauce, and mirin and cook until combined.
- Add the cooked edamame pods to the sauce and toss to combine with the sauce. Serve warm or at room temperature.
How easy is that! The edamame pods get a transformative kick from the simple spicy sauce of chili paste, garlic, miso, and soy sauce. It’s fiery and punchy, with the perfect mix of peppery spice and aromatic garlic flavor. And miso gives it an extra oomph. As you pop the soybeans into your mouth, every bite is exciting and enjoyable, leaving you wanting more.
A Non-Spicy Variation
If you are not a big fan of heat or spicy food, no problem! Just skip the chili paste or gradually increase the heat level as you like. My level of heat tolerance is typically “mild” when I order spicy food. This Spicy Edamame is mild spicy level.
You can always add more or less chili paste to suit your taste. Even if you reduce the heat, it still has plenty of flavor from the garlic, miso, and soy sauce.
Plus, all the flavor is mostly on the pods and not inside soybeans. Your lips will pick up some heat as you pop the soybeans into your mouth.
Best Beverages to Serve with Spicy Edamame
The best beverage to pair with spicy edamame is foamy cold beer, but you can also serve it with sake, rosé wine, cocktail, or mocktail.
For healthy options, we love pairing it with Cold Brew Green Tea or Cold Brew Hojicha.
More Edamame Recipes
- How to Cook Edamame (Fresh & Frozen)
- Mosaic Sushi
- Vegan Poke Bowl
Trader Joe’s Japanese Fried Rice with Edamame, Tofu, and Hijiki Seaweed - Pan-fried Teriyaki Tofu Bowl
- Meal Prep Bento Ideas
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Spicy Edamame
Ingredients
For Cooking the Edamame Pods
- 10-14 oz edamame (in pods; I use frozen edamame)
- 1 QT water (1 QT = 4 cups)
- 1 Tbsp kosher salt (Diamond Crystal; use half for table salt) (edamame pods are thick; therefore, we need to salt the cooking water to give the soybeans a subtle base flavor; the spicy and salty flavors are mostly on the pods)
For the Spicy Sauce
- 1 Tbsp neutral-flavored oil (vegetable, rice bran, canola, etc.)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 Tbsp chili paste (Sambal Oelek)
- 1 tsp miso
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp mirin
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Add the water to a pot and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Once boiling, add the salt.
- Add the frozen edamame pods and cook, stirring once in a while, for 4-5 minutes, or until the soybeans are an al dente consistency. (Read the package instructions carefully and check if the soybeans are raw or cooked. Frozen edamame imported from Japan are always precooked, so you only need to boil them for 1 minute to reheat).
- If you see foam forming on the surface of the water, remove it with a fine-mesh skimmer because we do not rinse the pods after cooking. When the edamame are done cooking, drain in a colander. DO NOT RINSE, or the edamame will lose their salted flavor. Set aside.
- Heat a large frying pan over medium-low to medium heat. When the pan is warm, add the oil and garlic and sauté until fragrant. Don't burn the garlic.
- Add the chili paste and miso and stir until combined.
- Add the soy sauce and mirin and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce is thickened a little bit.
- Add the cooked edamame pods to the pan and toss to coat them with the sauce. Transfer to a plate and serve warm or at room temperature. To eat, remove the soybeans from their inedible pods and enjoy.
To Store
- Keep the leftovers in the refrigerator and reheat to warm or bring it to room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on October 18, 2013. It’s been republished with new pictures and the revised recipe on August 8, 2022.
