Lupini beans are large Italian beans with a slightly bitter flavor. The bean (Lupinus luteus) is a plant in the pea family. Lupini beans are typically marinated and used in salads or served as a side dish. The pickled beans are also mixed with olives and served as a snack.
In the 1920s a newer sweeter variety (Lupinus albus) was discovered and is referred to as "sweet lupini beans" and are less bitter and require less soaking and cooking than the Lupinus luteus. All lupini beans have to be soaked before they are cooked and the typical cooking time is longer than for most other beans.
Lupini beans are low in carbohydrate and very high in protein. In fact, a 1/2 cup (83 grams) serving contains 8 grams of carbs, 2 grams of dietary fiber and 13 grams of protein.
Aside from being available in the dried form, lupini beans are cooked and packed in ready to use jars. You can also buy snack-sized pouches of the pickled beans to eat as a snack. You can purchase the dried beans, pouches, or the jars at Amazon.com: Lupini Beans.
If you don't have lupini beans then you can substitute one of these alternatives:
metric conversions →
The Andean lupin (Lupin mutabilis) is known as tawri. The beans are toasted and salted and eaten as a high-protein snack or appetizer.
There is a cultivar of the Lipinus albus "Ultra" that is processed into flour for making lupin pasta (Davidson, Oxford Companion To Food). Lupin flour has become a popular food with the Keto crowd. If you are interested in it you can find that as well at Amazon.com: Lupin Flour
Cooked lupini beans in dish