Marama Bean

Marama bean, also called gemsbok bean or morama bean, is Tylosema esculentum, a long lived perennial legume native to arid areas of southern Africa, including Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. Its seeds have traditionally been eaten by Kalahari Desert communities, typically roasted to give a flavor comparable to cashew or chestnut, or ground or boiled; the beans keep well because of their hard outer shell. Its underground tubers are also edible, though only from young plants one to two years old, since older tubers become astringent and fibrous.