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Meal Pattern Minute: Edamame

April 4, 2025

There are many types of creditable meat alternates in the Child Adult Care Food Program such as beans, peas, and lentils but what about edamame? Edamame are young soybeans that are harvested before they reach maturity. You can find shelled edamame in stir fries, salads, soups, or lightly steamed and served as is. These young soybeans are filled with nutrients such as fiber, protein, and iron. But are edamame creditable in the CACFP? And if they are, how do you credit them? 

Find out by tuning in to this Meal Pattern Minute as Isabel Ramos-Lebron, MS, RDN,LD, provides the answer to this question. 

Dive into the resources provided below to help you better understand edamame and how it credits in the CACFP. 

  • Review the Crediting Handbook for the CACFP as a quick crediting reference for edamame. 
    • Both fresh and roasted shelled soybeans “credit either as a meat alternate or vegetable, but not both in the same meal.” 
    • Edamame credit the same way as you would credit beans.  
      • If you are looking to credit edamame as a vegetable, it will be based by volume served. Serving ¼ cup edamame will credit as a ¼ cup of vegetables.  
      • As a meat/meat alternate component, if you serve ¼ cup edamame this would credit as 1 oz eq meat/meat alternate.
  • USDA developed the tip sheets below to help CACFP operators obtain quick answers for crediting meal components.  
  •  Search edamame in the USDA Food Buying Guide. This interactive web-based tool can help you find specific meal components, their yield information and how much to serve to credit towards the CACFP meal pattern. 

Try USDA’s Corn and Edamame Blend recipe, where those in your care will taste sweetness from the corn and a mild, nutty flavor from the edamame. It’s a great way to introduce edamame by serving it with a known vegetable, corn. The link provided contains standardized recipes for the types of participants you may serve, listed below. 

  • Family Child Care Home (6 servings)  
  • Child Care Centers (25 & 50 servings)  
  • Adult (25 & 50 servings)

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