Disha Jain Disha Jain Asked 9 months ago

Why are kidney beans called kidney beans?

I was making rajma chawal for dinner, and it suddenly struck me that 'rajma' are called kidney beans in English. They really do look like a kidney! Was that why they got that name, because of their shape?

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Arjun Malhotra Arjun Malhotra Joined Apr 2026 6 months ago
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It's quite straightforward. Kidney beans are named so because their shape and color strongly resemble a human kidney. This is a common practice in botany, where names are given based on appearance or perceived medicinal properties.

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Deepak Sharma Deepak Sharma Joined Jan 2026 9 months ago

Oh, that's an interesting question! I always thought it was obvious because of their shape. Sometimes these simple things make you overthink, but yeah, it's literally just their resemblance to kidneys. No hidden health meaning there, thankfully!

Sneha Reddy Sneha Reddy Joined Jan 2026 9 months ago

They're called kidney beans because their shape is very similar to a human kidney. It's a common way things get named, by how they look. It doesn't mean they're specifically *only* good for kidneys or anything, but they are generally healthy, like many legumes.

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Govind Prasad Govind Prasad Joined Feb 2026 8 months ago

Hahaha, my grandmother used to tell me this! They're called kidney beans because their shape and color look exactly like our kidneys. It's simple, beta. Nothing complicated about it. Just a name based on how it appears.

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