Apios Americana Recipes and Where to Buy the Plants

Apios Americana Potato Bean Stew (American Groundnut Stew)

A hearty, comforting bowl with a nutty “potato-like” twist

If you’re lucky enough to get your hands on Apios americana (also known as potato bean or American groundnut, or Hopniss), you’ve got a brilliant ingredient for cosy, filling meals. 

The tubers cook up starchy and satisfying like potatoes, but with a slightly nutty, richer flavour that makes them feel a bit more special.

This recipe is a warming, one-pot-style stew that suits the potato bean perfectly — and if you can’t source Apios americana easily, I’ve included simple UK-friendly substitutes too.

What You’ll Love About This Potato Bean Stew

Comforting and filling (proper cold-weather food)

Uses simple ingredients

Great for batch cooking

Flexible: vegetarian or meaty

Easy to adapt if you can’t find Apios americana

Apios Americana Potato Bean Stew Recipe

Serves: 4

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 45–60 minutes

Ingredients

Main ingredients

500g Apios americana tubers (potato beans), scrubbed clean

1 tbsp olive oil (or butter for extra richness)

1 large onion, diced

2 carrots, sliced

2 celery sticks, sliced (optional but lovely)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp smoked paprika (optional, but adds warmth)

1 tsp dried thyme (or 2 tsp fresh thyme)

2 tbsp tomato purée

900ml vegetable stock (or chicken stock)

1 tin chopped tomatoes (400g)

1 bay leaf

Salt and black pepper, to taste

Optional add-ins (choose your vibe)

For a meatier stew:

200g smoked bacon lardons or 4 good sausages, sliced

For a veggie version:

1 tin cannellini beans or butter beans, drained and rinsed

A handful of spinach or kale stirred in at the end

To finish (recommended):

1 tbsp cider vinegar or a squeeze of lemon juice

Chopped parsley (or spring onions)

How to Make Apios Americana Stew (Step-by-Step)

1) Prep the potato beans

Scrub the tubers clean and trim off any rough bits.

If the tubers are different sizes, cut the larger ones into halves or thirds so they cook evenly.

2) Soften your veg

Heat the oil in a large pot or casserole over a medium heat.

Add the onion, carrots and celery and cook for 8–10 minutes, stirring now and then, until softened and smelling sweet.

3) Add garlic and seasoning

Add the garlic, smoked paprika and thyme, and cook for 1 minute.

Stir in the tomato purée and let it cook for another minute (this helps take the raw edge off).

4) Add the good stuff

Add the chopped tomatoes, stock, bay leaf, and your Apios americana tubers.

Bring to a gentle simmer, then turn the heat down low and cook uncovered for 40–60 minutes, until the tubers are tender.

(They should pierce easily with a fork, like potatoes.)

5) Taste and adjust

Remove the bay leaf. Season well with salt and black pepper.

Stir in a splash of cider vinegar or lemon juice at the end — it lifts the whole pot and makes it taste less “flat”.

6) Serve and enjoy

Ladle into bowls and top with chopped parsley.

Serve with:

crusty bread and butter

a toasted baguette

dumplings (if you want to go full comfort mode)

Tips for Cooking Apios Americana (Potato Beans)

Don’t boil them aggressively.

A gentle simmer helps the tubers stay intact and stops them turning to mush too early.

If you want a thicker stew…

Mash a few tubers against the side of the pot and stir back in. Instant thickness, no flour needed.

Leftovers taste even better.

Like most stews, it improves overnight as the flavours settle.

If You Can’t Get Apios Americana: Easy Substitutes

Apios americana can be tricky to source in the UK, so here are realistic swaps that still keep the spirit of the dish:

Best substitute combo:

new potatoes + butter beans

This mimics the starchy texture and adds the bean-like richness.

Other good swaps:

baby potatoes + cannellini beans

sweet potatoes + chickpeas (slightly sweeter, still filling)

parsnips + haricot beans (earthy, wintery vibe)

Variations to Try

1) Creamy Potato Bean Stew

Stir in:

3 tbsp double cream or oat cream

a knob of butter

Perfect if you want it richer and more “pub-style”.

2) Spicy Tomato & Potato Bean Stew

Add:

1 tsp chilli flakes

1 tsp cumin

a pinch of cinnamon (trust me!)

3) Sausage & Potato Bean Stew

Slice sausages, brown them first, then continue the recipe using the sausage fat for flavour.

Storage and Reheating

Fridge:

Keeps for up to 3 days in a sealed container.

Freezer:

Freezes well for up to 3 months.

Reheat:

Warm gently on the hob with a splash of water or stock.

Final Thoughts: A Proper Bowl of Comfort With a Forgotten Ingredient

Apios americana might not be an everyday ingredient, but it’s exactly the sort of “old-fashioned but exciting” food that suits modern cooking: hearty, comforting, and surprisingly versatile.

If you ever spot potato beans / American groundnuts for sale, this stew is one of the best ways to use them — because it lets their flavour shine without overcomplicating things.

You can buy them here:-

https://www.otterfarm.co.uk/product/apios-american/

https://incrediblevegetables.co.uk/shop/apios-americana-groundnut-hopniss/

Apios americana (Potato Bean): The Wild, Forgotten “American Potato” You’ll Want to Know About

When we think of comfort food staples, we often picture the humble potato: cheap, filling, and endlessly versatile. 

But long before the modern supermarket potato became the king of the kitchen, there was another starchy, satisfying plant feeding communities across North America, Apios americana, more commonly known as the potato bean, American groundnut, or sometimes even the Indian potato.

It’s a plant with a fascinating past, an unusual growth habit, and a flavour that feels like a cross between a nutty potato and a hearty bean. And despite being relatively unknown today, it’s quietly earning attention again among gardeners, foragers, and adventurous cooks.

So what exactly is Apios americana, why was it once so important, and is it something you could actually eat (or even grow) today?

Let’s take a proper look.

What Is Apios americana?

Apios americana is a perennial climbing vine native to eastern and central North America. Unlike most “bean plants” you’ll picture, it isn’t grown for a crop of pods. Instead, it’s prized for the underground tubers that form along its roots.

Those tubers are the star of the show, because they’re:

edible

nutritious

starchy and filling

naturally produced by the plant year after year

In simple terms, it’s a plant that acts a bit like a bean plant above ground… but behaves like a potato underground.

No wonder it gained the nickname “potato bean.”

Why Is It Called the Potato Bean?

The name “potato bean” makes more sense once you understand how the plant works.

Above ground:

Apios americana grows as a twining vine, and it produces pea-like flowers (often a rich reddish-purple). Like many members of the legume family, it can fix nitrogen into the soil, which makes it valuable in a garden setting.

Below ground:

Instead of giving you a harvest of beans, it forms a chain of knobbly tubers beneath the surface. These are what you dig up and cook, much like potatoes.

So it sits at an interesting crossroads:

a legume in its biology

a potato in how you eat it

A Plant With Deep History

Apios americana isn’t some trendy new superfood. It’s a traditional food source with genuine historical importance.

For centuries, it was used as a staple by Indigenous peoples. It’s also known to have been eaten by early European settlers in North America, partly because it was already a dependable wild food that could be gathered and cooked.

The plant’s tubers form underground like a natural larder — and once you know what you’re looking for, it’s easy to see why it was so valuable. In a landscape where farming could be unpredictable, having a perennial plant that produces edible tubers is like striking gold.

What Does Apios americana Taste Like?

People often describe Apios americana tubers as:

nutty

earthy

sweet-ish

potato-like in texture

more flavourful than a standard potato

Think of it as a more complex, slightly denser potato with a “bean-ish” richness to it.

The texture can vary depending on how you cook it, but it generally becomes soft and starchy when boiled, and crisp-edged when roasted.

If you enjoy things like roasted parsnips, butter beans, or chestnuts, you’ll probably get on with it.

How Do You Cook Potato Beans (Apios americana Tubers)?

The tubers are the edible part most people use. If you got your hands on some, you’d treat them similarly to other small tubers.

1) Boiled and buttered (simple comfort food)

Boil until tender, drain, then toss with:

butter (or olive oil)

salt and pepper

a little garlic

chopped herbs (parsley works beautifully)

This is a great “first try” method because it lets you taste the tuber properly without burying it in too many flavours.

2) Roasted like new potatoes

Roast them with:

olive oil

rosemary or thyme

smoked paprika (optional)

sea salt

They can go crisp on the outside while staying fluffy inside — very much like roasting baby potatoes.

3) Mashed into soups and stews

Apios americana can add a lovely body to winter dishes. Pop it into a stew with carrots, onions, stock, and herbs, and it will thicken and enrich the broth naturally.

4) Pan-fried slices

Slice thinly and fry in a little oil until golden, then sprinkle with salt. Simple and dangerously snackable.

Is Apios americana Nutritious?

One of the reasons Apios americana stands out is because it doesn’t just act like a potato — it’s often considered higher in protein than standard potatoes (though exact nutrition varies depending on the plant and growing conditions).

It’s also a plant that offers:

slow-release, starchy energy

fibre

a more filling “full meal” quality than many tubers

That mix of starch + protein is part of what made it such a valuable food historically.

Can You Grow Apios americana in the UK?

Here’s the interesting bit for gardeners: yes, it can be grown outside North America, including in parts of the UK, as long as it has the right conditions.

Apios americana is:

a climbing vine, so it needs support (trellis, fence, wigwam canes)

a perennial, so it comes back year after year

happier with moist, well-draining soil

generally suited to temperate conditions

That said, it isn’t a “plant it and forget it” crop like a bag of supermarket seed potatoes. It can take time to establish, and tuber production improves as the plant matures.

If you’re a gardener who enjoys unusual edible plants — especially ones with a bit of history behind them — this is the kind of thing that becomes a talking point in your garden.

(Quick note: if you’re growing anything intended for eating, always buy from a reputable supplier rather than digging up wild plants. Wild foraging has risks, and correct identification matters.)

Why Isn’t It More Popular?

With a name like “potato bean,” you’d think Apios americana would be everywhere.

But plants don’t become mainstream just because they’re tasty. Popularity often comes down to convenience and commercial farming.

Apios americana has a few challenges that likely held it back commercially:

tubers can form in a chain and can be fiddly to harvest compared with potatoes

it’s not as standardised as modern farm crops

it takes time to establish strong yields

it was overshadowed by the potato once potatoes became widely grown and traded

Still, “forgotten” doesn’t mean “not worth growing.” It just means it never got picked as the winner in the mass-market race.

The Potato Bean’s Quiet Comeback

There’s something deeply appealing about plants like Apios americana.

They’re not hyped-up supermarket trends. They’re old, useful, resilient foods that remind us how inventive people were with what grew naturally around them. In today’s world of rising food costs and renewed interest in self-sufficiency, it makes sense that more people are starting to notice them again.

Apios americana is:

a conversation starter

a piece of edible history

a potential home-grown staple

and frankly… just something different

And sometimes different is exactly what makes food exciting again.

Final Thoughts: Apios americana Deserves Your Attention

If you’ve never heard of Apios americana before today, you’re not alone. But now you know: the potato bean is real, it’s fascinating, and it bridges the gap between legumes and tubers in a way that feels almost too clever to be true.

Whether you’re interested in forgotten foods, unusual ingredients, or even growing your own quirky crops, Apios americana is absolutely worth a spot on your radar.

Next we'll be covering some recipes.