Quick Answer: Termis beans are lupini beans — the brined yellow seeds of the lupin plant (Lupinus albus), eaten across Egypt and the Mediterranean as a salty street snack. They are exceptionally high in protein and fiber, but they are bitter and unsafe when raw: traditional preparation soaks, boils and brines them over several days to remove their bitter alkaloids before eating.
Order a coffee in Cairo, Lisbon or Palermo and something small and golden may arrive beside it: a bowl of glossy yellow beans, eaten one by one, squeezed from their skins. In Egypt they are called termis (also spelled tirmis), in Italy lupini, in Portugal tremoços. They are one of the oldest snacks in the Mediterranean world — and one of the least understood outside it. This explainer covers what termis beans actually are, how they are made safe to eat, what their nutrition really looks like, and the warnings that matter.
What Are Termis Beans?
Termis are the seeds of the white lupin plant, a legume in the same broad family as peas, chickpeas and peanuts. The beans are flat, round and pale yellow, roughly the size of a broad bean. They have been eaten since ancient times — lupins were cultivated in the Mediterranean thousands of years ago and were a common food of both the Egyptians and the Romans. Today they remain a beloved snack in Egypt, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece and parts of Latin America, sold by street vendors, served in bars, and piled into bowls at celebrations such as Eid and Egypt’s spring festival, Sham el-Nessim.
In Egypt, prepared termis are typically served with salt, ground cumin, lemon juice and sometimes a dusting of chili — squeezed from the skin directly into the mouth. Recipe guides such as this Egyptian termis preparation walkthrough show the home version of the same process street vendors have used for generations.
Why Do Termis Beans Need Days of Preparation?
Because raw lupini beans are genuinely bitter and not safe to eat as they come. They contain bitter alkaloid compounds — a natural defense of the plant — which must be leached out with water before the beans are edible. The traditional method takes patience:
- Soak: Dry beans are rinsed and soaked in water for about 24 hours.
- Boil: The soaked beans are simmered for roughly an hour until tender.
- Brine and rinse: The cooked beans then sit in salted water for five to seven days, with the water changed daily, until a test bean tastes mild rather than bitter.
Only then are they ready. The shortcut is a jar: ready-to-eat lupini beans sold in brine in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern grocery stores have already been through the full process — just rinse them to reduce the salt before eating.
Are Termis Beans Actually Healthy?
Yes — by snack standards, remarkably so. According to USDA figures for cooked lupin beans, one cup (about 166 g) provides roughly 198 calories with about 25.9 g of protein and 4.6 g of fiber, and under 5 g of fat. On a dry-weight basis, lupini beans are around 36–40% protein — among the highest of any common legume — while remaining low in starch with a very low glycemic index, which is why they are often recommended for blood-sugar-friendly eating. They are naturally gluten-free, contain no cholesterol, and provide potassium, magnesium, folate and the amino acid arginine. Their fiber also acts as a prebiotic, feeding beneficial gut bacteria. If you enjoy food explainers with a safety checklist attached, our caterpillar treats explainer follows the same pattern: a simple snack name hiding a more interesting story.
What Are the Safety Warnings?
- Never eat them raw or underprepared: The bitter alkaloids are the beans’ protection. If a lupini bean still tastes sharply bitter, it needs more soaking — spit it out and continue the process.
- Peanut allergy caution: Lupin is a legume related to peanuts, and cross-reactions are documented. People with peanut allergies should avoid lupini beans or check with a doctor first; lupin flour is a declared allergen on food labels in the European Union.
- Mind the salt: Brined beans can be high in sodium. Rinsing reduces it, and home preparation lets you control it entirely.
- Buy from proper food sellers: Choose sealed jars or reputable vendors rather than unlabelled bulk beans of unknown preparation.
How Do You Eat Them?
The traditional technique is part of the pleasure: hold the bean, nick the skin with your teeth, and squeeze so the soft inner bean pops into your mouth, leaving the skin behind. Seasoned Egyptian-style with cumin, lemon and chili, they are a social snack — closer in spirit to edamame or bar olives than to crisps. It is easy to see why they have survived for millennia, and why they are now reappearing in health-food stores far beyond the Mediterranean, much like the family craft activities we reviewed in our Happy Trunk review turned a simple idea into a lasting ritual.
Termis Around the Mediterranean
The same bean wears a different name at every border. In Portugal, tremoços are the classic bar snack, served free with beer in many tascas. In Italy, lupini are sold brined at markets and festivals, especially in the south. In Spain they appear as altramuces, and in Greece as loupina. Egypt’s termis, though, may be the most culturally loaded version: vendors sell them from carts and small shops year-round, families prepare big batches for Eid al-Fitr, and they are a signature snack of Sham el-Nessim, the spring festival in which Egyptians picnic on salted fish, eggs and termis. Whichever country you meet them in, the ritual is shared — a bowl in the middle of the table, eaten slowly, one squeezed bean at a time.
Can You Prepare Termis at Home?
Yes, and home cooks do — it simply asks for a week rather than an hour. Rinse and sort the dry beans, soak them for a day, boil until tender, then keep them in salted water in the refrigerator, changing the water daily and tasting a bean each day. When a bean tastes mild and nutty instead of bitter, they are done. Season Egypt-style with salt, cumin and lemon. The honest trade-off is time versus effort: the process is almost entirely waiting, which is why most people outside the region happily buy the jarred, ready-to-eat version and save the full ritual for those who grew up with it.
How Does Termis Compare With Other Snacks?
Set termis beside the usual salty snacks and its profile stands out. Per handful it delivers far more protein than crisps or pretzels and more fiber than salted peanuts, with a fraction of the fat of nuts — closer, nutritionally, to edamame or roasted chickpeas. What it does not have is speed: chickpeas roast in an afternoon, while termis needs its week of soaking. That combination — excellent nutrition, demanding preparation — explains both its ancient staying power in cultures that built the waiting into tradition and its modern revival as a ready-to-eat jarred product for everyone else.
Final Verdict
Termis beans are legit — a genuinely ancient, genuinely nutritious snack: high in protein and fiber, low in fat and starch, and deeply rooted in Egyptian and Mediterranean food culture. The one non-negotiable is preparation. Eaten properly debittered — or bought ready-to-eat in brine — they are safe and satisfying. Eaten raw or bitter, they are neither. Respect the process and they reward it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are termis beans in English?
They are lupini beans (also written lupin beans) — the seeds of Lupinus albus. In Egypt they are called termis or tirmis; in Portugal the same snack is known as tremoços, and in Italy as lupini.
Are termis beans safe to eat?
Yes, once properly prepared. Raw lupini beans contain bitter alkaloids, so they must be soaked, boiled and brined over several days until the bitterness is gone. Ready-to-eat jarred beans have already completed this process.
How much protein is in lupini beans?
According to USDA data, one cup of cooked lupin beans (166 g) contains about 25.9 g of protein. Dry lupini beans are around 36–40% protein by weight, among the highest of any legume.
Can people with peanut allergies eat termis?
They should be careful. Lupin is a fellow legume of the peanut and cross-reactions are documented, so anyone with a peanut allergy should avoid lupini beans or seek medical advice first.
Where can you buy termis beans?
Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Italian grocery stores commonly stock them ready-to-eat in jars or cans of brine, and dried lupini beans are sold for home preparation. Online specialty food retailers carry both forms.
