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5 Powerful Vegetables You May Not Know About
Nutrition | August 18, 2014
A recent study done by Dr. Jennifer Di Noia for the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) categorized 47 different fruits and vegetables based on the amount of important nutrients each food contained. Each fruit or vegetable was classified based on the level of 17 specific nutrients considered vital for health and for the prevention of chronic diseases according standards set by the Food and Agriculture Organization and the United Nations. A score was assigned to each fruit or vegetable according to the level of these essential nutrients – 100 being the highest and, of course, zero being the lowest. Foods with the highest scores were defined as powerhouse fruits and vegetables (PFV).
Needless to say, the results were quite surprising. Foods traditionally considered to be most beneficial to our health fell short compared to others. For example, broccoli scored a lowly 35. Kale didn’t fair much better, scoring a 49 while Romaine Lettuce scored a 63! Even more surprising was the fact that not a single piece of fruit cracked the top ten! Leafy greens topped the list.
Of course, it goes without saying, that all studies ought to be read and analyzed with a grain of salt. Even if a particular fruit or vegetable failed to score high in such a study it doesn’t mean that it isn’t beneficial to our health and wellbeing. Dr. Di Noia’s study was focused on specific nutritional aspects as defined by international organizations.
Here’s the Top Five. Some are new to me. Post some recipes with these items if you have any. Enjoy!
Watercress – Watercress scored a perfect 100 as a PFV in the study and made the top of the list. Apparently, it is one of the very first plants consumed by early humans. It’s a common vegetable found in Europe and Asia and is surprisingly high in Vitamin C.
Chinese Cabbage – Chinese cabbage is used in a lot of Asian cuisine. Go figure. It is naturally high in Vitamins A and C.
Chard – Chard may not have the most appetizing name, but it’s used quite a bit in Mediterranean cooking. It looks very similar to lettuce and works well in salads. It is rich in minerals and high in Vitamins A, C and K.
Beet Green – More nutrient-dense than beets themselves, beet greens also work well in salads and are astonishingly high in Vitamin A.
Spinach – Finally! A vegetable that we all know and love! Spinach has always been a perennial powerhouse when it comes to nutrients. It scored an 86 in the study. Spinach is especially high in iron as well as other minerals and vitamins.
Private Member |
I made an awesome pasta with chard that I grew in my garden today! I wilts like spinach when you cook it and has great flavour.
1 package organic gluten free Tikinyada penne pasta (or any regular pasta)
8-10 large stalks of organic chard
half a medium organic red onion
a few organic brown or white mushrooms
1 clove of organic garlic
3/4 Cup organic pasta sauce or tomato puree
1/2 Cup almond milk
pinch of dried chill
1 tsp organic oregano or other Italian herbs
pinch each sea salt and pepper
Mozzarella, parmesan or other cheese of your choice (optional)
Boil water and add the pasta. Fry onion on med-high heat with a little extra virgin olive oil. Add mushrooms and cook until tender. Roughly chop chard and add to pan. Add almond milk, spices and tomato puree and simmer until blended and fully cooked. When pasta is cooked, strain and rinse. Add to pan and stir everything together and melt in some cheese if you want. I am vegan so I used Daiya pepper jack shreds and it was delicious!
I highly recommend this recipe, it’s really yummy!
Private Member |
It does look yummy! I’m certainly going to try it 🙂
I must say that when I’m in Poland, I like to grow my watercress and eat it on bread. I don’t eat bread anymore, but I guess rice cakes would work too. I would put avocado and watercress and some salt and it’s yummy 🙂
Private Member |
HI! I love this post. I bought a book recently by someone name George Matelin. He has the same rating system for ALL fruits and veggies, which includes the best way to cook them to retain nutrients and really simple beginners recipe to introduce you to new foods. I really love it. It was 30 dollars, but its well worth it. Here’s the link if anyone is interested – http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=biosketch&dbid=3
PS I don’t work for this guy nor do I get anything by talking about it. I just think it has so much information and is so informative and friendly. It has helped me introduce new vegetables into my diet. Hope you enjoy!
Private Member |
I love chard so very much! My favorite recipe is the following:
Chop some Chard, ginger and garlic. Get enough oil really hot in a pan (so it just starts to smoke), then stir the ginger and garlic very well, so the oil takes the fragrance. Then reduce the heat to a middle or even low temperature…even take the pan off fore a minute or so, so the spices don’t burn. Then put the chard in the pan, and pour just a little bit of water on top, so it can steam with the lid closed. It’s best when you just put some eggs on top, so they steam on top of the greens. Salt and pepper on top, SO DELICIOUS and easy to make! Also good with spinach. 😉