Pick and eat: tasty and healthy greens in your garden. A variety of greens: types of leaf salads

Lettuce leaves impress with their taste, color range, and intricate shapes. Many chefs are confident: lettuce leaves go with all foods and are appropriate in any dish. However, each greenery is special and capricious in its own way: it can elevate a dish or ruin it.

Arugula (rocket or arugula)

Arugula adds a special piquancy to dishes due to its spicy taste with a light peppery, delicate nutty aftertaste. In India, vocalists use it because it can restore the voice after illness or overwork. It relieves fatigue well, fills the body with energy, helps beauties remove a few extra pounds, and in ancient times was considered a powerful aphrodisiac.

To highlight the taste of dishes, it is better to choose a young, soft green rocket. In large emerald leaves a lot of mustard oil and bitter substances, they can overpower the subtle taste of veal, fish, seafood, vegetables or mushrooms. For such a plant, it is better to choose spicy and rich sauces with a pronounced taste of mustard or garlic; Parmesan, blue or sharp cheeses are good. Ripe arugula is used to prepare marinade and pickle cucumbers. The spiciness can be easily reduced by keeping the greens in a bowl under running water for about an hour.

Arugula is one of the main components of the salad mix. It is seasoned with olive oil or mustard sauce, cherry tomatoes are added and placed in a heap on a plate next to a hot dish (chicken liver, fried mushrooms, Quiche Lauren ohm). The leaves are crushed and put into okroshka, green borscht, roll the rolls, sprinkle with carpaccio, complement the flavor of the cottage cheese. It is not recommended to fry or stew savory greens: appearance and the aftertaste gets worse. It is better to add it to risotto or pasta one minute before the end of cooking; it can be used as a spice in casseroles. In Slovenia, it is added to the filling for cheese pasties. Italians decorate bruschetta and pizza, throw it in pesto, and prepare an unusual liqueur “rucolino”, which they drink after meals to improve digestion. In Japan, rolls and rice noodle dishes are complemented with rocket.

Under the weight of sauces and vegetable oil, arugula turns into an unsightly green mass, so it is lightly seasoned before serving.

Beautiful greens look interesting with thick homemade mayonnaise, when it envelops each leaf, but does not crush them with its weight. Arugula can be tossed with lemon-honey sauce and complement light dishes with fruity notes. The plant goes best with pine nuts, raw salmon, tuna, cherry tomatoes, strawberries, brie and Philadelphia cheese, seafood, orange, grapefruit, avocado, roasted beets or pumpkin. Cream balsamic or dark works well balsamic vinegar, olive and Sesame oil. Savory greens can replace salt! Celery, sour cream and cream sauces do not go well with arugula.

Iceberg

Iceberg leaves are distinguished by their juiciness, sweetish notes and pleasant crunch. The delicious ball is washed only on top, without disassembling into leaves. Often it is cut in half or the stalk is removed, and then it is torn by hand (for some dishes it is cut into strips). The upper leaves are used to prepare salads, and the middle is left for decoration due to its beautiful bowl-shaped shape. Iceberg is added to mixed salads extremely rarely, as it weighs down the greens and quickly loses its attractiveness: it darkens at the edges.

Iceberg is great with sour cream and creamy sauces, rich or sweetish dressings made with olive oil and mitsukan and citrus caramel. It is best used in salads; it is not recommended to fry or boil it. Dressed leaves can be safely left in the refrigerator for an hour, as they hold their shape well and remain juicy. Here's the simplest one.

Iceberg goes well with canned tuna, anchovies, any meat, eggs, vegetables, capers, lentils and tofu, white croutons and couscous. Goes well with mango, rice noodles, parmesan and feta. Garlic is best suited for salad, especially in combination with soy sauce, basil, mint, medium hot or Dijon mustard. The leaves are often used instead of romaine because of its juiciness and bright taste, especially in Caesar salad. They do not go well with delicate seafood due to their dense and crispy texture; for fish dishes it is better to use romaine or lollo biondo.

Spinach

It is original: its fresh and sweetish-sour taste will harmonize well with any food. Small juicy leaves will complement the salad mix, suitable for garnishing a meat dish, it will be especially tasty in tandem with chicken liver, raw or lightly salted salmon, goat cheese or feta, truffle oil, pine nuts, legumes. Greens harmonize perfectly with creamy, sweet and sour, spicy sauces, honey-mustard and onion dressings.

Spinach lends itself well to heat treatment and reveals itself in a new way in hot dishes.

Large leaves can be simmered in their own juice, adding 10 grams of butter for taste, a couple of drops of fresh lemon juice, salt, and a mixture of peppers. It is advisable to stir constantly during cooking. When the greens wilt and turn dark green, immediately set aside, otherwise the attractiveness and taste will be lost. This side dish is best placed on a plate through culinary ring, sprinkle with Parmesan, and then lean the fried salmon or chicken breast. It will be delicious if you mix the poached spinach with mashed potatoes or lay it out in layers. If you combine green gruel with blue cheese or orange zest, you can stuff it chicken fillet. If you add a boiled egg and grated hard cheese, place in pancakes, roll into a tube and fry, you will get an amazing snack.

With spinach, first courses turn out tasty and beautiful: green borscht, potato soup. It is added to quiche Laurent, omelettes, vegetable or meat casseroles, rice or pasta, prepared filling for pies and meat zraz. It goes well with nutmeg, fennel, basil, and dill.

Spinach is a great coloring for lasagna. pasta, cream, ice cream, sauce. Greens can be chopped with butter, soft cheese, cottage cheese and get an amazing emerald shade. The leaves are dried, canned, frozen.

Lollo Rosso and Bioda

Torn leaves will add volume and fluffiness to the salad. They are combined with rich, spicy, mustard, sweet and sour sauces, as well as sesame and truffle oil. Lollo can be put in a mix (more than half) or as a “pillow” under beet carpaccio or vegetable salad. It is not recommended to season the leaves long before serving or place a hot dish on them: the greens quickly wither and settle.

Rosso has a slight bitterness and light nutty notes. Bionda has a softer aftertaste, so it is often used as a “dressing” for pancakes and buffet appetizers.

Friese

Despite its bitter taste, frisée is often added to mixed salads and garnishes hot dishes. It is better to choose greens with flexible and small outer leaves. If you come across thick and hard stems, the greens can be separated with scissors. Grind the remaining pods and add to vegetable stew at the end of cooking.

Curls give salads sophistication and incredible volume, so the most valuable thing in greens is the soft light green center. Frize is seasoned with all sorts of sauces, just like lollo rosso. It goes well with red wine, citruses, berries and fruits, pine nuts, blue cheeses, fish and seafood, and olives. Drops of cream balsamic on light curls add to salads original look, so the middle is often used to complete the composition of a dish.

Roman (romano)

Romaine has an unusual and rich flavor range: it is islandy, slightly tart and spicy, sweetish and nutty. However, after heat treatment it acquires an asparagus aftertaste. The leaves go best with thick, spicy, garlicky, cheese sauces, olive oil, yogurt-based dressings, sour cream, homemade mayonnaise. Goes well with seafood, fish, meat, smoked meats, rich and blue cheeses. It is not advisable to combine it with fruit, honey, or nut sauce, but they can be added as an additional component to highlight the taste of the main product. Romaine can be stewed and boiled: put into puree soup, vegetable or meat stew; in Italy it is cooked like spinach.

Romaine is rarely thrown into mixed salads: it does not harmonize well with other greens, its leaves are too fibrous, quickly wither and darken when cut. Romano can be torn off, discarding the massive vein, or cut into wide strips across the leaf. It gives salads a small volume; dressed greens can last about an hour in the refrigerator (if there is not too much sauce).

Radicchio (radichio)

Radicchio has a spicy and bitter taste, which disappears after heat treatment. The harsh and heavy purple-violet leaves are best diluted with other leafy salads. They look beautiful in mixes and give the dish a bright look, but it is not recommended to cut them into strips; it is better to tear them into small pieces.

Radicchio can be stewed, grilled and served as a side dish for meat, fish dishes. In Italy it is fried for 2-3 minutes, but its beautiful juicy color is lost. The leaves should not be overcooked in the pan; they should crisp slightly. Salt and fried onion rings are added to the purple mass aromatic varieties, crushed walnuts. Radicchio goes well with cumin, garlic, artichokes and beans. It is tossed into risotto and pasta at the end of cooking and baked with mozzarella. It goes well with mayonnaise, honey and citrus dressings.

Chicory

Chicory has a sharp taste with a pronounced bitterness, especially at the base of the stalk. Since the times of the pharaohs, its juice has been used to treat poisonous insect bites, and tinctures have been prepared to treat vision, joints and digestive organs. In salads and appetizers it is used as decoration because interesting shape boat leaf. If you cut the leaf in half lengthwise, you can finish the composition of the dish with cute “ears.” Combines with nut and tomato sauces, mayonnaise, vegetable oil, honey and mustard. Perfect for dishes with smoked eel, tangerines, truffles, fried bacon, cream cheeses and cottage cheese, peaches and pears, avocado.

Chicory is stewed, poached, blanched, fried and served with fish, meat, and potato dishes. You can bake it with bacon and cheese, make an omelet, or add any filling. To prevent dishes from turning out too bitter, it is better to buy chicory with light leaves and remove the stalk before washing.

Mash salad (corn)

Mung bean salad is the most delicate and sophisticated plant with a spicy aftertaste, subtle nutty notes and sweetness. It looks great in mixed salads, but it’s better not to tear off the leaves, but toss them in whole “rosettes”, because the plant quickly deteriorates, especially after water treatments. Corn goes well with citrus fruits (especially lime and tangerine), any fruit, and goat or blue cheese. You can refill the leaves lingonberry sauce or olive oil. Serve mung bean salad in small quantities with chicken, game, raw salmon or tuna salads, sprinkle with pine nuts or tobiko caviar. Excellent as a decoration for rolls and sashimi. The leaves are too delicate, so it is recommended to season them only before serving and not mix them with the rest of the ingredients, but place them on top of the dish or side by side.

Watercress

A unique plant with horseradish flavor: the leaves are sharp, with pronounced mustard notes. It is considered a spice and is suitable for making soups, vegetable purees, omelets, meat and fish dishes, game, bread, adding piquancy and uniqueness to the dishes. Used as a filling for pies, combined with cheeses, cottage cheese and potatoes, but it is not advisable to chop it: the bitterness may increase. During heat treatment, specific peppery taste disappears, leaving an exquisite aroma and a magical aftertaste. You can season rice or pasta, add it to fresh vegetables and fruits. Chinese chefs serve it with sugar, which means that greens will give desserts a special zest. Watercress is good for men, it is believed good aphrodisiac, increases immunity, slows down the aging process, stimulates appetite. Based on the ingredients and desired taste, the leaves are added to the salad mix before serving.

By the way, it’s fashionable to grow it at home.

Boston

It amazes with its delicate and sweet taste. The outer leaves are more suitable for making sandwiches, “pillows” for warm salad from seafood. The middle is juicier and crispier, will look great in mixed salads, and is good for cold dishes. Boston goes well with blue cheeses, nuts, fruits, especially pears. It is better to choose not spicy sauce, but gentle, light, with a sweetish-sour aftertaste. It goes well with honey, cream balsamic, creamy sauces, and citrus-based dressings.

Knowing the subtleties taste range arugula and corn, the texture of spinach and romaine leaves creates amazing culinary perfection!

Greens are very important for the stomach and the bacteria that live in it. In ancient times, people consumed a lot large quantity types of herbs than modern people. All types of salads in varying concentrations are rich in important vitamins: C, PP, B1, B2 and microelements: potassium, calcium, sodium, iron, phosphorus, inulin. To improve digestion and strengthen the body, nutritionists recommend expanding the range of greens consumed. Are you familiar with all these types? leaf salads?

lettuce

Sowing lettuce with soft leaves of the genus Lettuce of the Asteraceae family is very popular all over the world. Lettuce has a broad classification of its own and includes: romaine, oakleaf, lollo rossa, butterhead, iceberg, and batavia.

Romano

Varieties of romaine lettuce - the oldest known species salads It has a pleasant sweetish taste with nutty notes. Widely used in cooking: not only in sandwiches and vegetable salads, but also in pureed soups, stewed side dishes and pasta additives. When cooked, it tastes like asparagus. IN classic recipe Caesar salad uses exactly the Roman type of lettuce. Discover a surprising combination of flavors in Romaine, Orange and Pecan Salad

Lollo Rossa

Some types of salads serve more of a decorative role in dishes. For example, lollo rossa lettuce, also called "coral lettuce" for its curly leaf tips and rosette shape resembling the inhabitants depths of the sea. In the center of the rosette the leaves are green, and closer to the edge they are red-brown. It is thanks to its appearance and nutty taste with bitterness, this type of salad is more used for decorating dishes or in salad mixtures. Perfect for meat dishes, poultry, liver and seafood.

Iceberg

This type of lettuce got its name thanks to farmers who supply fresh salad, sprinkled with ice. Like many types of salads, Iceberg is an excellent basis for dishes made from fresh vegetables, as an addition to meat and fish dishes. Prepare Agapimeno Gevma Iraklis salad with sea cocktail- unforgettable taste!

Oakleaf

Oakleaf lettuce is also called "oak lettuce" because its leaves resemble oak leaves and range in color from green at the roots to burgundy brown at the tips. Thanks to its nutty notes, it goes well with foods that do not have a pronounced taste: avocado, champignons and oyster mushrooms, lean fish. Use a mild dressing without too much spice. For example, olive or sunflower oil with a little salt or a drop of balsamic vinegar.

Batavia

Crispy, sweetish green to brown leaves with small waves at the tips go wonderfully with meat dishes and salads with nuts. Ideally complements sandwiches, vegetables and looks beautiful as a base for a served dish.

Butterhead

It is also called "Boston". The head of this type of lettuce consists of elongated light green crispy leaves. Often used in salad mixes, sandwiches, burgers, and even wraps as a substitute for nori seaweed. The ideal dressing for these salad leaves would be olive oil, balsamic, and various creamy mustard sauces.

There are a number of salad crops that do not belong to the genus Lettuce, which are also widespread:

Radicchio

Radicchio salad – Italian variety chicory. It looks like a head of red-burgundy leaves with white veins. It tastes bitter, so it is used in salad mixtures. small quantity and usually light varieties. The bitterness is softened by sweetish sauces using honey, mayonnaise, cream and juices. In Mediterranean cuisine, radicchio leaves are grilled and added to hot risotto and pasta. A healthy coffee drink is prepared from the roots of this type of lettuce.

Friese

Frisée is a type of endive salad. Soft curly leaves are more pleasant and milder in taste, but with the same bitterness. Pairs perfectly with other types of salads, meat dishes, cheeses and seafood.

Korn

Valerianella plant, also called corn, field lettuce, mung lettuce. Belongs to the honeysuckle family. It has a sweetish taste and goes well with aromatic oils made from pumpkin seeds, sesame and peanuts. Adds lightness to salads with chicken, croutons, fish, meat and mushroom dishes.

In one form or another, greens are present in the diet of any person. It can be a seasoning and addition to food or a main dish. Only quantity determines whether a culture will be a spice or a full-fledged dish.

What is considered green?

Anything that is collected or grown to produce the above-ground leafy part of a plant is classified as greens. Moreover, color is not a determining factor at all. The much-loved basil tastes best when it is dark purple in color, and Green pepper or green beans They are definitely not herbaceous plants.

Spices include fresh or dried herbs that are used to improve the appearance, taste and digestibility of dishes. Many seasonings are used as aphrodisiacs or sources of vitamins. Infusions and decoctions of herbs (mint, oregano, thyme) are used to treat digestive disorders and respiratory diseases.

Types of greens to eat

There are many classifications of herbaceous plants used for food. Based on their origin, they distinguish between cultivated and wild. The most common cultivated vitamin trinity: dill, parsley and green onions.

Annual herbaceous plant, belongs to the Umbelliferae family. Possesses pleasant aroma, contains a large number of essential oils. Used fresh and dried. Used for dressing salads, first and second courses, as well as for adding to marinades and pickling. Dill inflorescences and seeds are often used as seasoning. It is impossible to imagine a garden without this plant. It is grown under film covers, in greenhouses and in open ground. It can also spread by self-sowing.

Dill greens are eaten, and the inflorescences and seeds are used in pickles and marinades.

An infusion of dill seeds is used in folk medicine as a carminative and weak diuretic, as well as to normalize digestion and mildly correct high blood pressure.

Parsley

Parsley is a biennial plant from the Apiaceae family; it can be either leafy or curly. These varieties have not only the appearance, but also the taste and texture of the greens. The leaves and roots of parsley are eaten. It is very convenient to grow it in the garden. In the first year you sow and get tender emerald greens. Next spring, you collect early parsley almost immediately after the snow cover melts. If you add parsley to borscht or cabbage soup, it becomes a seasoning. And in a tabbouleh salad or an omelet with fresh herbs, this is the main ingredient.

In the oriental salad "Tabbouleh" parsley is the main ingredient

When dried, the aroma is lost. I prefer to store parsley frozen. To do this, I wash the greens and dry them thoroughly. I chop it finely, pack it into small bags and put it in the freezer. When used, only a small part of the greens will be defrosted each time, and the rest will retain its taste and aroma. This method is convenient for those who grow parsley themselves. And for use as a seasoning, you can buy it fresh in stores. all year round.

Photo gallery: varieties of parsley

Curly parsley differs in taste from leaf parsley. Leaf parsley is both a spice and the main ingredient in many dishes. Parsley roots are used to season aspic and soups.

Onion

Considered the king of vegetable beds. Almost no salad, soup or appetizer is complete without it. It has bactericidal properties, stimulates appetite and improves food absorption. In Rus', it has long been used to prevent and treat various ailments. There are many varieties in the vast onion family, each of which supplies vitamins to our table all year round. There are annual and perennial representatives of the family, and many of them are firmly established in our beds.

Green onions, familiar to everyone, are not a separate vegetable crop, but annual shoots of onions. Onion- biennial plant. In the first year, green feathers appear from the seeds. They are very rich in vitamins, especially A, C and E, and contain mineral salts and sugars. At home, by sprouting bulbs, you can get your own green source of vitamins.

Onions on the windowsill grow quickly

The tender white stem of the leek is used in cooking fresh and after heat treatment. Its taste is subtler, but its cultivation requires certain skills. It is not so easy to get a succulent white stem. But leek has a number of advantages that are worth trying for. Compared to the usual onion, it contains more vitamins and minerals, less affected by diseases, more productive and better stored. Biennial plant, propagated by seeds.
Multi-tiered bow looks funny, but has everything positive properties regular onion. Rich in vitamins, stimulates appetite. It is believed that it does not accumulate nitrates. Small onions are used raw and pickled. Green fresh feathers are good in salads. It can grow in one place for several years. Propagated by bulbs.
Chives, or chives, are a very beautiful perennial plant. The taste is something between onions and garlic. Green thin feathers of chives appear in early spring, providing fresh vitamin greens. They grow very densely, forming turf. In summer, chimney inflorescences decorate the garden with small pink heads. It is propagated by dividing the turf or by seeds.
The green feathers of the onion grow up to a meter. It forms small oblong bulbs. The whole plant is eaten, but more often it is cultivated for its green shoots. Used in fresh and after culinary processing. Batun has a spicy onion taste and contains everything healthy vitamins, inherent in the onion family. It can grow in one place for several years. Propagated by seeds or bulbs.
Slime onions are found growing wild and are grown in plots. A perennial frost-resistant plant with flattened leaves. The taste is slightly onion. The inflorescences are spherical, light. Young shoots appear soon after the snow melts. Used in making cottage cheese with herbs or in fresh vegetable salads. This type of onion is propagated by dividing the bushes.

Photo gallery: onions - from seven ailments

Green onions provide vitamins all year round Leeks are troublesome to grow, but they are worth it Multi-layered onions are used throughout the growing season, picking off the bulbs Growing chives, or chives, is very easy. salads

Cilantro and basil

In terms of frequency of use, the magnificent trinity is followed by coriander (cilantro) and basil. Cilantro is used as a spice and vegetable. Moreover, only seeds are used in dried form, and appetizers and soups are seasoned with herbs, an incomparable omelet with cilantro and green onions or pies with fresh herbs.

Cilantro seeds are added to bread and oriental sweets. IN Soviet times Ladies went to great lengths to get their hands on the fashionable French perfume Coriandre, which essentially had the scent of cilantro.

Coriander is a perfume for some, and a seasoning for others.

But with basil, only greens are used: fresh or dried.

Nowadays, new green varieties of basil with cloves or spices have become widespread. lemon aroma. They have a very unusual taste, but they look beautiful in the garden. When planted together with other crops, they are excellent for repelling insect pests.

When growing basil, you need to take into account that it is a heat-loving crop that does not tolerate low temperatures and watering errors. If you pinch the top of the basil, preventing it from blooming, you can encourage tillering. The number of fragrant leaves on one plant increases. Basil is also grown in greenhouses, but the most intense purple color of the leaves occurs in plants cultivated in open ground. Basil is planted by seedlings or by sowing seeds.

Most famous variety with classic purple leaves and familiar spicy taste- Yerevan. Produces delicate pink flowers.

There are also new varieties of basil with an unusual aroma:

Anise Delight - bushes with green leaves and dark purple flowers. It has a sharp anise smell.
Basil variety Clove bush also has green leaves. Their smell matches their name.
Nutmeg Pomegranate has anthocyanin-colored leaves and dark purple flowers. This variety of basil has a nutmeg-pepper aroma.
lemon - green basil with white flowers. It has a pleasant lemon aroma and refreshing taste.

Basil is an elegant bush and fragrant leaves

Wild greens are collected in nature: in the forest, near ponds or in the field. This is wild garlic, sorrel, different kinds mint, oregano and other crops growing in certain regions. There are herbs that grow on our plots. Nettle, gooseberry, and quinoa are undeservedly considered weeds. They fight with them, mercilessly weeding them out, but they are healthy, tasty and unpretentious.

Video: salad with cilantro and basil

Salad and spinach greens

Edible greens are distinguished by the method of consumption. In addition to the described cultivated green crops, this group includes all salads. They contain a lot vegetable fiber, helping to improve intestinal function, vitamins and minerals.

Lettuce comes in many shapes and colors.

Romaine is a bright green lettuce. Contains vitamins, mineral salts and is used fresh for making salads.
Radicchio - chicory salad with original coloring and pleasant taste. Use both fresh and after heat treatment.
Lettuce is a vegetable familiar to our table. Leaves are added to spring salads with radishes and dill. But an almost forgotten childhood delicacy - tender core salad with sugar.
Frisse - salad with bitterness. In terms of vitamin C content it can compete with lemon. Add to salads and use for snacks.
Corn contains a lot of folic acid, vitamins, and microelements. Healthy and tasty. Sold as a set salad mixes. It can also be grown on a personal plot.
Watercress has a sharp, burning taste, but it goes away quickly, leaving a pleasant aftertaste. It grows on site without any hassle and can spread by self-seeding.
Arugula tastes a little like watercress. Beautiful cut leaves look good in salad and give it a pleasant bitterness. Unpretentious when growing.
Lollo Rossa is similar in taste to lettuce. Its young green leaves are collected in small heads of cabbage. As they ripen, they acquire a reddish-cherry hue. Like lettuce, it grows well in the area. Used in salads, put in sandwiches.
Iceberg is a head of lettuce with crisp, tender leaves. It contains useful vitamins and organic acids. The slugs in the area quickly find it.
Oakleaf is another variety head lettuce. A very delicate crop, it is poorly stored, but it is easy to grow even at home. The leaves are shaped like oak leaves.

Salad greens are used fresh. It includes Chinese cabbage, leaf and petiole celery, as well as wild garlic. By the way, all types of divisions are very conventional, since many herbs are used not only in raw, but also in stewed and pickled forms. For example, Chinese cabbage used as a main dish: it is blanched, pickled, stuffed. And fresh leaves are put in salads.

Chinese cabbage is rich in fiber

Juicy thick stems petiole celery added to soups, stewed with meat and vegetables, from fresh leaves and salads are prepared from petioles. But celery is also pickled, put into pickles, and the greens are dried and used as a spice. The leaves are added to soups and main dishes.

In Sicily they serve fresh, aromatic green sauce to the fish. It contains a lot of chopped parsley and celery leaves, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil. Add salt to taste. The result is an incredibly healthy and aromatic mixture.

Not only the leaves of celery are edible, but also the stems.

Wild garlic is both grown and harvested. In spring, bunches of greenery, shaped like lily of the valley leaves, are often sold at the market. It has a pleasant onion aroma and is good in salads. An excellent marinade is also prepared from it, which few people know about. Wild garlic is often called pickled garlic arrows. But even though this is delicious snack, has nothing to do with wild garlic.

Wild garlic is delicious both fresh and pickled

Spinach includes greens that are cooked before use. These are cultivated plants: spinach, chard and beets.

This also includes wild herbs:

nettle,
amaranth,
buten,
quinoa,
shepherd's purse,
whine.

Sorrel can be classified into both groups, since it is found not only growing wild, but is also actively grown in areas.

Spinach is an annual or biennial herbaceous plant. While botanists are debating which family it belongs to (Amaranthaceae or Chenopoaceae), connoisseurs enjoy its unique taste. Contains many vitamins and microelements. More than thirty varieties of spinach are included in the State Register. It is grown almost throughout Russia. Spinach goes great with beef and chicken meat. There is a Spanish spinach pie with raisins added. Unusual, but tasty.

The disadvantage of this vegetable crop- high content of salts of organic acids, in particular oxalic acid. Therefore, people with metabolic diseases are advised to consume spinach in limited quantities. But this also applies to other green crops.

Spinach - excellent independent dish and a delicious side dish

Sorrel pleasant sour taste refreshes the spring diet. In French cuisine it is called "stomach broom". It is believed that it is necessary to eat once or twice in the spring sorrel soup to cleanse yourself, because it stimulates the intestines well.

Sorrel stimulates intestinal function

Chard is both a beautiful and useful plant. It is a relative of the beet, but it does not form root crops. Only the leaves and stems are tasty. They contain vitamins, microelements, and also quite a lot of sugars. Chard is one of the most early vegetables Location on. Its shoots are stewed, stuffed, pickled. You can cut off the leaves as needed rather than removing the entire plant. New ones will grow in their place. Chard varieties with red petioles have a richer flavor.

Chard is similar to beets, but does not have an edible root.

In Landau, a town in southern Germany, I noticed that chard was grown on flower beds. To my question, local residents answered that anyone who wanted could pick it and use it for food. The main thing is not to trample or spoil the rest of the plants.

Video: what is chard and what is it eaten with?

Of the described types of spinach greens, spinach and sorrel are most often used. But in vain: beet tops have pleasant taste, rich in vitamins and available. After all, few people know that the famous appetizer pkhali is very easy to prepare. You just need to collect beet tops, boil them, add garlic, nuts and seasonings. The tops are also pickled, stewed, and added to soups.

Beet tops - a useful and affordable product

The most widely used wild herb in cooking is nettle. But now it is not used as often as it deserves. Nettle contains a lot of vitamins, useful macro- and microelements. Fresh nettle leaves are added to the soup and a green omelet is prepared.

Few people now remember that nettles were dried to prepare a decoction and give to women in labor to improve lactation.

Nettle is both a harmful weed and a useful plant

But if nettle is still sometimes used due to its prevalence, then many summer residents will not notice amaranth and quinoa on the site. And they are no less useful. All wild herbs (including shepherd's purse, buten and gooseberry) are prepared in the same way. Wash thoroughly, blanch or simply pour boiling water over it. Add oil to the pan, add the herbs and pour in the beaten egg. You can make an omelet from individual herbs or combine quinoa with nettle, or amaranth with quinoa and green onions. Everything is incredibly tasty and healthy. Shepherd's Purse along with nettle, quinoa and beet tops go into the filling of Caucasian pies with herbs.

IN Lately I stopped blanching herbs to preserve them. beneficial features. I just finely chop the fresh green mass, pour in the egg and fry like an omelette.

Dreamy flower arrows can be pickled. Thus, the malicious weed will supply greens for omelettes and salads, and the shoots will go into the marinade. Juicy buten shoots are also pickled.

Video: beneficial properties of dream

Photo gallery: wild edible greens

Amaranth grows on the site and is no less useful than its cultivated relative, pickled buten - great snack Shepherd's purse is the main component of Caucasian flatbreads with herbs. Shepherd's purse is useful in salads, omelettes and marinades. During the war, quinoa was expected as salvation

Spices

These are green plants that are used only as a seasoning. All herbs have some medicinal properties. There are many of them, we will list only the main ones.

Oregano, or oregano, is an aromatic perennial. It occurs wild and grows in patches. In Western European cuisine, it is added to salads and sauces, and seasoned with meat dishes. And Italians use oregano in making pizza. In our country, dried oregano herb is brewed into tea. In medicine, it is used as part of chest preparations.
Hyssop is a perennial herbaceous plant with beautiful flowers and a sharp pleasant aroma. Used in marinades and pickles. Add to salads if desired.
There are different types of mint: peppermint, lemon mint. But any one decorates the garden and can grow so large that you have to save yourself from it using radical methods. At the same time, it has a unique taste and aroma, and is indispensable in cocktails. Tea with mint is an invariable attribute of country gatherings. Dried mint is used when marinating meat for barbecue.
Lovage is a perennial shrub with a pungent but pleasant aroma. A lovage leaf added to the pickling will make its taste unforgettable.
Thyme, or thyme, is a very decorative perennial. It is grown as a perennial garden crop and is found in the wild. Dried twigs and leaves of thyme have a mild expectorant effect. Delicious in tea mixtures. Used as a seasoning when cooking steaks. Chef Ramsay often recommends fresh thyme.
Savory is an annual spicy herb with a pungent smell and taste. Pairs perfectly with meat dishes. It is similar to thyme only in name. The aroma, taste and appearance of these plants are different.
Tarragon, or tarragon, is a perennial crop. When eating fresh tarragon herb, the oral cavity is pleasantly cooled. Because of this property, tarragon extract is added to a refreshing drink. Used as a seasoning for fish dishes. Dried herbs tuck into soups.

When growing on site, you need to choose fertilized soil for tarragon and replant it every two to three years, otherwise the greens will stretch out, run wild and lose their aroma.

Photo gallery: spicy greens

Oregano is included in breast preparations Hyssop decorates the garden when not used as a spice Lovage is added to pickles Thyme - Chef Ramsay's favorite seasoning for steaks Savory goes well with meat dishes Tarragon is used fresh and dried Peppermint is good in cocktails and tea

Lettuce has long ceased to be considered a simple table decoration. At the moment, it is a complete dietary product that can be included in a lot of dietary dishes - salads, cocktails, sandwiches. And due to its low calorie content, this product can be consumed in unlimited quantities.

Beneficial features

What are the benefits of leaf lettuce? Experts have proven that the valuable composition of this plant has the most beneficial effect on the normalization of work gastrointestinal tract, due to its diuretic properties, it removes excess fluid from the body. The beneficial properties of leaf lettuce have a beneficial effect on vision, blood circulation and the blood itself, since the components included in the plant take part in the movement of iron and the formation of red blood cells. Often lettuce leaves, thanks to high content folic acid, which is responsible for the normal development of the fetus, is included in the diet of pregnant women. But the greatest advantage of this product lies precisely in its low calorie content.

However, it should immediately be noted that when we talk about the benefits of leaf lettuce, we mean exactly fresh plant or one that was cut no more than 3 hours ago. It must be remembered that stale leaves, alas, lose their useful qualities. When purchasing this food product, preference should be given only to freshly cut leaves or plants in pots.

Due to the huge content of vitamins, minerals and trace elements, lettuce leaves are among the ten most healthy products nutrition. They are recommended to be consumed as often as possible by elderly people and children.

Useful properties of lettuce:

this product has a beneficial effect on the immune system;
normalizes the nervous system;
promotes rapid recovery of strength after a long illness;
gives a slight calming and hypnotic effect;
improves food digestion;
The plant works well to whet the appetite.

In addition, lettuce has long been used as a blood purifier and to treat headaches. People who are weather dependent are advised to eat at least a few leaves during a magnetic storm. And this is not a complete list of all the possibilities of this product, the beneficial qualities of which are widely used in cooking, scientific and folk medicine.

Harm of lettuce

None negative influence The plant has no effect on the human body. Its use should be limited only in case of individual intolerance.

Salad in cosmetology

Leaf lettuce is perfect for use in cosmetology.

Skin care recipes:

Mask for dry skin: grind 8-10 lettuce leaves with 3 tbsp. l. sour cream. Apply the mixture for 15 minutes 1-2 times a week. This product nourishes, tones and refreshes the skin well.
Rub the salad into a paste and take 3 tbsp. l., 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and 1 tbsp. l. vegetable oil. This is a wonderful nourishing mask.
To relieve inflammation and prevent peeling, you can prepare a decoction of lettuce leaves. Lotions help with sunburn quite well.

Lettuce for weight loss

There is no doubt that this product is great for helping you lose weight, since its calorie content is very low. But losing weight by eating only one salad is not recommended, because the body, in addition to “green” food, also requires proteins and fats. Therefore, in order not to harm your health and acquire slim figure, it is necessary to combine lettuce leaves with foods such as fish, vegetables, seafood, vegetables, eggs, cheese, nuts, etc.

A few simple rules for dieting

Remember a few simple tips:

salads should be seasoned with vegetable oils or yogurt, low-fat sour cream;
add cinnamon, ginger, cilantro and lemon juice to them;
do not add a lot of nuts to salads, as they are saturated with fats;
varieties of mustard lettuce, arugula, oak and some others should be soaked for 7-10 minutes before use clean water. This will help get rid of their inherent bitterness;
tear the salad with your hands - if it comes into contact with a metal knife, it will lose a lot useful substances and your appearance;
Add the dressing to the salad before serving, otherwise it will wilt and become soggy.

Try to cook every day various salads and dishes. Don’t torment yourself with monotonous food, which will not only help you lose weight, but will make you feel depressed.

Lettuce: recipes

We offer several simple recipes preparing leaf lettuce.

Instant salads

Have to take large dish and place well-washed lettuce leaves on it. Sprinkle them with salt and black pepper, pour in refined vegetable oil, and sprinkle with lemon juice. Then squeeze out a few cloves of garlic and mix everything carefully.
Sort 300 grams of lettuce leaves, rinse and leave in water for a few minutes. Then place on a towel to drain off excess moisture. Tear the salad into small pieces with your hands, add chopped egg, chopped onion, grated cheese. Mix all the ingredients, sprinkle the salad with lemon juice and pour olive oil.
To prepare a sandwich you need to take whole grain bread, chicken boiled breast, lettuce, salt and pepper. This dish can perfectly satisfy your hunger.

Preparing lettuce for the winter

Like all green vegetables, you can prepare leaf lettuce for the winter. The leaves are stored in the freezer and thawed immediately before use. There are also many ways to marinate them.

Calories, kcal:

Proteins, g:

Carbohydrates, g:

Lettuce is a one- or two-year-old garden crop of the family Compositae. Information that lettuce was eaten is found in documents describing the existence of the ancient Roman Empire; before that time, lettuce was grown for its seeds, from which oil was squeezed out. The exact geographical place of origin of the first types of lettuce has not been historically established.

Lettuce has many varieties, the most common, leaf lettuce, has long, tender shoots in the shape of oak leaves, light green (light green) color. Lettuce leaves are juicy, crunchy, with a fresh smell, and can vary in shape and quantity located on one root or head.

Calorie content of salad

The calorie content of the salad is 12 kcal per 100 grams of product.

The salad has a rich vitamin and mineral composition, which contains: vitamins, as well as,. The product contains coarse alimentary fiber, which help improve digestion, normalize intestinal motility, fill the volume of the stomach and, without being digested, are excreted, collecting mucus and waste from the intestinal walls. Substance lactucin, which belongs to the group of alkaloids, not only gives the salad a bitter taste, but also actively reduces cholesterol levels in the blood. Eating lettuce leaves will help improve the condition of hair and nails, has a beneficial effect on the skin, improves memory, vision and is a preventive measure against the occurrence of Alzheimer's disease.

Despite the beneficial properties of lettuce, it can be harmful to the body.

Harm of lettuce

Reasons for reducing salad consumption are the presence of diseases such as gout, colitis and enterocolitis, urolithiasis disease, hepatitis. Due to the high content of oxalic acid, the use of the product should be limited if you have kidney disease.

Salad is a unique product for those who watch their weight. By eating a large bowl of lettuce leaves, you get a full stomach and a minimum of calories (calorizator). Of course, the salad pure form does not give a feeling of fullness, so it is combined with other vegetables or protein foods. You can, without adhering to special diets, consume a portion of lettuce leaves every day for lunch or dinner, thereby ensuring regular bowel movements, healthy peristalsis and burning of fat deposits. Diets or, for example, recommend the daily use of lettuce leaves in the diet.

Selecting and storing lettuce

When choosing a salad, you need to pay attention to its appearance - the juiciness and greenness of the leaves, their elasticity, integrity and the absence of rot and dark spots. Lettuce is often sold with roots or in pots; such a product retains freshness longer, but in any case, visual inspection must be carried out carefully.

Salad in cooking

The name of the product speaks for itself; lettuce is most often used in salads. Even if it's a mixture different types lettuce leaves and basic dressing from any aromatic oil - ,