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Winter cauliflower, crumbled cabbage, broccoli - the popular cabbage vegetable, which is closely related to cauliflower, has many names, but is probably best known under the name "broccoli". The deep to blue-green broccoli head, which is divided into numerous florets and is still closed inflorescences, is characteristic. The vegetable is considered a local superfood because it is rich in vitamins, minerals and other healthy ingredients. In order not to destroy them, you should not boil broccoli vegetables.
Eat broccoli raw
Some vegetables are actually harmful raw, which is why you should only eat them cooked. Green beans and potatoes in particular, but also unripe tomatoes, aubergines, rhubarb and wild mushrooms are harmful to health when raw. Five to six uncooked bush beans are enough to cause painful symptoms of poisoning. Many people believe that crumbly cabbage is also poisonous uncooked, which is why the tender florets are usually boiled in water. However, this is an old wives' tale: raw cabbage vegetables are by no means poisonous, on the contrary, they are very healthy.
ingredients
The reason for the health-promoting effect of unheated broccoli florets - which taste great in a colorful salad, for example - are the valuable ingredients that are destroyed by cooking or other forms of preparation associated with heat. 100 grams of fresh vegetables contain almost the daily requirement of an adult for vitamin C, which is known to be very sensitive to heat. The type of cabbage is particularly well-known for its high content of sulforaphane or mustard oil, which on the one hand is responsible for the characteristic aroma of the vegetable and, on the other hand, has also been shown in studies to be effective in preventing certain forms of cancer. But this substance is also washed out during cooking and is no longer available or only available in small quantities in heated broccoli dishes.
On average, 100 grams of raw broccoli contains these vitamins:
- Vitamin E: 0.61 milligrams
- Folic acid: 39 micrograms (roughly covers the daily requirement of an adult)
- Beta carotene (precursor of vitamin A): 850 micrograms (daily requirement for an adult)
- Vitamins B1: 0.10 milligrams
- B2: 0.18 milligrams
- B6: 0.28 milligrams
- C: 94 milligrams (about daily adult requirement)
- K: 179 micrograms (about three times the daily requirement for an adult)
In addition, 100 grams of crumbly cabbage are rich in these minerals and trace elements:
- Potassium: 256 milligrams
- Magnesium: 18 milligrams
- Iron: 58 milligrams
- Calcium: 58 milligrams
- Phosphorus: 63 milligrams
- Copper: 56 micrograms
- Zinc: 0.46 milligrams
- Fluoride: 10 micrograms
- Iodide: 15 micrograms
- Manganese: 469 micrograms
Furthermore, this superfood contains almost all essential and non-essential amino acids, but only a few fatty acids and only a few calories: the green vegetables only contain between 28 and 34 kilocalories, and at around three grams only a few carbohydrates.
tip: Raw broccoli should also be eaten because the vegetable contains many antioxidants such as indole-3-carbinol and thus prevents cell damage - which in turn promotes the development of cancer.
Edible ingredients
Basically, all parts of broccoli are edible. However, the tender florets are particularly suitable for raw consumption, while the stalk is too hard. However, you can use this to make a broccoli cream soup, adding the florets just before the end of the cooking time. Broccoli leaves are also healthy and tasty. They taste fried with onions and bacon and deglazed with broth, like spinach in soups and casseroles or raw in a smoothie. Another interesting recipe is "broccoli leaf roulades": Simply wrap the meat or other filling in fresh broccoli leaves and then prepare the roulades as usual.
tip: Romanesco, a close relative of crumbled cabbage and cauliflower, is also very healthy when eaten raw. The low-calorie vegetable is packed with vitamin C, beta-carotene, folic acid and niacin.
broccoli sprouts
Broccoli sprouts, i.e. the young seedlings, are also very healthy and can be eaten raw and used as a topping for bread or in salads. In contrast to vegetables, however, sprouts are available all year round and can be grown on the windowsill at home. All you need for this are broccoli seeds and some pulp or cotton wool. Keep the seeds as moist as possible and place them in a bright place, then you can enjoy the seedlings as soon as possible.
tip: With us, crumbled cabbage is in season between June and October, during which time you can obtain the vegetables from regional cultivation. Outside of this period, it usually comes from distant growing areas and has therefore had a long journey to reach your supermarket. Such vegetables are not only of ecological concern, but have also lost many of their vitamins and other nutrients. Broccoli sprouts can therefore be a good alternative.
Raw broccoli when pregnant
Many pleasures are forbidden during pregnancy: raw or smoked meat products, raw milk and raw milk products and other foods can transmit pathogens and be extremely harmful to the baby's health. Raw broccoli dishes, on the other hand, are completely harmless for pregnant women and are recommended for both expectant and nursing mothers because of the high proportion of calcium, iron and folic acid. Pregnant women can eat plenty of raw vegetables, but breastfeeding women have to be careful: cabbage dishes can cause colic in babies, which is why you only eat small amounts at first to test your child's tolerance of the vegetables. Be sure to wash and trim the crumbled cabbage thoroughly before preparing it.
Flatulence after eating cabbage
Like all brassicas, broccoli is high in fiber, which is great for gut health but can cause painful gas and bloating in sensitive individuals. However, these are not harmful, just unpleasant and can be prevented with a few tricks:
- Eat raw vegetables cut as small as possible or chopped
- Slowly acclimate your body to raw broccoli
- Eat only small amounts at first and increase slowly
- best tolerated when pureed in a smoothie
The crumbled cabbage tastes best in fresh smoothies anyway, for example together with (light) grapes and cucumber. with pineapple and banana or with spinach and apple. Fill the mixtures with water, soy milk or yoghurt according to taste. In contrast to pure fruit smoothies, such a mix contains little sugar but many other healthy ingredients.
vitamin-friendly preparation
No matter how healthy broccoli may be, some people do not like to eat it raw or, despite their best efforts, cannot tolerate it. Nevertheless, you don't have to do without this superfood, you can prepare it in a way that preserves vitamins. The crumbly cabbage is more digestible, but still contains its health-promoting ingredients. Instead of cooking the delicious vegetables in lots of water until soft, you should
- stew
- blanch
- steam cooking
- or fry.
Most of the vitamins are preserved if you cook the florets in a steamer with no water and a lid on for about five to six minutes. They keep their bite and their beautiful green color. When steaming, on the other hand, you only use a little water, when blanching the florets remain in the boiling water for only one to two minutes. The broccoli also stays crisp when frying, although you should always add some fat to the pan when preparing a vegetable pan or similar and only add the broccoli florets shortly before the end of the cooking time.
storage
Use the crumbled cabbage as fresh as possible, because the vegetables will only keep for a maximum of two to three days - even if they are chilled in the refrigerator. If the head is already too old, many of the valuable ingredients as well as the characteristic, fine aroma are lost. So make sure when you buy it
- packed heads under the foil do not secrete any condensed water
- the broccoli has not yet turned yellow
- or has brown spots.
If a broccoli dish also tastes noticeably bitter, you should stop eating it. Unlike bitter zucchini or squash dishes, this is not harmful to health, but it does indicate overaged or improperly prepared vegetables and can cause gastrointestinal problems. It is therefore best to always use crumbled cabbage when it is fresh, store it in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator for a day or two at most, or freeze it immediately after harvesting or buying it.
tip: Contrary to some kitchen advice, you don't need to blanch broccoli before freezing. On the contrary: wash and clean the vegetables, then dry them well and cut them into bite-sized florets. This is the best way to freeze it.
What goes well with raw broccoli?
To taste raw broccoli especially
- (roasted) nuts and seeds, e.g. B. walnuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds
- Various vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers, zucchini and mushrooms
- Fennel bulbs or seeds (also helps against flatulence)
- chopped coriander (also effective against flatulence)
- Garlic, pressed or chopped
- Raisins and pomegranate seeds
Natural yoghurt or light balsamic vinegar and an aromatic oil (e.g. walnut oil) can be used very well for a dressing.