Are the high-end internet-famous vegetables really irreplaceable?

Nutrition, health and freshness are the current trends that people pursue in their daily diets. Especially after the hot weather, people's appetites have become a little "weak", and they are not interested in the heavy tastes of smoked, grilled, and greasy sauces. Instead, various green vegetables have become the protagonists of the content posted by food experts on social software. Among these highly clicked menus, several unfamiliar "foreign" vegetables have a particularly high appearance rate, among which kale, Brussels sprouts, artichokes, and asparagus are the representatives.

▲Picture: Screenshot of Xiaohongshu

The protagonists of these fashionable recipes are rarely seen in ordinary vegetable markets. They are usually only found in imported supermarkets and are ridiculously expensive, but this does not hinder their popularity. Are their nutritional content really exceptional? Let us unveil the mystery of these noble vegetables!

01

The origin and nutritional value of kale

Kale is a great tool for fat loss, Brussels sprouts are a great tool for plating, artichokes are the star of the Mediterranean and asparagus is a great partner for steak, let us first learn about their origins!

Kale is a common winter vegetable in Germany, also known as "green vegetables", and is usually pickled into sauerkraut when eaten.

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It is native to the area from the Mediterranean to Asia Minor and has a long history of cultivation. It was widely planted in ancient Greece as early as 200 BC. Today, it is widely planted in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, and the United States, and there are various varieties, including ornamental kale and edible kale.

Brussels sprouts, also known as Brussels sprouts, are also called small cabbage, small round cabbage, small cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and small cabbage. They are a vegetable with a slightly bitter taste. In Western cuisine, Brussels sprouts often appear as a side dish.

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The earliest record of the cultivation of Brussels sprouts is in the ancient Roman era, originating in Belgium and later spreading to Germany. Until the 19th century, Brussels sprouts were mainly cultivated in northwestern Europe. So it seems that Brussels sprouts are just a well-known home-cooked dish in Europe.

Cardoon, also known as cardoon, artichoke, globe thistle, ball thistle, chrysanthemum thistle, French lily, and lotus lily, is a plant of the genus Cardoon of the Asteraceae family that grows along the Mediterranean coast. It is an immature flower bud of the genus Cardoon.

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Cardoons originated along the Mediterranean coast and were generally cultivated in Italy. It was not until the 16th century that they were introduced to the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and North America in the 19th century. Although it is rarely seen, it is not a rare treasure in the vegetable world.

Asparagus: Compared with the previous vegetables, this one should be relatively familiar to everyone. It is native to most parts of Europe, as well as North Africa and West Asia, and is a widely grown vegetable crop.

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In fact, asparagus has a long history of cultivation in China. In the Ming Dynasty, Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica said that asparagus can "relieve heat and promote urination"; its root is called Baibu, which can moisten the lungs, relieve cough, eliminate phlegm, and kill insects. Shennong's Herbal Classic also listed as "the best of the best", saying that long-term consumption can make the body lighter, improve qi and prolong life. Therefore, asparagus has a long history of cultivation and consumption in my country, and it is called "dragon beard vegetable" in North China.

Have you noticed that these popular vegetables that we think are particularly fresh and refined are actually just vegetables that people eat every day in their main production areas? What is their nutritional value? The following table will make it clear at a glance:

Note: Each vegetable is counted based on 100 grams of fresh edible part. Data source: USDA Food Composition Database

The table above details the main nutrients contained in these vegetables. If we compare these four vegetables with the commonly eaten broccoli, we can find that their macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) are not much different. It’s just that kale and artichokes have higher vitamin A content, while kale has higher vitamin C content.

However, in the daily diet of Chinese residents, the main sources of vitamin A are animal foods and vegetables rich in carotenoids such as carrots, while the main sources of vitamin C are various fresh vegetables and fruits. Therefore, as long as the diet is normal, there will generally be no deficiency of vitamin A and vitamin C. From this point of view, the nutritional value of these four vegetables is actually not particularly significant.

02

"Foreign monks" do not need to be sought after. Eat 25 kinds of food every week

The vegetables that Chinese residents see in their daily lives are very rich and colorful. We can divide them into dark vegetables and light vegetables. Dark vegetables mainly include green vegetables, such as spinach, rapeseed, celery, etc.; red and orange vegetables mainly include carrots, tomatoes, pumpkins, etc.; purple vegetables mainly include purple cabbage, red amaranth, etc.; light vegetables refer to lighter-colored vegetables such as cauliflower and cabbage.

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The Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2016) states that we should eat 300-500 grams of vegetables (half a pound to one pound) every day, of which dark vegetables should account for more than 50%. Most vegetables have high water content and low energy. Their nutritional value is mainly reflected in providing the body with a small amount of vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber. In this sense, whether vegetables come from China or abroad, their nutritional value is actually not much different. At the same time, the guidelines recommend that everyone eat at least 12 kinds of food every day and at least 25 different foods per week. Therefore, there is no need to focus on certain specific vegetables. Diverse food and balanced diet are the basic principles of a reasonable diet.

03

Cooking tips: less oil and salt, healthy and green, no distinction between Chinese and Western

People are keen to choose these uncommon Internet celebrity vegetables. One of the important reasons is that "scarcity makes things valuable", and they hope to taste delicacies from the other side of the ocean at their doorstep. However, the cooking process of some Western food is accompanied by high oil and salt, such as the pan-fried asparagus and salty Brussels sprouts that are more common in popular recipes on a certain social software. Although the raw materials are good, improper processing methods will still reduce the nutritional value of the food and bring certain health risks. Therefore, it is recommended that when cooking such vegetables, you can use cooking methods such as blanching and boiling, and add a small amount of seasoning before eating directly.

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Summarize:

The nutritional value of vegetables such as kale, Brussels sprouts, artichokes, and asparagus is not as special as people imagine. We can treat them as ordinary vegetables in our daily lives and cook them lightly to enjoy. Regarding healthy eating, we should still follow the recommendations of the dietary pyramid in the Chinese Dietary Guidelines, eat a balanced diet, and live a healthy life.

Author: Guo Xiaohui, Lecturer, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University

Review | Song Shuang, Associate Researcher, Institute of Nutrition and Health, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention

References:

1. Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents (2016)

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kale;

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brussels_sprout

4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artichoke

5. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asparagus

6.USDA National Nutrient Database: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/

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