Properties: Leaf lettuces

Leaf lettuces are rich in secondary plant substances, carotenoids, and flavonoids, which promote health. Lettuce contains more folic acid than other vegetables.

Leaf Lettuces in Overview

Leaf lettuces are healthy, no question about it. But which lettuce tastes the best and goes well with certain dishes? How should one store the lettuce properly? Here's more on the most popular leaf lettuces.

Chicory

This is more of a diverse vegetable than a salad. Chicory has an especially intense flavor, it tastes slightly bitter and salty (when fried). This vegetable isn't just delicious as a salad but also as a side dish and when fried, chicory tastes very good. It originates from the Mediterranean region where it's considered a daily ingredient. Although chicory is not as popular here as other leaf lettuces, it tops the list among lovers of exotic varieties. One must season chicory well if one wants to eat it fresh. Then it tastes particularly good because all its juices and aromas are released.

Iceberg Lettuce

The iceberg lettuce is one of the most popular leaf lettuces. It belongs to the head lettuces and has a sweetish taste. The leaves are crisp, juicy, and broad. They range from yellowish to green. Seasoned well, the iceberg lettuce tastes more intense than other salads. It serves wonderfully as an appetizer and is rich in vitamins. Iceberg lettuce can be prepared in many ways, which is why it also belongs to the most popular varieties. You can find it in every supermarket. The best way to store iceberg lettuce is in the refrigerator.

Endive

The endive is a salad that typically grows late summer. It does not form closed heads of lettuce but rosettes made up of thick leaves. Its basal leaves are frilly and smooth. In some varieties, such as the curly endive, the leaves are wavy.

Field Lettuce

About 80 varieties belong to field lettuce, with the common field lettuce being the most well-known. Field lettuce is considered one of the healthiest salads, particularly rich in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, as well as folic acid, iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium, and essential oils and secondary plant substances.

Head Lettuce

There are different varieties of head lettuces, which are one- to two-year plants that form a basal rosette. Head lettuces contain 95% water with a nutritional value of 58 KJ, 1.25 g proteins, and 2.4 g carbohydrates. Head lettuce is grown both outdoors and in greenhouses.

Swiss Chard

Swiss chard is popular in three varieties. There's the variety with yellow stalks, which is best suited for a fresh salad. Then there are Swiss chards with green and red stalks that need to be cooked and are best as a side dish to fish and meat. Swiss chard tastes best as an accompaniment to fish. When preparing it, one should use plenty of garlic and olive oil. With these ingredients, the beautiful aromas unfold. The young leaves can be served fresh as salad while all large mature leaves must be briefly cooked in salted water. The vegetable is ready when it has a light green color. It must not turn gray.

Arugula

Two varieties are known; the classic arugula vegetable and what's called rauke, which is the wild variety of salad rocket. This variety always needs to be cooked. Salad rocket can only be eaten seasoned with salt. However, this salad is better suited as a fresh variant. Storage should take place in a cold, damp, and dark location. Arugula does not like sunlight.

Spinach

Spinach is considered a low-calorie and healthy vegetable rich in beta-carotene, Vitamin A, B-vitamins, and minerals. Spinach can be eaten as salad, especially young leaf spinach is suitable for this purpose. But it's also a classic when prepared with cream sauce. For a long time, spinach was regarded as extremely iron-rich, which originally came about due to a calculation error. Nonetheless, 4.1 g of iron is contained in 100 g of spinach. Tip for use: make sure when buying that there are no yellow leaves or spots present. Young spinach leaves only keep for a few days. The fresher it's eaten, the juicier the leaves are. Spinach can be frozen without any problems. However, once thawed, it is no longer suitable as salad.