Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Beet Green Side Dish
Beets are often less consumed compared to all other vegetables. I personally don’t like beets much; but now I do like beet greens. Its taste reminds me of red chard which we get in India. Beet root is sweet, but the leaves don’t have that much sugar in them. Both root and leaves contains high amount of iron, so it’s known as blood builder and blood cleanser. Beets are very useful to fight anemia.
Beets can normalize blood pressure, it has high amount of beta-carotene and lutein (anti oxidants) which prevents cancer. It has vitamins A, C, B1, B2 and B6 in it. Beets, especially the leaves contain a large amount of dietary fiber and protein. And it has zero cholesterol, no saturated fat, and it’s very low in calorie.
So here is a simple and easy recipe which I found tasty.
Beet greens of 6 roots (2 bunches) - cut them with stem from around 3-4 inches above the root, wash and chop finely. Chop 2 cloves of garlic.
Heat ¼ tsp oil in a pan; add the chopped garlic and 1 red chili cut into 2-3 pieces. When the garlic turns light brown add the beet greens and a ¼ tsp salt; mix well and lower the heat. Cook for 2-3 minutes (never over cook, which destroys the nutrients). Serve with rice.
Tips: Beet root and leaves together can be prepared using the same recipe.

1 comment: