Lettuce salad
Lettuce salad is not only a very healthy and tasty leafy vegetable, but also serves as a wonderful decoration for a festive table.
Description of lettuce salad
Lettuce is a plant from the Astrov family. The birthplace of the salad is not known for certain. According to some reports, it is believed that the ancestor of the plant is wild lettuce, which is now widespread in Asia, Europe, Africa and America.
The plant was cultivated for several thousand years. It was actively used in food by the inhabitants of Ancient Rome, Greece and Egypt. Today lettuce is one of the most widespread vegetable garden crops, and it is grown in almost all corners of our land.
Lettuce comes in many varieties that vary in size, shape and leaf color. The most common is the large-sized variety, and the most delicious is the Italian Radichye variety, which has a slightly bitter taste. Also widespread is the French variety "Batvia", which has a somewhat piquant flavor. In America, the most popular variety is "Ice Mountain", which has crispy strong leaves.
Cooking applications
Lettuce is widely used in cooking. It is consumed raw, adding to various vegetable salads, soups, sauces, snacks, as well as fish and meat dishes. Lettuce is well exposed to heat treatment. It can be fried or stewed, but it should be borne in mind that in this case, lettuce loses most of the beneficial properties.
Lettuce is often used simply to decorate dishes.
The salad should be consumed only fresh, therefore it is better to use it immediately after purchase. If the lettuce has yellowed and sluggish leaves, and the cut line of the stalk has acquired a brownish tint, then the salad is stale.
In addition, it is not recommended to keep cut lettuce leaves in water for a long time, otherwise they will lose their beneficial properties and vitamins. Season the salad just before serving. If it stays in the gas station for too long, it will settle and take on an unattractive appearance.
The composition and calorie content of lettuce
100 g of lettuce contains 95 g of water, 1.6 g of carbohydrates, 1.36 g of proteins, 1.3 g of fiber, 0.6 g of ash, 0.15 g of fat; vitamins: beta-carotene (A), thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), choline (B4), pantothenic acid (B5), pyridoxine (B6), folic acid (B9), ascorbic acid (C), tocopherol (E), phylloquinone (K); macronutrients: phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, calcium, potassium; trace elements: selenium, copper, manganese, iron, zinc.
The calorie content of lettuce salad is about 15 kcal per 100 g of product.
Useful properties of lettuce
Lettuce is a medicinal and dietary leafy vegetable. It is recommended to be used in dietary and children's nutrition, to include it in the diet of elderly people and those who have recently suffered a serious illness.
Lettuce leaves have antitussive, expectorant, sedative and diuretic effects. Useful properties of lettuce are used for diabetes mellitus, obesity, insomnia, atherosclerosis, tuberculosis, hypertension, diseases of the digestive, nervous and genitourinary systems.
Regular consumption of lettuce in food lowers blood cholesterol levels and helps to get rid of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
Lettuce juice in folk medicine is used to relieve nervous excitability and get rid of insomnia, with liver diseases. And an infusion of crushed lettuce seeds helps nursing mothers to increase lactation.
Contraindications
Lettuce is not recommended for chronic and acute enterocolitis and colitis, for urolithiasis and gout.
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