Watercress
A superb peppery leaf
with 15 essential vitamins and mineralsThere are watercress farms close to where I live in Hampshire. I think it’s a wonderful salad ingredient, as do millions of other UK residents – so wonderful that we don’t seem to be able to produce enough of it in this country anymore and sometimes have to import it.
Gram for gram, it contains as much vitamin C as oranges, more calcium than whole milk, more folate than bananas and more iron than spinach. It's packed with beta-carotene and vitamin A equivalents, which are good for healthy skin and eyes.
New research even shows it is emerging as an important player in the field of cancer prevention.
It’s the UK’s most historic salad crop. In Victorian times it was a staple part of the working class diet, most often eaten for breakfast in a
sandwich.
It had always had a reputation as a cure for all ills and so became increasingly sought after by all social classes. Grown in mineral-rich spring water, from which the plant derives its many nutrients, it can certainly be categorised these days as a Superfood.
Its other name is Rorripa nasturtium, a member of the cruciferae family and is related to broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, horseradish and pak choi.
It’s a good hangover cure too, I’m told. The glucosinolate compounds within it make it a vital component for a detox diet by increasing the liver’s detox enzymes. So if you enjoy theChampagne
or Pimms
a little too much on your picnic, you know what to digest plenty of the next day!
As far back as 500BC, Hippocrates, the father of medicine, is said to have had his first hospital built near a stream, so that he would always have a fresh supply to treat his patients.
I've also learnt that the Romans and Anglo Saxons ate it to prevent baldness, so I think I might have to increase the quantities I give my husband!
If you’d like to know more about this lovely crop, log onto the watercress uk site
and you’ll find lots of recipes and fascinating information on the health properties, heritage and farming of watercress.
On your picnic, use it as a salad leaf, in a soup, or in araita.
Incorporate it into quiches and flans and use it as a lovely green garnish with anything savoury.
Try it with blue cheese, pears and walnuts, with a balsamic dressing or with baby spinach leaves, hard-boiled egg quarters and crispy bacon bits, with some garlicy mayo.
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