About Spinach
A
leafy green vegetable or salad green with a flavor that is slightly bitter
tasting. There are basically two different varieties of spinach grown
for consumption: the small, smooth, flat-textured leaf spinach and the
crinkle-textured broad leaf spinach. The flavor is the same for each variety,
but the density or size of the leaves, the shape and texture of the leaves
and the stalks all differ. Spinach is rich in potassium, iron, riboflavin,
vitamin A, and vitamin C. When eaten raw, the nutrients are retained,
however when cooked, spinach releases some of the nutrients into the liquid
produced. By boiling the spinach greens, the nutrients are released into
the water. However, when sautéed or steamed, the juices can be
used in the cooked spinach so the nutrients can be retained. Spinach is
served raw as a green for salads, cooked as a vegetable dish, or combined
with other ingredients for a side dish. It is also dried, chopped into
bits, and mixed with other ingredients to be used as a food seasoning.
There are four types of spinach often available which include the common
spinach, New Zealand spinach, Chinese or Asian Spinach, and Water Spinach.
Common spinach has flat thin leaves, thin stalks and a medium green color.
When eaten raw or cooked, the stalks are typically removed and the leaves
are prepared for consumption. New Zealand spinach is a coarser, thicker
leaf with a crinkled-texture. The leaf has an arrowhead shape with a fine
fuzz covering the leaf, while the stalk is thicker than common spinach.
The New Zealand spinach is best served as a cooked vegetable or ingredient
to a food dish, providing a mellow grassy flavor. Chinese spinach is also
referred to as Asian, Bayam, Ceylon, Malabar, Tampala, or Vietnamese spinach,
as well as alogvati, mong toi, saan choy, or yin tsoi. This type of spinach
provides a crinkle-textured, thicker leaf grown on a denser stalk than
common spinach. It is a variety that is commonly grown in Asia and India
for both the stalks and the leaf.
Source: http://www.recipetips.com/glossary-term/t--34295/spinach.asp
|
Recipes
- Spinach with Lentils recipes from
Sri Lanka and India and other exotic places
- Malfatti (from Sylvia Sebastiani)
with spinach
- Feta Cheese Spinach Pie -
- Wheat Berry, Roasted Corn and Spinach
Salad
- Spinach Raita with Toasted
Cumin from 5 Spices, 50 Dishes by Ruta Kahate
- Spinach Feta Personal Healthy
Pizza from Spark People
- Vegetables with Tofu and Spinach
from Food of the World: Thailand
- Spinach-stuffed Cumin Crespelle
from Joy of Pasta by Joe Famularo
- Curried Chickpeas with Spinach and Zucchini
from Feast from the Mideast: 250 Sun-Drenched Dishes from the Lands
of the Bible by Faye Levy
- Spinach-Stuffed Fetayer,
a stuffed Jordanian pastry from The Language of Baklava by
Diana Abu-Jaber
- Spiced Coconut Spinach
from Heidi Swanson
- Spinach Salad with White
Beans
- Spanakopita (Spinach Pie) from
A Greek Feast by Lou Seibert Pappas
- Spinaci a la Romana (Spinach
with Raisins and Pine Nuts) from The Encyclopedia of Italian
Cooking, ed. Jeni Wright
- Mussels with
Spinach (Moules aux Epinards) from Languedoc
- Sake-Steamed Mussels
with Ginger, Miso and Spinach
- Tagliatelle with Mushrooms
and Garlic Cheese with ricotta and spinach; from The Mushroom
Book by Victoria Lloyd-Davies
Growing Spinach
Spinach is a hardy vegetable of the cabbage family that
is high in vitamins A and D. It develops best during cool seasons of
the year.
When spinach plants of most varieties are properly grown and harvested,
they can yield over an extended period. Side heads develop after the
large, central head is removed. Two crops per year (spring and fall)
may be grown in most parts of the country. New heat tolerant varieties
allow spinach to be produced in all but the hottest parts of the season.
Transplants are recommended to give the best start for spring planting,
because transplanting gets the plants established more quickly. Thus
they can bear their crop with minimal interference from the extreme
heat of early summer. Fall crops may be direct-seeded in the garden
if space allows or may be started in flats to replace early crops when
their harvest ends.
See more about growing spinach at:
|