Sick of kale? Try these other greens
These six less popular vegetables are a worthy addition to your meal
Kale must have gotten itself one heck of a PR firm to turn the lowly vegetable once considered a food for the peasants into the poster vegetable for juice cleanses and overpriced salad boxes. Sure, the leafy green is packed with nutrients but so are a dozen or so greens sitting largely ignored on the same shelf. Here are six to put on your next grocery list.
Dandelion It’s probably best to buy dandelion from the supermarket rather than pulling the ones from your backyard that’s been getting a daily watering from the neighbourhood pets. Fiercely bitter, dandelion is best served in salads with an acidic dressing such as lemon juice and olive oil that will mellow out its harshness. Add thinly sliced oranges, grapefruit and fennel to further add an acidic sweetness to the bowl. Bitterness rating: 5/5 Rapini Acousin of broccoli, rapini is popular in Italian cooking where it’s sautéed with lots of olive oil, garlic and chili flakes (and maybe sprinkled with some parmesan on top). People are often put off by its bitterness, but blanching it for a minute in salted boiling water before adding it to a hot pan helps bring out its sweetness and soften the woody stems. Serve the sautéed rapini as is for a side, toss it in penne with crumbled sausage or add it to an Italian meatball soup. Bitterness rating: 4/5
Bok choy A staple in Chinese cooking, bok choy is characterized by its round leaves forming a bulblike shape at the bottom. Though its leaves may not be as dark as kale, bok choy is actually a nutritional powerhouse with high amounts of vitamins A and C and calcium. Do as the Chinese do and sauté bok choy with garlic in a bit of vegetable oil or add it to a bowl of noodle soup, dumplings or wontons. Bitterness rating: 2/5
Chard This gorgeous leafy green has stems and veins that come in a rainbow of colours, from pale green to beet red to sunset yellow. Like kale, its stems are quite woody in texture, but don’t throw away the part that’s going to give your dish a pop of colour (and belly-satisfying fibre). Simply separate the stems from the leaves, chop the stems into smaller pieces and give them a head start in the sauté pan before adding the leaves. A pinch of salt and a clove of garlic will help to get rid of its bitter taste. Bitterness rating: 3/5
Watercress As it name suggests, watercress thrives in wet environments and gives off a sweet, slightly peppery crunch. You should give the leaves an extra good rinse to get rid of any sand or dirt before using it as a base for salads or a more flavourful alternative to spinach in sandwiches (and not just cucumber finger sandwiches at afternoon tea). Watercress also adds flavour to pork bone soups and is a staple in Chinese hot pot. For nutrition, watercress rivals kale with high amounts of vitamins K,C, A and B6. Bitterness rating: 1/5
Collards Celiac sufferers (and those still on the gluten-free bandwagon) should turn to collards when making wraps and rolls in lieu of tortillas and wheat-based wrappers. The leaves are large, flat and round, making it much easier to handle as a substitute for burger buns than kale. In the American south, collards are traditionally cooked with onions, pepper, garlic and bacon (a dish with roots dating back to the slave trade). In East African nations such as Kenya and Tanzania, collards, or sukuma wiki, have been eaten for centuries and are sautéed in oil with onions and salt to go with meat or ugali, a cornmeal mash. Bitterness rating: 2/5