The time has come for a few words about seasonal delicacies, and this time it will be kale. Today, of course, we can find kale in supermarkets throughout the year, but it is in the middle of winter and at the beginning of spring that the vegetable has the best taste and is the most nutritious. Beautiful dark green leaves with an earthy aftertaste have more nutrients than you might think, given its very low calorie content.
Kale is a leafy vegetable that belongs to the brassica family, which in recent years has attracted the attention of scientists and nutritionists due to its health-promoting activities and the richness of phosphorus-containing phytonutrients. However, kale was known and cultivated in Europe as early as around 600 B.C., when a group of Celtic travelers brought this variety of wild cabbage from the Far East. Kale played an important role in the diet of the ancient Romans and was very popular in the Middle Ages.
As I mentioned before, kale boasts a wide range of health-promoting properties. The most important property seems to be the effect on blood cholesterol. To achieve maximum benefit, kale should be steamed for several minutes. Then, fiber-based compounds contained in kale most effectively capture bile acids from the gastrointestinal tract, expelling them from the body. Of course, raw vegetables also have such properties, but on a smaller scale. Due to the fact that bile acids have been excreted, the body must replenish them by creating new ones. For this purpose, the liver takes cholesterol from stored deposits, which reduces cholesterol. Given the prevalence of cholesterol and cardiovascular disease, most of us should put kale in our diet to avoid unnecessary health problems in the future.
