Product Review: Swiss Chard and Mustard Greens.

[Judah Maccabee]

As seen on the World's Healthiest Foods website ( http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php ), Swiss Chard and Mustard Greens are incredibly healthy foods.

Swiss Chard:

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?t...dspice&dbid=16

If vegetables got grades for traditional nutrients alone, Swiss chard would be the vegetable valedictorian. The vitamin and mineral profile of this leafy green vegetable contains enough "excellents" to ensure Swiss chard's place at the head of any vegetable Dean's List. Our rating system awards Swiss chard with excellent marks for its concentrations of vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, magnesium, manganese, potassium, iron, vitamin E, and dietary fiber. Swiss chard also emerges as a very good source of copper, calcium, vitamin B2, vitamin B6, protein, phosphorous, vitamin B1, zinc, folate, biotin, niacin and pantothenic acid.

And Mustard Greens:

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?t...dspice&dbid=93

Mustard greens are jampacked with nutrients. They provide good to excellent amounts of 8 vitamins, 7 minerals, dietary fiber and protein. And if that were not impressive enough, being a member of the Brassica family along with broccoli, cabbage and Brussels sprouts, they also feature the health-promoting phytochemicals known as glucosinolates.

Both taste quite similar to spinach. The only difference is with the chard (since it's fresh), the crispy stalks are kind of hard to munch on compared to the more mushy spinach and mustard greens (from frozen).

Believe it or not, the chard tastes slightly minty.

I bought about 4 days worth of chard for $2.50.

[lawdog]

I love both mustard greens and swiss chard, but I wouldn't agree that either tastes like spinach, nor do I think swiss chard tastes like mint. Good stuff though.

[kepetri]

My parents have grown Swiss Chard for years. I love the stuff, but I'd agree with Lawdog that I don't think it tastes anything like spinach or mint. I wasn't aware, though, that you could get it in stores. My parents have been looking for it for years...

[Judah Maccabee]

My parents have grown Swiss Chard for years. I love the stuff, but I'd agree with Lawdog that I don't think it tastes anything like spinach or mint. I wasn't aware, though, that you could get it in stores. My parents have been looking for it for years...

Well, this Chard had red stems. I dunno if that means anything.

I actually bought it at Dominicks because I needed to go food shopping and I can't make it to Whole Foods till the weekend.

I was surprised at the mustard greens in the freezer section. I was looking for kale, but I didn't find any in either freezer or produce section.

[kepetri]

I seem to remember it having light/almost clear stems when cooked. I haven't seen it raw recently.

[Judah Maccabee]

I seem to remember it having light/almost clear stems when cooked. I haven't seen it raw recently.

It was called "rainbow chard"

[Zendetta]

very tasty with a dash of soy or Braggs liquid aminos.

[Quikfeet509]

Rainbow chard is teh bomb. Saute in olive oil for a few minutes, then add vinegar.



I hate green stuff. I hate vinegar. But together, I will eat an entire package of rainbow chard by myself.

[Equipoise]

I'll stick to my raw cow.

[beka]

I'll impart my recipe for greens. I usually use Kale, because I loves it, but the recipe can be modified for Chard. I've never made mustard greens. I guess I just figured it would taste like mustard.

Ingredients:
-1 bunch greens
-olive oil
-vegetable or mushroom broth (I imagine you could use beef or chicken broth, but I would be worried about it overwhelming the flavor of the greens--the broth is more for steam and burn prevention than flavor)
-as much garlic as you can handle
-shallots, to taste, or two stalks of leeks (the white parts, sliced into rounds and rinsed)
-salt
-pepper
-cayenne or crushed red pepper flakes
(as you can see, I like crazy flavor. you can modify it all to your preferences).

First, remove the kale from the stems. I've found that dinosaur kale has edible stems, but most varieties of kale do not. I wrap my fingers around the base of the stem, holding the leaf upside down, and I pull my fingers down, pulling the leaf from the stem, until the point where the stem is too weak and it breaks. Then I discard the stem and shred up the leaf.

heat up olive oil in a big pot. Add your garlic and your leeks or shallots. Personally, I don't like my garlic overcooked, so as soon as I can smell the garlic, I add some broth. usually about a cup or so. This prevents the garlic from burning. Also, this helps the leeks to soften. Add your cayenne if you'd like, or your pepper flakes. When the leeks have begun to get soft and edible, it is time to add the greens.

plop them all in. Take your stirring device and turn the leaves over and over and over and over. Add more broth if necessary. The point here is to get the leaves to wilt, but to still be a dark, rich green. Add the lid to the pot to get them to steam. The leaves will only take a few minutes to wilt. Add salt, pepper to taste.

I like to serve this over a bowl of whole wheat pasta or brown rice. It's *so* good for you. I would eat this all to myself, which is a lot, but you could turn it into a side dish.

If you want to use chard, it is best to chop the stems into edible sized pieces, then add them to the sautee early on. When they are tender, then I add the leaves.