The amazing benefits of endive
Endive, a member of the chicory family, has a crisp texture and a sweet, nutty flavor with a pleasantly mild bitterness. It’s available year-round and great served raw or cooked. Often people use endive as a healthy substitute for chips and crackers.
Other benefits of endive:
- Only one calorie per leaf
- Healthy source of vitamins and minerals
- Good source of potassium
- High in complex fibers
- Promotes digestive health
- According to some studies, one cup of raw endive per week may reduce the risk of ovarian cancer by up to 75%
Also interesting: Endive is one of the most difficult vegetables in the world to grow, requiring a two-step growing process before it’s ready to be enjoyed. The first growth takes about 150 days in the field, where the chicory grows from seed into a leafy green plant with a deep tap root. At harvest, tops of the leafy chicory plant are cut off and the roots are dug up and placed in cold storage, where they enter a dormancy period. As demand necessitates, roots are removed from cold storage for their second growth, which takes 28 days in dark, cool, humid forcing rooms, similar to a mushroom growing facility.
Look for endive in the produce department.
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