Featured Ingredient: Microgreens
What on earth are microgreens? With all the buzz around “super-foods” like big, bushy bunches of kale and spinach, why should we care about produce that’s micro? It turns out there’s more to microgreens than meets the eye, and this baby-er than baby produce may rival it’s fully grown counterparts for vitamin and nutrient content.
The “greens” of microgreens are what are known as “cotyledons,” the very first leaves a plant will grow upon breaching the soil surface. Cotyledons provide a seedling’s first energy source, but they do not themselves grow into mature leaves. A plant will usually shed cotyledons once true leaves begin to form.
Eating underdeveloped vegetables and fruit is nothing new, (see our recent post about immature fruit), and a “smaller the better” ethos has permeated modern dining for at least a decade. (Think back to that tender baby kale salad mix you picked up from your local farmers market or grocery store recently). Microgreens may also be old news, as they are commonly used as a garnish for salads, and have even made an appearance on top of smoothies. This fancy garnish shouldn’t be taken for grated, however. Aside from adding a refreshing burst of flavor and splash of color to a dish, researchers have found that microgreens pack a wallop of nutritional benefit.
In an interview for NPR, Gene Lester, a researcher with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and his colleagues at University of Maryland, College Park, conducted a scientific analysis of the nutritional value of microgreens. In a nutshell the team found that, “If you throw a big bunch of microgreens on anything, that's a pretty good shot of vitamins."
Lester’s study investigated vitamin and carotenoid content of 25 commonly consumed varieties of microgreens, including green daikon, amaranth, cilantro and red cabbage. While not all varieties have the same nutritional benefits, each has extremely high levels of the ones they do have. According to the study, “In comparison with nutritional concentrations in mature leaves (USDA National Nutrient Database), the microgreen cotyledon leaves possessed higher nutritional densities.”
While microgreens are no match for the fiber content of its more mature iterations, consider throwing a handful on your next salad or sandwich for an extra boost of vitamins.