Forgotten rutabaga

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

“You are buckwheat for us, and we are for rutabagas,” so the Germans used to say when they came to visit us. Literally 100 years ago, 350,000 tons of rutabaga were grown in Russia. Throughout the long winter, they ate rutabagas to maintain vitality and speed up recovery.

Rutabaga is one of the most ancient vegetable plants; it has been "tamed" by man since time immemorial. For the first time as a vegetable, rutabaga was mentioned in 1620 in the works of the Swedish botanist Kaspar Baugin, therefore Sweden is considered its homeland.

Every year in mid-November in Switzerland, in the city of Richterswil, on Lake Zurich, a holiday is held, which the locals call Raben Childi. The main character at the holiday is the rutabaga. This tradition is over 100 years old.

In the Middle Ages, rutabaga was very popular, now it is widely grown in the countries of Northern Europe, the Baltic states, in the northwestern and northern regions of Russia, Siberia, and the Far East.

Advertising swede from LavkaLavka

With the help of rutabagas, vitality can be maintained, which is why the elderly often ate it. Young people resorted to the help of swede for colds - thanks to ascorbic acid, swede increased immunity and thereby contributed to a speedy recovery. Rutabaga helps to convert a dry cough into a productive cough with phlegm, by diluting it in the bronchi. Rutabaga is especially effective in inflammatory chronic diseases of the lungs and bronchi.

Rutabaga is a biennial plant. In the first year of sowing, leaves grow and a root crop develops, and in the second year, a stem with flowers and then seeds. The shape of the root crops, depending on the variety, is round, round, flat-round, cylindrical.

The flesh of the swede is firm, of various shades of yellow or white. The roots of the swede are large and rise above the soil. The top of the rutabaga is either dark green with a yellow bottom, or purple-reddish with a yellow bottom.

Rutabaga is a fairly cold-resistant plant, its seeds begin to germinate already at 2 ° C. Its seedlings will withstand up to -3 ° C, adult plants up to -5 ° C, and plants with seeds up to -8 ° C. For root crop growth, 16-20 ° C is enough.

Useful properties of swede

In terms of nutritional and medicinal properties, rutabagas are very similar to turnips. The nutritional value of rutabagas is low, but it is famous for its very high vitamin content. It contains more vitamin C (40 mg%) than carrots, beets or cabbage. Moreover, this vitamin in swede is well preserved for a long time during storage. In terms of vitamin B6 content, rutabaga far surpasses all root vegetables, onions, cabbage or other vegetables.

It is rich in rutabagas and mineral salts of potassium - 227 mg%, calcium - 47 mg%. And in terms of the content of deficient iodine (4 μg%), it is one of the richest plants in the garden.

When properly cooked, rutabaga retains almost all the nutrients it contains, and you get a delicious dish that can be compared to potatoes. But the advantage of swede is that it can be stored for a very long time.

Swede contains the largest amount of calcium trace elements. Therefore, it is excellent for the treatment of patients with bone softening. In the distant past, rutabaga seeds were used to treat measles in children, they were used to gargle the throat and mouth with inflammation. The roots of this plant were considered an effective diuretic, anti-burn, wound-healing and anti-inflammatory agent. Swede juice was used to heal wounds. Rutabaga is a valuable food product. This is especially true in early spring and winter, when the body is deficient in vitamins. It is recommended as a medical food for constipation, rutabaga is included in the menu of patients with atherosclerosis. However, dishes from rutabagas are contraindicated in case of exacerbated diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

The composition of the swede allows to normalize the stool, the activity of the gastrointestinal tract, since fiber perfectly cleanses the intestines, and due to its diuretic properties, swelling decreases. Rutabaga is known to help thin phlegm.

For kidney and cardiovascular diseases, rutabagas help to reduce swelling. This is possible due to its diuretic properties, which help to remove excess fluid from the human body.

Rutabaga improves metabolic processes, removes "harmful" cholesterol from the body, which helps to reduce the formation of cholesterol plaques on the walls of blood vessels. In this regard, rutabagas are recommended for atherosclerosis.

Due to the large amount of fiber, rutabagas enhances intestinal motility, improves metabolism and digestive process, which is especially necessary for obesity.

The antibacterial properties of swede juice have long been used to treat burns and festering wounds.

In terms of nutritional and medicinal properties, rutabagas are very similar to turnips. The nutritional value of rutabagas is low, but it is famous for its very high vitamin content. When cooked correctly, almost all the nutrients contained in it are preserved in rutabaga, mouth-watering dishes from it will not yield to potatoes.

Rutabaga in the treatment of ailments

Rutabaga has been known in our country for a long time and has already found its place in folk recipes. It has a diuretic effect, it is used for hypertension and edema of various origins.

Rutabaga chopped on a fine grater is used for coughing. It is an excellent expectorant for bronchitis, pneumonia, a good remedy for anemia. This property of rutabagas is used for acute bronchopneumonia and tracheobronchitis, in this case, grated raw rutabagas are mixed with honey.

Since there is a lot of vitamin C in swede, it is the best remedy used in folk medicine for colds. If the respiratory disease is chronic, use steamed rutabagus with honey.

The mustard oil found in this vegetable has powerful antimicrobial properties. Therefore, grated rutabagas are successfully used to treat superficial abscesses. If a person is burned, then a rutabaga compress can be applied to prevent inflammation and treat burns.

Since there are a lot of dietary fiber in swede, it helps to normalize the intestines. As such, it is useful for constipation and obesity.

Rutabaga in cosmetology

Moisturizing mask. Grate a piece of rutabaga and mix with sour cream. Add a teaspoon of honey and the same amount of cucumber juice. Mix everything thoroughly and apply on face for 10-15 minutes. The mask will be nutritious, the cucumber juice will dry out, and the rutabaga pulp will speed up the healing of pimples. Remove the mask with a swab and tea leaves.

Vitamin mask. Grate the rutabagas so that you get two grated tablespoons. Add 1 spoonful of carrot juice and a teaspoon of honey. Mix all this with 2 tablespoons of cottage cheese and apply on face for no more than 10 minutes. It is better to wash off the mask with warm water, then wash with cold.

Swede juice is rubbed into the skin to get rid of freckles and into the hair roots for better growth.

Rutabaga for weight loss

It is quite difficult to follow a diet when there are few options for dishes. All of them quickly become boring, and a person begins to look for food options to supplement the "meager" diet. Rutabaga allows you to expand the menu of a losing weight person and at the same time not deviate from the principles of dietary nutrition. It normalizes the work of the intestines, accelerates its peristalsis, and therefore helps with obesity.

Rutabaga is eaten raw, boiled, steamed. You can make mashed potatoes from it, and it will only slightly differ from potato in taste. Whereas in terms of composition and benefits, the difference will be grandiose.

Rutabaga is eaten more often as part of second courses. It goes well with eggs, mushrooms and dried fruits.

Secrets of growing swede

Rutabaga is an unpretentious crop, but slightly alkaline soil is needed for cultivation. Since the usual reaction of the soil in peat bogs is acidic, then before planting the swede it must be processed, for which you can use lime. In acidic soil, the plant will rise and even last all summer, but the fruit will be frail.

Sowing time is the days when mother-and-stepmother blooms.

Rutabaga is a very cold hardy plant and can be grown in the northernmost farming zones. Its seeds begin to germinate at a temperature of 2-4 degrees, and seedlings already appear at an average daily temperature of 6 degrees. Seedlings can withstand frosts down to minus 4 degrees, and adult plants can withstand temperatures as low as minus 6 degrees. The best temperature for the growth and development of root crops is 16–20 degrees. At higher temperatures, the plants are inhibited, and their taste deteriorates.

Rutabaga is demanding on lighting, prefers long daylight hours and high soil moisture, but does not tolerate both a prolonged excess of moisture in the soil and its strong lack.

The selection of varieties of rutabagas in garden plots is still poor, but new excellent varieties of foreign selection have appeared in the trade, which have excellent qualities and completely change the idea of / u200b / u200bthe taste of rutabagas. It is not without reason that it is in great demand in European countries, especially among English and German gourmets.

The seeds of the swede are large enough, so the distance between the plants should be at least 5 cm. They are laid in the ground, then sprinkled. Seedlings will appear on the third day. They may appear even if the temperature outside is close to freezing. But, of course, rutabaga grows better in warmer weather at + 12-18 ° C.

Rutabaga, like any root crop, must be thinned out; experienced gardeners even advise to do this twice.

7 rutabaga recipes

1. Rutabaga baked with egg

Rutabaga - 250 g

flour - 10 g

sour cream - 3 tablespoons, butter - 2 teaspoons, egg - 0.5 pcs, crackers or cheese - 15 g, salt pepper.

Peel the root vegetables, add water, cook until half cooked, cut into cubes or slices, sprinkle with salt, and, if desired, pepper, bread in flour and fry on both sides in butter. Stir the sour cream with a raw egg, pour over the rutabagas, sprinkle with breadcrumbs or grated cheese and bake in the oven. Serve on the table with sour cream.

2. Rutabaga salad with apples and sour cream

Rutabaga - 150 g, apples - 1 pc, mayonnaise - 2 tbsp. spoons, granulated sugar - 5 g, egg - 0.5 pcs, greens - 5 g, salt.

Rutabaga, grated on a coarse grater, is scalded in a colander with steep salted boiling water and cooled. Apples are peeled, chopped into strips, sprinkled with vinegar or citric acid. Prepared products are combined, mixed, seasoned with sour cream, salt and sugar, placed in a salad bowl, poured with sour cream, sprinkled with chopped herbs, decorated with sprigs of celery and parsley and slices of boiled eggs.

3. Pudding from apricots, rutabagas and cottage cheese

Rutabaga - 75 g

apricot - 50 g, cottage cheese - 50 g, 1 egg white

milk - 30 g, butter - 10 g, sugar - 10 g

semolina - 10 g, sour cream - 30 g.

Chop the rutabaga with "noodles" and simmer with 5 g of butter and milk; when the rutabaga is ready, put cereals, sugar and soaked, finely chopped apricots in it; knead and cool all this mass; then add mashed cottage cheese and whipped protein, mix, put in a greased mold, pour over with butter and bake. Serve with sour cream.

4. Rutabaga porridge (Estonian dish)

2 rutabagas, 1-2 onions

1, 5 glasses of milk, 1 tbsp. a spoonful of flour

1 tbsp. spoon of oil.

Boil rutabaga in water, make mashed potatoes from it, add onion fried in oil, salt, pour milk and heat, stirring occasionally, for 5-7 minutes.

5. Rutum-potato porridge

1 rutabaga, 8 potatoes, 2 onions

2 tbsp. spoons of oil

2 glasses of milk.

Prepare in the same way as turnip porridge.

6. Vegetable-milk mixture

1 kg of potatoes, 4 carrots, 1 rutabaga, 2 liters of milk

2 tsp flour

1 tbsp.a spoonful of butter.

Cut the vegetables into large cubes and simmer until almost cooked so that the water has completely evaporated. Dissolve flour in milk, pour over vegetables, boil for 5-10 minutes, salt, stir with butter.

7. Rutum-cereal porridge

0.5 cups buckwheat, 2 tbsp. tablespoons of barley (pearl barley), 1 rutabaga, 2, 5 glasses of milk, 2-3 st. tablespoons of oil.

Boil the cereals until half cooked in water, add finely chopped rutabagas, cook the cereals until the water evaporates. Then add milk, salt, grind everything into a homogeneous mass.