Why do we need to blanch spinach? Tips on eating spinach

As we all know, spinach is a green leafy vegetable with a high oxalic acid content. Therefore, spinach has become a hot topic in the vegetable world in recent years. The spinach harvested in early winter is the sweetest in terms of color and taste. In addition, spinach in this season also contains the most vitamins. Do you know how to choose high-quality spinach? If you are not sure, please open the Encyclopedia Knowledge Network to learn more!

Contents of this article

1. Why should spinach be blanched?

2. Selection of spinach

3. Tips on eating spinach

Why do you need to blanch spinach?

As we all know, spinach is a green leafy vegetable with a high oxalic acid content, which is about 0.97%. Therefore, spinach has become a hot topic in the vegetable world in recent years.

Oxalic acid is generally absorbed in the small intestine of the human body. In the small intestinal fluid, most of the oxalic acid combines with free calcium ions to form calcium oxalate crystals. The oxalic acid absorbed into the blood can form calcium oxalate with the calcium ions in the blood. Its solubility is very low. After the urine is concentrated in the kidneys, if it exceeds the solubility of calcium oxalate, it may precipitate and cause urinary stones.

In vegetables, oxalic acid exists in two forms: one is a bound insoluble oxalate, such as calcium oxalate bound to calcium; the other is a soluble oxalate that is easily soluble in water. Studies have shown that blanching in hot water can remove 50-80% of the oxalic acid in spinach, so blanching before eating oxalic acid-containing foods can effectively reduce the intake of oxalic acid. When blanching, add more water and cook for a longer time, and more oxalic acid will be blanched. If you heat it again after blanching, the blanching time only needs 1 minute.

Selection of spinach

The red stems of the vegetables are short and red, which indicates that they have a high sugar concentration. The purchased spinach should be eaten as soon as possible, otherwise some nutrients will gradually be lost. When choosing spinach, you should pay attention to the freshness and elasticity of the leaves, as well as whether the leaves are thick, well stretched, wide, and short. The ones with dark green color, young stems and leaves, and no bolting and flowering are of course the best vegetables. The spinach harvested in early winter is the sweetest in terms of color and taste, and the vitamins contained in spinach at this time of year are also the richest.

Tips on eating spinach

Among all foods, spinach has the highest oxalic acid content. Oxalic acid easily combines with calcium in human body to form insoluble calcium oxalate. Calcium oxalate cannot be absorbed and utilized by human body and also hinders the absorption of calcium by human body. Therefore, the cooking method is very important when eating spinach. There are many ways to cook spinach, but it is not suitable to stir-fry it directly or make soup. Spinach is indeed rich in nutrition, but it will have a bitter taste when eaten. It is better to blanch the spinach in boiling water first, pick it up and drain the water before stir-frying to remove the bitter taste.