Spinach

Rhino

I ussually like non-leafy veggies. They say Spinach is suppose to be really good for you. Every time I tried it though, it tasted at worst all dirty ... like dirty and at best - "earthy". I washed it really good both times, but still was very earthy tasting.

How are you suppose to prepare it? I just washed it and tried to make it into a salad.

Also any other leafy veggies I should try? Or veggies in general? I eat the same veggies all the time and would like to "mix it up" a bit.

Currently I ussually eat these: Tomatos, brocolli, cauliflower, carrots, radishes and onions. I'm going to get into some potatoes this week. Anything else I should try?

Dulcius_ex_asperis

Try spinach in this salad recipe:
- - -
spinach (1 1/2 pounds)

fresh raspberries (you can also use craisins, if you want). (1 cup)

chopped walnuts (1/4 cup)

add some raspberry vinaigrette dressing. (it calls for 3/4 of a cup, but just add it to taste)
- - -

Funny that you said spinach tastes earthy...I've never tasted that. It just tastes kind of flavorless to me. But it's my personal favourite veggie.

Have you tried asparagus, green beans, or edamame? Not exactly leafy, but all are delicious.

KalTorak

I know what you mean; to me, spinach always tasted like dirt and had a really gritty texture. Are you eating normal spinach, or baby spinach? Baby spinach you can buy in bags like salad mixes or lettuce - the leaves are smooth ovals, and they're a lot more tender and tasty than normal spinach. I put them on my sandwiches instead of lettuce now. If you want to see what it looks like you can go into a Subway - they almost all have baby spinach now.

The Cat

Spinach is often mixed with ricotta cheese and used in fillings for things like cannelloni. Slightly unhealthy, though :P a less waist-expanding option might be dhal, which is an indian lentil stew kind of thing that includes spinach. Looks pretty awful, but it tastes good and is easy to make. If you buy the stuff frozen, you can pretty much just throw a chunk into any old pasta sauce or stew and it'll melt in. As long as you don't boil the shit out of it, I'm pretty sure it retains the vitamins and such. Otherwise, yeah - baby spinach leaves are like a million times better than shitty lettuce.

PS what's a craisin?

Zsetrek

The Cat wrote: »

PS what's a craisin?

A dried cranberry.

Cranberry/raisin.

DrZiplock

Zsetrek wrote: »

The Cat wrote: »

PS what's a craisin?

A dried cranberry.

Cranberry/raisin.

And far tastier than a raisin. In my opinion at least.



Other options for spinach:

One bag baby spinach
Couple of slices of bacon
Some fresh mushrooms
Balsamic vinegar
Some Feta


Cook up the bacon. Once cooked pull it from the pan and chop it up. Into the same pan toss in the mushrooms sautee a bit. Then add the spinach. Let it wilt a bit (depends on your taste) keep on tossing it around. Sprinkle back in the chopped up bacon and then hit the whole thing with a little balsamic and some feta if that's your taste.

Let cool or eat warm. Your call.

Djeet

spinach is on the milder side of the bitter green spectrum. you might also try arugala (though i don't think it's as packed with the good stuff as spinach) or bok choi, or baby bok choi.

seems like the greens best for you are the ones that turn the most to mush when you cook them: spinach, kale, chard, mustard. you can try wilting them instead of cooking them (steam them for a very short time, just to soften them).

a pasta (spaghetti, linguini) with bacon and wilted spinach is a good base. you can add tomato/sundried tomato, toasted pine nuts, and/or add some cream.

Meiz

I usually steam mine with a little itty-bitty bit of butter and some lemon juice.

Sarcastro

Mmm. Spinach, butter and lemon. Nom nom nom.

If you're being all healthy, I like the cran/raspberry vinegrette option. Lil splash of olivie oil, some balsamic vineger, a hanful of raspberries and craisins. Delish.

For a variation on cooked spinach (ala frozen and thawed) I like heating the brick up in the microwave first till its crumbly, putting on the stove in a small saucepan with a generous tablespoon of lemon juice. Stir till it gets solidly heated, then add two teaspoons of butter, and two big table sppons of cream cheese. Stir until melty delicious, and add either ground black pepper or a dash or three of red pepper sauce. Don't forget to salt that bad boy up, it takes quite a bit to get the flavours to come out properly.

The earthy tones you mentioned are going to be predominate without salt/vinegrette (those are the spinach hairs/fibres you're tasting, not the actual leaf), you need either an acid or a dissolved salt to start breaking down the leaves in a major way to get that 'dark green' taste to come forward. Cheese has this salt, which is why it goes well, and balsamic vinegars, lemon juices and hot sauces have the acidic properties. Combo them up to yeild more complex flavours. Pickled jalapenos stuffed with fetacheese, spinach and a dash of lemon are spectacular.

japan

Sarcastro wrote: »

Mmm. Spinach, butter and lemon. Nom nom nom.

With scrambled eggs. Breakfast of kings.

AceCoxswain

One of my favorite salads is to microwave about 1/3 of a small roll of chevre for about 12-15 seconds (until soft), then serve it over fresh spinach with a raspberry vinaigrette. Health-wise I think it's vitamin A, among other things, that spinach is rich in.

yotes

This is the way my parents got me to like spinach when I was a wee little lad:

Fry a bit of chopped up garlic in olive oil on low heat, take care not to burn it, just soften it up a little.
Toss in a few handfuls of ripped-up spinach, it will lose moisture and volume pretty quickly, keep adding spinach until you've got as much as you want.
Add a little bit (seriously, not a lot) of cream and nutmeg, a drop of water, simmer for five or ten minutes, don't let it dry out.
Salt and pepper to taste.

Serve as a side dish. It's so wonderful.

Darker green, big leaves have a stronger earthy taste than the lighter, younger varieties.

Also, you're not supposed to re-heat spinach but I'm not sure if that's just a stupid myth told to me by my parents so I wouldn't leave any leftovers.

You could also add some steamed spinach to lasagne.

Mephistopheles

just smother it in some ranch, and you're good to go.

seriously, baby spinach is where it's at. Although most dark, leafy vegetables are going to taste like dirt (literally). Didn't you know healthiness tasted... terrible?

Entriech

Yeah, baby spinach is really where it's at if you're going to be using it in salads. Myself I like baby spinach, some spanish onion, sweet pepper, and some low cal italian dressing with a bit of cheese over the top.

Mai-Kero

Side question since feta cheese seems to be a popular part of spinach recipes: is feta always made from goat's milk?

DrZiplock

Ayup

japan

Mai-Kero wrote: »

Side question since feta cheese seems to be a popular part of spinach recipes: is feta always made from goat's milk?

Or ewe's milk, or a combination thereof.