White cabbage: chemical composition, benefit and harm, recipes

White cabbage is considered one of the most popular vegetables.It is difficult to find a gardener who would not grow it on his plot. And this is not surprising: it is easy to care for her, but there is a lot of benefit from the vegetable. Many tasty and healthy dishes can be prepared from cabbage, and, in addition, this vegetable is successfully used in the treatment of many diseases as a means of traditional medicine.

To find out why the cabbage is so necessary for the body, you need to examine its chemical composition, find out what its benefits and harms are, and, of course, find out what recipes for cooking cabbage exist.

Vegetable crops, which include cabbage, is a cruciferous family, and it has more than four thousand species. Among them are one-, two- and perennial species. The structure of these plants looks in such a way that they are ranked as dicotyledon. Cruciferous family, except cabbage, includes field mustard, radish, radish, rutabaga. These plants pollinate insects, and the flowers have a pleasant smell.

If you recall the description, it becomes clear why this family has such a name. Four petals of a flower resemble a cross. The most common cruciferous plant is cabbage. Belokochannaya refers to two-year species. The head is formed from the bud, which gradually grows due to the increasing number of leaves.

Those who want to adhere to a healthy diet should definitely include cabbage in their menu. It contains vitamins A, B1, B2, B5, PP, K, C, U, rich in potassium, calcium, iron, iodine, phosphorus. It contains cellulose, folic and pantothenic acid, and fructose. Its nutritional value is in a balanced content of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, as well as dietary fiber and water. 100 grams of cabbage contains no more than 30 calories. The glycemic index of the vegetable is 15 units. A unique feature of white cabbage is that whatever dish is prepared of it, the glycemic index will remain the same. The same rule applies to sauerkraut.

Cabbage has healing properties. It is used as an external agent in inflammatory processes on the skin. With it, you can even stop the bleeding, it has healing properties.

She is able to relieve fatigue if cabbage sheets are applied to strained legs. Cabbage leaves also help to relieve swelling. Thanks to the vegetable, a more active production of gastric juice occurs, from which the digestive process is more active.

White cabbage is an indispensable feed for the cardiovascular system. Its regular use reduces the risk of coronary heart disease. Experts recommend to use it and in diseases of the gallbladder and kidneys. Cabbage well removes excess fluid from the body. Vegetable use and constipation, it improves intestinal motility. If you use it regularly, you can normalize the bowels.

Cabbage is used as a means of cleansing the liver, and juice is used in the fight against colds, it helps a lot in removing sputum from the bronchi.

Depending on what kind of cabbage to use, it can affect the body in different ways. Cabbage contains complex carbohydrates, so it is digested slowly and saturates the body with energy. It combines with many products. But in everything you need to comply with the measure.If you use an excessive amount of product, it will swell and the stomach will hurt. It should be borne in mind that in its raw form the vegetable is weak and activates the work of the intestines, and boiled cabbage, on the contrary, is stronger. When an upset stomach and some time during the recovery period, cabbage is not needed, it will only aggravate the situation.

As for contraindications, diseases of the thyroid gland, gastric ulcer, colitis, enteritis, increased acidity of the gastric juice are those cases when it is necessary to limit the use of cabbage or be sure to subject it to heat treatment before use. It is not necessary to use it and nursing mothers in the first months of the child's life, it can cause colic in the baby.

White cabbage is used in any form - fried, steamed, boiled, stewed, pickled, salted, sour. From it you can cook a lot of dishes. Cabbage is early, medium and late varieties. Early is not stored, it must be used immediately. She's just good when fresh. Her tender juicy leaves are suitable for salads. It is fresh and very tasty, but if it is cooked or fried, it cooks very quickly.

Late to be stored and can be stored for very long. Billets from later varieties are also excellent. You can make salads and store in glass jars, you can salt it, sour. Frozen cabbage also does not lose its qualities. But you can’t make a salad out of it, but for borscht and hodgepodge, it is quite suitable.

In addition, the cabbage is eaten pickled and salted. And in this case, it also retains all the vitamins. Another unique feature of this vegetable is that during heat treatment, the amount of vitamin C increases.

White cabbage is used in almost all diets. It can be safely included in any menu - in raw, boiled, steamed, baked form. The main thing is not to flavor it with a large amount of oil. This vegetable improves metabolism, removes excess fluid from the body, burns fat and eliminates cellulite.

Cabbage is the basis of many beloved soup slimming. In addition to it, tomatoes, Bulgarian pepper, onions, and spices are added to the dish. You can eat it all you want, it will not add weight, but your body will provide you with useful elements. If you sit exclusively on the cabbage diet, then more than two weeks this can not be done. And then, such diets are suitable only for those people who have no problems with the stomach.

A very good salad that helps to remove all the excess from the body, and normalizes the work of the intestines, is prepared as follows:

1. on a coarse grater, grate beets and carrots;
2. finely chop cabbage;
3. mix everything, fill with vegetable oil;
4. add scallions, parsley, dill;
5. pepper, salt to taste.

This vegetable causes controversial opinions when it comes to whether it is worth giving it to a baby and from what age it is necessary to start complementary feeding using white cabbage. The main fears of moms are related to the fact that the baby may have a stomachache due to gas formation, which already tortures infants often enough.

But experts believe that it is necessary to introduce this vegetable into the diet from an early age due to the high content of vitamins needed for the baby. You just need to start with other species, for example, with broccoli, color, and only then enter the white. And this should be done gradually, starting with one spoon, then increasing the portion.

Cabbage is necessary for a child up to a year, because it contains all the useful acids that have a beneficial effect on cell growth and are actively involved in the blood formation process.

Experts recommend introducing white cabbage after cauliflower and Brussels sprouts, starting from five months, for children who are on artificial feeding, and from six for those who are fed breast milk.

But one should not forget that:

• fried cabbage kids can not be given;
• for abdominal pain after taking cabbage, it should be discarded;
• with frequent diarrhea in a child, this product should be temporarily excluded;
• When introducing a new product, do not experiment with others until the baby gets used to one component.

For children up to one year old cabbage is boiled, mashed, mashed milk and a little salt are added. While the baby is getting used, it is not necessary to give other dishes, even if he was already familiar with it, for example, with mashed potatoes. After he gets used to the cabbage, you can add potatoes to the menu again.

Older children can cook soup, hodgepodge, casseroles, pancakes from cabbage. In its raw form it is better not to give it.

You can cook braised cabbage as follows:

1. chop cabbage;
2. simmer by adding milk and water;
3. at the end of cooking add a piece of butter

From cabbage you can cook a lot of dishes - from the most simple and fast to complex, with the addition of a variety of ingredients.

The simplest dish is boiled cabbage, which can be both independent and used as a side dish for meat.

You can add color to the white one by cutting the first one and dividing the second into inflorescences. Recipe:

• boil vegetables for about fifteen minutes in lightly salted water;
• after cooking, you should immediately put the cabbage on the dish;
• pour over the top with butter, pre-melt it, or cream sauce;
• Sprinkle with dill and parsley.

No less useful cabbage, steamed. It retains all its beneficial properties and vitamins. Prepare it like this:

• one head of cabbage should be finely chopped;
• Apple or wine vinegar is added to a container with a small amount of water; a pinch of salt and sugar, black ground pepper are brought to a boil;
• sweet pepper cut into small rings, add to cabbage;
• put the vegetables in a double boiler;
• cooking time depends on which kind of cabbage you like - a bit crispy or soft, so you need to try it in the process;
• after cooking, the cabbage is spread on a dish, poured over a sauce of spices and vinegar, decorated with greens.

With chicken fillet:

• in the capacity of the multicooker pour a little vegetable oil;
• cut onion, chicken fillet into small pieces;
• Tomato peeled and cut into rings;
• carrot tinder on a coarse grater, cabbage chopped;
• all the prepared ingredients are placed in the multicooker bowl;
• sprinkle with parsley, green onions, dill, if you want spiciness, you can add a little finely chopped garlic;
• stew the mixture for two hours, then served at the table.

With pork:

• chopped cabbage, onions and sweet peppers cut into rings, carrots cut into thin strips;
• washed pork is cut into pieces, rolled in spices;
• in a slow cooker in the frying mode, fry the onion for five minutes;
• then add meat and cook for twenty minutes;
• transferring the slow cooker to the quenching mode, add prepared vegetables;
• After stewing for half an hour, add natural yoghurt and leave for a few minutes, turning on the “heating” mode.

A rich and healthy casserole with minced meat will suit for breakfast or dinner:

• cabbage is cut into very thin straws, the smaller, the better;
• onions are also cut into small pieces;
• in minced meat you need to add a couple of eggs, salt and pepper, mix well;
• mix the minced meat with cabbage and onions, add sour cream;
• in a mold, greased with vegetable oil, put the mixture;
• bake for forty minutes at 180 degrees;
• grate cheese on a fine grater;
• sprinkle the casserole with it and leave in a hot oven for five minutes;
• Finally, sprinkle with herbs.

In the oven you can cook lazy cabbage rolls, which are suitable as a lunch or dinner, as well as decorate any holiday table. This is done like this:

• cabbage finely chopped, add salt, gently crumpled, so that it becomes a little softer;
• add boiled rice, mix thoroughly;
• then mixed with minced meat;
• make out in the form of balls, roll in flour;
• a baking sheet greased with butter and spread cabbage rolls on it;
• bake for half an hour.

How to cook a delicious dish of cabbage, see the next video.