Mustard leaf useful properties. mustard greens

Some argue that mustard sauce is the only thing that is made from a plant that is often cultivated by ordinary gardeners. But there is also salad mustard - and not only the one whose seeds are used to produce mustard powder, hot sauce or seasoning.

Leaf mustard can be used as a fresh product for salads, as well as for preservation for the winter.

Vegetable crops are so diverse that you often get lost in their abundance. Modern gardeners grow salad mustard using different varieties while pursuing different goals. Someone likes to preserve, and someone likes to make fresh summer salads with a spicy taste. This plant has another name - mustard lettuce. Varietal salad mustard has differences from wild varieties: it is characterized by whole leaves and short stature. And now you can get acquainted with the most popular varieties of mustard culture.

Popular varieties

• 
  Mustard salad wave is a variety that grows early and pampers juicy harvest greenery. The plant has a voluminous and slightly spreading leaf rosette and elongated oval leaves. Their diameter is 32 cm. They delight the eye with a pale greenish color and smoothness. The taste of this salad is tart and spicy. The weight of one outlet is 80 g. From 1 sq. m you can collect 2 kg of waves.
• Freckle
  This variety is early, it gives lush juicy greens in a month. The plant grows up to 30 cm and has a weight of 170 g. This variety has large, slightly wrinkled dark green leaves with red veins. By palatability mustard is slightly spicy, the leaves are tender and juicy. Freckle gives from 1 square. m 3.6 kg of crop.
• Mushtarda
  This plant grows very fast. Greens are harvested after 25 days. The rosette has a height of 20 cm. In order to get more yield, mustard is sown every 15 days until August 15th. Due to the fact that lettuce leaves have a spicy flavor, it is used to prepare side dishes and vegetable salads. From 1 sq. m going to 3 kg.

• Mustang
  This variety has an average ripening period. The term of formation is 35 days. Rosette has red-green whole leaves big size. They reach a height of 30 cm. The socket has a weight of 60 g. From 1 sq. m you can collect 4 kg of spicy and juicy greens.
• lovely
  This variety gives a harvest very early, literally 20 days in greenhouse conditions, and if the ground is open, you will need a month. The plant has the shape of an erect rosette, its diameter is 15 cm. The leaves are pale green in color and ovoid in shape, covered with a wax coating. They have a special tenderness and juiciness, as well as a pleasant weak spicy taste. From 1 sq. m you can collect 3.4 kg of lettuce leaves.
• Vigorous
  And we are also pleased with the Vigorous salad mustard. This variety is also practiced by gardeners. In salads with mayonnaise sauce, the hotness of this spice disappears, but it gives the dish a rich flavor.

Beneficial features

Surely not everyone knows that salad mustard is also an old doctor. The fact is that this plant contains useful components: ascorbic acid, magnesium, iron, potassium and many other minerals, as well as vitamins, proteins, fiber, mucus and mustard fatty and essential oils.

Mustard leaf contains few calories, so it is also a dietary crop and generally has a beneficial effect on the human body. Salad mustard has:

• anti-inflammatory;
• protective;
• cleansing action.

In addition, it is an antioxidant.

Mustard leaves tend to stimulate appetite, favorably affect the digestive organs, metabolism and help to lose weight.

Harm and contraindications

Although this plant is rich in micro and macro elements, and is also known for its beneficial properties, it is able to harm the body. Therefore, you can not eat mustard leaves:

• if there is an individual intolerance to the plant;
• with diseases of the gallbladder and kidneys;
• if drugs are taken that contribute to blood thinning;
• also while taking calcium;
• with an ulcer of the gastrointestinal tract;
• in the presence of severe heart disease.

It is not recommended to use the spice in large quantities pregnant women, otherwise swelling may occur. Nursing mothers should generally forget about this plant, as the child may develop an allergic reaction.
Salad mustard tastes like horseradish, lettuce and mustard sauce. It has a spicy aftertaste, so pickled blanks delight us with sweet and at the same time spicy shades.

Thanks to salad mustard, fresh salads from vegetables, fish and meat have a spicy taste and aroma. And its leaves are also ideal for sandwiches, decorations for ready-made dishes, they can be consumed with boiled eggs and put in soups. In addition, salad mustard is preserved for the winter and served as a separate dish. Delicious pickled and salted mustard lettuce leaves.

Leaf mustard is an annual vegetable. Young leaves used for food have a pleasant bitterness, and are also a storehouse of macro and microelements, as well as a number of essential vitamins. Since these leaves grow in the beds in the spring, adding them to green salads helps the body cope with beriberi. All the beneficial properties of this plant and the use of leaf mustard will be discussed below.

Origin

The birthplace of mustard is Asia

Name

Mustard, or Sinapis, is a genus of plants in the Brassicaceae family.

The genus name Sinapis comes from the Greek. σίνος (sinos) - "harm" and ὄψις (opsis) - "vision", since when the seeds are rubbed with water, essential mustard oil is released, which causes lacrimation.

Description

Leaf (or lettuce) mustard is a spicy annual leafy plant belonging to the Cruciferous family. This annual can be immediately noticed in the garden thanks to the large pale green leaves, the shape of which can be different. All foliage is covered with fine pile, and the edges of a number of varieties are wavy. Mustard height - 0.3 m, and Japanese species- 0.5 - 0.6 m. A photo of a plant (mustard leaf) can be seen below.

The country where this plant appeared is China. And from this state, over time, mustard began to spread throughout the world. In national cuisines such Asian countries Like Japan, India and China, salad mustard is used very widely as a separate dish, as well as an addition to salads and many national dishes.

In our country, unfortunately, foliage salad mustard is not yet used as widely as it should be.

How to grow this annual

Leaf mustard is successfully grown in the conditions of our country. It should be planted in loose soil, it is in such soil that it grows well. She is reluctant to different types soil. The best predecessors for this plant:

1. peas and other legumes;
2. potatoes;
3. tomatoes;
4. cucumbers.

This annual plant is planted with seeds, which are planted both in greenhouses and on beds in open ground. Sowing material is sown immediately after the massive melting of snow, you can also plant this annual before winter. The seeding depth is 1.2 - 1.5 cm. In the spring, before the first seedlings appear, it is better to cover the beds with transparent polyethylene.

The best varieties for planting in middle lane and the central regions of our country - Saladnaya-54, Volnushka.

The first seedlings appear within 2.5 - 3 weeks after planting, and the seeds germinate even at air temperatures below +5⸰С.

look after it garden plant very simple - you need to water, loosen and weed the beds in a timely manner, as well as feed them with fertilizers. Although mustard can easily tolerate short periods of drought, it is still better to water it as the soil dries out in order to get big harvest juicy fleshy leaves.

Harvesting should be done after the seed has matured. Seeds should be collected by gently breaking the testicles. The foliage is thoroughly washed, folded into plastic bags and store in the refrigerator. harvested seeds dry in the shade in a well-ventilated place and store in a tightly sealed glass container.

At home, such a plant is grown extremely rarely. Although you can grow salad mustard at home, and its beautiful wavy leaves will be a great addition to general interior rooms. And besides, the ability to pick and eat leaves, which are rich in vitamins, without leaving the apartment is a good incentive for growing leafy mustard at home.

Useful properties of leaf mustard

Thanks to the active substances that make up the leaves of lettuce mustard, it is rightfully considered a natural cardioprotector. The following substances were found in the leaves:

• protein;
• folic acid;
• vitamins A, C, K, E;
• antioxidants;
• quercetin;
• campeferol;
• omega-3 unsaturated acid;
• glucosinolate;
• mustard oil;
• vegetable fiber.

Doctors have found that such a number of different substances have a positive effect on the cardiovascular system as a whole, strengthening the walls of blood vessels, increasing their elasticity, and removing “bad” cholesterol. By regularly eating the leaves of this plant, you can protect yourself from the development of heart disease.

Thanks Enough a large number antioxidants that inhibit the development cancer cells, in foliage, it is an excellent prophylactic against the formation of cancer cells and malignant tumors in the body.

The mustard oil contained in this annual gives the leaves a pleasant bitter taste and aroma. This oil stimulates the improvement of appetite, has a positive effect on the digestion process. Mustard leaves stimulate the production of gastric juice.

This product is distinguished by low calorie content: 100 g contains only 26 kcal. Therefore, mustard leaves are recommended to be included in the diet for weight loss. It also improves intestinal motility, adds piquancy to salads.

The oil, which is obtained from the seeds of this annual, has bactericidal properties, strengthens the immune system, and prevents the penetration of free radicals into cells. It also helps to improve a person's condition with hepatitis and other liver diseases.

The use of salad mustard in cooking

Lettuce mustard leaves are used by cooks in the preparation of green salads, various snacks, as an additive to meat dishes. Nice appearance leaves allows you to use them to decorate various dishes before serving (in particular, salads or sandwiches). These leaves are sometimes used as a substitute for spicy mustard.

Often lettuce mustard leaves are doused with boiling water and added when cooking fish and meat dishes. These leaves are harvested for the winter - canning, pickling, or simply freezing.

The succulent leaves are used to make sauces or mayonnaise, and are a great ingredient for making sandwiches.

Possible contraindications

Eating this annual is not recommended for people with gallbladder or kidney disease. Oxalants, which are part of the foliage, adversely affect the well-being of a patient with similar diseases. These same substances interfere with the absorption of calcium, but this is not catastrophic for a person who does not have health problems.

See also video

Salad leafy mustard cold-resistant plant, ripening quickly, ready for use in 4-5 weeks. Grown in an annual culture. The leaves are strongly dissected, with wavy edges, very rich in vitamins, mineral salts of calcium, iron, trace elements. Try it in a salad or use it when preserving vegetables (cucumbers or tomatoes) and appreciate the delicate flavor of horseradish, mustard. The presence of mustard oil gives a slight sharpness.

Varieties

Salad - 54 most best grade, there is a very elegant variety Krasnolistnaya. For greenhouses, the Muravushka variety is sown, for open ground - Ladushka.

Salad mustard "VOLNUSHKA" early ripe variety, harvest after 30 days, cold hardy, with rapid growth leaves.

cultivation

Growing this crop is very simple, as it is unpretentious, although not very common among vegetable growers.

Any fertile soil is suitable for growing leafy mustard. For this, they dig up the bed, add humus up to 3 kg per 1 m 2, dig it up again and level it. Then watered with a solution liquid fertilizer Ideal 1st. spoon on a bucket of water. Ratio: 2-3 liters for every 1m 2 .

Seeds of leaf mustard do not need special pre-sowing preparation, they are sown in a greenhouse or in open ground under covering material. Grooves are made with a depth of 1 to 1.5 cm and a distance between rows of 20 to 25 cm.

Sowing seeds is carried out in several terms -

In hot weather, leaf mustard is not sown, as the plant shoots.

Seedlings appear after 3-4 days at temperatures up to +20 degrees, this is the most optimal temperature for its growth. When shoots appear, thickened plants must be thinned out, leaving 3-4 cm between them. At the same time, they should be fed: for this, 1 teaspoon of urea is dissolved in 10 liters of water, and watered at the rate of 3 liters per 1 m 2.

When the mustard leaves grow up to 10-12 cm, then they start harvesting. Caring for leaf mustard is simple: loosen the aisles and water as needed. Watering: given that the roots of this plant are superficial, and the mustard itself is moisture-loving, therefore, it is necessary to monitor and water at least 2 times a week, in dry times it is possible more often, since the lack of moisture will immediately affect the quality of the leaves, they will be rough and tasteless, and the plant itself will immediately go to the arrow.

Salad mustard can be used as a sealant.

Fresh leaves and young rosettes are consumed before shoots appear. Raw - in salads with sour cream or vegetable oil, boiled or stewed - as a side dish for fish and meat dishes. Cooked mustard sandwiches are very tasty.

Growing mustard is not very popular with Russian gardeners, and in vain. After all, this plant is recognized as a storehouse useful substances- vitamins, antioxidants and trace elements that have a beneficial effect on almost all human organs. Salad mustard, due to its unpretentiousness, can be grown both in the open field, and in greenhouses, and even on the windowsills of an apartment, providing us with vitamins all year round.

Salad mustard - a useful spice

Salad (it is also leafy) mustard has large juicy leaves with a piquant spicy taste, combining notes of radish, horseradish and spicy mustard. Leafy greens are great for salads, appetizers, sandwiches, and sandwiches. The leaves of the plant are added to soups, meat and fish dishes, canned and pickled for the winter. Pasta with mustard leaves is popular in Italy, and Americans add it to their favorite steaks. Yes, and domestic food industry is unthinkable without salad mustard, which is used in the production of mayonnaise and savory sauces.

For cultivation in Russian latitudes, the most popular varieties are:

• Red-leaved;
• Volnushka;
• Ladushka;
• Salad 54;
• Ant (for greenhouses and greenhouses).

The beautiful names of the varieties are inspired by the structure of the leaves of the plant - wide with wavy edges and a green or reddish color.

Salad mustard contains vitamins A, B, C, K, E, the composition of trace elements is also wide: selenium, magnesium, potassium, iron, phosphorus, calcium, zinc and others. Mustard oil reduces cholesterol, improves immunity and vascular elasticity, improves the functioning of the digestive and cardiovascular systems.

Supporters healthy eating can safely include salad mustard in their diet due to its low calorie content (26 kcal per 100 g of product).

Leaf mustard can grow in any soil, but for a generous harvest, you need a loose fertile soil with slightly alkaline or neutral acidity, and the sowing site should not be waterlogged. Areas after potatoes, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, peas are best suited. At the same place, the annual planting of mustard is not recommended - it is necessary to resume sowing after 3-4 years.

It is undesirable to sow mustard in those areas where cabbage (garden, cauliflower, leafy, kohlrabi), radish, swede or turnip grew before - that is, any representatives of the cruciferous family.

The plant is frost-resistant and is able to tolerate cooling down to -5 ° C, so the sowing is carried out in early April. Sow the seeds in rows in moist soil at a distance of at least 25-30 cm, so that when the green mass is set, the plants can develop normally. The recommended sowing depth is 1-1.5 cm. For 1 square meter an average of 0.8-1 g of seeds is consumed.

Mustard cultivation is practiced in greenhouses and greenhouses. Sowing technology is the same as in open ground, only the sowing time can be moved to March. After sowing in the greenhouse, it is recommended to create a temperature of + 25 ° C, and then gradually lower it to + 14 ° C, which will allow seedlings to adapt to a cool climate and prevent them from stretching out.

Mustard Care

After the formation of the first true leaflet, the shoots must be thinned out, leaving 5 cm between plants. The next time, the entrances are thinned out after the formation of the fourth true leaf, while the distance between plants is increased to 10-15 cm. Thinning when growing mustard is necessary condition. Culture can grow in a thickened plantation, but you should not wait good harvest.

When the height of lettuce mustard reaches 10-15 cm (2-3 weeks after sowing), the leaves can be cut off and eaten. It is customary to remove a plant from the garden before it releases flowering arrows. Rosettes of leaves are cut with scissors or pulled out with roots. It is enough to leave a few plants for seeds.

Mustard pods crack when ripe, so they need to be collected when browning. In the future, the pods must be kept for a month at a temperature of +16 to +18 ° C for final maturation.

If desired, sowing can be carried out repeatedly with an interval of 1-1.5 weeks, then fresh herbs will delight you for a long time. However, it is worth considering that when hot weather sets in, the plant quickly leaves the stems, and the leaves coarsen. Therefore, it is recommended to sow leafy mustard in spring period or at the end of summer, when the heat will subside. Optimal temperature regime for spicy leaves - from +18 to +20°C.

Caring for a mustard crop is simple and consists in loosening the soil, timely weeding and regular watering. Water the site sparingly as needed - if the plant feels a lack of moisture, the taste of the leaves will deteriorate.

Fertilizers for mustard

Additional nutrition for leaf mustard should be applied from the fall, when the site is being prepared for future sowing. The earth must be dug up with the use of fertilizers per 1 sq. m.:

• compost - 3-6 kg;
• potassium chloride - 10 g;
• superphosphate - 15 g.

For a good harvest, the plant needs top dressing, especially on poor soils. After the first thinning, experts recommend using young shoots as additional nutrition:

• urea solution - 10 g per 10 liters of water;
• mullein solution - in a ratio of 1:10;
• solution chicken manure- in a ratio of 1:15.

Suitable and green manure» in the form of an infusion of fermented herbs, as well as wood ash(200 g per 10 liters of water).

Summing up

Salad mustard is worthy of growing in our beds and greenhouses. Its cultivation will allow almost all year round to provide the family with not only tasty, but also useful product. Given the unpretentiousness of the culture, planting and caring for it is within the power of even novice gardeners, and timely fertilization will ensure bountiful harvest curly foliage.

Vendanny - Dec 15th, 2015

Mustard has long earned a respectful attitude on the part of mankind. She became one of the most worthy seasonings in the vast sea of ​​spices. The long range of vitamins and useful components contained in it increases appetite and actively helps digestive system digest fatty foods.

In history, the mention of mustard dates back to 3000 BC and it happened in India, in whose cuisine mustard seeds were already used then. But one of the first popular recipes today dates back to the 40s of our era. In the 9th century, the production of mustard in France became very popular. To put it in a modern way, it was one of the main "businesses", bringing good income. In those days, mustard was sold by weight and became more and more popular in kitchens.

Mustard includes some types of annuals. herbaceous plants cruciferous family. Most often, only seeds are used, which are ground into powder and mixed with water and other spices.

As mentioned above, mustard contains a number of vitamin A groups (prevents visual impairment, fights dermatological problems), B (positively affects work nervous system, soothes, improves mood), D (strengthens bone tissue) and E (preserves youth, helps smooth wrinkles, fights ailments in the cardiovascular system), contains components such as Fe (iron), K (potassium) and P (phosphorus).

When mustard powder comes into contact with water, a light yellow slurry with a spicy taste and pungent odor is formed. And mustard essential oil, which is contained in seeds up to 47%, is widely used in cooking for canning.

Due to its composition, mustard has found wide application in cooking. It is used as a seasoning and flavoring for hot and cold dishes, especially for sausages and fatty meat. It successfully extends the shelf life of products. It is used as one of the important ingredients in spicy sauces and dressings. Mustard blends perfectly with honey and acts as an excellent emulsifier, it prevents the release of juice and gives a deep flavor. Therefore, before baking, it covers both meat and fish dishes. If you want to get juicy meat - add mustard, even a small amount will have a positive effect on the frying process, if you want to make the salad more vitamin - add young mustard leaves.

Consider the benefits and harms of mustard for the human body and its use in traditional medicine.

The effect of mustard on the body is such that they awaken protective properties organism. With a cold, this is the number one help, it is used both internally and externally. With absence high temperature soar legs in mustard powder or apply mustard plasters to the chest. Thus, the condition is relieved with a strong cough and other unpleasant symptoms of a cold. When doing such procedures, it is important to be careful - excessive use of mustard lotions can lead to burns. In addition, mustard oil reduces the risk of oncology and cardiovascular diseases.

Perhaps one of the most important virtues of mustard is its aid to the stomach. Every fatty meat dish, especially fried meat, should be taken with mustard. She remarkably "settles" problems with any meat. With her, the most hearty dinner will never become a “night” problem.

But, like others useful plants, mustard has contraindications. It is categorically contraindicated in ulcers and gastritis. You should not worsen stomach problems, you just need to abandon its internal use. Also, the use of mustard is not advisable before bedtime ( internal application), because it acts as a stimulant and can contribute to insomnia.

In a word, the main thing to remember is that everything needs a measure. If you follow this rule, then the benefit will never turn into harm.

The composition of mustard gives it the opportunity to take its rightful place among the so-called "home cosmetics". Today, a wide variety of expensive store creams filled our house and cosmetic bags, and the properties of mustard, suitable for use in cosmetology, have undeservedly faded into the background. But in vain, because mustard is affordable and can easily help you achieve great results in the fight for perfect skin and a slender figure. Contained in mustard fatty acid, favorably affect the metabolism, which helps with the loss of extra pounds. It has rejuvenating properties. Her fans have long been convinced that mustard improves skin color, eliminates oily sheen, and helps in the fight against cellulite.

With mustard, as with every drug, a test should be done before use to detect allergic reactions. After hammering the mustard mask, you need to apply a small amount of it on the inner (tender part) side of the hand and wait a couple of minutes. Allergy is not revealed - feel free to proceed to the procedures. Let's consider some of them.

1. The most common way to put your face in order.

For a mustard mask you will need:

1 teaspoon mustard powder;

1 tablespoon of water;

2 tablespoons olive oil (warm up slightly).

Dissolve all components. Apply to the face, avoiding the area around the eyes and lips. Leave on for 5 minutes and wash off warm water. Repeat the procedure weekly: 1 mask per week, but no more than 10 masks in a row.

2. Lightly lubricate the cleansed skin of the face olive oil. Dilute a tablespoon of the powder in a glass of water, apply to a cotton towel and place on the face. Place an additional terry towel on top to create a "bath" effect. Withstand 5 minutes. Wash off with warm water.

3. When fighting cellulite, you should also turn to mustard for help. Wraps with its use are a huge success.

We combine mustard powder with honey in a ratio of 2: 3. Apply to problem areas and carefully massage with a massager. If there is none, then just by hand. We put cling film or cellophane and wrap ourselves in a warm blanket. After half an hour we accept warm shower. Wraps should be done no more than every 1-3 days for a month.

ATTENTION: such a wrap is contraindicated for people suffering from varicose veins!

We conclude the video post from which you will learn why mustard is called the flower of happiness and health.

This video contains information about beneficial features leaf mustard, about which we did not write in the article.