Rooting for the beet!

An earthy charm, low in fat and calories, high in nutrients, and packed with powerful antioxidants, beetroot is one of the healthiest underground vegetables, tell experts.

CHENNAI: The crisp air is slowly turning warm, cold glasses of smoothies are replacing hot bowls of soup and sheets of mist are making way for a sultry summer. But, that doesn’t mean one should stop rooting for the winter vegetables! An earthy charm, low in fat and calories, high in nutrients, and packed with powerful antioxidants, beetroot is one of the healthiest underground vegetables, tell experts.

Be it drinking it as a juice, adding its stalks to a tasty crunchy salad, pickling it or blending it into a dip, the veggie can boost your immune system and battle several chronic illnesses and heart diseases. “Since the vegetable grows underground, it naturally has an earthy flavour and is packed with minerals and nutrients. It’s a good source of fibre and helps improve your digestive health.

It also prevents digestive conditions like constipation and inflammatory bowel diseases,” shares Sandhya Subramanian, a food science technologi stand entrepreneur. The low glycemic score in the reddish-violet vegetable works well for those with diabetes. The presence of betalain and neo betanin helps lower the glucose level, increases insulin sensitivity and prevents oxidative stress-induced changes in people with the condition.

“While many with diabetes may be wary to consume the vegetable due to the natural sugars in it, it can be eaten moderately. The vegetable is high in water content and not too starchy,” she says. It can also significantly lower the elevated blood pressure over a few hours. Dhanalakshmi R, dietician, Rainbow Children’s Hospital, explains that it is likely due to the presence of nitrates in the vegetable. When the dietary nitrates are converted into nitric oxide, the blood pressure causing factor drops. “This relaxes the muscles around the arteries and helps in reducing risks of heart attacks and stroke too,” she says.

These dietary nitrates, besides preventing heart failure, also enhance athletic performance. “Rich in vitamin C, magnesium and calcium, the vegetable in many ways, affects the energy-producing agency in the body. This eventually enhances one’s overall athletic performance. To tap on this potential, it is best to consume beets about 45 minutes to one hour, or a couple of hours, before training,” she details.

With chronic inflammation affecting people with several diseases and conditions including liver-related ailments, obesity and cancer, the pigments in this rustic produce help the body with its anti-inflammatory and detoxifying properties. “A hundred grams of beetroot has 97.3 mg of folic acid. Rich in folic acid, the root vegetable can also be consumed by pregnant women.

It helps in the prevention of anaemia, purification of blood, boosts metabolism, builds immunity, helps them deal with the decalcification of teeth, among other benefits,” she shares. However, those with kidney ailments or prone to it need to be mindful. Overconsumption of the oxalate-rich vegetable could cause harm to the organ. “The key is to eat in moderation and be mindful of the quantity and quality of the food you eat,” she says.

BEETROOT CREAM CHEESE SPREAD BY SANDHYA

SUBRAMANIAN
Ingredients

• Beetroot: 25 g, Onion: 10 g
• Garlic: 5 g, Milk: 1 cup
• Lemon juice: 1 tbsp
• Salt: 2 tsp. Pepper: 1 tsp
• Vinegar: 2 tsp, Curd: 90 g
• Sugar: 2 tsp (powdered)
• Oil: 20 ml

METHOD

• Boil one cup of milk and add one tbsp lemon juice. Stir continuously until the whey water and cheese separate.
• Pour the mixture into a muslin cloth and drain the water. Wash it twice with cold water to remove the lemon flavour.
• Once the water is drained, add 1 tbsp of curd and mix it well. Transfer it to a mixer and grind it into a smooth paste.
• Transfer the mixture to a muslin cloth and hang it for six hours until all the liquid is drained.
• Once the liquid is drained, collect the cream cheese in a bowl and refrigerate it overnight.

FOR BEETROOT PUREE

• Dry roast beetroot, onion and garlic,and cool it. Grind this mixture into a fi ne paste.

FOR BEETROOT CREAM CHEESE SPREAD

• Take 200 g of cream cheese and 80 g of curd and whip together. To this, add salt, pepper powder, sugar, vinegar and whip again. Add 20 ml of oil and beat.
• Add the beetroot puree and mix it well.
• Store the prepared spread in the refrigerator at 4ºC and use it generously in any dish of your choice.