On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 600
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Beet,Turnip,Radish,Onion,
andOthers
Themembersofthismixedcategoryof
vegetablessitatorjustbelowgroundlevel,
andhaveonecharacteristicincommon:they
storelittlestarchcomparedtomostrootsand
tubers.They’rethereforeusuallylessdense,
cookmorerapidly,andretainamoisttexture.
Beets
Beet“roots”aremainlythelowerstemof
Betavulgaris,anativeoftheMediterranean
andWesternEurope.Peoplehaveeatenthis
plantsinceprehistory,initiallyitsleaves
(chard,p.325),thentheundergroundpartof
specializedvarieties(subspeciesvulgaris).In
Greektimesbeetrootswerelong,eitherwhite
orred,andsweet;Theophrastusreported
around300BCEthattheywerepleasant
enoughtoeatraw.Thefatredtypeisfirst
depictedinthe16thcentury.Tablebeetsare
about3%sugarandsomelargeanimal-feed
varietiesare8%;inthe18thcentury,selection
forsugarproductionledtosugarbeetswith
20%sucrose.
Coloredbeetsowetheirred,orange,and
yellowhuestobetainpigments(p.268),
whicharewater-solubleandstainother
ingredients.Therearevariegatedvarieties
withalternatingredlayersofphloemtissue
andunpigmentedlayersofxylem(p.262);
theylooktheirbestinrawslicesbecause
cookingcausescelldamageandpigment
leakage.Whenweeatbeets,theredpigment
isusuallydecolorizedbyhighstomachacidity
andreactionwithironinthelargeintestine,
butpeoplesometimesexcretetheintact
pigment,astartlingbutharmlessevent.The
persistentfirmnessofcookedbeetsiscaused
byphenolicreinforcementofthecellwalls,as
inbambooshootsandwaterchestnuts(p.
283).
