Find out the amazing benefits of chard for weight loss, how best to prepare it, and how much to eat to get the maximum benefit from chard, one of nature’s amazing fat-burning foods.
The vegetable known as chard resembles the taste of beets or spinach. Along with kale, collard greens, and mustard greens, it is a green leafy vegetable that is commonly referred to simply as “greens.” You can buy it all year round, but its peak harvest season begins in June and ends in August.
This green leafy vegetable has a wide, crisp stem that is white, red, or yellow in color. The leaves are dark green, very wide and spread out in a fan shape. You can eat both the stem and the leafy parts.
Benefits of Swiss chard to burn fat
It contains anthocyanins and fiber that provide special protection against cancer of the digestive tract, especially colon cancer. There is recent scientific evidence suggesting that chard can protect the kidneys of diabetic patients, because serum levels of urea and creatinine are reduced.
It is also very high in the following substances: vitamin A, C, E, and K, dietary fiber, magnesium, manganese, iron, and potassium.
This vegetable also contains reliable amounts of vitamins B-1, B-2, and B-6, plus folate, biotin, niacin, pantothenic acid, copper, calcium, zinc, phosphorous, and copper, as well as protein.
The vitamin K content helps maintain healthy bones.
Beta-carotene is a cancer-fighting nutrient and is also an antioxidant. Beta-carotene belongs to the carotenoid family and may protect the body against skin cancer and several other types of cancer.
Vitamin A is helpful in reducing the negative effects that cigarette smoke has on the body, and it also helps protect the body against emphysema.
Magnesium is helpful in regulating the body’s muscle and nerve tone by regulating the effect of calcium in the body.
Vitamin C helps fight inflammation as an antioxidant that dissolves in water. It provides the energy needed to increase your body’s metabolism in order to burn excess fat. Swiss chard contains vitamin C, which is helpful in preventing free radical damage to cells, as well as providing additional protection against colon cancer. Vitamin C is also very helpful in maintaining a healthy immune system, fending off colds, and helping heal infections.
It also contains potassium, which is helpful in lowering blood levels as well as cholesterol levels.
The iron content of the vegetable is useful for producing the body’s energy and it also produces hemoglobin, a protein that carries oxygen to all parts of the body.
This vegetable contains manganese, a trace element that is useful for producing energy from proteins and carbohydrates, as well as for synthesizing fatty acids. Additionally, manganese protects the body against free radical damage that occurs when energy is produced.
Correct way to prepare Swiss chard
Look for fresh chard in the fresh produce section of your grocery store; This section is one of the refrigerated areas of the store. Find the most vibrant leafy green products, without yellowing or discolored leaves. Be sure to choose crisp stems and leaves that don’t contain any visible spots.
You can refrigerate unwashed chard leaves in a plastic bag for a few days. The blanched chard leaves can be frozen for future meals. Before cooking the chard, rinse it very carefully to remove all dirt and sand. Dip the leaves and stems in a container filled with cold water, shake them, and then finish cleaning by rinsing them under cold running water. Trim the bottom ends of the vegetable. If the fibers are too abundant, you can peel them in the same way that you remove excess fibers from celery stalks.
Do not cook this vegetable in an aluminum pot, because the aluminum will cause your chard to lose its green color. It is better to quickly boil the chard, rather than steam it, as the quick boil method releases the oxalic acids found in the leaves and helps keep them from tasting as bitter.
Substitute chard in place of spinach when cooking a vegetarian lasagna. Substitute cabbage when preparing stuffed vegetable dishes. You can use the leaves as a sandwich wrap, stuffing them with your favorite tuna, chicken, or turkey fillings. You can also add this cooked vegetable to a penne pasta dish, with the addition of extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, and minced garlic cloves. Try adding some steamed chard to a frittata or omelette.
The amount to eat
The recommended serving size of Swiss chard is the equivalent of one cup.
