Kohlrabi leaves

Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes

leaf · vegetable

Kohlrabi's foliage, to be cooked like kale: it is the same species.

Origin

Europe

Season (United States)

May to November

Preparation

The tough rib is removed, then they are cooked like kale — sautéed, braised, in soup; young and tender, they are also eaten raw, finely sliced. It grows at ground level and catches the splashes of watering: washing it leaf by leaf, in plenty of water, beats a quick rinse of the whole bunch. Short steaming keeps its glucosinolates; long boiling carries them off. Most of its goitrogens go with cooking, even a short one.

Molecules

Beta-carotene (vitamin A) · Lutein and zeaxanthin · Glucoraphanin → sulforaphane · Glucobrassicin → I3C · Vitamin C · Vitamin K1 · Calcium · ChlorophyllIn small amounts, not counted Flavonols (quercetin) · Folates (B9)What slows things down Goitrogens

Did you know?

We buy the bulb and throw away the greens — yet it is the greens that carry the most calcium.