Beetroots

The beetroot is the taproot portion of a beet plant, usually known in North America as beets while the vegetable is referred to as beetroot in British English, and also known as the table beet, garden beet, red beet, dinner beet or golden beet.

It is one of several cultivated varieties of ''Beta vulgaris'' grown for their edible taproots and leaves (called beet greens); they have been classified as ''B. vulgaris'' subsp. ''vulgaris'' Conditiva Group.

Other cultivars of the same species include the sugar beet, the leaf vegetable known as chard or spinach beet, and mangelwurzel, which is a fodder crop. Three subspecies are typically recognized.

Etymology

''Beta'' is the ancient Latin name for beetroot,Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. (hardback), (paperback). pp 70 possibly of Celtic origin, becoming ''bete'' in Old English. ''Root'' derives from the late Old English ''rōt'', itself from Old Norse ''rót''.

History

The domestication of beetroot can be traced to the emergence of an allele which enables biennial harvesting of leaves and taproot. Beetroot was domesticated in the ancient Middle East, primarily for their greens, and were grown by the Ancient Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. By the Roman era, it is thought that they were cultivated for their roots as well. From the Middle Ages, beetroot was used as a treatment for a variety of conditions, especially illnesses relating to digestion and the blood. Bartolomeo Platina recommended taking beetroot with garlic to nullify the effects of "garlic-breath".

During the middle of the 19th century, wine often was coloured with beetroot juice.

Food shortages in Europe following World War I caused great hardships, including cases of '' mangelwurzel'' disease, as relief workers called it. It was symptomatic of eating only beetroot.

Culinary use

Usually the deep purple roots of beetroot are eaten boiled, roasted, or raw, and either alone or combined with any salad vegetable. The green, leafy portion of the beetroot is also edible. The young leaves can be added raw to salads, whilst the mature leaves are most commonly served boiled or steamed, in which case they have a taste and texture similar to spinach. Beetroot can be roasted, boiled or steamed, peeled, and then eaten warm with or without butter as a delicacy; cooked, pickled, and then eaten cold as a condiment; or peeled, shredded raw, and then eaten as a salad. Pickled beetroot is a traditional food in many countries.

Eastern Europe

In Eastern Europe, beetroot soup, such as borscht ussianand barszcz czerwony olish is common. In Poland and Ukraine, beetroot is combined with horseradish to form ''ćwikła'' or ''бурячки'' (buryachky), which is traditionally used with cold cuts and sandwiches, but often also added to a meal consisting of meat and potatoes.

Similarly in Serbia beetroot (referred to by the local name ''cvekla'') is used as winter salad, seasoned with salt and vinegar, with meat dishes.

As an addition to horseradish, it is also used to produce the "red" variety of '' chrain'', a condiment in Ashkenazi Jewish, Hungarian, Polish, Lithuanian, Russian, and Ukrainian cuisine.

is an old-time traditional Russian cold soup made from leftover beet greens and chopped beetroots, typically with bread and kvass added. Botvinya got its name from Russian ''botva'', which means "root vegetable greens", here referring to beet plant leaves.

, or svyokolnik, is yet another Russian beet-based soup, typically distinguished from borscht in that vegetables for svekolnik are cooked raw and not fried, whilst many types of borscht typically include fried carrots and other fried vegetables. Svekolnik got its name from ''svekla'' or ''svyokla'', which are two Russian words for "beet". Sometimes, various types of cold borscht are also called "svekolnik".

India

In Indian cuisine, chopped, cooked, spiced beetroot is a common side dish. Yellow-coloured beetroots are grown on a very small scale for home consumption.Grubben, G.J.H. & Denton, O.A. (2004) Plant Resources of Tropical Africa 2. Vegetables. PROTA Foundation, Wageningen; Backhuys, Leiden; CTA, Wageningen.

North America

Besides standard fruit and vegetable dishes, certain varieties of beets are sometimes used as a garnish to a tart.

Northern Europe

A common dish in Sweden and elsewhere in the Nordic countries is Biff à la Lindström, a variant of meatballs or burgers, with chopped or grated beetroot added to the minced meat.

In Northern Germany, beetroot is mashed with ''Labskaus'' or added as its side order.SPIEGEL Online on Labskaus in Hamburg
(German), Der SpiegelLabskaus mit Rote-Bete-Salat
(German), recipe at NDR

Industrial production and other uses

A large proportion of the commercial production is processed into boiled and sterilised beetroot or into pickles.

Betanin, obtained from the roots, is used industrially as red food colorant, to improve the color and flavor of tomato paste, sauces, desserts, jams and jellies, ice cream, candy, and breakfast cereals. When beetroot juice is used, it is most stable in foods with a low water content, such as frozen novelties and fruit fillings.

Beetroot can be used to make wine.

Nutrition

Raw beetroot is 88% water, 10% carbohydrates, 2% protein, and less than 1% fat (see table). In a amount providing of food energy, raw beetroot is a rich source (27% of the Daily Value - DV) of folate and a moderate source (16% DV) of manganese, with other nutrients having insignificant content (table).

Health effects

A clinical trial review reported that consumption of beetroot juice modestly reduced systolic blood pressure but not diastolic blood pressure.

Safety

The red colour compound betanin is not broken down in the body, and in higher concentrations may temporarily cause urine or stools to assume a reddish color, in the case of urine a condition called beeturia.

Although harmless, this effect may cause initial concern due to the visual similarity to what appears to be blood in the stool, hematochezia (blood passing through the anus, usually in or with stool) or hematuria (blood in the urine).

Nitrosamine formation in beetroot juice can reliably be prevented by adding ascorbic acid.

Cultivars

Below is a list of several commonly available cultivars of beetroot. Generally, 55 to 65 days are needed from germination to harvest of the root. All cultivars can be harvested earlier for use as greens. Unless otherwise noted, the root colours are shades of red and dark red with different degrees of zoning noticeable in slices.

See also

* List of Lepidoptera that feed on beetroot

Gallery

File:Beets-Bundle.jpg, A bundle of beetroot
File:Rote Bete eine Haelfte.jpg, Section through taproot
File:Gelbe Bete Randen Beetroot.jpg, Yellow beetroot
File:Borscht served.jpg, Borscht
File:Salad of grated beet and apple C IMG 4352.JPG, Salad of grated beetroot and apple
File:Christmas foods (5300034752).jpg, Finnish '' rosolli''
File:Rote Beete - sauer eingelegt (8987-89).jpg, Sliced, pickled beetroot
File:Chrain3.jpg, Red '' chrain'' is made with beetroot
File:Beet juice-01.jpg, Beetroot juice
File:Uncommon beetroot colours.jpg, Golden, red, and white beetroots (left to right).
File:Roasted beetroot.jpg, Roasted beetroot
File:Beetroot jm27942.jpg, Root and cross section of cultivar 'Chioggia'
File:Beetroot jm27944.jpg, Root and cross section of a yellow cultivar
File:Chioggiabeettart.jpg, Chioggia Beet Tart

References

External links

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Beta (plant)
Leaf vegetables
Root vegetables