2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
As the people say, in the foreign side and sweets in mustard, and in the home side and hell for a lollipop. At one time, horseradish was considered an annoying weed and was ruthlessly eradicated by summer residents. Then someone came up with the idea of cooking an appetizing "crap", and they stopped destroying the horseradish, and began to breed it on purpose, allocating a corner of the dacha spaces for him
Representative of the Cabbage family
Long oblong leaves of horseradish delight the eye with their elasticity and power. Strange, but in my garden I have not seen blooming horseradish. And he, it turns out, has very cute white flowers and pods-fruits.
But the most important part of the plant is the roots. They grow long and thick, so digging and pulling them out of the ground is somewhat more difficult than pulling turnips or beets.
Horseradish riches
The specific pungent smell and taste is given to horseradish by the essential oil, which is contained in all parts of the perennial plant. Horseradish is not in vain sometimes compared to mustard in terms of its effect on the human body. The main part of its essential oil is mustard oil.
And horseradish owes its antimicrobial activity to a protein substance called "lysozyme", which has found a refuge in the juice of the roots. There are many other useful substances in fresh juice. These are ascorbic acid, fatty oil, carotene, starch, riboflavin, resinous substances, thiamine, carbohydrates. Some of them are present in the leaves and seeds of the plant.
In the roots of horseradish, we find trace elements such as iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium, copper, sulfur, phosphorus and many others that our body needs for normal functioning. The roots are dug up either in early spring or in autumn, when the leaves have withered.
Traditional Russian seasoning
At a time when oriental spices were not yet known, horseradish in Russia (presumably from the 9th century) was a traditional seasoning for meat, fish dishes and vodka. Since in Russia they loved to eat tightly, horseradish whetted the appetite and helped the digestive organs better and faster digest protein food.
Compared to hot mustard, which has also been used for a long time in Russia, horseradish seasoning is more piquant and nutritious. She brings variety to various meat and fish dishes, giving them a special flavor.
In addition, in our cold climate, due to its bactericidal properties, horseradish not only improved the taste of dishes, but also played a preventive role, preventing diseases such as influenza, scurvy, infectious diseases of the upper respiratory tract and intestines.
After the victory over Napoleon, horseradish began to be used as a seasoning in European cuisines. But they distorted the peculiarity of horseradish seasonings, softening its natural "anger", and for preservation they began to add vinegar. If you have ever bought very cute jars of imported horseradish in stores, then their contents do not smell like horseradish at all. Some kind of sour-tasteless mass.
Since mustard is easier to store and its cost is lower than that of horseradish, by the beginning of the 19th century, horseradish as a seasoning for dishes was strongly supplanted by mustard.
Shit
I do not know who the author of the condiment "horseradish" is, but with its appearance the popularity of horseradish has increased dramatically. Each housewife, for sure, has her own recipe for making horseradish.
The main components of horseradish are red tomatoes without damage or rot; horseradish roots, cleaned of the earth, washed and dried; garlic and salt. Some add a little sugar, pepper. All this is passed through a meat grinder, while the housewives are shedding tears. In order not to shed tears from the pungent aroma of horseradish, different methods of protection are invented.
The proportions are made to the taste of the manufacturer, to whom which smell is more to the soul and stomach. Naturally, the more horseradish and garlic, the longer the seasoning will last. After all, when served, it can be diluted with fresh twisted tomatoes, which are no longer in short supply all year round.
For my taste, our Siberian horseradish is the best seasoning in the world.
Contraindications
Horseradish is contraindicated for people suffering from gastritis, nephritis and enterocolitis, since it adversely affects diseased kidneys and liver.
