What Is Escarole: Nutrition Facts And How To Cook
Written by Taisiia Dobrozorova
Taisiia Dobrozorova is a nutrition and fitness writer at Unimeal and a healthy lifestyle devotee. She has accomplished several courses on health, nutrition, dietology.
Fact checked by Stephanie Beaudette, M.Ed., RDN
Stephanie Beaudette is a dietitian and nutritionist accredited by the Commission of Dietetic Registration. She is a BS in Dietetics and an ME in Nutrition.
Have you ever tasted vegan hamburgers in a cozy restaurant? If so, have you wondered what green was between the rows of stuffing? Most of all, it was escarole! Despite being a Sicilian secret, it is a low-calorie vitamin powerhouse, which helps put down some extra pounds and upgrade your health! It's a fact! See scientific evidence in the article.
Consider yourself the luckiest person if you haven't tried the vegetable in any prepared form. Step on the moon by tasting these slightly crumpled leafy greens! This plant is the best friend of everyone who follows healthy eating tips to lose weight. So, Unimeal experts explain why every homemaker, bodybuilder, or ordinary person adores these green, tender leaves.
Eat tasty food and lose weight with Unimeal app!
Take a Quiz – Get personal meal plan – Achieve your weight goals!
Start Quiz
What is escarole
Escarole, also known as broad-leaved endive, belongs to a chicory family. People often confuse it with kale, lettuce, or radicchio. Those greens are also good for weight loss. But escarole has broader, wavy-edged, and curly leaves. The inner part of the plant is light green and tender. The outer side is dark green and a bit tough. Its hearty texture and slightly bitter flavor made escarole an integral part of Italian cuisine. Moreover, one of the most pleasant features of the veggie is its unpretentiousness during cooking. For the most part, rinse it with water.
Escarole nutrition facts and health benefits
These greens have many health and nutrition benefits3A Drewnowski, C Gomez-Carneros. (2000 Dec). American Society for Clinical Nutrition. Bitter taste, phytonutrients, and the consumer: a review. DOI:10.1093/ajcn/72.6.1424. The Unimeal team has formed a performance rating in the context of the impact on the body after prolonged escarole intake in food.
The 1-st place is for the winning point, the most important one for all who struggle to lose weight! Putting down some extra pounds is possible because of fiber4Mark L Dreher. (2018, Nov 28). Whole Fruits and Fruit Fiber Emerging Health Effects. Nutrients. DOI:10.3390/nu10121833, which is a lot in escarole. To be more precise, there is 2.8 g per 100 g of the vegetable! That is more than other vitamins and elements. That's why escarole is so good to include in your meal plan. Fiber maintains a healthy weight and also lowers your risk of diabetes, heart disease, and some cancer types. Moreover, if you sometimes suffer from digestive issues, grab a leaf of escarole or put it in a salad. Your belly will be unbelievably grateful for a decent amount of fiber. Likewise, its proper amount helps absorb nutrients from food.
The 2-d place is about healthy vision, good skin, and skeletal tissue. Vitamin C presents the properties of protecting the body against oxidative stress7S Beatty, H Koh, M Phil, D Henson, M Boulton. (2000, Sep-Oct). The role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration. Survey of ophthalmology. DOI:10.1016/s0039-6257(00)00140-5 and slowing down skin aging8Donglei Zhang, Wei He. (2018, Nov 21). Protection of Kaempferol on Oxidative Stress-Induced Retinal Pigment Epithelial Cell Damage. Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity. DOI:10.1155/2018/1610751. A vitamin helps your eyes to adapt to dim light6Alfred Sommer. (2008, October). Vitamin A Deficiency and Clinical Disease: An Historical Overview. The Journal of Nutrition. DOI:10.1093/jn/138.10.1835. Vitamin A can't give you superpowers for night vision or cure your dependency on contact lenses, but consuming an acceptable quantity will sustain eye health.
The 3-d place belongs to tissue regeneration and wound healing. Escarole contains vitamin K, which is a saver for clumsy people! Especially for those who can often cut themselves while cooking. It is considered to be crucial in forming blood clots9James J DiNicolantonio, Jaikrit Bhutani, James H O'Keefe. (2015, October 6). The health benefits of vitamin K. Open Heart. DOI:10.1136/openhrt-2015-000300. The B vitamins group metabolizes fats and has an antioxidant effect on an organism10Inês Gaspar. (2019, May 22). Complex B Vitamins in Physical Exercise. Juniper online journal of public health. DOI:10.19080/JOJPH.2019.04.555642.
The 4-th place is for boosting immune health and reducing inflammation. Thanks to vitamins E and D, which have different roles in the human body. For example, vitamin E is known for its antioxidant activity1Rafael Llorach, Ascensión Martínez-Sánchez, Francisco A Tomás-Barberán, María I Gil, Federico Ferreres. (2008, Jun 1). Characterisation of polyphenols and antioxidant properties of five lettuce varieties and escarole. Food chemistry. PMID:26065768. It means that the nutrient protects your cells from damage by free radicals. Vitamin D's function is to keep bones strong as it helps with improving calcium absorption2Daniel D. Bikle, MD, PhD. (2000). Vitamin D: Production, Metabolism and Mechanisms of Action Endotext [Internet]. Retrieved from https://www.endotext.org/.
And the 5-th place in this picture goes to the building bones and assisting with nerve function. Elements like Potassium, Magnesium, Copper, and Calcium also are responsible for heart health, moving and wasting nutrients into and out of cells5Muriel Bost, Sabine Houdart, Marion Oberli, Esther Kalonji, Jean-François Huneau, Irène Margaritis. (2016, May). Dietary copper and human health: Current evidence and unresolved issues. J Trace Elem Med Biol. DOI:10.1016/j.jtemb.2016.02.006.
What is a substitute for escarole
Sometimes, not all stores can boast of having escarole on the shelves. So, in this case, you can find a worthy replacement for it. Include these greens in your meal plan and continue losing weight.
- Kale is one of the most nutrient-dense vegetables on the globe. Why so? It contains antioxidants such as lutein and beta-carotene. These microelements fight the risk of diseases caused by stress.
- Microgreens, despite their small size, are up to 40 times more nutritious compared to their grown mates!
- Romaine lettuce.All healthy food geeks love tasting this leafy vegetable with sturdy, dark leaves with a firm center rib. It is commonly used in Caesar salads.
- Arugula.Who hasn't tried this leafy "rocket"! Its slightly peppery taste is impossible to forget. Like other leafy greens, it's packed with nutrients such as pro-vitamin A beta-carotene and vitamins B9 and K and is widely used in salads.
- Collard greens,related to kale, have thick leaves that taste slightly bitter. These leaves are one of the best sources of calcium and the vitamins K, A, B9 (folate), and C. This filling with useful microelements has a very positive effect on bone health.
- People also notice watercress as being a great additive to neutrally flavored foods. This aquatic plant is similar to arugula and mustard greens. It is well-known in herbal medicine for its healing properties.
How to cook escarole: Recipes ideas
So now you've maybe come to a logical conclusion to include escarole in your weight-loss trip and asking, "what are the ways to prepare this wonderful product"? And you'll be pleasantly surprised that it can be cooked in effortless ways. Its preparation is time-saving! Escarole's broad leaves with mild, peppery flavor can be combined with many ingredients and served both raw and cooked.
Firstly, we can make soup. Italians usually call it "wedding soup." Such a name is given for a perfect combination of ingredients used. The half-hour of preparation will make you understand why this dish has become Italy's business card next after pizza. Here is a classic escarole soup to be done on your weekly menu!
Secondly, the aromatic green is excellent as a side dish! Here is a popular recipe for escarole and beans. It keeps well in the fridge and enough for a few meals.
Thirdly, escarole also pairs well with other veggies. Thanks to its light bitterness, the salad with the leafy vegetable can exist as a stand-alone dish or as a great addition to a side dish. Catch the 10-minutes escarole salad to feed all your family and friends!
Final thoughts
Escarole is considered a vitamin nuclear power plant because of the massive nutrients. All these are necessary for the healthy functioning of the human body. This green is incredibly precious for people who want to lose weight. If you decide to test this veggie in your kitchen, there are a bunch of healthy and nutritious recipes with it. And they don't take a lot of time! Try more healthy dishes with this outstandingly tasty vegetable by checking on our cooking hub!
Article updated: July 12, 2022
Unimeal does not diagnose or suggest treatments. Any description of the diet, training plan or supplement should be discussed with your current physician or nutritionist. This article does not address specific conditions and is simply meant to provide general information on healthcare topics. Following any advice is at your own initiative and does not impose any responsibility on the blog authors for your health and safety.
Sources:
By choosing high-quality sources, we make sure that all articles on the Unimeal blog are reliable and trustworthy. Learn more about our editorial processes.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Related Articles
