If you are looking for an interesting way to spice up your salads or your garden, endive can be a worthy and delicious challenge!
What is Endive?
Endive is a type of leafy vegetable, with three main species belonging to the Cichorium genus—endive, wild endive, and chicory. All of these belong to the chicory family, which is where some of the confusion about this vegetable arises. True endive will have curly leaves, while the broader-leafed variety is known as escarole. [1]
The trouble with this vegetable is that is can come in so many different varieties, even within the same species, and has a wide range of names in different parts of the world, ranging from frisee to witloof and radicchio. While these are technically different members of the same family, the names are often interchanged on menus and in markets across the world. [2]
Endives can be cooked or eaten in a salad. Photo Credit: Shutterstock
Serving Size : Nutrient Value Water [g] 93.79 Energy 17 Energy [kJ] 71 Protein [g] 1.25 Total lipid (fat) [g] 0.2 Ash [g] 1.41 Carbohydrate, by difference [g] 3.35 Fiber, total dietary [g] 3.1 Sugars, total including NLEA [g] 0.25 Calcium, Ca [mg] 52 Iron, Fe [mg] 0.83 Magnesium, Mg [mg] 15 Phosphorus, P [mg] 28 Potassium, K [mg] 314 Sodium, Na [mg] 22 Zinc, Zn [mg] 0.79 Copper, Cu [mg] 0.1 Manganese, Mn [mg] 0.42 Selenium, Se [µg] 0.2 Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid [mg] 6.5 Thiamin [mg] 0.08 Riboflavin [mg] 0.08 Niacin [mg] 0.4 Pantothenic acid [mg] 0.9 Vitamin B-6 [mg] 0.02 Folate, total [µg] 142 Folate, food [µg] 142 Folate, DFE [µg] 142 Choline, total [mg] 16.8 Vitamin A, RAE [µg] 108 Carotene, beta [µg] 1300 Vitamin A, IU [IU] 2167 Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) [mg] 0.44 Vitamin K (phylloquinone) [µg] 231 Fatty acids, total saturated [g] 0.05 14:0 [g] 0 16:0 [g] 0.04 18:0 [g] 0 Fatty acids, total monounsaturated [g] 0 18:1 [g] 0 Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated [g] 0.09 18:2 [g] 0.08 18:3 [g] 0.01 Tryptophan [g] 0.01 Threonine [g] 0.05 Isoleucine [g] 0.07 Leucine [g] 0.1 Lysine [g] 0.06 Methionine [g] 0.01 Cystine [g] 0.01 Phenylalanine [g] 0.05 Tyrosine [g] 0.04 Valine [g] 0.06 Arginine [g] 0.06 Histidine [g] 0.02 Alanine [g] 0.06 Aspartic acid [g] 0.13 Glutamic acid [g] 0.17 Glycine [g] 0.06 Proline [g] 0.06 Serine [g] 0.05 Sources include : USDA [3]
Endive Nutrition
They also boast a significant amount of vitamin A, vitamin K, and certain B vitamins, along with various key minerals, such as manganese, calcium, and iron. There is also a good amount of fiber in endive, which can aid in digestion. [4]
Health benefits associated with this pseudo-exotic vegetable include aiding in liver health, eye health, respiratory distress, and high cholesterol levels. The low-calorie, nutrient-dense nature of this vegetable, in addition to certain active ingredients and antioxidants, such as kaempferol, which are readily available for human absorption, according to various studies. [5]
What does Endive Taste Like?
While you will occasionally find this delicate leafed vegetable in salads, it is somewhat uncommon, due to its intensive growing process and its slightly bitter flavor. However, depending on the way it is grown, it can also have a slightly sweet flavor, and crisp leaves. The leaves on the same plant, in fact, can have slightly different flavors depending on how old they are! [6]
These small-leaf bulbs are pale and slightly yellow, but add a wonderful crunch to salads, as well as a unique, almost peppery flavor
How to Grow Endive?
As mentioned, the growing process for endive is quite complicated, hence its cost and relative rarity. It takes five months for the seed to grow into a leafy plant with a deep taproot. The leaves are removed and the taproots are frozen for long-term storage.
They can then be brought out of that dormancy phase in dark, humid conditions, and the edible plant will appear within a month!
