And the winner goes to… Watercress! If you want to add some nutrition to your diet, consider this peppery green, as it was hailed as the world’s healthiest food.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently scored watercress 100 out of 100 in its vegetable rankings, earning the powerhouse vegetable the title of being the most nutrient-dense vegetable on earth. That’s quite a label to have.
What Makes Watercress So Healthy?
Watercress contains a variety of vitamins, minerals, and secondary plant compounds. With its high levels of amino acids as well as antioxidants, iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium, and vitamin K, watercress has been shown to be beneficial in aiding muscle recovery, reducing cellular damage, and protecting against DNA damage. It was even found to have a detoxifying and blood-cleansing effect.
Even with all of its health benefits, you still need to watch your intake of this valuable diet addition. You shouldn’t consume that much watercress, as the essential mustard oils in it can cause bladder, kidney, and stomach irritation if consumed in excess.
Ways to Eat Watercress, The World’s Healthiest Food
It’s best to eat watercress raw and uncooked. That’s when it has and retains all of its nutritional value. When watercress is cooked, it loses a substantial amount of nutrition. Minerals like potassium, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc can be reduced by up to 60 to 70 percent when the leafy vegetable is cooked. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it in cooked dishes.
Some ways to add watercress to your diet include adding it to a salad for a bit of spice and tang, using it to top off a piece of bread, or layering it into a sandwich.
You can also add it to smoothies, pesto, dips, and sauces. Or simply use it as a garnish you can eat.
Watercress Basil Pesto
Ingredients
1 bag or bunch of watercress (roughly 4 ounces)
Handful of fresh basil leaves
2 cloves of garlic
1/3 cup of parmesan cheese
1 tbsp of lemon juice
4 tbsp of olive oil (more if needed to combine)
Lemon zest
Salt to taste
Directions:
Add all ingredients except olive oil into the food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. With the motor running, slowly pour in the olive oil and process until combined. Season with salt.
*If you like a little kick, add some crushed red pepper.