Data source: USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, FDC 168462 (Spinach, raw).
Fun facts
- Popeye the Sailor gulping spinach for super strength made this green famous worldwide. In Vietnam it is also called rau chan vit, "duck foot greens", because the leaves look like a duck's foot.
- 100g of raw spinach has only about 23 kcal. A big handful shrinks to a few spoonfuls once cooked, so it is easy to eat a lot.
- Spinach gives 558mg of potassium, 2.7mg of iron, 99mg of calcium and 469 µg of vitamin A per 100g, plus 2.9g of protein, quite high for a leafy green.
- In Vietnam, spinach is cooked into canh soup, stir-fried with garlic, tossed in salads or blended into green smoothies. In the kOBE recipe library, spinach appears in 10 dishes.
Choosing and storing
Choose bunches with deep green, fresh, glossy leaves and crisp stems, not yellowed or slimy. Small baby leaves suit salads, while larger leaves are better for soups and stir-fries. Spinach wilts quickly, so keep it in a paper-lined box in the crisper drawer and use it within two or three days. Wash carefully, since soil tends to cling to the base of the stems.
Cooking it well
Spinach is high in oxalate, which binds calcium and iron, so your body absorbs less of these two minerals than the numbers suggest. Blanching briefly and discarding the water reduces some oxalate, and eating spinach with vitamin C foods like tomato or bell pepper helps iron absorption. Iron-rich foods and absorption explains more.
