Jerusalem artichoke useful properties

Jerusalem artichoke( Helianthur tuberosus L.) - is of hybrid origin. The structure of the above-ground organs is similar to sunflower. Another name for this plant is "ground pear", "Iroquois potato", "food of long-livers".This is a tuberous sunflower.

A perennial tuberous herb plant more than 2 m high, native to North America. The stem is straight, slightly branched, with numerous alternating leaves, as well as stems, which look like a young sunflower. The flowers are golden yellow, collected in large baskets with a diameter of 5-7 cm and more. Blooms from late June to September. Root branched, with numerous roots of different shapes.

Cultivated, grows wild in the southern regions of Russia. Propagated by dispersing the seeds by wind. In the culture it reproduces as a potato - by planting root crops in the soil, weeding and hilling.

Medicinal raw material is grass in the initial stage of flowering and root crops, which are excavated after withering plants or in the spring( which is better).The above-ground part is preserved or dried, like all herbaceous plants. Roots in fresh( raw) form are stored in cellars in wooden boxes, like potatoes.

Root crops are used for food instead of potatoes in fried form( on any fat basis), cooked, fresh, in the form of juice from root vegetables or powder for adding to salads, sauces, etc. From root vegetables make compotes and soft drinks. The taste of fresh root crops resembles the taste of cabbage cabbage.

The failed experiment of

In the 1930s, Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov brought the topinambur back to Russia from Mexico. In 1937, the People's Commissariat of Agriculture, with Vavilov filing, ordered the collective farms to grow Jerusalem artichoke everywhere instead of potatoes. Vavilov thought that Jerusalem artichoke could at the same time replace the potato and sunflower. A large aboveground part can be used to feed cattle. But it turned out that the sunflower oil from it can not be obtained, and the excavated tubers in the storehouses rot in one month. And only livestock feed met expectations.

They lost interest in Jerusalem artichoke, and there was no selection work with him. Later, when Vavilov was arrested, this unsuccessful experiment on replacing potatoes with Jerusalem artichoke was also blamed on him. But, as it later turned out, artichoke was neglected in vain. In recent years breeders have paid attention to Jerusalem artichoke. As a result, varieties appeared with rounded, as in potatoes, large tubers. If he had more taste, he would not have had a price.

As a result of the work of VN Zelenkov in the Siberian Branch of the Institute of Immunology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the works of Vavilov and his students were restored, and large additional studies were carried out which revealed the amazing qualities of this plant.

Jerusalem artichoke contains 16-18% natural inulin, replacing sugar and starch, in addition, organic silicon, potassium, magnesium, vitamins and almost all amino acids, which increase the number of T-lymphocytes in the human body, that is, enhance its immunity. In addition, with the systematic use of Jerusalem artichoke, the circulatory system is 20 years younger. It's not for nothing that the American Indians used it very much to write Jerusalem artichoke.

They called it the "food of the long-livers" and believed that Jerusalem artichoke saves from disease and returns a taste for life.

Plant "Ecology of Nutrition" produces concentrate from Jerusalem artichoke - pleasant taste of the tablet "Dolgolet".

Features of growing

Jerusalem artichoke is unpretentious and grows almost everywhere as a weed, but, of course, on fertile soils the yield is several times higher and the tubers grow large.

Propagate Jerusalem artichoke vegetatively, that is tubers. Plant them in spring or autumn, until the beginning of October, to a depth of 15 cm. You can not take care of planting, do not feed and do not water.

In autumn, it beautifully blooms yellow baskets, similar to the flowers of a sunflower. Only a lot of them on one stem, however, the baskets themselves are less sunflower. Flowering is abundant and long, from late August to mid-October.

Collect tubers do late in autumn or early spring. Tubers are well wintered right in the soil, but are practically not stored in a dug out form in the vaults. This is a major drawback of Jerusalem artichoke. In addition, the tubers in it are uneven, with outgrowths, which makes its use uncomfortable. The following year new plants grow from small nodules left in the soil during harvesting.

Jerusalem artichoke is perennial and grows well in one place for 5-6 years. Then it should be transplanted to a new place, otherwise the plants degenerate and the tubers in them grow smaller.

Cooking recipes

In the ground, in the roots, tubers of elongated shape develop with thickening at the end( like potato), rich in insulin, necessary for both diabetic patients and healthy people - to protect against this disease.

When making dishes, Jerusalem artichoke is used in raw, cooked, baked types, but the salad is the most useful: peel, grate, add onion, parsley, season with sour cream.

Jerusalem artichoke - a plant very hardy and unpretentious. In winter, tubers in the soil can freeze, thaw, and freeze again without losing their taste and viability.

Sweetish tubers are prepared like potatoes: boiled, stewed, baked, deep-fried. But most of the vitamins are preserved when using ground pear in raw form( in the form of salads), and in this case Jerusalem artichoke does not give a sweetish taste, but rather resemble nuts. The tubers are sliced ​​or grated and sprinkled with lemon juice so that they do not darken.

Jerusalem artichoke can be prepared with Savoy cabbage. This dish will require 400 g of Jerusalem artichoke, 300 g Savoy cabbage, 1 onion, a glass of red wine, 3 tbsp.spoons of olive oil, salt, pepper, nutmeg, 1 clove of garlic, a glass of water, 2 tbsp.spoons of chopped parsley. Jerusalem artichoke and cabbage washed, cleaned and finely chopped.

Bulb also finely chopped and put out in olive oil. Add vegetables alternately. Salt, pepper, season with nutmeg. Add the crushed garlic. The dishes in which you cook this dish, close the lid, and simmer the vegetables for at least 10 minutes. Then pour in the wine and water and boil so that a third of the liquid evaporates. Sprinkle with chopped parsley, stir and spread on plates. Made from Jerusalem artichoke are delicious pancakes. Pancakes can be prepared with the addition of other vegetables, such as carrots or zucchini.

Fried Jerusalem artichoke

4 servings of

450 g of Jerusalem artichoke, sliced, b art.spoons of a mixture of butter and vegetable oil, 2 not too ripe banana, peeled and cut into diagonal slices, 1 chopped onion, 100 g unsalted peanuts, grated peel and lime juice, salt and freshly ground black pepper, lettuce leaves, mustard greens and watercress, 2 tbsp.spoons of chopped parsley.

Jerusalem artichoke cook in boiling water for 3 minutes. Strain and dry on a napkin. Heat a mixture of butter and vegetable oil in a shallow saucepan, in which roast earth pears and bananas for 2-3 minutes. Then combine with onions, peanuts, peel and lime juice. Season to taste. Serve on the leaves of lettuce, mustard and watercress. Decorate with parsley.

Stewed Jerusalem artichoke

4 servings of

450 g of peeled and chopped tubers of Jerusalem artichoke, salt and freshly ground black pepper, a decent pinch of grated nutmeg, 300 ml of low-fat cream.

Jerusalem artichoke brew in boiling salted water for 15 minutes. Filt and lay on a shallow, heat-resistant dish. Sprinkle with pepper and nutmeg, pour sauce and bake in a preheated oven at 190 ° C for about 45 minutes until golden brown.

Cheese with Jerusalem artichoke

4 servings of

450 g of peeled and chopped tubers of Jerusalem artichoke, 50 g of butter or margarine, 300 ml of milk, 3 tbsp.spoons of flour, salt and freshly ground black pepper, 1/2 teaspoon dried herb mixture, 50 grams of grated "Cheddar" cheese, 50 g breadcrumbs.

Cook Jerusalem artichoke in lightly salted water for 15 minutes. Drain the water. In the meantime, grease a small high-temperature dish 1 tbsp.spoon of oil. Whisk in a saucepan of milk with flour, add the remaining oil and bring to a boil without stopping whisking.

Add a little salt, pepper and herbs and cook for 2 minutes, stirring with whisk. Put boiled Jerusalem artichoke in a cooked dish. Pour the sauce. Mix the cheese and breading and sprinkle the dish with Jerusalem artichoke. Bake in a preheated oven at 100 ° C for 30 minutes until golden brown.

Since scorzen, oat root, stachys and Jerusalem artichoke are cooked in the same way, then common recipes are given for them.

Like stachys, Jerusalem artichoke does not contain starch, but contains inulin, and therefore is very useful for diabetics. He generally has many medicinal properties. So, when joint or muscle pains, it is very useful to take baths with the addition of pre-baked leaves and Jerusalem artichoke stems, and it does not matter whether they were used in dry or green form. That is, the grass of Jerusalem artichoke can be harvested for future use.

Salad

Roots or tubers peeled, finely chopped or grated on a large grater, add green onions, parsley, dill, season with sour cream, salt to taste.

You can fill with mayonnaise, then do not add salt. Instead, you can use a small amount of celery leaves.

All these roots and root vegetables can be added in small amounts to any salads - raw, or boiled, if boiled.

Omelet

Boil the roots or root vegetables in slightly salted water. Peel off, finely chop and add to the eggs when preparing the omelet. You can add ham or grated cheese to the omelette.

Roots or tubers in the

test Boil in lightly salted water, peel, cut into pieces 5 cm long. Prepare the dough on the beer( dissolve the flour in a glass of beer to the consistency of sour cream) or use a dough for pancakes. Puncture a piece on a fork, dipped in dough and fry in vegetable oil until rouge. Put on lettuce leaves, sprinkle with lemon juice and sprinkle with parsley and dill.

Pudding

500 g of roots or tubers, 1 glass of water, 3 tbsp.tablespoons of butter, 3 yolks, 1 tbsp.a spoonful of flour, 0.5 cups of milk, 100 grams of ham, salt to taste and greens or spices at your discretion.

Clear roots or tubers, cut into slices, add 1 tbsp.a spoonful of oil and a glass of water. Boil until cooked.

Separate yolks from proteins. Beat the yolks and the rest of the butter, add flour and beat again.

Add the flour and milk, stir to make not too thick dough. Add in the dough finely chopped greens and salt to taste. Fold in prepared dough roots( or tubers), ham.

Beat the proteins, pour them into the dough and stir.

Useful and curative properties of Jerusalem artichoke( earth pear)

In folk medicine, topinambur preparations are used as a means of restoring metabolism in diseases such as hypertension, hyperacid gastritis, headache, diabetes mellitus, as an analgesic and anti-inflammatory agent in gastrointestinaldiseases( gastric resists and intestinal colic), constipation, arthritis, polyarthritis, radiculitis, salt deposition.

Freshly prepared juice from root vegetables take 1-2 tbsp.spoon or 1/2 cup 3 times daily before meals.

Infusion: 3-4 tbsp.spoons of root vegetables insist 2-3 hours in 1 liter of boiling water and drink without restriction( like tea or water) in hypertension, diabetes.

Broth: 1-2 kg of dry or raw grass cook for 10-15 minutes in 5-10 liters of water and use externally in the form of hot baths 2-3 times a week for 15-20 minutes for arthritis, polyarthritis and other diseasesit is recommended that you regularly take drugs from the root vegetables inside).

Fresh juice of earthenware tubers is used to reduce acidity in the stomach, especially with heartburn. This juice normalizes the function of the gastrointestinal tract, helping with constipation, quenching gastric resists and intestinal colic, having an anti-inflammatory effect.1 tbsp. A spoonful of freshly prepared juice quickly relieves nausea.

Earthen pear preparations are used as an excellent stabilizer of blood pressure, from headaches, in the treatment of diabetes mellitus, salt deposition( especially in the legs), polyarthritis, etc. For these purposes, the aerial part of the plant is used.

At the end of summer( in August) or during flowering, the upper part of the plant( grass) is cut at an altitude of about 1 m from the ground. Dry or use fresh tops of the plant in the form of a decoction.2 kg of fresh herbs boil 10-15 minutes in 6 liters of water, insist to a temperature of 38-39 degrees and use for foot baths for 20-30 minutes 2-3 times a week when salt is deposited( especially in the legs).

It is useful to make bathing baths from infusion or decoction of pear herb for polyarthritis, radiculitis, etc. It is useful to take tubers as infusion, decoction( compote) or juice from root vegetables in diabetes mellitus, hypertension and other diseases.

Infusion or decoction: 3 tbsp.spoons of dried fruits insist 1-2 hours in 1 liter of boiling water and drink without restrictions( but without sugar) like water, tea.

Preparations of earthen pears( juice of tubers, infusion, etc.) quickly tighten sores and small wounds.

Made from mashed potatoes of Jerusalem artichoke, they prepare a cosmetic mask for the treatment of dry, flabby skin of the face, as well as against wrinkles and acne. The mask is applied for 30 minutes, washed off with warm water and lubricated with vitamin cream.

In spring it is good to eat on a raw tuber of earthenware Jerusalem artichoke.