Thread: Chard
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Dan Abel Dan Abel is offline
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Default Chard

In article >,
Omelet > wrote:

> In article
> >,
> Sheldon > wrote:


> > You do realize that Barb will never again kiss you on the lips...
> > chard is beets.

>
> Chard is NOT beets!
>
> Geeze Shel' where do you come up with this crap?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chard

"Chard (Beta vulgaris var. cicla), also known by the common names Swiss
Chard, Silverbeet, Perpetual Spinach, Crab Beet, Seakale Beet and
Mangold, is a vegetable and a Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima. While the
leaves are eaten, it is in the same species as the garden beet
(beetroot), which is grown primarily for its edible roots.

The word Swiss was used to distinguish chard from French spinach
varieties by nineteenth century seed catalog publishers. The chard is
very popular among Mediterranean cooks. The first varieties have been
traced back to Sicily.

Chard can be harvested while the leaves are young and tender or after
maturity when they are larger and have slightly tougher stems. Chard is
extremely perishable.

Chard has shiny green ribbed leaves, with stems that range from white to
yellow and red depending on the cultivar. It has a slightly bitter
taste. Fresh young chard can be used raw in salads. Mature chard leaves
and stalks are typically cooked or sauteed; the bitter flavor fades with
cooking.


Chard and the other beets are chenopods, a group which is either its own
family Chenopodiaceae or a subfamily within the Amaranthaceae."

I think that last sentence is pretty definitive, "Chard and the other
beets". No?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beet

"The beet (Beta vulgaris) is a plant in the amaranth family. It is best
known its numerous cultivated varieties, the most well known of which is
probably the red root vegetable known as the garden beet. However, other
cultivated varieties include the leaf vegetables chard"

I've grown both in my garden, and they do look a lot alike. That
doesn't mean that everybody will think that they taste alike.

--
Dan Abel
Petaluma, California USA