Seasons by the Sea: Don’t Knock Spinach
Shame on you, Mark Bittman, for slamming spinach in your April 12, 2012, New York Times column. In it you refer to spinach as the “homework” of vegetables, you slam the ’70s fad of spinach salads, and say this is the “least convincing” or tasty way to prepare Spinacia oleracea, honorable member of the beet family. I admire you, sir, but here you are dead wrong.
Mr. Bittman does go on with some delicious sounding methods of beating the tender leaf into submission, from wilting, steaming, braising, and slow cooking with butter and a cup of cream.
I feel sorry for people whose only experience with spinach is in the form of the bagged stuff at the supermarket, chopped and frozen by the Green Giant, or hidden in some greasy artichoke dip at Applebee’s.
We are lucky out here to be able to grow our own, or buy freshly picked bundles at the farmers markets and local grocery stores. Yes, spinach is mild, but it is not tasteless. I rather like the French culinary description “cire vierge,” meaning “virgin beeswax,” in that the spinach is capable of receiving and absorbing any and all other flavors it is combined with. Most other vegetables assert their own flavors; spinach is the mellow, stoner-surfer dude, willing to be flash-fried, creamed, sauteed, a-a-a-and, served raw. Whatever, dude.
Spinach seems to have first turned up on the table in ancient Persia, then in India and China. By the 14th century it was popular in England and France, and when Catherine de Medici became Queen of France in 1533, she apparently liked it so much that she wanted it served at every meal. She was born in Florence, which is why many dishes served with spinach nowadays are referred to as “Florentine.”
The nutritional value of spinach is off the charts, but some people should be wary of some ingredients. It is full of iron and calcium but also contains oxalates, which make absorption of the aforementioned nutrients difficult. The oxalates are also what cause that fuzzy feeling on your tongue or gritty feeling on your teeth when eating cooked spinach. People with kidney or gallbladder issues should also restrict consumption of spinach as it can lead to the formation of pesky stones. Other than that, spinach is full of vitamins A, C, K, magnesium, manganese, folate, and several B vitamins.
The “popularity” of spinach started by the cartoon “Popeye” in the 1930s actually came about due to scientific mistakes and misinformation that led consumers to believe spinach had many, many times its actual iron content. Quite sad when you think of all the poor children who were forced to eat spinach, most likely canned, and then boiled forever.
There are two basic types of spinach we are familiar with and that are most commonly found at the store. One is Bloomsdale, whose crinkly dark green leaves look like they are made of big green bubbles, similar to Savoy cabbage or black kale. The flat-leaf varieties (the kind you most often see bagged and called baby spinach) have a goosefoot shape and are smaller and flatter.
You want to buy spinach that is very fresh. It should be bright, not floppy or soggy or yellowing. To cook spinach, keep in mind that one pound will only yield three-quarters to one cup cooked. I admit that I am lazy and often buy the bagged “baby” and/or pre-washed spinach. This seems to shrink even more and be even waterier than good, fresh, still-on-the-root spinach. And, yes, washing it can be a bore, but it’s important because grit is no fun to bite into and some varieties have been sprayed and irradiated.
After washing spinach, I just add it gradually to a super hot frying pan, the water evaporates, and as the spinach shrinks down, I add more. To get rid of all the moisture, I just keep it on high heat until I have a little dark green blob of deliciousness.
Our cool climate and sandy soil are quite hospitable to spinach, so I encourage you to try some fresh, locally grown varieties soon, whether creamed or steamed, sauteed or raw in a salad. You too, Mr. Bittman.
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