Everything you need to know about watercress, the healthiest vegetable on Earth

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Quinoa, blueberries, goji, avocado, among others have been popular for their high nutritional value and some of them have also been called superfoods. But when it comes to the highest nutrition levels, there's an unsuspecting leafy vegetable that takes the ‘kale'. Recently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a national public health agency in the United States, announced that watercress is the healthiest vegetable on Earth.

CDC assigns nutrition density scores to foods based on the concentration of important minerals and vitamins. While spinach, chard and beet greens scored in the range of 80s, watercress is the only vegetable to earn a perfect score of 100. Jalkumbhi, as watercress is locally called in Hindi, is best consumed in winters, as that's when the best produce arrives in the market.

Tiana Rodrigues

So what really makes it a legit superfood? "Watercress is a powerhouse of nutrients, as it has - vitamin C (supports immunity), vitamin K (associated with bone health), calcium and magnesium (promote bone function), high antioxidants (important for heart health, blood pressure and eyes), and nitrates," explains Tiana Rodrigues, nutritionist and diabetes educator. She adds that jalkumbhi has a very good nutrient profile, which can be consumed with minimal cooking.

"Powder it, and add it to your juices and soups; sprinkle on a meal or add it in your roti dough or use it like lettuce in burgers and salads," Rodrigues adds, who consumes this superfood that's cultivated through hydroponics to get a nutrient loaded variant without the use of synthetic pesticides. "Plus, this makes the vegetable available all year round," she shared.

Watercress salad with mixed greens and kasundi

Here's a dish that's packed with jalkumbhi's nutrients and is easy to whip up

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Ingredients
. 1 big bunch of watercress leaves
. 2 medium-sized diced cucumbers
. 1 small diced firm
capsicum (green)
. 1 of each red and yellow bell peppers
. 1 large diced tomato
. 1 tsp of mixed seeds
. 1 dollop of kasundi (mustard sauce)
. A squeeze of lemon
. Rock salt as per taste

Method
Choose tender leaves of watercress as the grown up ones can be tough and slightly bitter. Soak the bunch of watercress in a colander filled with water. Rinse thoroughly in water a couple of times so as to eliminate all soil particles. Use your fingers or a small pair of scissors to snap off the tender watercress leaves from the individual stalks. At the time of eating, toss it together with the diced cucumber, tomato, capsicum, bell peppers along with a sprinkle of rock salt, a dash of lemon, the spoonful of mixed seeds and the dollop of kasundi. In case kasundi is unavailable, you may use any other salad dressing. Enjoy as a side or a meal in itself by adding some quartered boiled eggs.

Recipe courtesy: Somma Ghosh, home chef, @kitchentalesbysommaghosh

Know the top 15

Here's a list of the top 15 foods based on their nutrient density score as per a research done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, USA

. Watercress: 100.00
. Chinese cabbage: 91.99
. Chard: 89.27
. Beet green: 87.08
. Spinach: 86.43
. Chicory: 73.36
. Leaf lettuce: 70.73
. Parsley: 65.59
. Romaine lettuce: 63.48
. Collard green: 62.49
. Turnip green: 62.12
. Mustard green: 61.39
. Endive: 60.44
. Chive: 54.80
. Kale: 49.07

Data courtesy: cdc.gov