Spinach To Mustard: Tips To Clean Leafy Greens Before Cooking

The markets get packed with fresh greens such as methi, sarson and palak saag in winters. Green leafy vegetables comprise dietary fibre like iron, pectin, vitamins and folate, leaving no reason to keep you off these nutritious storehouses. But before eating them, ensure to wash and clean them well. Usually, these leafy greens are produced using different fertilisers and pesticides, proving harmful for human consumption. Washing them would control the intake of breeding insects and germs in the green bunch. Here’re some tips that come in handy to clean your leafy greens.

Bathua Saag

Bathua saag is much liked in the Indian kitchen, and many people use it in dishes like vegetables, parathas and pakodas. It’s indeed tasty but may take a lot of effort to clean. Due to the tiny leaves, people usually find cleaning them properly. We have a trick for you:

1. First, hold the bundle well in your hand and cut the roots properly
2. Then, please take out the spoiled greens and clean them in water two-three times
3. This will help remove the soil and insects in them. After cleaning, you can cut it easily. 

Palak Saag

Cleaning spinach is easier than bathua saag due to its big leaves. For this:

1. First, take out the rotten, sore leaves
2. Hold the bundle of spinach greens
3. Cut their roots quickly.
4. Now, clean them in water about four to five times.

Many people cut spinach roots one by one, which takes time. So instead, after cleaning, keep them on a chopper and cut them into small sizes.

Methi Saag

Many people separate the fenugreek leaves from the root and use them in food. But, do you know that the roots are also beneficial for health? Unfortunately, separating the leaf from the root also takes a long time. Hence, to avoid this, hold the fenugreek bundle, cut the root and keep it aside. Sometimes, the soil remains in the greens along with the root. So, after cleaning them in the water, you can cut them easily.

Sarso Ka Saag

The easiest is to cut the sarson saag, but people often make mistakes in cleaning it. For example, many people detach the leaves at the root and soak them in water after cutting. However, one should avoid it as this spoils the nutrients present in the greens. Therefore, cut and use leafy greens only after cleaning them.