Chard or Swiss chard is a green leafy vegetable. In the cultivars of the Flavescens-Group, the leaf stalks are large and often prepared separately from the leaf blade; the Cicla-Group is the leafy spinach beet. The leaf blade can be green or reddish in color; the leaf stalks are usually white, or a colorful yellow or red. Chard, like other green leafy vegetables, has highly nutritious leaves, making it a popular component of healthy diets. Chard has been used in cooking for centuries, but because of its similarity to beets and vegetables such as cardoon, the common names that cooks and cultures have used for chard may be confusing; it has many common names, such as silver beet, perpetual spinach, beet spinach, seakale beet, or leaf beet.
Classification
Chard was first described in 1753 by Carl von Linné as Beta vulgaris var. cicla. Its taxonomic rank has changed many times, so it was treated as a subspecies, convariety, or variety of Beta vulgaris. W.D.J. Koch, B. vulgaris subsp. cicla W.D.J. Koch var. cicla L., B. vulgaris var. cycla Ulrich, B. vulgaris subsp. vulgaris, B. vulgaris subsp. vulgaris, B. vulgaris subsp. cicla W.D.J. Koch, B. vulgaris subsp. cicla W.D.J. Koch var. flavescens DC., B. vulgaris L. subsp. vulgaris, B. vulgaris subsp. vulgaris ). The accepted name for all beet cultivars, like chard, sugar beet and beetroot, is Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris. They are cultivated descendants of the sea beet, Beta vulgaris subsp. maritima. Chard belongs to the chenopods, which are now mostly included in the family Amaranthaceae. The two rankless cultivar groups for chard are the Cicla-Group for the leafy spinach beet, and the Flavescens-Group for the stalky Swiss chard.
Chard is a biennial. Clusters of chard seeds are usually sown, in the Northern Hemisphere, between June and October, depending on the desired harvesting period. Chard can be harvested while the leaves are young and tender, or after maturity when they are larger and have slightly tougher stems. Harvesting is a continuous process, as most species of chard produce three or more crops. Raw chard is extremely perishable.
Cultivars
s of chard include green forms, such as 'Lucullus' and 'Fordhook Giant', as well as red-ribbed forms such as 'Ruby Chard' and 'Rhubarb Chard'. The red-ribbed forms are attractive in the garden, but as a general rule, the older green forms tend to outproduce the colorful hybrids. 'Rainbow Chard' is a mix of colored varieties that is often mistaken for a variety unto itself. Chard has shiny, green, ribbed leaves, with petioles that range from white to yellow to red, depending on the cultivar. Chard is a spring harvest plant. In the Northern Hemisphere, chard is typically ready to harvest as early as April and lasts through May. It is one of the hardier leafy greens, with a harvest season typically lasting longer than kale, spinach, or baby greens. When daytime temperatures start regularly to attain, the harvest season is coming to an end.
Culinary use
Fresh chard can be used raw in salads, stirfries, soups or omelets. The raw leaves can be used like a tortilla wrap. Chard leaves and stalks are typically boiled or sautéed; the bitterness fades with cooking.
Nutritional content
In a 100-g serving, raw Swiss chard provides of food energy and has rich content of vitamins A, K, and C, with 122%, 1038%, and 50%, respectively, of the DV. Also having significant content in raw chard are vitamin E and the dietary minerals, magnesium, manganese, iron, and potassium. Raw chard has low content of carbohydrates, protein, fat, and dietary fiber. When chard is boiled, vitamin and mineral contents are reduced compared to raw chard, but still supply significant proportions of the DV.
