After broccoli facts, we felt that cabbage facts had to be the next article in our food fact list.
Cabbage is one of the favorite vegetables of many people. It may look just a leafy vegetable (that it is) but it is extremely nutritious and is good for your body in multiple ways.
Without wasting our time further, let us begin…
Cabbage Facts 1-10
1. The botanical name of cabbage is Brassica oleracea. It is a member of mustard family called Cruciferae. Mustard family also includes broccoli, brussels sprouts, sprouting broccoli, etc.
2. The word Brassica originated from ‘bresic’, a Celtic word meaning cabbage. They are biennials. Cabbage plants are 16 to 24 inches tall when they are in first year and are1.5 to 2 meters tall by the time they get matured.
3. Cabbage leaves are thick. Leaves of some of the varieties of cabbage have a waxy bloom on them. Cabbages weigh around 0.5 to 4 kilograms or 1 to 8 pounds.
4. The leaves of cabbage have different colors, textures and shape. The color of cabbage can range from white to green to purple. The flowers of cabbage are yellow and white in color.
5. The actual origins of cabbage is not yet found. Its wild ancestor, Brassica oleracea, was found in Europe and Britain.
6. Though it is a pretty old plant, its domestication happened later than lentils, summer wheat, etc. Celts were probably the ones to domesticate cabbage. But cabbage was cultivated in China around 6000 years ago! Insects are the major pollinators of flowers of cabbage.
7. Greeks and Romans loved cabbage. They thought (and rightly so!) that these vegetables have medicinal properties. They even thought that this would reduce drunkenness, thanks to their excessive drinking of wine.
8. India was introduced to cabbage when Britain and other European countries colonized her.
9. Along with India, some northwestern countries of Europe like Germany, France, etc. were introduced to cabbage a little late.
10. By 17th and 18th centuries, cabbage was a staple vegetable in most of the European countries.
Cabbage Facts 11-20
11. Cabbage plants grow well in well drained soils and in a place where the sunlight is abundant.
12. Plants take around 70 to 120 days to produce cabbages depending on the variety.
13. There are 5 major cultivar groups of cabbage. They are savoy, red, green, white, and spring greens. There are more than 100 varieties of cabbage all over the world.
14. The total production of cabbage all over the world in 2017 was 71.4 million tons. With a production of 33.4 million tons, China was the top producer. India, with 8.8 million tons of cabbage production, took the second spot.
15. Russia, South Korea, and Ukraine take third, fourth and fifth positions respectively.
16. If stored in proper conditions (like optimal humidity, temperature, etc.), cabbages can stay for six months! Even if such optimal conditions aren’t met, they have a lifespan of four months.
17. Russia tops the list when it comes to consumption. Second and third ranks are taken by Belgium and Netherlands. Americans consume nearly 4 kilograms of cabbage per year per person.
18. Cabbage is considered as the national food of Russia. Did you know that Russians eat cabbage 7 times more than Americans on an average?
19. Babe Ruth used to wear cabbage leaf under his cap during baseball games. It was also reported that he changed the used leaf and used to wear a new leaf when the game was halfway over.
20. There are a lot of ways to cook cabbage. Some of them are steaming, boiling, braising, stewing, sautéing, etc. Pickling is one of the famous ways of preserving cabbage.
Cabbage Facts 21-30
21. Sauekraut is a dish which uses fermented cabbage. Dutch sailors used to eat sauerkraut when they went for journeys just to avoid scurvy.
22. Largest cabbage dish ever made in this world was made in Macedonia’s Prilep on 19 December 2008. They made 80,191 cabbage rolls that weighed 1,221 pounds!
23. Did you know that there are a few cabbage varieties that are grown only for ornamental purpose? Yes, you read it right. They are called ‘flowering cabbages. They are not edible.
24. Heaviest cabbage in the world weighed 57.61 kilograms or 127 pounds! Heaviest red cabbage weighed 19.05 kilograms or 42 pounds. Longest cabbage roll had a length of 15.37 meters. Largest cabbage dish weighed 925.4 kilograms or 2,040 pounds! Needless to say, all of these heavy cabbages and their dishes made to the Guinness Book of World Records.
25. A chemical compound present in cabbage is helpful in preventing cancer. Not just that, this compound also protects the healthy tissues and organs from radiation.
26. Anthocyanins in cabbage keep our heart healthy. They also help in maintaining blood pressure and reduces inflammation.
27. Fermented cabbage dishes like sauerkraut, kimchi, etc. are full of probiotics. Probiotics are extremely beneficial for our immune system and digestive system.
28. High fiber content in cabbage reduces constipation. It even helps in reducing obesity, diabetes, etc.
29. Cabbage is loaded with a lot of vitamins and minerals. It is rich in vitamin K, magnesium, folate, vitamin B6, potassium, calcium, thiamine, etc.
30. A cup of raw cabbage has 190% of recommended daily intake of vitamin C! Red cabbage has double the amount of vitamin C than green cabbage. A cup of boiled cabbage has 91% of the recommended daily intake of vitamin K.
Cabbage Facts 31-40
31. It is low on fat and cholesterol. A cup of cabbage has only 15 to 17 calories.
32. Red cabbage is used as a source of natural dye.
33. Many believe that drinking raw cabbage juice daily reduces migraines.
34. Ladies, if you want healthy skin, nails, and hair, then you must include cabbage in your diet. Sulfur in cabbage promotes the production of keratin.
35. Scrolls that date back to 1000 BCE note that cabbage helps in curing baldness.
36. Antioxidants present in cabbage prevent skin from getting damaged because of UV rays.
37. Raw cabbage leaves are used on wounds as they have healing properties.
38. Cabbage is nearly a superfood but if you have thyroid problems then it is better to stay away from cabbage as eating cabbage may lead to swelling of thyroid gland in such people.
39. Oh! We almost forgot to tell you. Regular eating of cabbage decreases the risk of breast cancer.
40. It also helps in treating engorged breasts, sore throat, melancholy, intestinal ulcers, rheumatism, etc.
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