Chard: what are the nutritional values of this colourful vegetable?

• Chard: splendid colours and varieties
• Chard and its healthy nutritional values
• How best to store chard
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As you may be aware, chard has dark green, curly leaves. Surprisingly, the stems of the leafy vegetable can take on a wide variety of colours - from white to pink, red, violet, yellow and orange. But the leaves not only impress visually - their flavour is also unique. This is spicy and earthy, and reminiscent of beetroot or spinach.

Generally speaking, a distinction can be made between two varieties of the green vegetable: leaf chard and stalk chard. Leaf chard has small, broad leaves that produce a spinach-like vegetable. The stalk chard has very large leaves with thick leaf stems and ribs. The latter can be used to create a vegetable component similar to asparagus. The flavour of stalk chard is stronger and spicier than that of the more delicate leaf chard.

Chard is a particularly nutritious vegetable and is one of the healthy leafy vegetables. 100 grams of fresh chard only contain around 20 to 25 calories, which makes it ideal for a calorie-conscious diet. It contains a variety of important vitamins and minerals, most notably vitamin K, which plays a central role in blood clotting and bone health. Chard also contains significant quantities of vitamins A and C, which among other things can support eyesight and the immune system. Chard also provides folic acid, iron, potassium, magnesium and calcium – vital elements for supporting cell formation, energy metabolism and muscle function. Thanks to its high content of secondary plant substances and antioxidants, chard can also help prevent inflammation and oxidative stress, making it a valuable part of a balanced diet.

Besides its nutritional values, chard also has a unique taste of its own. It is naturally slightly earthy and somewhat bitter. When you cook chard, you can refine it with a dash of milk or cream to soften the strong aroma. This means you can prepare chard – just like spinach – in a variety of ways.

If you also want to prepare chard out of season, the easiest way is to freeze it at home. It is best to blanch the chard before placing the crunchy vegetable into the freezer. At a temperature of -18 °C the chard will now keep for 10 to 12 months.

But chard is not just easy to cook when fresh, it can also be stored in a cool place. It is best to wrap it in a damp kitchen towel and store the leaves in a reusable airtight container. In the fridge, the chard with its healthy nutritional values will then keep for three to five days. If the vegetable is stored in an appropriate place, such as in a 0 degree compartment like the Fruit & Vegetable safe from Liebherr, you can even keep the vegetable fresh for up to ten days longer. This is because the temperature and humidity can be controlled precisely in the special BioFresh safes. Chard and the nutrients it contains benefit in particular from the high humidity level that is maintained at just above 0 °C. Under these conditions, the leafy vegetable remains crunchy, nutritious and loses moisture and vitamins much more slowly. This effectively slows down the natural spoiling process – without any preservatives.

^{*All specifications given are to be considered as guideline values, and depend in each case on the type of foodstuffs and on the proper storage without interruption of the cold chain from harvest/production through to the Liebherr appliance. Should food products have information about minimum shelf life, the date on the packaging always applies.}