Lettuce
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Major Growing Areas
Originally from the Mediterranean coast, lettuce is now widely grown worldwide, for example in China, Belgium, France, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain and the United States.
Varieties
Lettuce comes in many varieties, which are mainly categorised into 3 types: head type (e.g. heading European), semi-head type (e.g. butterhead, Chinese, Romaine, Italian) and leaf type (e.g. celtuce Indian, red leaf).
Nutritional Values
Rich in water and potassium, lettuce is a low-fat and low-energy vegetable.
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| Per 100 g |
| Energy |
10 kcal |
| Carbohydrate |
1.1 g |
| Dietary Fibre |
Trace |
| Vitamin C |
10 mg |
| Potassium |
230 mg |
Buying and Cooking Tips
The best lettuce should have loose, intact and vibrant green leaves and white cut ends but no brown spots on the whole. Sweet and crispy, lettuce can be used as a salad ingredient and sandwich fillings. It is also suitable for cooking with low-fat methods such as stir-frying and blanching.
Fun Facts
As lettuce (“san choy”) is homophonic with “making a fortune” in Chinese, it is a lucky food for Lunar New Year that you should not miss.
Common Dishes:
Minced Pork in Lettuce Wraps; Chicken, Corn and Lettuce Sandwich; Prawn and Lettuce Salad, etc.
"One serving of vegetables" is approximately equivalent to:
½ bowl of cooked lettuce or one bowl of salad lettuce
Note: One bowl = 250-300 ml
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