Pepper originated in South America, and was brought back to Europe after Columbus discovery of america in the late 15th century, and was introduced to China in the late Ming Dynasty.
Nowadays, peppers can be seen everywhere in our lives, also known as chili pepper, Spicy Horn, Sea Pepper, Pepper, Qin Pepper, etc. They can be eaten directly as vegetables, and can also be used as spices for seasoning various dishes. Sichuan, Hunan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Jiangxi and other provinces in China are all famous "no spicy, no happy" areas.
In addition to raw or fried food, Chili powder, Chili oil, Chili sauce, chopped pepper and pickled pepper made of Chili are also popular ways to eat. Different varieties of pepper can present different colors, with red being the most common. The common varieties in China are Xiaomi pepper, Erjingtiao, Horn pepper, Horn pepper, Morning pepper, Lantern pepper and so on.
How much do you know about "spicy" nutrition?
1. vitamin c
Speaking of the nutrition of pepper, the most commendable thing is its rich vitamin C, which is a leader in the vegetable industry.
Green pepper contains 62 mg of vitamin C in 100 g, while small red pepper contains 144 mg of vitamin C in 100 g, which is 7 times that of tomatoes and 4 times that of oranges.
Needless to say, the benefits of vitamin C have long been deeply rooted in people’s hearts.
2. Carotene
Carotene in pepper is also rich, which helps to maintain the health of eyes and skin.
3. Other nutrients
In addition, small peppers also contain B vitamins, vitamin E, potassium, magnesium, iron, zinc, selenium and other nutrients.
4. Capsaicin
Pepper is not only rich in nutrition, but also contains a unique class of active substances — — Capsaicin, that is, the spicy ingredient in pepper.
A large number of studies show that capsaicin has many physiological functions, including stimulating appetite and promoting digestion; Protect gastric mucosa, prevent and treat gastric ulcer; Promote fat metabolism, reduce fat and lose weight; Analgesia, diminishing inflammation and relieving itching; Dispel wind and dampness, and protect joint health; Lowering blood pressure and cholesterol and protecting cardiovascular system; Anti-cancer and so on.
With the function of capsaicin being gradually recognized, natural capsaicin and synthetic capsaicin extracted from pepper have become an important by-product of pepper and are widely used in food industry and medical field.
How to "Surrender" the King of Vitamin C
Pepper is a wonderful vegetable. People who love it are all hot and unhappy, and those who hate it avoid it. For those who can eat spicy food and love spicy food, pepper must be a frequent visitor at the table, but they may not eat spicy food.
Why do you say that? As mentioned earlier, pepper is the king of vitamin C, but vitamin C is very unstable. If the cooking method is unreasonable, it will be easily destroyed. Therefore, it is not enough to say that the content is high, and it is the last word to eat it in the stomach.
In order to destroy vitamin C in pepper as little as possible, raw food is a good choice. If you want to stir-fry, it is best to stir-fry quickly.
Many people like to eat Chili products such as Chili sauce and Chili oil. This way of eating spicy food not only greatly reduces vitamins, but also easily ingests excessive salt, which is not healthy and should not be eaten more.
After all, not everyone can enjoy the spicy pepper. What about people who can’t eat spicy pepper?
In fact, when making cold salad, you can completely replace some peppers with sweet peppers. The content of capsaicin in sweet pepper is less, but the content of vitamin C and carotene is no less than that of pepper, and the colorful pepper can make people happy, especially for children, which is helpful to encourage them to eat more vegetables. (Text/Director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, School of Public Health, Peking University, Ma Guansheng)