Snap Beans – More Vitamin C than Oranges? by Patrice Hall

 Snap Beans – More Vitamin C than Oranges?

By Patrice Hall 

I am on a search for foods which contain Vitamin C. I had a cold last week and the fall season is almost here.  Which means that I have to get my vitamins and mineral supplements stocked up in my kitchen, along with the usual herbs such as echinacea, reishi mushroom and astragalus.  However, I was also looking for foods to stock up on besides the usual oranges and lemons.  

So, I was looking through the Just Food Vegetable Tipsheets and found that snap beans are a good source of vitamin C, which is great because we usually get them in our boxes. 

We can preserve them by pickling. You can find the recipe here: https://nchfp.uga.edu/how/pickle/vegetable-pickles/dilled-beans/ .  

Here is the nutritional information: https://www.fatsecret.com/calories-nutrition/usda/green-snap-beans.

If you want to compare the vitamin C content of different foods, here is the information https://www.eatingwell.com/article/2052728/6-foods-with-more-vitamin-c-than-an-orange/.  So, oranges contain much more vitamin C than snap beans.  You will have to eat about a pound of snap beans, which will make a great dinner, and you will be getting other nutrients such as Vitamin A, K, folate and fiber.  You can find a great recipe here: https://www.southernliving.com/recipes/slow-cooker-green-bean-casserole ..

I think that my search for a veggie with a vitamin C punch will lead me to broccoli, kale, mustard greens or brussels sprouts.  It is great to experiment with different foods, especially since we have so much access to them in our weekly boxes. Enjoy!

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