Roman empress arugula

Every one who follows latest “cooking” trends knows who aragula (rocket, lat. Eruca Sativa) is. This simple and almost wild herb which used to be privilege of Mediterranean and coastal areas dates from the period of Roman Empire. There many familiar brands of aragula, but basic division is to cultivated (Eruca Sativa, Rucola Coltivata) and wild (Diplotaxis tenuifolia, Rucola Selvatica). Breeding of that natural aphrodisiac is very easy no matter the brand – aragula can survive and grow on almost any type of soil as long as you give her enough water. If you put rocket directly to the sun and don’t give her enough water, very soon she’ll give you very aromatic, almost bitter and tough product,

As I mentioned earlier, from ancient times people credit her for aphrodisiac effects, and it was used as one of the most important elements in making cures against coughing and scurvy.

Aragula’s nutritive value is huge – except being rich with vitamins C, A, K she is also great source for minerals like Calcium, potassium, iron, magnesium and phosphor. Beta-carotene from aragula has anti oxidant effect and that’s another way to keep our body healthy.

Cooking can offer various ways of preparation – rocket can be cooked as a meal on its’ own, she can be served as side dish or used as a spice. You can prepare aragula as spinach or marigold – with olive oil, garlic and potatoes – it’s all up to your free will.

But I have great advice (I tried it yesterday and our lunch was jack pot) – it is known that aragula goes very well with tomatoes, so I add a bit of aragula (about one little bouquet) to satarash (meal made of onions, tomatoes and paprika) and the taste was fantastic. Typical sourness of tomato based meals is completely lost after adding aragula resulting one very specific and delicate aroma and it tastes great!

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