Sweet Red Peppers: Delicious and a Valuable Source of Vitamin C

It has been a long winter and I am eagerly anticipating the farm-fresh picked-the-same-day produce to arrive!

Sweet Peppers: Grown Just About Everywhere

Brought back home from the New World by explorer Christopher Columbus, he had probably hoped that importing the sweet peppers would be a wealth-building commodity but it turned out that the seeds he brought back readily grew in their new homeland and became a local favorite available to all. They are grown just about everywhere in the world these days.

Red Pepper Vs. Green Pepper

 The red sweet pepper is really just the ripened green pepper, and contains more Vitamin-C as a result of having matured to full-ripeness. It has a different, slightly sweeter flavor as a result.

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Red and green peppers are both sweeter than the other colored varieties of peppers, whose colors can include white, blue and purple and others. These are due to growing conditions, when harvested and how they were stored post-harvest. All the other varieties of bell peppers are more of a mildly tart flavor. The very best flavor of course comes from those grown in full sunshine grown, fertile soil and picked only when ripe. When harvested immature and under-ripened they will still ripen on the way to the consumer but are noticeably less flavorful.

 Sliced Red Bell Pepper

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Sweet peppers have much Vitamin-C, Vitamin-A, and folate. They contain beta carotene, -not as much as carrots but considerably more than most other colored vegetables. Red peppers also contains lycopene which is an antioxidant, a detoxifier ,which helps to destroy free radicals in the body. Peppers are a source of the amino acid tryptophan which helps combat symptoms of depression. Tryptophan is also found in milk and turkey meat and is the so-called ‘sleepy’ ingredient generally attributed to these two foods. This is said to be why drinking warm milk or eating roast turkey induces that calm, sleepy feeling. And who can say that after eating a big turkey dinner that they have not felt its effect? That happy, sleepy feeling that makes taking a nap feel so welcome.

The amount of Vitamin-C of the red pepper surpasses that contained in citrus fruits such oranges, grapefruit or lemons. Red peppers are good to eat after having battled any recent illness or sickness to give your immune system a really good boost. Raw is best, but mildly cooked is also good even though it reduces the Vitamin-C content slightly.

Gazpacho Mix Featuring Sweet Red Pepper

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Low in calories and high in fiber, they should be included in your diet often. Vitamins are a nutritive substance which allows beneficial chemical reactions to occur in the body while using less time & energy than it would take otherwise. Vitamins therefore, act as a catalyst and Vitamin-C is one of the most important for human health.

 In the acute absence of these nutritive catalysts, a condition of deficiency is present and normal functions begin to break down and fail. Illnesses can result due to weakened immunity or other functions having slowed or stopped. In the case of Vitamin-C deficiency, scurvy was common among early seafarers that were unable to obtain fresh fruits and dark vegetables on long ocean voyages. Tired, weak and with bleeding gums, loose teeth and open sores on their bodies and wounds that didn’t seem to heal, it was not uncommon for a sailing vessel to lose 40-80% of their crew to scurvy over the course of a long voyage. It was on the South Seas voyage of Capt. Cook that efforts to maintain the health of the crew were realized and it was through the serving of sauerkraut, which is rich in Vitamin-C. At first the crew balked and refused to eat this ‘rotted’ sour-tasting mash of shredded fermented cabbage. The Captain had a brilliant idea though; he mandated that sauerkraut be served with meals but only to the Officers, and not the Crew!

It did not take long for the crew, realizing that this sauerkraut might be a good thing, then requested and received their share of sauerkraut with meals. Although at the time it was not understood why, this and limes/lime juice prevented scurvy deaths on the voyage. The Captain Cook expedition returned home after a three year ‘round the world voyage and they did not lose one single crewman to scurvy, something completely unheard of in those times. Such is the impotence of Vitamin-C in the diet. Vitamin-C helps in the absorption of iron too.

Mega-dosing with Vitamin-C is generally considered to be not harmful because it is a water-soluble vitamin, the excess in the diet is merely passed via elimination. But for people prone to the formation of kidney stones, mega-dosing can aggravate the condition and Vitamin-C should be dosed responsibly for their condition.

Salsa in the Raw

Beautiful, like art. Food should be a delight to look at as well as nutritious and healthful.

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Red Bell Peppers are a staple of European and Asian kitchens, -and they can be served so many different ways in so many varied recipes. They are an important component of a good salsa, adding color, texture and flavor.

(recipe from author of above image)

SuziJane’s Kickass Salsa Cruda
4 large firm ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
8 tomatillos, husked and chopped (or use 4-6 small green tomatoes)
2 large bell peppers, seeded and chopped
4 fresh banana peppers, seeded and chopped
4 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped
2 red or yellow onions, peeled and chopped
4 to 6 garlic cloves, crushed, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp. minced fresh cilantro
Juice of 1 fresh lime
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients in a glass container. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. May be stored for 2-3 weeks in refrigerator. Makes about 4 cups.

Mixed Gazpacho Salsa

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Many Red Peppers

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Most animals still produce their own Vitamin-C while some animals such as guinea pigs, apes & chimps and mankind, do not. For this reason of not being able to produce Vitamin-C, guinea pigs have been a favorite subject for scientific experimentation in areas concerning deficiency disease. Another notable animal which produces their own Vitamin-C is the goat. Goat’s milk is a good source of Vitamin-C and while their meat is the least-rich source, it too contains notable quantities of Vitamin-C more so than other meats.

With such readily available vitamins, nutrients and benefits of the sweet bell peppers, one should strive to include these in their meals every day. What could possibly be easier to do or be better your health?