Can you eat boot tops raw, like in a salad?!
Answers: I have organic beets which include the tops. I know the whole plant is edible and I've eaten beet greens cooked, but my question is can you eat the tops raw, like in a salad?
No. Boots are made from leather and leather comes from a cow. Besides, it would taste nasty.
Sorry, couldn't resist! Of course you can eat beet tops raw. By the way, cooking only lowers the oxalic acid content slightly, and only if you throw away the cooking water.
yes they are very good in salad
yep, they're really yummy.
Most greens like beet greens, chard (a relative of beets), spinach, etc. are high in oxalic acid. The older they are, the more of it they contain. That said, you CAN eat them raw, but you might want just to eat the younger leaves raw.
If you have kidney disorders, gout or rheumatoid arthritis, don't do it. And oxalic acid is why rhubarb leaves and roots are poisonous.
A high proportion of oxalic acid is what causes that "furry tongue" feeling when you eat some greens. That feeling will increase if you drink milk with your greens, because the oxalic acid will precipitate some of the calcium out of the milk. (That's how kidney stones are formed in your system.)
Oxalic acid can damage your kidneys and leach calcium out of your system, so while the occasional raw beet, beet green or chard isn't going to hurt you, you might want to watch it a little bit. The same goes for cooked rhubarb stalks.
Yes & they are tastey too. I usually mix them with other lettuces but i have had them just dressed by themselves. Raw Beets are good too, milder than cooked.
Slainté (to your health)