Leek Sizes

Also known as Allium ampeloprasum, leek is one of the plants that are categorized under the family of Alliaceae. Two vegetables that have similar appearance with leek are the kurrat and the elephant garlic. The stalk or the stem is the edible part of this vegetable. Some of the most popular cultivars of the vegetable are the summer leek, the Tadorna Blue and the King Richard cultivar. If you are planning to cultivate the vegetable in your place, it is important to know the different leek sizes.

The Sizes of Leeks

What are the leek sizes? The usual length of leek is between two inches to three inches. The vegetable’s width is around an inch to two inches. Many people add the vegetable in dishes because it features different health benefits. One of the health benefits from the vegetable is to prevent the etiology of cancer. Another benefit that people can get from eating leek is the prevention of heart diseases.

Additional Information and Other Important Details

The nutrients and vitamins that people can get from the vegetable include thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin A and vitamin B6. In addition to these, we can also get vitamin E, vitamin K, iron, magnesium and calcium from eating leek. The other nutrients from the vegetable include potassium, phosphorus, zinc and sodium. Moreover, the vegetable has dietary fiber. The dietary fiber present in leek is very helpful and essential in preventing the development of constipation and other diseases related to the gastrointestinal tract.

The average size of leek has 38.4 calories, which contain 33.9 carbohydrates, 2.5 protein and 2.1 fat. Some of the benefits that we can get from including leek in our diet are prevention of prostate cancer as well as colon cancer. The vegetable has protective antioxidants like zeaxanthin, lutein and carotenoids. The antioxidants are very helpful in preventing aging problems.

The vegetable has various culinary uses. It is usually chopped into the thickness of 5 to 10 millimeters. The vegetable can be eaten raw but it is commonly fried or boiled. One of the most popular appetizers that contains leek is the cock-a-leekie-soup.

The vegetable was included in the daily diet of early people. Artifacts taken from Egypt’s archaeological sites proved that ancient people ate leek. In addition, archaeologists found texts, which showed that the plant was widely cultivated in Mesopotamia during the second millennium B.C. The texts also showed that this vegetable is one of the favorite foods of Emperor Nero.