Appreciated by Egyptians, Greeks…
Nothing prettier than a May lettuce, bright green and often very leafy. It has been part of the pantry of many peoples, starting with the Egyptians who loved lettuce and grew it on the rich banks of the Nile. We even see them drawn in Egyptian tombs so that the dead are not deprived of lettuce in the water beyond. Among the Greeks it is also consumed. 2300 years ago, Theophrastus listed 4 kinds. If he had come across a Chinese from the same period, he would have discovered the asparagus lettuce whose stalks are eaten.
Anti aphrodisiac for some
About stem, finally if I dare say, it was the Greek doctors who attributed to lettuce to be anti aphrodisiac, and even to cause impotence. Which means that the Pythagoreans ate it all summer, their period of obligatory sexual abstinence. Lettuce, which therefore makes you impotent, an idea taken up by Roman doctors who easily prescribed it to women deemed too comfortable with the thing, which led the Middle Ages to think the same and to see favorably make the monks eat a lot of lettuce to prevent them from being tormented by their temper like Monsieur Seguin’s goat. That said, it is false, the proof moreover with Louis XIV of whom one cannot say that he was impotent and who loved to eat lettuce, or rather to eat lettuce as he was so voracious.
Kitchen side
She is obviously the queen of salads, with a little dressing and a few extra ingredients. Everything is possible as she is a good lettuce girl, she adapts to everything. It is found in the Caesar salad for example. It is also very good in soup, even if you don’t often think about it, it is also used for spring rolls and you should never forget to put it in French peas with bacon bits.
Health side
It is a source of fiber, vitamin B9, and B3 and vitamin C, it provides calcium and phosphorus and is recommended for low-calorie diets. Cooking is done with a few ingredients, such as lettuce, but it is mostly done with heart.