Leek and carrots, the must-haves

4/11/18

Leeks and carrots are typical winter vegetables. With their contrasting colors, they are used as main courses in soups or as accompaniments to a wide variety of stews. In summer, they are eaten as salads. Questions and answers.

Earthlings

With its distinctive leaf width and height, the leek is a robust vegetable that is well suited to outdoor cultivation, even in harsh climates. The giant leek is a variety that can grow up to 80 cm long. Only the early, delicate varieties that can be eaten raw are usually grown in greenhouses.

The same applies to carrots ,which are among the world's most important vegetable species and are therefore grown all over the globe .

The varieties

Not all carrot varieties have their characteristic orange color; there are white, red and even purple varieties.

Carrots owe their delicately sweet taste to their 6% average sugar content, which is no mean feat. They also have a high provitamin A (or beta-catotene) content.

Storage

When buying carrots, remember that you won't be able to keep them with their tops for very long. Only sand carrots, unwashed and with their tops removed (and in good condition, of course) will keep longer.