Seeds have been gaining a lot of popularity as food items around the world. The assortment of seeds that we are all familiar with include sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds and so on. These seeds can be consumed as is or soaked and consumed, or added to countless dishes like salads, soups, smoothies, baked goods, etc. Seeds offer a variety of health benefits, mainly due to the wealth of fibre and phyto-nutrients present in them. Including them in your daily diet in any form is said to be healthy and beneficial in the long run. Now, the growing popularity of the root-to-stem food trend has ensured that some lesser known seeds are hitting the limelight. These include seeds from fruits and vegetables, which would earlier get thrown out or discarded. This is why you might not have heard of cucumber seeds as something that can be consumed separately.
Cucumber Seeds: A New Healthy Addition To Your Snack Box
Cucumber is one of the most-loved low-calorie vegetables. Cucumber is usually added to salads and consumed raw. It is hydrating and has a range of antioxidants in it. Cucumbers are also rich in essential vitamins, including vitamin C and K and offer numerous health benefits - from aiding weight loss to helping regulate blood sugar etc. Cucumbers are the healthiest when consumed with their peels, due to the phytonutrients in the skin. The seeds of the vegetable can also be consumed in the similar way that seeds of its close cousins, melons and pumpkins are consumed.
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Cucumber seeds: They contain calcium and other essential mineralsWhy Eat Cucumber Seeds
A small study published in the Pakistan Journal of Nutrition looked at and compared the nutritional values of seeds from four different melons, including cucumbers (Cucumis sativus). The study was titled, "Comparative Studies on Nutritional Composition of Four Melon Seeds Varieties" and it said that cucumber seeds had higher amounts of calcium as compared to other melon seeds analysed in the study. Apart from calcium, cucumber seeds also contain sodium, manganese, iron and zinc - a healthy range of minerals, required by the body for various functions.
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How To Eat Cucumber Seeds
Cucumber seeds can be removed from the vegetable, dried and then stored for later use in an air-tight container. These dried seeds can be roasted, dry-roasted or cooked with a little bit of ghee and then a spice mix can be added to them. Roasted cucumber seeds can be added to cold and warm salads to increase their crunch factor. They can be roasted and added to assorted seed snacks.
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