What makes arugula spicy

This is due to the high presence of anti-oxidants like glucosinolates, polyphenols, carotenoids and vitamin C. If it is too unpalatable then flash cooking it will help tame the pepperiness, which can also be mellowed with the addition of a fat, like olive oil, and citrus or vinegar. Though I guarantee once you have had it a couple of times, your palate adjusts and you will not be able to go back to store-bought. I love pairing it in a salad with a contrast of flavours like roasted sweet potato and a miso vinaigrette, which is my go-to when I have leaves that can stand up to punchy flavours.

Rocket, rocquette, arugula, sylvetta, rucola, eruca sativa — call it by whatever the name you choose, but next time you are buying seeds give it a go and watch the pollinators increase in your garden. After it is soft, take off the foil and roast for another 30 minutes until the surface has caramelised. Whisk all the dressing ingredients together to form a thick emulsion, toss the warm roasted sweet potatoes through and then loosely, with your hands, toss through the rocket leaves.

To serve, zest the lemon rind and squeeze the lemon juice over, just before eating. The answer to that question is surprisingly complex and comes down to elements you may have never heard of. It contains a high amount of sulfur, which has compounds called glucosinolates. Glucosinolates are found in a lot of other foods. For instance, mustard and horseradish both have glucosinolates in them. But the biggest barrier to people getting these beneficial molecules from rocket is the taste.

This depends on when and where rocket crops are grown. In the summer, leaves can be extremely spicy and pungent, whereas in the winter they can be bland and tasteless. Growth temperature likely plays a big role in determining the amounts of isothiocyanates released from leaves. Probably a stress response by the plants, it means hotter countries like Italy may produce more pungent leaves. You can test this effect at home. Get two small pots and some rocket seeds from a local garden centre or supermarket.

Plant two or three seeds in each. Keep one well-watered and relatively shaded, and the other in direct sunlight, watering infrequently. After a few weeks, taste the leaves from each pot — one should taste much hotter.

The taste and flavour of rocket also varies because of the genetics of different varieties. Not only do leaves contain hot, pungent isothiocyanates, but also sugars which create sweetness ; pyrazines which can smell earthy and pea-like ; aldehydes which smell like grass ; alcohols one in particular smells just like mushrooms ; and many other types yet to be identified. Its genome contains up to 45, genes, which is more than the 42, genes humans are thought to have.

View Recipe. Christopher Testani. Alex Lau. Photo by Alex Lau, styling by Judy Mancini. Eva Kolenko. The best blue cheese for this is salty but creamy, not too sharp or funky. Perfection, in a salad bowl. Perhaps not strictly authentic, but delicious!