How Alex Guarnaschelli Makes A Healthy Spinach Side Dish In Just 30 Seconds
Spinach might be one of the best vegetables you can buy. It's cheap, versatile, and it's packed with essential vitamins and minerals, like iron, folate, and Vitamin K. It also soaks up a lot of flavor, and if you follow Alex Guarnaschelli's guidance, you can use it to whip up a delicious, healthy side dish in just 30 seconds.
The celebrity chef shared her hack for unlocking all of the benefits spinach has to offer in a TikTok video, saying, "I like spinach a lot. It's very fibrous, but in order to fully benefit from the nutrients, you actually are better off wilting it slightly instead of eating it raw."
The guidance on this is mixed, but researchers do have reason to believe that it's easier for us to absorb calcium and iron from cooked spinach. The most important thing is that you actually eat it, and variety is always key, so if you want to make the most of that big bag of spinach, take on Guarnaschelli's advice and get that pan out.
Wilt spinach with olive oil for just a few seconds
Guarnaschelli wilts her spinach in a hot pan with a little olive oil, but water works, too. She cooks it quickly to avoid breaking down the minerals she's trying to release, and she adds a little salt for flavor. She says in her video, "Literally, we're going to wilt it for a second. You don't want to completely cook it because then all of the nutrients go out too. You got a window in between raw and fully cooked."
She also recommends adding some lemon or vinegar to the pan, but some chopped garlic or chili flakes would be delicious as well. Once the spinach has slightly cooked down, it should take under 30 seconds. From there, get it out of the pan quickly and serve it alongside your favorite meat or fish.
It would pair especially well with a one-pan lemon basil chicken, a flank steak with chimichurri, or a sole dish. Any white fish would work perfectly, as would some sauteed shrimp, tofu, or roasted root veggies. As Guarnaschelli advises, get creative with it and enjoy all of the health benefits and flavor that spinach has to offer.