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Rocket

Rocket is so easy to grow and find in the UK – you can even grow your own on a windowsill really easily! The perfect companion to pizza, pasta or sauce heavy dishes, rocket is great by itself for those who love a peppery, slightly spicy flavour, or toss in some oil and lemon juice, or vinaigrette, and perhaps slice some Parmesan over it very thinly, too, for an excellent and very easy side salad.
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Understanding Veg

Known as arugula in the States, we Brits prefer the name rocket. It’s called rocket as it grows extremely fast (at rocket speed), and let’s face it, rockets are cool. The younger rocket leaves have a mild, sweetish taste, while older leaves have a peppery, slightly nutty flavour. They are perfect in salads or topped on pizza or pasta.

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Nutrition

Rocket like other leafy green veg is a rich source of phytonutrients such as Vitamin C, flavonoids and glucosinolates.

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Shopping Guide

Look out for rocket leaves that are a dark green colour and appear relatively firm. 

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Serving Suggestion

When fresh, add to salads and sandwiches. If it starts to look sad, don’t waste it – add it to soups or stews.

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Storage

Rocket can be stored in the fridge for several days.

At Its Best:

April - October

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Engage

Here are some of our favourite ways to engage kids with rocket:

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Your Food

Find your go-to meals in our family favourites section and see what veggies work best with them.

We’ve gathered together 15 of the nation’s favourite meals and given you step-by-step ways to make small improvements, helping you to make healthier dinners the easy way, and even showing you which veg work best with which recipes.
 
Find out how to add more veg to your suppers here.
 
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If You Like Rocket…Try

Does your child enjoy rocket? That’s great! Rocket it usually peppery and chewy but soft, so why not try a similar texture and/or taste…

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Serving

The moments before food is offered can be a perfect opportunity for engagement that can help make it more likely a child will eat it!

The first thing to do is remove the pressure. If the veg doesn’t get eaten, it’s not the end of the world. There will be other days, other dinners, other chances. Fun is key here – try not to worry about mess, perfect table manners, or playing with food. Instead, focus on making the process of getting the food to the plates, readying the table, and the actual eating relaxed.

The best principles for success here are the Three Rs (role modelling, rewarding, re-offering) which you can read about here.

But there is one more way you can serve for success, and that is giving your child a role. You don’t have to do this every time, just encourage them in their strengths through it when you can.

Here are some of our favourite ideas:

Design a menu

Come up with a silly name or story for a dish

Help with making a meal plan and choosing veg for dinners or snacks

Help to serve up the meal on dishes, lay the table or create a centrepiece to be involved in the physical ‘serving up’ process

The Wonderful World of Veg

Check out our vegepedia. When to buy in-season. How to store them to keep for longer. How to engage children with each veg, and simple ideas of how to prepare and cook them for maximum taste and minimum waste. Select a veg…

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