Showing Food American pokeweed
| General Information | |||||||||||
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| Name | American pokeweed | ||||||||||
| Scientific Name | Phytolacca americana | ||||||||||
| Description | American pokeweed, Phytolacca americana, is a plant native to North America, and is naturalized in parts of Europe and Asia. It is mostly eaten in the United States (PMID: 36332712). The young shoots and leaves are edible with proper cooking, and are used in culinary dishes similar to spinach and asparagus. The leaves have a slightly bitter taste, and a green color. American pokeweed is rich in vitamins A and C, and has been reported to have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties (PMID: 35186483). The most notable chemical in the plant is phytolaccatoxin. American pokeweed has been used in folk and alternative medicine, but its effectiveness is not supported by scientific evidence. The plant is poisonous if not cooked properly, and its preparation involves rinsing in cool water, followed by a 20-minute boil, repeated at least two times, and often pan-fried with bacon grease. | ||||||||||
| Primary ID | FOOD00437 | ||||||||||
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| Classification | |||||||||||
| Group | Vegetables | ||||||||||
| Sub-Group | Shoot vegetables | ||||||||||
| Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Superkingdom | Eukaryota | ||||||||||
| Kingdom | Viridiplantae | ||||||||||
| Phylum | Streptophyta | ||||||||||
| Class | Magnoliopsida | ||||||||||
| Order | Caryophyllales | ||||||||||
| Family | Phytolaccaceae | ||||||||||
| Genus | Phytolacca | ||||||||||
| Species | americana | ||||||||||
| Variety | Not Available | ||||||||||
| External Links | |||||||||||
| ITIS ID | 19523 | ||||||||||
| Wikipedia ID | Phytolacca americana | ||||||||||
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| Content Reference | Not Available | ||||||||||