Vitamin C

[Airehead]

Since there have been threads related to food from the wild, I thought this might be of interest:

It is generally understood that certain fruits are high in vitamin C (ascorbic acid), notably rose hips and rowan berries but also more commonly used fruits, particularly blackcurrants. Since I have for a long time had the understanding that vitamin C is destroyed by heating, I have been puzzled by this dichotomy.
No food preparation demands longer boiling than jams and jellies, and furthermore a high sugar content causes the boiling point to be much higher than that of water. So one might expect that such fruit preserves contain no vitamin C whatever.
I decided that a little research was years overdue, so my first stop was Wikipedia, which is the source of the following quotations:

Contrary to what was previously and is still commonly assumed, it can take much longer than two or three minutes to destroy vitamin C at boiling point

Copper pots will destroy the vitamin.

Since it is water soluble, vitamin C will strongly leach into the cooking water while cooking most vegetables — but this doesn't necessarily mean the vitamin is destroyed — it's still there, but it's in the cooking water

I am amazed to find that for such a simple and everyday subject has not been fully analyzed. Apparently, research has been flawed and inconclusive. There are only two definite points of information - do not use copper pans and do not throw the water away.
More research needed. Pity I no longer have a lab at my disposal, or I could have done it myself.

[wildone]

So the old thing of using cabbage water to make gravy, was a means of using the vitamin. Of course that was in the days of drowning the cabbage as it was being cooked.

[Haz]

Originally Posted by wildone

So the old thing of using cabbage water to make gravy, was a means of using the vitamin. Of course that was in the days of drowning the cabbage as it was being cooked.

What you talking about "Old Days" they still do drown the cabbage!

[nightshade]

In the old days my father always drank the cabbage water
Even today a high proportion of Britains population apparently live
on the scurvey borderline 60 mg being the recommended daily dosage
with more for pregnant women it is supposed to aid healing and the
immune system.As it it is easily soluble in water the body takes what
it needs and excretes the rest.
Many cooking processess do destroy vitamin C and others which is one
reason manufacturers add it.some believe hairloss is caused in some
cases by a lack
2nd WW rosehips were collected for making C rich syrups for children
and baked in apple pies

[Wild-Woman]

My steamer doesn't. It still looks like cabbage when it's dished up. And the water goes into the gravy.So that's about as healthy as I can get it.