Vitamin B1 (thiamine)

…is the focus for this weeks Vitamin Rich post (for last week’s post on Vitamin A click here).

Thiamine acts as a catalyst in carbohydrate metabolism, enabling pyruvic acid to be absorbed and carbohydrates to release their energy. Thiamine also plays a role in the synthesis of nerve-regulating substances.

Deficiency in thiamine can cause beriberi, which is characterized by muscular weakness, swelling of the heart, and leg cramps and may, in severe cases, lead to heart failure and death. Although, deficiency in thiamine is rare.

Many foods contain thiamine, but few supply it in concentrated amounts. Foods richest in thiamine are…

Pork,
Offal (liver, heart, and kidney),
Brewer’s yeast,
Lean meats,
Eggs,
Leafy green vegetables,
Whole or enriched cereals,
Wheat germ,
Berries,
Nuts,
Legumes.

Milling of cereal removes those portions of the grain richest in thiamine; consequently, white flour and polished white rice may be lacking in the vitamin.

Vita-Rich Recipe 4

My mum’s Pork Sausages wrapped in Savoy Cabbage.

Serves 4

8 Pork sausages - good quality or organic if possible.
1 Large Savoy Cabbage - 1 large leaf per sausage, the rest can be used in soups, stir-fry, steamed.
1 Tin chopped tomatoes
1 Large Onion
2 Garlic cloves
1 Chicken stock cube - or homemade stock if you have time!
Olive oil
Salt & pepper

1) Slice onions and chop garlic, add to a large pan/casserole with the olive oil and fry until softened.

2) While the onions & garlic are softening, blanch the cabbage leaves in boiling water until wilted.

3) Once wilted, drain the cabbage leaves and set aside to cool.

4) Once the onions and garlic are softened, add the tomatoes and bring to the boil. Then let the mixture simmer for 10 min.

5) While the tomato sauce simmers, wrap each sausage in a cabbage leaf (these should now be cool enough to handle). Tuck the ends in and secure the cabbage leaf in place with a cocktail stick.

6) Once the sauce has simmered for 10 min, gently place the wrapped sausages into the pan/casserole on top of the tomato sauce.

7) Dissolve the stock cube in 1/2 a pint of water and pour over the sausages until covered. You may need more or less stock depending on the size of the sausages - just as long as they are covered by the stock.

8) Gently shake the pan to mix the stock into the tomato sauce - avoid stirring as this can un-wrap the sausages.

9) Taste the sauce for seasoning at this point and adjust to taste.

10) Bring back to the boil and then let everything simmer for 30 min.

Serve on a bed of rice - brown or white, which ever your preference.

I’m afraid there’s no photo of this delicious dish - we polished it all off before I remembered to take a picture!!

Come back next week for a recipe rich in Vitamin B2.

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