Brassica (/ˈbræsɪkə/) is a genus of plants in the cabbage and mustard family (Brassicaceae). The members of the genus are informally known as cruciferous vegetables, cabbages, mustard plants, or simply brassicas.[2] Crops from this genus are sometimes called cole crops—derived from the Latin caulis, denoting the stem or stalk of a plant.[3]
The genus is native to Western Europe, the Mediterranean and temperate regions of Asia. Many wild species grow as weeds, especially in North America, South America, and Australia.
A dislike for cabbage or broccoli may result from the fact that these plants contain a compound similar to phenylthiocarbamide (PTC), which is either bitter or tasteless to people depending on their taste buds.[4]
Brassica species are sometimes used as food plants by the larvae of a number of Lepidoptera species.
Cooking
Boiling substantially reduces the levels of broccoli glucosinolates, while other cooking methods, such as steaming, microwaving, and stir frying, have no significant effect on glucosinolate levels.[6]
Bayer CropScience (in collaboration with BGI-Shenzhen, China; KeyGene; the Netherlands and the University of Queensland, Australia) announced it had sequenced the entire genome of rapeseed (canola, Brassica napus) and its constituent genomes present in B. rapa and B. oleracea in 2009.[7] The B. rapa genome was sequenced by the Multinational Brassica Genome Project in 2011.[8] This also represents the A genome component of the amphidiploid crop species B. napus and B. juncea.
Etymology
'Brassica' was Pliny the Elder's name for several cabbage-like plants.[9]
↑Nugrahedi, Probo Y.; Verkerk, Ruud; Widianarko, Budi; Dekker, Matthijs (25 November 2014). "A Mechanistic Perspective on Process-Induced Changes in Glucosinolate Content in Brassica Vegetables: A Review". Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. 55 (6): 823–838. doi:10.1080/10408398.2012.688076. PMID24915330. S2CID25728864.
