How to Leach Potassium in Vegetables

At first glance, an article dedicated to lowering select and useful minerals may seem like nit-picking to the majority of food-lovers. As I write this, Rome's baking thirty-three degree sun is causing me to sweat-out valuable nutrients that I will need to replace. Potassium, water and sodium reserves will need to be replaced or I could feel the uncomfortable onset of dehydration grip me and propel me towards the fridge, where I will duly consume potassium-rich bananas and drown myself (and my body) in cool water.

This is not the case for a large cross-section of people who are afflicted by various illnesses that make controlling mineral levels a very real concern. Up until not long ago I lived a very different life; Where the potassium in spinach could potential kill me, and sodium instilled in me an unquenchable desire to drink water, that I could not drink, or risk my health. Eating well on dialysis, for instance, can be a matter of life and death.

This article therefore is primarily targeted towards dialysis patients as well as anyone who is attempting to strike a balance between sacrifice and happiness in their diets. Due to the seriousness of the topic, and I promise I will lighten up forthwith, consider this article a suggestion, not a commandment and that any dietary changes should be communicated to a qualified overseer.

Dialysis foods, with fruit and veggies being the perfect example, can be a difficult game of cat and mouse. Ironically, (as you will probably already know from experience) foods which are high in potassium tend to be low in phosphorus, and vice-versa. On top of all this, many vegetables are also high in water content, due to the fact that for the most part, kidney patients have a rough time eliminating fluids, it is an added concern. In this article I am going to deal with vegetables that are generally viewed as taboo to people who need to regulate potassium intake: Spinach, mushrooms and potatoes.

Here is a table showing you what an average serving (per serving) of these vegetables contain in potassium, phosphorus and sodium.

As we can clearly see, the levels of potassium are far too high (running the risk of hyperkalimia). And while many people will have adjusted their diets accordingly, perhaps we can make a little room to compensate with new techniques.

The first, and most obvious technique is boiling the vegetables thoroughly.

Technique 1: Boiling

Substituting our baked potato with a boiled one will lower is potassium content per 100g by close to 200mg!

Baked potato potassium content: 550mg | Boiled potato: 330mg.

Similarly, other foods also benefit from this process.

Leaching does not require boiling water, but requires more time. Unlike boiling -- leaching is a process that I found best described in a wonderful Davita.com article (click the vegetable leaching link to visit the content):

How to leach vegetables to lower potassium

• Peel the vegetable, cut into small pieces and place in a very large pot of water.
• Rinse the vegetables.
• Fill the pot with water and let the vegetables soak for at least four hours at room temperature (or you can let them soak over night in the refrigerator).
• After soaking, rinse the vegetables with clean water.
• Cook vegetables as desired.

Not all vegetables are suited or necessitate leaching, but it is a good habit to get into regardless.

Given, this is a no-brainer, and in a way I considered not adding this. But I believe it is worth mentioning that with a little creativity and knowledge finding similar, low-potassium foods is a worthy endeavor. You can find a list of safe bets (as a single serving, of course!) to the right of this text.

An example of how to make a seemingly bland menu more palatable would be the following serving and recipe:

To prepare 3 servings of our quasi-mashed potatoes you will need:

• Three cups of cauliflower
• Two ounces of cream cheese
• Half a teaspoon of Garlic
• Half a teaspoon full of black pepper.

Begin by slicing the cauliflower into thin pieces and by rinsing them with water. Put the cauliflower in a covered dish and microwave on a high setting for around 10 minutes. After which, drain the vapor, and place the result in a blender and let her rip until the mixture is smooth.

Now add the remainder of the ingredients and blend again. The result should be our highly prized potassium modified mashed taters.

Preparing vegetables for a low-potassium diet is remarkably straight-forward and can go a long way in improving both your health and you appetite. I hope you have found this article useful, and I hope to hear from you on the comment section and see if you have any suggestions or tips which you have.

Thanks for stopping by!

Thoog.