Rocket is an edible annual plant used as a leaf vegetable for its fresh, tart, bitter, and peppery flavour.
It is native to the Mediterranean region.
Cultivated rocket has a stronger flavour, with long, more pointy leaves while wild rocker has rounder leaves and a milder flavour. It is mainly used raw in salads, on pizzas or with meat, or for pesto. It is also used to make an artisan liqueur in Italy.
Appreciated by the Ancient Romans for its properties, it was mainly eaten because it was believed to be aphrodisiac and therefore sought after as an ingredient in love potions. Rich in fibre, vitamins, iron, calcium and potassium, rocket brings many health benefits due to its digestive, purifying and antioxidant action.
Rucola della Piana del Sele IGP
Rucola della Piana del Sele IGP rocket has an intense and spicy aroma; the texture of the leaves is crunchy and the product stands out for its perceptible flavour.
These characteristics are the direct consequence of the volcanic soil where it is grown, formed from the eruptions of Vesuvius and the surface water courses that branch out into the area.
Cultivated in 8 towns in the province of Salerno, it was recognised by the European Union as a PGI product in 2020 and has become known as the green gold of the Piana del Sele area where it is grown.
Its cultivation is based on a traditional method, carried out with technologically advanced tools, so as to allow their natural production.
Two types of cultivation are allowed: a first traditional one inside unheated tunnels but covered by a plastic film, which preserve the rocket crops from atmospheric agents or any stagnation of wate due to the abundance of rains, and organic production, exploiting the fertility of the soil in a natural way, without using chemicals or genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
These techniques allow the Piana del Sele IGP rocket to grow luxuriantly and acquire, one by one, all the typical organoleptic and nutritional characteristics of this unique product.
Benefits of Piana del Sele IGP rocket:
- Extraordinary antioxidant properties, strengthening the immune system, counteracting the effect of free radicals and defending our body from harmful agents;
- Powerful natural anti-inflammatory – rich in erucine that studies have reported and confirmed as having important anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties;
- Spontaneously stimulates the metabolism due to a high presence of vitamin B;
High presence of iron and vitamin C makes it perfect in any diet; - Prevents osteoporosis and nourishes the bones due to high levels of vitamin c and vitamin K;
- Purifying action on the whole body, in particular helping the liver function, promoting the elimination of toxins;
- Benefits for the skin and hair due to vitamin A and beta-carotene;
- Rocket leaf extract by its nature is rich in fatty acids that exert anti-diabetic activity in insulin-sensitive cell lines and therefore useful for the treatment of patients afflicted with type 2 diabetes;
- Apart from its nutritional properties, rocket has great benefits for eyesight. Above all, the active ingredients contained help protect from vision degeneration.
