Water Chestnuts Nutrition Facts and 12 Health Benefits
Water chestnuts are vegetables, which are quite commonly found in Chinese households. Although these are seasonal vegetables, canned water chestnuts can be purchased throughout the year in South East Asia. This explains why water chestnuts have always been an important ingredient in Asian cuisine.
Water chestnuts are a root vegetable. Unlike their name, they have no relationship to the common chestnut. Water chestnuts are perennial plants that grow and purify the water in swampy garden settings or shallow ponds. The edible corms grow underwater attached to rhizomes. Water chestnuts are very hardy and require little care.
Water chestnuts do also possess singular nutritional composition, which makes them an excellent food source worth being a dietary staple. For this reason, they are set apart from all the other nuts. Moreover, the most significant fact is that they are free from any cholesterol and are almost fat-free. They are also gluten-free.
They have white and crispy flesh and small, rounded corms that can be eaten raw. Water chestnuts are a popular ingredient in Chinese cuisine.
Water Chestnuts Nutrition Facts
Amount of Water Chestnuts: 1 cup
Total Weight of Water Chestnuts: 120 g
| Nutrients | Amounts |
| Minerals | |
| Potassium | 497 mg |
| Phosphorus | 90 mg |
| Calcium | 24 mg |
| Magnesium | 28 mg |
| Iron | 0.76 mg |
| Zinc | 0.48 mg |
| copper | 0.426 mg |
| Selenium | 1 mcg |
| Vitamins | |
| Vitamin C | 21.8 mg |
| Vitamin B1 (thiamine) – | 0.204 mg |
| Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) | 0.147 mg |
| Niacin | 1.127 mg |
| Pantothenic Acid | 0.465 mg |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.417 mg |
| Folate | 59 mcg |
| Vitamin A | 20 IU |
| Vitamin E | 0.42 mg |
| Vitamin K | 6.6 mcg |
| Protein | 2.66 grams |
| Carbohydrates | 32.1 grams |
| Fat | 0.2 gram |
| Dietary fiber | 14.9 grams |
| Water | 48.2 grams |
Health Benefits of Eating Water Chestnuts
- Water chestnuts have very low-fat content and are, therefore, a great food option for highly health conscious people. Half a cup of water chestnuts contains only 0.1 g of fat.
- Water chestnuts are an excellent source of potassium, which is an extremely beneficial mineral for human beings. Half a cup of water chestnuts contains 350 to 360 mg of potassium.
- Water chestnuts are known to have cooling properties; they are just perfect during the scorching summers. Therefore, they are extremely popular in tropical countries. They are also known to have numerous curative and supplementary properties.
- Drinking water chestnut juice can help alleviate the problem of nausea and bad appetite in kids.
- Water chestnuts are also known to contain detoxifying properties. They are extremely advantageous for those who are suffering from jaundice.
- Water chestnut powder is useful to relieve cough. Grind water chestnuts to make a powder. Consume this powder with water twice a day. It will surely be immensely beneficial towards alleviating cough.
- Water chestnuts are also good in treating conditions like measles. Boiling them in water makes the best drink for the measles patients, which can be given from the third day till the ninth day of the cycle.
- If the paste made from powdered skins of water chestnut is applied to the swelling, it gives relief.
- If the porridge made from the flour of water chestnut is given to a pregnant woman after delivery, the hemorrhage can be checked.
- Water chestnuts eliminate inflammations and blood impurities.
- They supply energy, drive away tiredness, and check the flow of blood from the wounds.
- Generally consumed raw, water chestnuts can also be sautéed or steamed. They can be served as a handy and a great snack for the evening.
Selection and Storage Tips
- While you are choosing water chestnuts, make sure you pick the ones, which are firm and have unwrinkled skin. Also, make sure that there are no soft spots. You can buy a few more chestnuts than required, just in case some have spoiled.
- Fresh and unpeeled water chestnuts can be kept for two weeks, in a plastic bag, inside a refrigerator.
- Peel off the skin and cut off the top of water chestnuts, before you start cooking them.
- Canned water chestnuts can be stored for a year in a cool and dry place. Once the can have been opened, store the chestnuts in a sealed container and use them within three days.
Water chestnuts work as taste enhancers and are great appetizers. They are extremely popular in salads in certain parts of the world. Even though their nutrition value is not that great as green leafy vegetables, but they are great sources of vitamin B and fiber. They also hold good amounts of calcium, iron, potassium, and zinc, which make them especially consumable. So, if you want to enjoy the health benefits that water chestnuts provide, then make sure to include them in your daily diet.