Nuts & seeds
Moderate evidenceWalnut
Walnuts carry 9.1 g of ALA per 100 g, an order of magnitude beyond other nuts. But the rate at which ALA converts to EPA and DHA is very low.
Walnut, apple and cabbage salad
Leaving the walnuts untoasted is the trick. ALA is highly unsaturated and oxidises with prolonged heat.
2 servings15 min
Ingredients
Method
Shred the cabbage very finely, soak it in cold water for five minutes and drain. It comes out crisp.
Cut the apple into matchsticks with the skin on and toss with half the lemon juice to slow the browning.
Break the walnuts up coarsely by hand. Do not toast them.
Whisk the yogurt, remaining lemon juice, salt and pepper into a dressing.
Toss the cabbage and apple in the dressing.
Add the walnuts just before serving.
Cooking note
There is a reason the walnuts stay raw. Their ALA has three double bonds, which makes it vulnerable to heat and oxygen; a long toast oxidises it and brings out a rancid note. Leaving the apple skin on follows the same logic — apple quercetin concentrates in the skin and just beneath it. Using yogurt instead of mayonnaise cuts the fat sharply and adds protein.
Ingredients used here
Fruits
Moderate evidenceApple
Most of an apple's fibre and polyphenols live in the skin. Peel it and what remains is mostly sugar and water.
Vegetables
Early researchCabbage
There is a reason cabbage juice became a folk remedy for stomach trouble. The evidence, though, is weaker than its reputation suggests.