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Poppy seed
Poppy seeds.jpg
Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy 2,196 kJ (525 kcal)
28.13 g
Dietary fiber 19.5 g
41.56 g
Saturated 4.517 g
Monounsaturated 5.982 g
Polyunsaturated 28.569 g
21.22 g
Vitamins
Vitamin A equiv.
(0%)
0 μg
0 μg
Vitamin A 0 IU
Thiamine (B1)
(74%)
0.854 mg
Riboflavin (B2)
(8%)
0.100 mg
Niacin (B3)
(6%)
0.896 mg
Pantothenic acid (B5)
(0%)
0 mg
Vitamin B6
(19%)
0.247 mg
Folate (B9)
(21%)
82 μg
Choline
(11%)
52.1 mg
Vitamin E
(12%)
1.77 mg
Vitamin K
(0%)
0.0 μg
Minerals
Calcium
(144%)
1438 mg
Copper
(0%)
0 mg
Iron
(75%)
9.76 mg
Magnesium
(98%)
347 mg
Manganese
(109%)
2.285 mg
Phosphorus
(124%)
870 mg
Potassium
(15%)
719 mg
Selenium
(0%)
0 μg
Sodium
(2%)
26 mg
Zinc
(74%)
7.0 mg
Other constituents
Water 5.95 g

Percentages are roughly approximated using US recommendations for adults.
Source: USDA Nutrient Database

Poppy seed is an oilseed obtained from the poppy (Papaver rhoeas). The tiny kidney-shaped seeds have been harvested from dried seed pods by various civilizations for thousands of years. It is still widely used in many countries, especially in Central Europe, where it is legally grown and sold in shops. The seeds are used, whole or ground, as an ingredient in many foods - especially in pastry and bread, and they are pressed to yield poppyseed oil.

The poppy seed is mentioned in ancient medical texts from many civilizations. For instance, the Egyptian papyrus scroll named Ebers Papyrus, written c. 1550 BC, lists poppy seed as a sedative. The Minoan civilization (approximately 2700 to 1450 BC), a Bronze Age civilization which arose on the island of Crete, cultivated poppies for their seed, and used a milk, opium and honey mixture to calm crying babies. The Sumerians are another civilization that are known to have grown poppy seeds. Poppy seeds have long been used as a folk remedy to aid sleeping, promote fertility and wealth, and even to provide supposed magical powers of invisibility.

Poppy seeds are less than a millimeter in length, kidney-shaped, and have a pitted surface. It takes 3,300 poppy seeds to make up a gram, and between 1 and 2 million seeds to make up a pound. The primary flavor compound is 2-Pentylfuran.

To some extent, harvesting for poppy seeds is in conflict with harvesting for opium. Poppy seeds of superior quality are harvested when they are ripe, after the seed pod has dried. Traditionally, opium is harvested while the seed pods are green and their latex is abundant, but when the seeds have just begun to grow.

The seeds of other poppy types are not eaten, but they are cultivated for the flowers they produce. Annual and biennial poppies are considered a good choice to cultivate from seed as they are not difficult to propagate by this method, and can be put directly in the ground during January. The California poppy (Eschscholzia californica), for example, is a striking orange wildflower that grows in the Western and Northwestern United States.


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Wikipedia

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