Eruca sativa

rocket • arugula

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Eruca sativa Mill. [= E. vesicaria (L.) Cav. subsp. sativa (Mill.) Thell.] (Brassicaceae); roket (Afrikaans); zi ma cai (Chinese); roquette (French); Rauke, Rukola (German); rucola (Italian); roketsuto (Japanese); rúgula (Portuguese); arúgula (Spanish)

DESCRIPTION Fresh leaves of rocket are dark green above and paler beneath, deeply lobed and have a pungent aroma. The leaves of wild rocket (Diplotaxus tenuifolia) are much smaller and narrower but have a similar aroma. Eruca sativa is known as rocket or garden rocket in Britain, Australia, Canada and New Zealand, but as arugula, eruca or rocket salad in America.

THE PLANT A weedy annual herb with erect stems, broadly lobed leaves and white or cream-coloured flowers. Rocket is often confused with wild rocket (Diplotaxus tenuifolia), which has narrower leaves and bright yellow flowers.1

ORIGIN Rocket is indigenous to Mediterranean Europe, while wild rocket has a wider distribution in Europe. Both species are important traditional salad plants in southern Europe and have become popular all over the world in recent years.

CULTIVATION Both species are amongst the easiest of herbs to grow but require warm conditions and full sun. They are fast-growing, cool-season crops that thrive even in poor soil and tend to become weedy.1 Sowing is usually done at three-weekly intervals.1

HARVESTING Fresh leaves or young seedlings are harvested by hand in the early morning. In recent years, germinated seeds (sprouts) have also become popular.

CULINARY USES The pungent, mustard-like aroma of rocket (also commonly referred to as arugula or rucola) has become a characteristic feature of French and Italian restaurants where liberal quantities are used as garnishes (for soups, pizzas and other dishes) and as traditional salad ingredients (e.g. the mesclun or mescladisse of southern France and the misticanza of Italy). It is often combined with chervil, corn salad, dandelion, endive, lettuce, purslane and various other herbs, resulting in a somewhat bitter salad that is usually served with vinaigrette and olive oil. Anchovies, walnuts, mozzarella cheese or sundried tomatoes may be added for extra taste. In Spain, rocket leaves are served as a separate garnish for a traditional dish known as gazpachos. Rucolino is a digestive alcoholic drink prepared from macerated rocket leaves (a speciality of the Italian island of Ischia).

FLAVOUR COMPOUNDS The typical aroma of rocket is due to a complex mixture of methylthioalkyl isothiocyanates and -nitriles, as well as (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol and -esters. The main compounds are usually 4-methylthiobutyl isothiocyanate and 5-methylthiopentanonitrile,2,3 together with 5-methylthiopentyl isothiocyanate, (Z)-3-hexen-1-ol, (Z)-3-hexen-1-yl butanoate and (Z)-3-hexen-1-yl 2-methylbutanoate.2 4-Mercaptobutyl glucosinolate is usually the main compound in E. sativa and invariably so in D. tenuifolia.4

NOTES Rocket is a commercial oilseed in India, Pakistan and Iran (similar to rapeseed or canola). The seed oil, known as rocket oil or jamba oil, is used as a cooking oil, salad oil and lubricant.

1. Morales, M., Janick, J. 2002. Arugula: A promising speciality leaf vegetable. In: Janick, J., Whipkey, A. (Eds), Trends in new crops and new uses, pp. 418–423. ASHS Press, Alexandria, VA.

2. Jirovetz, L., Smith, D., Buchbauer, G. 2002. Aroma compound analysis of Eruca sativa (Brassicaceae) SPME headspace leaf samples using GC, GC-MS, and olfactometry. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 50: 4643–4646.

3. Miyazawa, M., Maehara, T., Kurose, K. 2002. Composition of the essential oil from the leaves of Eruca sativa. Flavour and Fragrance Journal 17:187–190.

4. Bennett, R.N., Carvalho, R., Mellon, F.A., Eagles, J., Rosa, E.A. 2007. Identification and quantification of glucosinolates in sprouts derived from seeds of wild Erica sativa L. (salad rocket) and Diplotaxus tenuifolia L. (wild rocket) from diverse geographical locations. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 55: 67–74.