Radicchio

[DesertBunny]

I guess I live a sheltered life because I never saw this before but Fry’s has it. It’s on the HRS list as approved. Real funny looking – like Lex Luthor without any face! A round white ball all wrapped up. I assume when unwrapped it has leaves ?????? Has anyone fed their bunnies this and what kind of success did they have?

[Azerane]

The leaves should be a dark red with white veins, it’s kinda like a little round cabbage. I know that a bunch of guinea pig people on youtube frequently feed radicchio to their piggies

[DesertBunny]

Wow, No it’s white. Unless it looks different when unwrapped. Cabbage? Does it cause gas in bunnies?

[Azerane]

Hmm, it must have another name them that I’m not familiar with because the radicchio I see people feeding has white veins with dark red leaves. There could be other varieties though. It looks somewhat cabbage like, but is unrelated to cabbages etc and is in the same family as chicory etc. The red-leafed radicchio is actually a type of chicory I believe, but is called radicchio in some places. I don’t know what else to search for to look up the radicchio you’re referring to.

The only other thing I can think of is belgian endive which is fairly white, but they’re long in shape, not round.

[tobyluv]

The only radicchio I’ve ever seen is the dark red with white veins. Pieces are sometimes included in bags or containers of spring mix that I give to my bunnies, and I have bought small heads of it before a couple of times. My bunnies like it.

[BunnyFriends]

I have given to my rabbits, they’ve taken it fine. Also onlh seen white veins, red leaves?

[Muchelle]

There are several kinds of radicchio that range from dark red to light green to white and with several shapes (tall leaves, balled up leaves, salad-like leaves) It’s bun safe, but I regard it as a treat because it’s high in calcium (so not good for my dental bun).

[DesertBunny]

Really? High in calcium? The HRS has it on a safe list for bunnies. I am starting to think their list is highly erroneous.

[Muchelle]

For my bun radicchio and chicory are two vegetables that are too high on calcium, which doesn’t mean that they must be necessarily bad for a non-dental bun!
Of course I got this tip from the equipe of vets that is taking care of him, so on their suggestion I only sparsely feed him these two veggies (even though he adores both)

[Azerane]

Huh, according to a google search, radicchio is quite low in calcium. 1-2% about 19mg per 100g. Whereas things like parsley have as high as 13% calcium.

[Muchelle]

Point is, my rat is on a special diet just saying. He can’t have parsley if not as a treat as well, for example ^^ I specified the calcium thing in regards of that

[Bam]

Oh Muchelle, I didn’t get it first, I was like “What, a rat? Why hasn’t she told us she has a rat?” =)

I saw a tv-show once on how radicchio is grown in Italy. Fascinating! We rarely get it here. It can be grilled.

ETA: Grilled for hoomins, that is. I think buns prefer it raw!

[Muchelle]

ahahah XD I usually call him ‘rat’ and other synonims in italian (topino, rattone, sorcio) so I passed it on to english!

Radicchio (for humans) is incredibly versatile and can be used in a million recipes We should make a radicchio appreciation topic somewhere on the forum.
Some kinds are pretty expensive (like 2-3 euros per kg), especially the white tall one! That’s Kuro’s bday cake (a couple of leaves, rest is for me lol)

[jerseygirl]

Posted By DesertBunny on 4/11/2017 11:00 AM

Really? High in calcium? The HRS has it on a safe list for bunnies. I am starting to think their list is highly erroneous.

High calcium veggies should not be a problem. They need calcium for constantly growing teeth and their bones. They’ll get rid of what they dont need.  It’s veg that is high in oxalic acid that needs to be moderated. 

[DesertBunny]

I’m slowly learning the difference. I say slowly because I have to be careful not to damage any remaining neurons.

I will say that in addition to all his other noted peculiarities, this rabbit is very picky. I had to go to four stores yesterday to find dandelion greens. Don’t ask me why in like the 7th largest city in the U.S. i had to do that….but I did. Anyway, I found some organic ones ( at a much higher price) and figured he’d really like them, His response is tepid at best! However, He has now also been introduced to cilantro and it seems to be a hit.

[jerseygirl]

Aw, keep trying with the dandelion, he might take to them yet. If they’re not going to last, you could always try drying them and see if he’ll take them dried. At least nothings wasted that way, since you went to such an effort to get them. Of course, you can eat them yourself too. 

Im still curious about this lex luthor vegetable though… lol

I’ve see the purple radacchio here that the others mentioned. Im also growing something a friend brought when I looked after her rabbits. I think she referred to it as radicchio (she is Italian) but it is a green leafy plant (chicory family). It has the pale purple flowers.

Muchelle, a radicchio and endive/chicory appreciation topic would be good! I never know how to use these things for myself. I’ve only every stir-fried chicory (known as dandelion greens elsewhere). I buy curly endive a bit for the rabbits but am at a loss how to use it for human eating tbh.

[Muchelle]

(Alright! Laters I’ll work on the radicchio appreciation topic with pics and recipes lol!)

[DesertBunny]

I saw some more “Lex Luthor” Radicchios while making my rounds to four stores trying to find dandelion greens.  Also saw some Bok Choy at my organic grocers. I can’t imagine him eating either of these…. He is finally coming around to the organic dandelion greens (as he should since I paid a premium for them!) and the cilantro is a big hit. Now all I have to do is work him through his fear of cooking odors  and I might be over the top of the hill!

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