PRODUCE CLEANING

1. Gently rub produce under cold running water. 2. Rinse greens several times to make sure that all sand and grit are

removed, especially if foraged. 3. Scrub firm produce with a clean vegetable brush under running water.

HAND WASHING

Wash hands with soap and water before cooking.

Mamatha Hanumappa and Richard Boateng

Malabar spinach (also known as Indian spinach, Ceylon spinach, buffalo spinach, vine spinach and climbing spinach) is a perennial native of tropical Asia, widely consumed in Asia and Africa. It can be grown easily as an annual in summer months as it does very well in hot weather. Leaves, tender stems and seed may be eaten raw in salads, sautéed, steamed, boiled and curried. The thick, succulent, peppery-flavored leaves can also be used to condense soups and stew. Due to the mild okra-like sap in leaves, some people prefer to eat it cooked rather than raw in salads. The leaves are a good source of vitamins A and C, calcium, potassium and iron, with many other vitamins and minerals in lower quantities. It has over 3 times more vitamin C than spinach and over 1.5 times more vitamin A than kale.

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Photo courtesy: Konkani Foodie

1. Malabar Spinach Tambouli Tambouli or Tabouli is nothing but coconut, spices & dry chili ground together and then mixed with yogurt. Addition of greens like Malabar spinach or spinach makes this Tambouli more delicious and nutritious.

Chef’s Tips: To keep consistency thick and concentrated, add very little water while blending to a purée. Add yogurt as and when needed because Tambouli can be kept for only a day with yogurt. Raw Tambouli may be refrigerated for 2-3 days or frozen.

Ingredients: 6-8 Malabar spinach leaves 1/2 teaspoon cumin seed 3-4 black pepper corns 3/4 cup grated coconut (fresh or frozen) 4-6 red chilies (optional and to taste) 2-3 tablespoon yogurt Ghee (clarified butter) or oil Salt to taste

Method of Preparation: 1. Wash the Malabar spinach leaves thoroughly and pat dry. 2. Allow the moisture content to dry off completely before use.

3. In a pan, heat few spoons of oil, season with cumin and pepper.

4. Add red chilies and sauté well for couple of minutes.

5. Add the grated coconut and Malabar spinach leaves.

6. Lower heat and sauté till the leaves wilt & the coconut turns light brown.

7. Turn heat off and allow mixture to cool.

8. Blend to a purée, adjusting salt as desired.

9. Mix few spoons of yogurt if desired, especially if serving by itself.

10. Serve with cooked rice

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 0 minutes Ready In: 20 minutes Servings: Makes 2 Servings

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2. Malabar Spinach Curry

Chef’s Tips: Use leaves and tender stems. Cook dal ahead of time to give enough time to cool. Or you can cook a large amount and freeze in small containers to thaw required amount.

Ingredients: 4 cups of Malabar spinach 1/2 cup split red gram/ Toor dal 1 medium onion 1 medium tomato 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder 1 teaspoon salt OR to taste

Method of Preparation: 1. Wash dal, add a cup of water along with

chopped onion and tomato. Add turmeric

powder and pressure cook.

Photo courtesy: sumeesculinary.blogspot.com

Photo courtesy: KonkaniFoodRecipes.com

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Ready In: 40 minutes Servings: Makes 2 Servings

For Masala (spices): 2 cups grated coconut 4 red chili 2 teaspoon coriander powder 1 teaspoon mustard seed 2 cloves garlic

2. While the pressure cooker is cooling down, prepare the masala.

3. Grind everything to a fine paste while adding a cup of water in intervals.

4. Coarsely chop washed greens.

5. In a wide, heavy bottomed pan cook the greens first.

6. When it starts to wilt and turn darker green, add the ground masala.

7. Stir and bring to a boil.

8. Mash the cooked dal and add it to the pan. Add water as required.

9. Add salt to taste and mix. Bring the curry to a boil and switch off the heat.

10. Serve it hot with rice.

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3. Malabar Spinach Fritters

Chef’s Tips: Use larger leaves with stems attached for easy handling. Ingredients: 8-10 Malabar spinach leaves rinsed and pat-dried 100 gm gram flour/ chickpea flour (besan) 50 gm rice flour 1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder 1/2 teaspoon chili powder or to taste Salt to taste Oil for shallow frying, as needed

Photo courtesy: KonkaniFoodRecipes.com

Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Ready In: 20 minutes Servings: Makes 2-3 Servings

Method of Preparation: 1. Mix gram flour, rice flour, salt, turmeric powder and chili powder together in a

bowl.

2. Add water as needed to the mixture and whisk to get a smooth batter.

3. Heat a shallow pan and sprinkle/spread oil.

4. Half fold the Malabar spinach leaves, dip into the batter and shallow fry them

from both sides until crisp and brown on a medium heat.

5. Remove the fritters onto a plate lined with paper towel to drain excess oil.

6. Serve hot with any sauce.

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Ingredients: 2 big bowls of chopped Malabar spinach 1 onion chopped 2-3 cloves of garlic chopped 4-5 green chilies chopped 1 teaspoon five spices or any spice/masala mix 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder Oil as needed Salt and sugar (optional) to taste

4. Malabar Spinach Vegetarian Stir Fry

Chef’s Tips: Sugar – usually not more than a teaspoon – is added to Indian dishes to neutralize the salt and spice. Note that salt and sugar proportions are not the same! You can add any vegetable to the stir fry but make sure it is cooked well before adding Malabar spinach. Tomato and other greens can be added along with Malabar spinach as they cook fast. Ingredients: 2 big bowls of chopped Malabar spinach 1 onion chopped 2-3 cloves of garlic chopped 4-5 green chilies chopped 1 teaspoon five spices or any spice/masala mix 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder Oil as needed Salt and sugar (optional) to taste

Photo courtesy: cookpad.com

Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Ready In: 30 minutes Servings: Makes 3 Servings

Method of Preparation: 1. Heat oil and temper five spices and green chilies

2. Add chopped or crushed garlic

3. Add chopped onion and sauté well

4. Add chopped vegetables and sauté well, adding salt and turmeric powder

5. Add Malabar spinach and mix well

6. Cover and let it cook well

7. Add sugar, mix well and remove from heat

8. Serve with rice or roti or bread

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5. Malabar Spinach Seeds Curry

Photo courtesy: cookpad.com

Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Ready In: 30 minutes Servings: Makes 4

Chef’s Tips: Sugar – usually not more than a teaspoon – is added to Indian dishes to neutralize the salt and spice. Note that salt and sugar proportions are not the same! To obtain Malabar spinach seed, simply collect ripe fruit and let it dry/shrivel a bit. Wash off any dirt by rinsing in water prior to cooking. Ingredients: 1 cup Malabar spinach seeds 1/2 pumpkin (or any squash), cut into small chunks 2 potatoes, cut into small chunks 1 teaspoon five spices (or any spice mix) 2 green chilies, chopped 2 tablespoon mustard seed paste 1 teaspoon turmeric powder Salt and sugar, to taste Oil as needed

Method of Preparation: 1. Heat oil and temper five spices and green chilies

2. Add pumpkin and potatoes

3. Sautée well, adding salt and turmeric

4. Add some water and mix in the seeds (rinse seed if necessary)

5. Cover and cook till it is soft

6. Stir in mustard paste and sugar

7. Serve with rice or roti or bread

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6. Recipes shared by local users in DC-MD-VA

1. Vegetable Stir Fry by Marshelle Hailstock (2019) Malabar spinach, garlic, sweet peppers, tamari, red curry paste and whole wheat pasta.

2. Malabar Spinach Sauté by Walter Allen (2019) Simply sauté with other vegetables.

3. Cold Weather Lentil Stew by Erin Flannagan (2019) Ingredients: 1 cup Malabar spinach leaves, whole or cut coarsely 1 cup red lentils 1 yellow onion, chopped 1 large clove of garlic, chopped Fresh curry leaves Ethiopian Berbere spice Water (to make a paste out of the Berbere spice) Olive oil, as needed

Method of Preparation: 1.Heat oil and sauté curry leaves, garlic and onion

2. Add spice paste (to taste) and stir

3. Add washed and drained lentils

4. Let cook

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REFERENCES

1. Konkanie Foodie (2011) http://konkanifoodie.blogspot.com/2011/01/malabar-spinach-tambli-basale-soppu.html

2. Frog Songs Organics (2019) http://frogsongorganics.com/malabar-spinach/ (http://sumeesculinary.blogspot.com/2013/10/vaali-ambat-basale-soppu-curry-malabar.html)

3. Cookpad (2019) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/10691946-malabar-spinach-fritters

4. Cookpad (2018) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/5874380-malabar-spinach-stir-fry#

5. Cookpad (2018) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/6644629-pui-machuri-malabar-spinach-seeds-curry

REFERENCES

1. Konkanie Foodie (2011) http://konkanifoodie.blogspot.com/2011/01/malabar-spinach-tambli-basale-soppu.html

2. Frog Songs Organics (2019) http://frogsongorganics.com/malabar-spinach/ (http://sumeesculinary.blogspot.com/2013/10/vaali-ambat-basale-soppu-curry-malabar.html)

3. Cookpad (2019) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/10691946-malabar-spinach-fritters

4. Cookpad (2018) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/5874380-malabar-spinach-stir-fry#

5. Cookpad (2018) https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/6644629-pui-machuri-malabar-spinach-seeds-curry

6. Mamatha Hanumappa (2019) Malabar spinach (Basella alba) is a Nutritious and Ornamental Plant. Fact Sheet 004, CAUSES, UDC.

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