The green leafy vegetables you can eat will never end if you shift your attention to those eaten by natives in other lands. A visit to a little India will open your eyes to the healthy vegetables that Indians have been eating to stay healthy and wise.
Indian malabar spinach
It was the tiny dark brown flowers peeking out from the leaves of Malabar Indian spinach that caught my eye as I searched through a variety of leafy greens to find some truly outstanding ones.
On the way home I found a photo of Kalanchoe and the color of the flower clusters and leaves somehow vaguely resembled that of that Indian vegetable. But while Kalanchoe is best known for its wide array of medicinal plant chemicals, Indian spinach really shines nutritionally with its rich store of vitamins and minerals.
Also, Indian Malabar spinach looks nothing like its local counterpart with large fleshy leaves, red stems and pink flowers even though the two are from the same Basellaceae family; sure it prefers to borrow the appearance of its neighbor Crassulaceae.
A champion survival plant, Malabar spinach can genetically adapt to harsh environments; it doesn’t need a green thumb or a farmer’s devotion to grow. When most of the grass has turned yellow, my neighbor’s Indian spinach spirals its way to the top of a bamboo pole. Perhaps it’s a good idea to eat more of this vegetable and tap into its reserve of adaptive mechanisms for your own use!
sessile joyweed (Ponnanganni Keerai)
To treat fever without medication, you can use the whole sessile joyweed plant with obovate leaves and tender stems. A carotenoid remedy for eye problems, it’s also a great natural beautifier for skin and hair, giving it a glow all over, it’s low in fat and calories, and high in minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants.
It is said that if you eat this incredibly nutritious aquatic vegetable every day for 48 days, it will heal the body of all deficiencies, including those of the liver and spleen. Therefore, it is recommended to make this gem a part of your diet twice a week for good health.
Also, you can add some sessile vegetables to pancakes or lentil soup to give it more fiber.
rosella sheets (Pulicha Keerai)
The Ribena brand has undoubtedly given its fame to the roselle plant whose calyxes serve as the perfect substitute for blackcurrant. An antidote to body heat, the leaves will keep away a lot of heat and sunstroke. Rich in vitamin C content, roselle leaves are simply a great natural way to boost your immune system.
Native to Africa, it has been listed as one of that continent’s neglected leafy vegetable crops by the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI). However, saved by its wide global reach and introduced distribution, it goes by different names in different countries, hence the nicknames, ‘Indian sorrel’ and ‘saan choy’, which is Chinese for ‘slimy vegetable’.
Although the red stems resemble those of the tapioca plant, the mucilaginous leaves impart a tart flavor to a dish, very different from the bitter tapioca leaves. A simple sauté of roselle leaves with garlic and onion is refreshing food for the taste buds and the soul.
You may soon have to take it easy on green leafy vegetables, as more and more green vegetables make themselves known.