Here at Bain Home Gardens we are having fun in the kitchen these days. We are expanding our flavor palate to include Malabar Spinach. Admittedly, it was very difficult to find a recipe that included flavors & spices we could easily get our hands on. See, Malabar Spinach is kind of an exotic vegetable. We found Bengali, Vietnamese, & Chinese recipes! No kidding. We didn’t realize how exotic it really was. This however was a good thing. We wanted to try new things! Going through the recipes, one thing was clear – Malabar likes Curry & Turmeric! Every recipe included it. Thankfully, the Bain household keeps these flavors on hand. A further examination of what was in the fridge & pantry and our recipe was born!
The Malabar Spinach
We hurriedly picked our Malabar Spinach right before a thunderstorm. In the rush we didn’t quite harvest enough but we made due with what we had. We used Red and Green Malabar in this meal. We also included the stems. If you use the stems please be cautioned: the older the stems are, the more woody they tend to be. Trust us there is no cooking it out – much like woody Okra!
All right! Go dust off your Wok or non-stick frying pan and let’s get to work!
- Wash Malabar well.
- Remove stems & chop thinly
- Tear into 1 to 1/2 inch pieces
Seasonings (Always to taste) Other Things
- Curry
- Turmeric
- Salt
- Vidalia Onion
- Ginger Root
- Coconut Oil
- Pear
All right. Let’s do it!
- Place about 1 tablespoon of coconut oil into pan on medium high heat.
- While oil is coming to frying temperature, grate about one teaspoon of ginger root and set aside.
- If you haven’t already, now is a good time to slice that pear into thin slices.
- Add onion (we used a medium-sized one, sliced coarsely) and Malabar stems to oil and cook for about 5 minutes.
- Add Malabar leaves & pear slices. Stir frequently. Cook for 10 -12 minuets. If during the process the pan dries add about another teaspoon of oil or water.
- Add Turmeric, Curry, & Salt to taste.
- Plate & enjoy!
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