Green Vegetables

Make Use Of Local

(Extracts from talk broadcast from

ZJV by the Nutrition Section of

the South Pacific Health Service).

There are numerous green leaves both wild and cultivated commonly used for food throughout the Pacific Islands.

Generally speaking the young leaves, shoots or fronds are used, and cooked in a small quantity of water or coconut cream. (Recipes for coconut cream or 1010 have been published previously in

Pim.)

Young dalo (or taro) leaves are one of the best local greens and provide a good source of vitamins. They should be well cooked and the water changed during cooking, to ensure the removal of an irri tating substance. A very common way of serving young taro leaves is in a dish called “rourou” in Fiji and “palusami” in Samoa.

This is a very popular dish in all parts of Fiji and other islands of the Pacific.

To make it, cook the young dalo leaves in a little water, discard and add a thick 1010, or coconut cream, just before serv ing. A little onion is sometimes cooked with the leaves for flavouring.

If the coconut cream and young leaves are boiled together the coconut cream is inclined to curdle and this spoils the appearance of the dish.

In Samoa palusami is prepared in the following way:

Palusami

3 bunches taro leaves (about 60 leaves). 1 teaspoon salt. 3 cups coconut cream (from 4 coconuts). 3 young banana leaves. 3 breadfruit leaves.

Wash the taro leaves, remove the stem and tough veins of the leaves. Divide the large leaves into several pieces.

Arrange about 30 leaves in the palm of the left hand, forming a cup to hold the coconut cream. Pour about Vz cup coco nut cream into the leaves. Fold the leaves over each other to keep in the coconut cream. Put this bundle into a piece of banana leaf about 6 by 8 inches in size. Over-wrap the edges and place on the shiny side of a breadfruit leaf.

Overlap the edges of the breadfruit leaf, tuck the stem through the midrip of the leaf to fasten it. Steam or bake for about 2 hours. Before serving remove the breadfruit leaf but not the banana leaf.

Serve from the banana leaf hot as a vegetable.

In many island recipes, banana and breadfruit leaves are used for wrapping foods and these leaves take the place of parchment cooking paper. Greens, fish and meat are placed in the leaf and made into a bundle which is then steamed, baked or boiled. Foods cooked in this way keep their flavour and nutritive value.

Bele is another good green vegetable.

It grows as a shrub and is a good sub stitute for spinach. It is often planted between other crops in the gardens. The plant lasts for 3 or more years and it grows to about 6 feet in height.

Bele grows easily from cuttings or seed and thrives best in rich or well manured soil. Wtoen planting, place the cuttings in rows and the plants can then be staked for support if necessary. The plant has fleshy green lobed leaves and yellow flowers which are very similar to cotton and hibiscus. The young leaves and shoots are usually cooked and eaten with taro or other root vegetables.

Chinese Cabbage is a good substitute for English cabbage and is nearly always ob tainable from the market. It is easily recognised by its white stems and bright green leaves.

This is a vegetable which is easily grown at home from seed. Sow the seeds in a seed box containing well worked soil or in a well-prepared bed.

Cover the seeds with V 4 to V 2 an inch of soil, press down and water thoroughly.

When the plants are big enough to handle, transplant into beds, setting the rows 18 inches apart. A dull or light rainy day is the best for transplanting.

When the plants are well established give them a dressing of blood and bone manure using about 3 oz. for each square yard, or if available, 3 oz. of sulphate of ammonia or nitrate of soda per square yard. This will help the plants to be tender and to grow quickly.

Fried Chinese Cabbage

Wash the China cabbage, take out the stem portions, chop roughly. Melt a little dripping or lard in a frying pan and fry a handful of the cabbage at a time for about a minute. Scrape to the side of the pan and continue to fry handfuls of the cabbage until all is cooked. Serve very hot.

There are many other useful greens some of which you may have growing in your garden already. The young shoots of the kumala (or sweet potato) plant make a good spinach and these provide a source of vitamins A and C. Young tapioca leaves are used in the same way and are known to be one of the richest sources of vitamin C. They are also rich in iron and calcium.

Sweet Potato Leaf Salad

IV2 lbs. kumala leaves or W 2 cups cooked leaves.

Pinch salt. 3 medium sized tomatoes. 2 hard boiled eggs. 6 tablespoons French dressing.

Grated coconut.

Wash and remove the tougher stems from the kumala leaves. Place in a pan and cover with the lid, do not add any water. When the leaves start to cook, remove the lid, add salt and cook until leaves are tender. Drain and chill thoroughly.

Slice eggs and tomatoes, arrange around the edge of a flat dish —and place the cooked kumala leaves in the centre.

Season with French dressing and decorate with grated coconut. Allow to stand for about quarter of an hour before serving.

One large onion sliced or spring onions can be used as a change from the eggs.

The tips of the young green shoots of the pumpkin plant are delicious added to salads or chopped up and added to soup.