Nature so blessed us with almost everything man could ever wanted, green leaves vegetables for example are almost everywhere, no special techniques as to how to grow these veggies, some grows naturally, some are just the seeds to propagate. Whatever be the case, most or all of these veggies are very rich source of nutrients,vitamins,minerals,and low in calories, some supplies iron, zinc and all required minerals needed by the body. Eating fresh leafy veggies prevents diseases like obesity,high blood pressure and heart diseases.
And as my routine i went to market today, to get some fresh veggies, jute mallow,waterleaf and lagos spinach, its also necessary to eat fresh leaves.
- water leaf
Water leaf also called Ceylon spinach or florida spinach, can grow 3-5 feet tall and does have pink flowers. Its very rich in iron and zinc
benefits of waterleaf;
Just like some of other veggies, waterleaf is very rich in phosphorus & calcium, these are needed nutrients for the bone to develop. You ever wondered how some people's bone are so strong, its because they do eat food containing phosphorus & calcium
- waterleaf is also contains vitamin A which is good for the eye and also vitamin C
- waterleaf cant be eaten unless its cooked, in african homes its mostly cooked by soup, seasoned and spiced, garnished with chicken, beef or fish.
Lagos spinach
- one other vegetable i love eaten is the lagos spinach, it has a unique broad leaves and withstand any weather and will grow so well in any climates. This veggie is of 2-3 types, there is one with red pigment on its leaf and stem, and one with narroe deep green leaf with hard texture. Its mainky grows in Africa, mostly in west africa and its known in Nigeria as 'soko'.
While cooking the lagos spinach veggie it is advisable to slight cook the leaf, as the leaves are very soft, over cooking the leaf will decolourize and makes it lose its nutrients.
Lagos spinach is rich in vitamins A & C and also proteins. Its always advisable to eat the leaf 4-6 weeks after planting before it starts growing flower.
When cook as soup, 'efo soko' as fondly called by the yoruba tribes of nigeria is very delicious and can be taken with anything.
Jute mallow
Lastly the jute mallow, called molohiya in israel, malukhiyah in Egypt is a common soup among the yoruba tribes where i hailed from, infact no 'yoruba man' of nigeria can do without this food, most people eat it because its delicious but far from that its very medicinal,because of its low calories its can be used to reduce excess weight, it helps build the immune system too, and good for the heart. Its leaf is very slippery and soft. Infact this one of the richest veggies as it has numerous benefits, it has a wound healing component, betacarotene which helps the sight, plus vitamins A,C,E. Also calcium for strong bone and teeth.
Its also important to note that to get the optimum nutrients from these green leafy veggies, it should be eaten fresh, not days after plucking the leaves, it should also be slightly cooked so that it doesn't lose all the nutrients while cooking.