Purslane!

[conuly]

We got purslane with the CSA, and I absolutely chowed down on it right then and there. Mmm. Love that stuff. (And like a fool, I waited for the CSA. We have it growing all over this part of the Island, though a different variety. Of course, I'm a little reluctant to take from the sidewalk... but then, it's not like plants I buy in the market are grown in hermetically sealed environments. That's what sinks are for, right?)

I mostly toss that stuff in salads, but I'm looking into ways to cook it. Apparently it cooks somewhat like okra. I'm thinking... gumbo? Toss some purslane in gumbo? Or maybe cook it with lentils? I'm finding some nice Indian recipes for purslane and lentils. Purslane is a very sour, lemony plant. Maybe it'd go well with potatoes? (Think about it.) Or maybe I can go weird and mix it with some sort of fruit? I also had blueberries (THOSE didn't even make it HOME), and believe it or not, munching on first a blueberry and then a bit of purslane, that didn't taste half bad. Maybe purslane mixed in a light fruit salad - some blueberries, some strawberries, some raspberries, just what's in season? I'm making honey chicken this week, maybe I can make something with purslane as a side? (Truth is, much though I adore that stuff, I got a bit too much to just gnaw on. Help me out here!)

Comments

[elenbarathi.livejournal.com]

I've never cooked it, but I think it might go well with potatoes, or - hey, how about this; I'll bet you could make spanakopitaka (sp? y'know, those little spinach&cheese pastries) with purslane, because you can make them with cooked nettles instead of spinach.

In Spring nettle season I make nettle fettucine - boil up a big pot of them, drain, press, chop fine, and put in tomato sauce with garlic, sage, oregano, dill weed, lemon pepper, chopped black olives and cheese - feta cheese is traditional, but my daughter hated that, called it "fatal cheese", so mozzarella works just fine instead. I'll bet you could make a similar recipe with purslane.

Hmm, possibly some sort of zucchini-bread analog would go well? LOL, and any vegetable, cooked or raw, can be concealed in soup or stew if you puree it.

If you rinse your fruits, vegetables and wild plants in dilute cider vinegar, it will take most of the chemicals off them. That's what is in that expensive 'Fit' spray one can buy if one has more money than sense. Cider vinegar is cheap, and you only need like two capfuls in a dishpan of water.

Good luck; let us know how it works out!

[conuly]

Purslane is nothing like spinach in texture, I'm not sure if that'd work, but I may try it one day.

[elenbarathi.livejournal.com]

" Purslane can be used fresh as a salad, stir-fried, or cooked like spinach, and because of its mucilaginous quality it is also suitable for soups and stews. Australian Aborigines use the seeds to make seedcakes. Greeks, who call it andrakla (αντράκλα) or glystrida (γλυστρίδα), fry the leaves and the stems with feta cheese, tomato, onion, garlic, oregano, and olive oil."

Mmm, that sounds good; can't beat Greek cooking There are a ton of purslane recipes on Google too.

[conuly]

Well, yeah, but google doesn't have that personal feeling of asking friends.

[marveen.livejournal.com]

I've stirfried it, pickled the stems, tossed it into a salad, and served exceptionally tender stems as a crudite with dip.