How’s everybody doing? Not going insane yet, I hope. After all, it has only been 6 days, the Movement Control/Restricted Movement Order, almost but not quite a week yet.
As for me here, I am getting on fine – been busy catching up with all my gardening. The weeds and grass sure wait for no man so I am never short of things to do. As for the food, we are fine. We are well stocked with fresh and frozen foods, canned, dried and preserved foods, instant noodles so much so that I do not think we will need to go out at all.
I told my missus to buy vegetables that could last – cabbage can keep for a long time, bitter gourd should be fine, beans like long beans, French beans, ladies fingers are all very durable and anyway, should we run out, there is the Brazilian spinach…
…growing in my garden. It’s very easy to grow. You just stick the stalks in the soil and it will flourish in no time at all.
I harvested the ones in this plot…
…just a week ago to give to a friend and the other morning, I harvested half of the ones in another plot, still quite a lot left.
It has a lot of health benefits, this Brazilian spinach. According to this website, they include:
1. improving immunity system
2. maintains eye health
3. strengthens bone
4. helps maintain the digestive system
5. prevents constipation
6. helps in smoothing blood circulation
7. prevents anemia
8. prevents premature aging
9. overcome gum problems
10. binding calcium
11. a good source of Vitamin K
12. can fight against cancer
It is not as thin and soft as the cangkok manis…
*my miserable cangkok manis struggling to stay alive*
…though and just like the cangkok manis, one would have to tear the leaves prior to cooking and because it is thicker and harder, one would need to tear it even more. Incidentally, we only take the leaves, not the stems and definitely not the stalks.
We cook it the same way as the cangkok manis – with garlic, egg and a bit of salt and msg (my missus uses oyster sauce)…
…and yes, we love it!
Now I’m regretting that I got rid of all my sweet potato leaves as they were growing out of control. I guess everyone was getting sick and tired of it so nobody bothered to go and harvest them to cook. Well, if the need arises, I still have my ulam raja and daun pegaga that we can eat with sambal belacan and that Thai-style dish of minced meat fried with Thai basil leaves is actually very nice.
...STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! 
From the garden to the table, fresh and healthy. Your missus homecooked brazilian spinach looks yum, with oyster sauce some more, must be very tasty.
Yes. 100% organic, pesticide and chemical fertiliser-free! It was very nice!
I love to eat vegetables cooked with oyster sauce, that time my aunt cooked broccoli, carrots and mushrooms with oyster sauce, so delicious!
Use sparingly and not too often. You know these manufactured stuff – preservatives, artificial flavouring and msg!
Cangkuk manis fried with eggs has always been my favourite. Yesterday I had steamed ladies fingers with Bintulu cincaluk. Simple and nice.
Supply of vegetables getting low, may have to ulam soon. Don’t think my missus bought any ladies fingers. Actually, they can keep for quite a long time.
I also bought those veggies that can last long. Those leafy veggie can’t.
The spinach looked good. I think I should start grow veggie too.
This is so very easy to plant. My missus got from her sister-in-law and we cooked the leaves – I took the stems/stalks out and stuck them in the ground and they grew and grew!!! Sweet potato leaves too, very easy to plant, will crawl all over the place but we got tired of eating them.
Good, then you won’t lack greens… whereas I have to go to the market to buy.. and tomorrow is the marketing day!
Oh! I have never seen or heard of Brazilian spinach! So nice that you have greens in your garden. I forgot to buy cabbage and now I have run out of vegetables except carrots/cucumbers/celery. Cabbage is very versatile, can stir fry, cook in soup or eaten as salad/coleslaw.
We have an old man sitting by the roadside beside the shops near my house every afternoon around 3 p.m. onwards. We can always go to him and buy, no need to go far.
When I gave to my friend that day, he said that they do sell this Brazilian spinach at the market. I have not seen it myself and for sure, no restaurant here is serving this vegetable.
I am doing quite well at home, but am envious of your outdoor space. Would dearly love to spend a little time outdoors.
Yes, I spend a lot of time in my garden in the morning and when it is not so hot in the evening. Thankful for the breath of fresh air and a bit of sun and the chance to walk around a bit. Kind of depressing cooped up in the house all the time.