Polygonum Minus (Daun Kesum or Laksa Leaves)

 Now this is an interesting herbaceous plant  The leaves produces the  pungent smell that is associated with the Assam Laksa dish!  This herb is actually used in many other local dishes as well - it gives a nice flavor to the spicy, hot and sour dishes.   This herb is actually very easily propagated. I bought some stalks, a bunch would cost about RM 1 in the wet market.  Soak those stalks unused  in water and when roots appear, plant them in a moist damp area under some shade.  The herb will grow easily and in no time, there will be enough to use for cooking. I like having this herb in the garden, although it looks more like a weed than a useful herb for cooking!  This herb need to be trimmed now and then for it to grow nicely, otherwise it will become all dangling and unruly. 

Something interesting to add, according to "Rimbun Dahan", (http://www.rimbundahan.org/environment/plant_lists/taman_sari/index.htm), the leaves can be  pounded, oil extracted  and mixed with water . Apply the mixture to scalp, leave a few minutes for clearing dandruff! Cool, should try this ! 

Herbs for Cooking ...

Thai "Tom Yam" - a delicious  hot, spicy, sweet, sour dish with all the aromatic herbs.....just thinking of it makes me salivates!!  There are many variations to cooking this dish, but in my opinion nothing beats  making a trip to Thailand just to taste this dish at its authentic best. Somehow the offerings here just doesn't seem to give the same 'kick', perhaps it is just psychological.  Anyway, back to talking on homegrown herbs.

This is the "Daun Limau Purut" or Kaffir Lime leaves. (  Citrux hystrix ) (Read more from this link : - http://www.pahang-delights.com/limau-purut.html). A neighbor who was moving house gave this plant to me about three years ago.  She said this plant  was grown from seeds.  Actually this plant  is more frequently propagated through grafting. Apparently the grafted plant will not bear fruits, but the ones grown from seeds will.  So far I have yet to see my plant flowers. For the Tom Yam dish, these kaffir leaves are essential.  In fact these kaffir lime leaves are used in many local dishes. I like the aromatic smell of these leaves. It just adds flavor to the spicy dishes one is cooking or salad preparation.  One of my favorite dish is the sambal sotong fried with prawns, tomatoes, chillies, etc. (Yes, I also love to dabble in cooking, except sadly I just can't master good cooking....perhaps should get a 'sifu' , then can improve...lol) . Once I forgot to add the leaves and immediately I received a complaint from you can guess who (lol)!    Without the leaves somehow the dish would taste flat!  The lime or fruit is not used for cooking, but supposed to be good for maintaining healthy hair growth.  Yes, hair....after washing with shampoo, just rub the juice of the lime into the scalp....let stand a couple of minutes, then wash....mmmm....exotic clean smell !

Below is the lemon grass bush, another essential ingredient to the Tom Yam. What is Tom Yam without this lemonly smell?  Overnight, lemon grass has become a health food. (can read this link : http://my.88db.com/my/Knowledge/Knowledge_Detail.page/Health-Medical/?kid=11068) .  People are promoting drinking the lemon grass tea.  Well, there is enough  literature in the internet if one is interested to read more about the lemon grass.  The lemon grass is easily grown. I bought a bunch of the lemon grass from the wet market. Just stick one or two in some water, and in a couple of days, roots will appear.  I planted mine alongside the drain beside the house. Well it will take 3-4 months before I can harvest some lemon grass for cooking. To take care of the plant, just ensure that it is watered well.  Feed it plenty of water and the lemon grass bulb will be big and juicy. I like to trim the leaves of the bush every now and then - as I cut them, the citronella scent released  is just heavenly....and the plus side? No more mosquitoes at least  for one night....! Well as they say, one man's food is another's poison.  Oh yes, mosquitoes are repelled by the scent from this lemon grass bush.  While cutting the leaves, one just  have to be careful about the fine hair that can irritate the skin, also the leaves are sharp like blades. Perhaps it is better to wear long gloves, but often I am careless.....!

 The trick to blogging is to keep things short and easy to read.....so I will continue more, meantime, go get a bowl of nice TOM YAM soup noodle or something.....yummy!

Herbs - Indian Borage (Plectranthus amboinicus)

Check out this herb. The strong distinctive smell can be either appealing or too strong for some. What is the significance of this plant? Many years ago, I was inflicted with this persistent cough that just refused to go away. Yes, I had been to see the doctors, taken antibiotics, cough medication by the bottles.....but no cure in sight. In the middle of the night when rest was most needed, I would wake up coughing non-stop.  Coupled with stress at work, and no solution to badly needed rest, I was so desperate to try anything, My mother made me a herbal drink from the leaves of this plant on one weekend I visited her.  Three portions of the  miraculous  herb within a day (morning, afternoon and evening) and I was on the road to recovery. That night I slept peacefully for the first time in a month! I continued to drink the herb until the cough cleared completely for the next couple of days! So what do you expect....it  is only concoction from this herb henever I feel the cough  or hear any cough  from anyone in the family!   Even though it works for me, I have feedback from some people that it does not work for them.

One need only pick a few of these leaves, wash them and put them in some boiling water. Once the water boils again, immediately off the heat and leave to cool before drinking. Do not over boil, the active ingredient is lost, I think.  Once the maid was coughing rather badly, and she said the herb did not work for her, so I checked  how she prepared it. She said she boiled it for at least half an hour.....no wonder it did not work!  Some people  say  chewing on the raw leaves is good enough, but I have never tried it.......! Normally one can add some rock sugar or dried logan to make the drink slightly sweet if that is preferred, easier to drink.  Always  drink the herb while it is slightly warm.

This herb is easy to propagate. Just stick some cuttings into some well drained soil and in no time, roots and leaves will sprout. This plant need no fertilizer and is also pest free. I have this plant sprawling all over my garden, on the ground and in pots.....that is how much faith I have in this herb!  Anyway I think it is rather ornamental looking as well.  Whenever I water  my plants, I can smell the herb's distinctive  scent the same as for basil, mints etc and it is rather refreshing. 

Interested to read more, go to this link  below :-     

http://hubpages.com/hub/Indian-Borage

Garden Herbs ( Part 1)

Herbs......plants that  give flavor, scent, medicinal value  or other qualities other than food value to food or drinks. We use herbs in cooking, for medicine and even for spiritual purposes. Well, talking about Herbs can be rather involved and complicated.  Animals seems to know by instinct what plants they should eat when they are sick. I have seen our family dogs and cats do that often enough.  They normally sniffed around, chew on the selected plants....whenever they don't feel well.   We, humans on the other hand have lived on commercialized grown vegetables and synthesized medication that we have  lost touch with what nature can offer.  Perhaps it is time we go back to basics - using plants to promote better health.  Oh dear, I am going off track, ..... lets return to some herbs in my garden.   

What shall I start off with? I guess the pandan or screw pine should be listed first. Pandan provides the green colour to food as well as a nice scent  to food and drinks.  On a hot day, one would welcome very much  a glass of barley boiled with a blade or two of  pandan leaves.  Pandan  is widely used in cake baking, biscuits, pastry,  desserts,  local kueh  (nyonya  kueh, malay cakes, etc ) .  Meat such as chicken wrapped in pandan leaves can be deep fried or baked .  Rice steamed with pandan and coconut milk gives off the nicest aroma possible. Pandan is so versatile when used in culinary dishes.

The pandan grows easily.  The lush green leaves can be rather ornamental looking if grown in a pot.  The pandan is propagated from the young babies that sprouted around the mother plant.  Since the plant grows easily, they need to be trimmed regularly.  Some pandan plants are more aromatic than others,. I did not realize this until I did some comparison.  Someone told  me that cockroaches dislike the pandan scent.  So what I do nowadays  is to cut the overgrown  leaves and stuff them under the car mat or  in the car boot and the kitchen cupboards/oven.  Whenever the  doors are opened,  one can  catch the whiff of pandan aroma .  The bad side of it,  the car and cupboards have these dried leaves that can be unsightly, nevertheless  still better than having to artificial scents!

The Thai Basil is not so often used in malaysian cooking, but popular in  vietnamese or thai cooking. However, I do so love the smell of these basil leaves.  These leaves can be eaten raw and often added to salad to give a nice appetising smell. However some people might find it too strong for their liking.  The Thai Basil is propagated with seeds. Where are the seeds?  The flowers are purplish and grows at the tips of the plant.  When the flowers dry up, the seeds can be found hidden away amongst the dried petals.  

For curry lovers, the curry leaf plant (  Murraya koenigii) is a must in the garden. These plants can be planted in pots as well. I think if the plant is well taken care off,  kept free from insects attack,  it  makes a nice ornamental plant as well. Just look at how lovely the leave formation is, and the lush green color.  The aromatic scent it gives off when touch is just heavenly, well at least to me it is. The curry leaf plant actually flowers even though the  small white flowers are nothing to shout about, but they as highly fragrant. as the leaves The small black shiny berries are edible, but their seeds are said to be poisonous.   Aside from cooking curry, the curry leaves has other culinary uses as well.  I like to use the curry leaf in cooking seafood dishes such as  prawns, shellfish, crabs etc.

The curry leaf apparently are said to be anti-diabetic antioxidant antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, anti-hypercholesterolemic etc.  (The reader can read more on this by referring to sources quoted in the Wikipedia).

Recognize this herb? Yes, it is the mint leaves, used in the assam laksa.  The fragrant scent is very distinct and one never fail to recognize this plant.  This herb propagates easily.  I bought a bunch of these mint leaves from the wet market. After picking away the leaves to be used for cooking, I just stick the stalks in some fresh soil. Very soon the stalks would have taken root and leaves appearing. Like most herbal plants, this one need needs moisture and well drained soil. Add a little general fertilizer or even fish water, and the leaves will be big and nice......yummy! 

More on next blog.