Malabar Spinach continues to flourish

I posted a snapshot of the Malabar Spinach soon after having planted it:

https://bkhome.org/news/202011/malabar-spinach-is-taking-off.html

Look at it one month later:

...and that's after I have pruned it a bit! It was sending tentacles out along the ground, that I cut off, have also been cutting off leaves for salads.

A comment about that, using the leaves in salads and cooking...

On the Internet in various places it is stated that the leaves taste like Spinach. Hmmm, vaguely yes, but the plant is mucilaginous, so the leaves are slightly slimy to chew. Not too slimy though, and I found them OK in salads. Cooked, they turn to mush very quickly.

I also read on the Internet that the stems and berries are edible. Can't say about the berries yet, but the stems are inedible -- they are just too stringy. I cooked them in a curry, leaves and stems. Chew the stems, and you end up with a wad of string in your mouth. Even cutting them very short didn't help.

On the left of the photo is another that I planted recently, the "alba" variety. The two on the right are the "rubra" (red stem) variety. I want to find out if there is any difference in taste and texture. The alba leaves do look slightly lighter green. 

Interesting also, they are not getting any direct sunlight. Mid-summer, the roof eave keeps them in shade all day. In winter however, they will get direct sunlight, which might keep them going all year round. 

Tags: general