Stir Fried Pumpkin Leaves

 What do you do when you have a backyard that has been taken over by unexpected pumpkin vines? You research them! :-) And then you find out that every bit of the vine is edible. And soon it is going to be freezing cold and all your pumpkin vines are going to die a natural death.  But before that, you tray and fit as many recipes as you can with as many parts of the vine as possible.

So starting at the top with the most tender leaves, tendrils, buds and baby fruit, I made two types of stir fry. Pumpkin leaves are a store house of vitamins and minerals and also have a high level of protein in them.  They are high in fibre and keep you fuller for longer - you guessed it - and therefore very good if you are trying to lose weight!

They can be eaten raw or cooked and today I have stir fried the leaves and garnished them in two different ways.

Ingredients:

1 big bunch of tender pumpkin leaves and tendrils (My bunch was close to 400 grams)

1 red onion

1 green chilli

1 tablespoon oil

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1 tablespoon desiccated coconut (garnish)

1 tablespoon peanuts (garnish)

1 tablespoon lime juice

salt to taste

Make sure your pumpkin leaves are organic and not sprayed with pesticides.  Pick the tender leaves at the top because the larger leaves tend to be bitter, according to what I read.

The leaves and stem are covered by soft fuzz - which can get spiky as the leaves get older.  Since I picked the tender leaves, the spikes were also soft.

Scrape all the fuzz away with a knife - most recipes recommend this - and this is the part that takes the longest time.  It took me an hour to clean the stems and leaves that I picked.

Wash the leaves well and get rid of dirt and insects. Drip dry in a colander.

Shred the leaves finely.

Chop the onion and the chilli.

In a saucepan, heat oil. When the oil gets hot, add the mustard seeds. When the mustard seeds crackle, add the onions and and sauté till it becomes translucent.  Next add the shredded pumpkin leaves. Do not add water as the pumpkin leaves will release water.  Cook the leaves in low fire till they are done. Add salt to taste.

I split the cooked leaves into two parts and garnished one with desiccated coconut and the other with roasted peanuts and lime juice.

Serve hot with rice and curry as a side dish.

The taste of pumpkin leaves is the same as amaranth, spinach or any of the other greens we use normally for cooking. I will definitely be making it again.