RECIPE: PUMPKIN LEAVES WITH GROUND PEANUTS

One of the best recipes for pumpkin leaves that I love is pumpkin leaves with ground peanuts. In Malawi, the dish is usually eaten with Nsima and stew (can be chicken, beef, or fish). Nsima is a very thick corn flour porridge that looks like a thick paste. You can organically grow pumpkin leaves for food in your home garden.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups of chopped young pumpkin leaves
• 2 medium tomatoes
• 1 small onion
• 1 cup ground peanuts OR 4 very full tablespoons of peanut butter
• 1 cup water (more only when needed)
• Pinch of salt to taste

PREPARING INSTRUCTIONS

Wash the pumpkin leaves well.

Peel the stem and follow the strands through the leaf spines to remove small spikes. These are the areas where the spikes are more protruding. It seems like a daunting task but they easily peel off.

Chop the leaves (cut leaves to a good size, not too small).

Cut the onions.

Cut tomatoes. I usually put tomatoes in boiled water for about 2 or 3 minutes and peel off the skin before cutting them.

You can buy already made ground peanuts from African or Asian shops. Otherwise, grind peanuts using a mortar and pestle until you see more of a white color than brown. Use a sifter to collect the ground peanuts without chunks. If all this is too much work, you can use already made peanut butter you buy from the shops.

Photo: All ingredients used  (but peanut butter used instead of ground peanuts).

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

Put in a pot, water, chopped pumpkin leaves, tomatoes, onions, ground peanuts or peanut butter, and salt to taste. Cover the pot and let it simmer until soft and tender (it might take about 10 minutes). Stir after every couple of minutes for the ground peanuts to be evenly distributed. To make sure the dish doesn’t dry, add more water to keep it moist and creamy. Don’t add too much water because you don’t want to make it watery.