TREE SPINACH- EFO IYANA IPAJA OR UGWU JERUSALEM IS SUPERFOOD

 

Scientific name: Jatropha tanjorensis

You see this vegetable in the photos - it's a Super food I.e. it is delicious with lots of nutritional/health benefits. In fact, it is medicinal. 

When I started growing it in my garden, I initially cringed at the idea of eating it. Why? Because it was terrorising my skin once  my body makes contact with the leaves. So why was I growing It? I wanted to provide shade for the snails that I started rearing for practical knowledge. 

I also wanted readily available leaves I could cut for the snails to feed on. This plant is not seasonal like many other crops, it sprouts  easily and grows all year round.  It is an evergreen, drought-resistant shrub growing up to  2metres to 5metres tall. 

It is also ornamental - it adds some beauty to the garden. I plant them in sacks and  water regularly.

Some gardeners kept telling me it was nice to eat. I kept thinking 'No way. How can I possibly eat something that itches my skin so badly when working in the garden?'

 I would have to rush to get my Organic lotion to apply on the part of my skin it touches for relief. If not it could itch so badly and that part of the skin could even swell up. 

But when I started researching information on this vegetable, and found out the nutritional benefits, I decided to try using it to cook vegetable soup. 

I first learnt how to do the cooking of course.

You need to be careful when plucking it so it doesn't touch your skin. 

Soak the leaves in hot water for at least 15 minutes or more or boil for at least 3 minutes and drain off the water.

Cut the leaves and cook like you would cook other vegetables such as the well-known Ugwu leaves. I added some bit of bitterleaf and basil- scent leaves. Bitterleaf  prevents purging. 

When cooked, Efo Iyana Ipaja is  really tasty! 

#efoiyanaipaja #ugwuJerusalem #efoJerusalem #uguoyibo #Catholicvegetable #treespinach  #hospitaltoofar

The vegetable is very rich in Vitamin A and C,

excellent source of protein, other vitamins such as B1, calcium, iron, folate and ascorbic acid, fibre as well as a potent antioxidant.