PURSLANE RECIPES
Purslane Cucumber Salad
Purslane and cucumbers are a match made in heaven. Don't hesitate to add purslane to any good cucumber recipe.
6 medium sized cucumbers, sliced
2 cups Purslane leaves
1 cup yogurt
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 tsp red wine vinegar (or try one of your herbal vinegars)
2 Tbsp chopped mint
1/2 tsp coarse black pepper
1. Slice cucumbers and mix together with Purslane in a salad bowl.
2. In a blender, mix together the rest of the ingredients for your dressing.
3. Coat the cucumber-purslane mixture well with the dressing. Serve chilled.
Note: It's best to put the dressing on just before serving. The salad becomes watery if prepared too much in advance. Makes about 8 servings.
Purslane Green Bean Marinade
This is basically a three-bean salad recipe, substituting raw purslane for one of the beans. You can try it with your favorite three-bean salad recipe. This is mine.
2 cups green beans
2 cups Purslane leaves
2 cups or 1 can cooked beans, any kind (try garbanzos, kidney beans, or lima beans)
1 small onion, minced
Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vinegar (try your herbal vinegar)
1 cloves garlic
pinch of salt
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp honey
2/3 cup fresh, chopped wild greens (or parsley)
Whiz everything together in a blender or food processor.
1. Cook green beans until tender. Let cool
2. Rinse cooked beans until water runs clear.
3. Mix together, fresh raw Purslane, green beans, bean and onion in a salad bowl.
4. Add dressing and let marinate overnight. Serve chilled. Makes about 6-8 servings.
Purslane Gazpacho
Gazpacho is a cold summer soup, made with fresh raw late summer garden vegetables. Since Purslane likes to grow when all these are ripe, it is a natural addition to any gazpacho. You can add it quite liberally, as it is mild and sweet, and boosts the nutritional value tremendously.
4 cups tomato juice
2 cups diced tomatoes
1 cucumber, peeled and finely minced
2 cups Purslane leaves (no need to chop unless they are exceptionally large)
1/2 cup finely minced onion or green scallions (I use a food processor to get it really fine)
1 clove garlic, minced fine
3 Tbsp lemon juice (or lime!)
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar (or herbal vinegar)
1 tsp basil
1 tsp tarragon
1/4 to 1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 cup minced parsley
2 to 3 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1. Combine all the above ingredients together.
2. Puree half of the mixture in a blender or food processor
3. Chill until very cold. Serve with a sprig of Purslane for a garnish.
This cold summer soup goes well with grated parmesan cheese and a nice chunk of sourdough garlic bread or some chips on the side. It makes a nice, light, nourishing lunch. Makes about 6 servings.
Purslane Pasta w/Cherry Tomatoes
This recipe showcases the Purslane very nicely. It's simple to make and very beautiful on the table.
6 cups cooked pasta (don't use long noodles)
3 cups fresh raw Purslane leaves
3 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1/2 cup minced green onions
Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup vinegar (try your herbal vinegar)
1 cloves garlic
pinch of salt
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp honey
2/3 cup fresh, chopped wild greens (or parsley)
Whiz everything together in a blender or food processor.
1. Combine cooled pasta, Purslane, cherry tomatoes, and onions in a salad bowl.
2. Add the dressing and let marinate for several hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
3. Serve cold.
This recipe is endlessly variable. You can add chunks of cheese, olives, slices of pepperoni or anything else that you like in your pasta salad.
Purslane Salsa
I like to make my Purslane salsa with tomatillos, but you can add the Purslane leaves to any favorite salsa recipe. The Purslane adds a wonderful texture to the salsa and helps to thicken it as well.
4 cups fresh tomatillos
2 cups Purslane leaves
1 small can of green chile peppers or 4 or 5 green chiles, roasted, de-seeded and peeled
3 cloves garlic, crushed (I use a heavy mortar and pestle called a 'mocalhete' and crush them until they are good and juicy)
1/4 cup minced cilantro, fresh
1/4 - 1/2 tsp salt
1. Put tomatillos in a blender and whiz them up.
2. Put the tomatillo puree into a pot and simmer for about 15 minutes, then let cool and chill.
3. Meanwhile, chop Purslane leaves coarsely.
4. Chop the green chili peppers, crush the garlic, and mince the cilantro.
5. Mix everything together and add the salt to taste.
This recipe makes about 1 1/2 pints. It's possible to can it but should be done in a pressure canner. This recipe multiplies well for larger batches.
Purslane Spanish Rice
The Purslane ends up being cooked in this recipe, rather than raw, but it adds a little extra texture and lots of good nutrients. You might consider mixing in some raw Purslane (about one cup) at the end of the cooking process to really showcase the Purslane.
3 cups rice (I've never tried this with wild rice, but why not?)
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 cups (one pint) Purslane Salsa
1 tsp salt
1. Saute the rice with olive oil in a heavy-bottom pot.
2. Add 6 cups water (9 cups if using wild rice), Purslane Salsa, and salt.
3. Bring to a boil and simmer briskly until rice is done,usually about 20 minutes.
4. Some people like to bake their Spanish rice in a 9x13 for 15 mintues or so to give it a drier texture. This is optional.
Note: One of the tricks to a nice pot of rice is not to stir it while it is cooking. This often makes it gummy. Simply simmer it until there is no sign of water when you tilt the pot to check on it. Take care not to burn it! Some rice cooks much faster than you think. |