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nancyk
August 03, 2018
By Barb Henry - Victoria County Master Gardener
Edited by Charla Borchers Leon
PHOTO BY SHUTTERSTOCK.COM
Purslane is not only a popular, colorful selection for the garden, but it also is an herb with healthy nutritious qualities used in salads and other foods. Raw, it has a crisp, tangy taste, and is rich in omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins with few calories. Totally edible, notice the stems on the left sidelining the bowl with mixed greens including purslane and tomatoes.
Set aside a few raw sprigs of purslane for garnish. Steam or blanch the rest until tender-crisp (three to five minutes). Drain thoroughly, transfer to a plate covered with several layers of paper towels and blot dry.
In a large pan, sauté garlic and onion in vegetable oil until soft. Add tomato and chile, and sauté until the mixture becomes sauce-like. Season with soy sauce. (If you aren't using the chile, add freshly ground black pepper.) Sauté until mixture is warm and the flavors marry.
When ready to serve, add beaten egg to warm mixture in the pan and mix gently. The egg will bind the mixture loosely but should not harden into scrambled eggs. Garnish plate servings with reserved sprigs.
This is a home-type dish that is as simple to prepare as "scrambled eggs with..." but much more nutritious. Serve as a side dish, a brunch main dish or as a filling in tortillas and pitas.
YIELD: 4 servings
PER SERVING (estimated):
91 calories
4 g protein
9 g carbohydrate
5 g fat
68 mg cholesterol
200 mg sodium
68 percent U.S. RDA Vitamin A
77 percent U.S. RDA Vitamin C
Source: TAMU Aggie website
The Gardeners’ Dirt is written by members of the Victoria County Master Gardener Association, an educational outreach of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension – Victoria County. Mail your questions in care of the Advocate, P.O. Box 1518, Victoria, TX 77901; or vcmga@vicad.com.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY BARB HENRY/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
A pot full of beautiful, mostly yellow purslane blooms with five petals and two lobes each brighten surroundings outside the dining hall at Brookdale Copperfield Village in North Victoria. Heat- and drought-tolerant, the leaves of this ornamental succulent are paddle shaped, (obovate), fleshy and rubbery and are on round stems.
I’ve always admired the lovely hanging baskets of yellow or red purslane.
Most common are Portulaca umbraticola and Portulaca sativa, which are ornamental purslanes that bloom all summer and are very heat- and drought-tolerant. There are about 40 cultivars currently being grown.
Moss rose (Portulaca grandiflora) is another member of the Portulaca family.
Purslane is an herb that is native to Asia but has spread all over the world. An annual succulent, purslane is in the family Portulacaceae and is known by several names including portulaca, red root and pursley; in Mexico it is called verdolaga or Mexican parsley. It is also called Dolly Parton plant for the characteristic that blooms open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and then close up for the evening.
This succulent comes in a large variety of colorful blooms, but the stems are always round, smooth and with a reddish tinge. With the exception of moss rose, the leaves are paddle-shaped (obovate), fleshy and rubbery. Flowers have five petals with two lobes. Some of the cultivars have double flowers.
Moss rose blooms more resemble a daisy and its leaves are not paddle-shaped, but needle-like and very plump.
Portulaca always had a very short lifespan when I got them home. My research has shown me my mistakes.
A succulent that loves full sun to part shade, it needs very little water or care. I was hanging it in the shade and drowning it. No wonder.
It will grow in any type of soil as long as it is well drained. It needs no fertilizer.
Purslane grows outward in a circular shape from a main tap root. Growing close to the ground, it may reach up to 16 inches in height.
To many, especially farmers, the wild version of this plant, Portulaca oleracea, is a weed that is hard to get rid of and grows very quickly. It will sprout and cover newly cultivated areas as well as clear uncultivated spots.
Getting to know more about this fast-growing succulent, I have discovered that it is not only attractive and easy to grow, but is also edible and quite nutritious, with the whole plant being edible.
Raw it has a slightly sour and salty taste that is nice in salads. Some think it has a lemony taste and others compare it to spinach. It can be added to soups and stews, omelets and casseroles. If overcooked, it can become a bit slimy like okra.
From ancient times it has been eaten in China to promote health. It is a popular vegetable in Mediterranean regions. Purslane is very high in omega-3 fatty acids, the highest of any other green vegetable and contains vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B, magnesium, calcium, potassium and iron.
Purslane is a very healthy plant to add to your diet. The only warning noted is it is not recommended if you are prone to kidney stones.
This excerpt from the TAMU Aggie horticultural website states, “Although purslane has proliferated as a wild edible around the world for centuries, in its renaissance, purslane is acclaimed for not one but two starring attractions: The rediscovery of its cooking possibilities – its tinker-toy eye appeal, crisp texture and lightly tangy taste – and the scientific discovery of its potentially healthful omega-3 fatty acids.
If this weren’t enough, it has above-average values of vitamins A and C and provides all of these goodies with only 15 calories in a 100-gram portion (as compared with 76 in a boiled potato).”
Purslane/portulaca can be propagated by seed or cuttings.
If growing from seed, simply scatter the seeds on top of the soil where you wish the plants to grow. The seed pods explode, throwing seeds quite far from the mother plant. Therefore, it spreads far and fast and can tend to become invasive.
Keep in mind that this herb is an annual, and although it will probably reseed itself, it might be good to collect some seeds for next season. If you harvest purslane to eat, be sure to only use that which has not been chemically treated.
To propagate from cuttings, just lay them on top of the soil and water. They will take root in a few days.
Angelonia and calibrachoa are two of various good choices to plant together with purslane. They all thrive in hot weather and have low water and high sunlight requirements.
It is still timely to add purslane/portulaca (moss rose) to your garden or container setting as there is likely a lot more hot and dry conditions ahead.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY CHARLA BORCHERS LEON/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
With some 40 known cultivars of purslane (portulaca) being grown, there are also new hybrid varieties like the one shown in yellow and pink in this hanging basket. Purslane does well in any kind of ground or container well-draining soil as well as in hanging baskets with blooms that reach to the sky from morning to early evening during this time of year.
PHOTO CONTRIBUTED BY CHARLA BORCHERS LEON/VICTORIA COUNTY MASTER GARDENER
Moss rose, commonly known as portulaca, is a member of the Portulacaceae family and is distinguished by small, daisy-like blooms and needle-like, plump leaves. It can often serve as a colorful filler or spiller in a container during hot, humid conditions with beautiful blooms that open during the day and close at night. Portulaca (moss rose) is currently available at local garden centers in the area and ready to be planted for continuous summer-time conditions.
ph: 361-935-1556
nancyk