Did you know that these plants used in Malaysian cookery are
also members of the same flowering family as onions? Here are some interesting facts about some of
our most common culinary lilies.
Leek
Usually cut into short pieces and stir-fried with tofu or
towkua and prawns, our local leek is actually a little slimmer and less fibrous
than the ones found in European markets. Both are members of the Allium family
and the French have elevated leek dishes to an art from soups to stews, au
gratin and stuffed as well as braised leeks while in the former Czech Republic,
they are not cut but served whole, bulbs and all.
This common vegetable actually contains essential sulphuric
oils as well as the enzyme, alliin.
Chives
We usually think of chives as garnishes (during Chinese
festival prayers or with Chicken Rice) or when actually cooked, as a mild
flavouring complement. But even though we seldom see their pale purple flowers
in full bloom (because we eat them before they can open), Chives have a lot of Vitamin B and C, as well as carotene, essential
oils and trace minerals like potassium, phosphorus and iron.
Chives are said to be good for digestion as well as reducing
high blood pressure, too.
Garlic
Some varieties of garlic actually have flowers that bloom in
small bunches. The wild varieties are usually more pungent but also have a
higher content of essential oils. In some parts of the world, the leaves are
also used in cookery. But even though
garlic is mainly used to complement meat, fish and vegetable dishes, it has a
lot of herbal properties.
Garlic has allitin, which combats bacteria when transformed
by enzymes into allicin. And it also has Vitamins B and C as well as sulphur.
Have you ever seen flowering onions and other Alliums before?
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