Tuesday, September 6, 2011

A New Find: Sweet Potato Leaves (& How to Cook Them)

I am always on the lookout for "new" foods and I found one—sweet potato leaves—at a farmers' market this weekend.

I had never seen the greens for sale before (and didn't even know they were edible), but, according to Nevia No, the farmer who was selling them, they are popular throughout the world.

I sautéed the leaves (and stems) in a touch of olive oil, just like I would any other dark, leafy green. (Click here to watch a video showing how.)

The stems were quite delicate and cooked quickly, while I added the greens to the pan after turning of
f the heat. Seasoning, like usual, consisted of a little fresh lemon juice, unrefined sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

Even though No sa
id the flavor was a combination of sweet potato, okra and spinach, I tasted mostly spinach, with a hint of sweet potato. They were delicious.

No said there will be a piece about sweet potato leaves in this week's New York magazine; it'll be interesting to see if they catch on at farmers' markets and restaurants.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Imagine my surprise to see large "bouquets" of purslane for sale at my farmers markets, when last year the same vendor on his blog decried the invasion of purslane into his fields. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em, I guess. I understand that chickweed is edible and have found it in salad mix (but probably because it couldn't all be picked out before the sale). I wonder why these foods are disdained. If they are known to be edible, they must have been eaten at one time.