Calaloo

You may be familiar with Amaranth. In Creole people call it Calaloo, the English say pig weed. To the ancient Maya and Aztecs, Amaranth was sacred and also a food source. Before the Spanish arrived, the Maya made ceremonial cakes out of roasted amaranth seeds mixed with human blood. The Spanish conquerors considered the custom barbaric and outlawed its cultivation for many generations.

Today it grows wild and cultivated in Maya villages throughout the world. The young leaves are ready to harvest in 3 weeks and last for many months. It is eaten as an excellent treatment for anemia, tiredness, constipation, and poor nutrition. Crushed leaves help stop bleeding on cuts and scrapes and cleans wounds and sores. The leaf juice is also used to strengthen women during pregnancy, stop excess menstruation, and increase lactation.

The dark leafy greens and tender steams can be boiled, sautéed, or eaten raw. It is packed with easy-to-digest iron, minerals, vitamins, and protein. Unlike spinach, amaranth greens don’t lose their minerals when cooked. I add it to soups, which infuses the broth with iron and nutrients. Scrambled with eggs, sautéed with onion and garlic, layered in casserole, the list continues. I use it almost everyday. My body craves calaloo.

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