by Jenise » Tue Oct 13, 2009 2:35 pm
Lisa, welcome back! {{{{group hug}}}}
I may have found what you're looking for. I looked up horseradish leaves in Charmaine Solomon's Encyclopedia of Asian Cooking (thank you for mentioning that you found these at an Asian store), in which I found a listing for Horseradish Tree (Moringa pterygosperma, M. oleifera) which described an edible bean produced by the tree that is separately called a Drumstick. Under a listing for Drumstick beans I found what you may be looking for, here are the salient points:
"Sometimes referred to as a bean, this long, rigid pod grows on a tree rather than a vine...both pods and leaves are relished...known as the horseradish tree since the roots have a similar pungent taste, theyu are used by Europeans in tropical lands as a substitute for true horseradish.
In Asian cooking it is hte half-ripe pods and compound leaves made up of many small, tender rounded leaflets which are most used in a culinary context. Native to India, it now grows wild in the West Indies and some southern parts of North Ameria. The flavor of the pods has been compared with asparagus and the texture with marrow. They are a popular ingredient in vegetable curries....
Drumstick leaves are used not only for their tangy flavour but also because they have a reputation for neutralizing any poison, especially when cooking crabs. I would not put any faith in that, however. Make sure the crabs are fresh and clean them...then the leaves of the horsradish tree will not be neccessary as a safeguard, though they do add a pleasant sour taste.
If picked at a sufficiently early stage, the leaves may be blanched, dipped in nam prik and eaten as they are in Thailand. Mature leaves are sold in bundles in markets. If the bunch weighs around 375 g you will probably end up with about 250g (8 ounces) of edible leaves. The stems and even smaller stalks are usually too tough. In the Philippines, it is only the leaves which are eaten as a vegetable, being very high in vitamin and mineral content and containing 7-10% protein."
Here's a RCP (recipe) for Spiced Drumstick Leaves from the same book:
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp salt
juice of one lime
4 tblsp grated coconut
4 ounces drumstick leaves, washed, shaken dry and stripped off stems
Put all ingredients except leaves in a saucepan with 3 tblsp water. Cover and simmer until onion is soft. Add leaves and toss. Cook uncovered to preserve their green color for about 10 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated.
My wine shopping and I have never had a problem. Just a perpetual race between the bankruptcy court and Hell.--Rogov
