Portulaca oleraceais a smooth low growing succulent plant with reddish stems and underside of leaves, alternate leaves. It has small yellow flowers which produce many sand size black seeds. It often grows in gardens and fields as a weed. Make sure that the purslane is well washed of dirt and grit (usually best to wash it in a bowl of water). (Careful often this plant is the target of the herbicide in some agricultural operations.)
One thing that makes this plant special is that the fat it does have contains omega-3 fatty acids, which some research indicates is useful in preventing heart attacks. Have you been scorning the plant that could keep your heart? It has also been used to treat arthritis and inflammation.
"I have made a satisfactory dinner off a dish of Purslane which I gathered and boiled. Yet men have come to such a pass that they frequently starve, not from want of necessaries, but for want of luxuries." - Henry David Thoreau
P U R S L A N E R A T A T O U I L L E
2 cups chopped purslane
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 bell pepper
2 cups canned or fresh tomatoes
1-4 oz can of sliced mushrooms
Salt to taste
Sprinkle of garlic powder
Soy sauce (optional)
Cook purslane, onion and pepper until tender. Add remaining ingredients and simmer a few minutes. Rice can be added to the mixture if desired and cooked for 20-40 minutes.
Replace the lettuce in any salad with fresh raw p u r s l a n e!
Texas Agricultural Extension Service
Zov's Lebanese Fattouch Salad with Purslane
