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Chapter 17

Traditional Green Vegetables in Kenya

Paul L. Woomer and Maryam Imbumi

Traditional green vegetables occupy an important role in household nutrition throughout Kenya, particularly in rural areas, as these are the main source of vitamins and provide variety to meals otherwise consisting of maize, beans and occasionally, meat stews.  These green vegetables also provide a secondary source of proteins (IPGRI, 1997; Maundu et al., 1999).  In general, green leaves and young stems are collected, washed, chopped and either steamed or boiled in combination with other vegetables then fried with onions and tomatoes.  These vegetables are now being grown in rural and peri-urban areas for market, both locally and for urban consumption and are likely to become more important within urban gardens as well.  Yet, many consumers in urban areas as well as Central Kenya consider sukuma wiki (or kale, Brassica oleraceae var. acephala) and Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris var. cicla), mistakenly referred to as spinach (Spinacia oleracea), to be preferred green vegetables.  It is hoped that this chapter will provide greater recognition to the traditional alternatives. 

Many community-based workers and development specialists mistakenly popularize the use of “indigenous spinach” while referring to some plants that are not actually native to East Africa.  “Indigenous” plants are those that have evolved within and spread throughout an area unassisted by humans.  Some of the plants used as green vegetables are in fact indigenous, such as cowpea (Vigna unguiculata, kunde in Kiswahili), spider plant (Cleome gynandra) and crotalaria (Crotalaria ochroleuca). 

Other popular plants are “naturalized exotics” that have originated elsewhere, but arrived in Kenya many years ago and are now widespread throughout East Africa.  Many of the most important crops in smallhold farms of Kenya belong to this category. Maize and beans, along with cassava and pumpkin originated from Tropical America and were spontaneously adopted and spread by farmers throughout the continent of Africa after introduction by early European explorers in the 15^th and 16^th Centuries.  Today many African farmers are unaware that these are not “African” crops.  Kale (Brassica oleracea ssp. acephala, sukuma wiki) and Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris ssp. cicla) are two important leafy green vegetables originating from Europe and S.W. Asia respectively that are widely grown by East African highland farmers.  Yet another category of plants are those that are “pan-tropical” and cosmopolitan.  For example, the many types of green vegetable Solanum (Solanum nigrum complex) is so widespread, no one is sure of its origin.

To use “indigenous” and “traditional” as synonymous is a mistake because it does not account for the natural and anthropogenic movement of useful plants.  From a practical perspective, it does not really mater if a crop is endemic, indigenous or exotic as long as it is valued and contributes to household needs.   The term “traditional” encompasses indigenous species as well as widely distributed exotics that have become an important part of the food culture.  Farm biodiversity is emerging as an important issue, and special consideration should be given to indigenous crop plants in this regard because it is within a “Center of Origin” that the greatest genetic diversity occurs.  For this reason, we refer to the various green vegetables as indigenous, naturalized or exotic in the following section, and leave it to readers to determine whether or not they wish to attach special importance to crops that are truly indigenous to East Africa.

Traditional Green Vegetables: The Plants

Amaranth (Amaranthus dubius), mchicha (Swahili), terere (Kikuyu), lidodo (Luhya), ododo (Luo), kelichot (Kipsigis), w’oa (Kamba), emboga (Kisii), kichanya (Taita), doodo (Luganda).  A herbaceous annual belonging to the family Amaranthaceae with green or red leaves and branched flower parts (heads) bearing small, black, shiny seeds.  While originating from Tropical America it is now very widely distributed throughout the tropics. Plants are generally sown straight but may be started as seedlings, transplanted to 20 cm spacing and harvested at a height of 30 cm,   requiring   six   weeks   after transplanting. 

The leaves are separated from the larger stems and cooked.  The cooked leaves contain about 8% protein, 4% carbohydrates and are rich in calcium, iron and vitamins B and C.  For example, only 47 g of cooked leaves contain 100% of the minimum daily requirement of Vitamin C (Maundu et al., 1999). Many other species of Amaranth occur in East Africa, some are serious weeds but others are also eaten including A. hybridus from Tropical America, A. graecizans and A. blitum.  Seeds of mchicha are marketed by Simlaw seeds of Nairobi in 25 g packets although poor germination has been observed within some batches.

Cowpea  (Vigna unguiculata), kunde (Kiswahili), mathoroko (Kikuyu), likhuvi (Luhya), a lot-bo (Luo), nthooko (Kamba), egesare (Kisii), kunde (Kipsigis), Kiyindiru (Luganda).  A climbing, spreading or erect annual herb belonging to the bean family or Leguminosae (Papilionaceae).  Cowpea is native to Africa where it was domesticated over 4000 years ago.  The crop exhibits much variation in growth habit, leaf shape, flower colour and seed size and colour. 

Cowpeas are started from seed planted about 20 to 40 cm apart and are often grown as an intercrop with maize.  When produced as a green vegetable, it is commonly grown as a monocrop in rows 30 to 40 cm apart with 8 to 12 cm between plants.  The dried seeds, fresh seeds, pods, leaves and young stems are edible.  Some varieties are good for leaves while others are good for seeds.  Some very drought resistant types may grow for two seasons in the farm.  Tender cowpea leaves and shoots contain 4% protein, 4% carbohydrates and are rich in calcium, phosphorus and vitamin B.  Dried seeds contain 22% protein and 61% carbohydrates (Maundu et al., 1999).  The leaves may be dried and stored for later use.   Cowpeas are generally tolerant of drought and low light conditions, but are very susceptible to a variety of insects and diseases and do not do well in poorly drained and cool areas.  Cowpeas that are sprayed with pesticides should not be eaten as leaves.  One additional benefit of cultivating cowpeas is its ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen in root nodules through symbiosis with a rhizobium bacteria that is common in most soils.

Crotalaria (Crotalaria ochroleuca), miroo (Luhya), mitoo (Luo), kamusuusuu (Kamba), kipkururiet (Kipsigis), oleechei (Maa) lala (Acholi), aubi (Luganda).  A short-lived, erect perennial herb growing up to 1.5 metres in height, indigenous to Africa and belonging to the bean family or Leguminosae (Papilionaceae).  In Kenya, it occurs primarily in Nyanza and Western Provinces and can grow at elevations up to 2000 metres but does best in warm areas

The leaves are divided into 3 long, narrow leaflets, the flowers are yellow with purple veins and the pods are short, fat and contain numerous, small yellow to orange seeds.  The plant is seldom found in the wild and is grown from seeds cultivated in rows or fertilized, raised beds.  The leaves are eaten as a cooked green, usually in combination with other greens because Crotalaria has bitter taste.  The leaves contain up to 9% protein.  Another species, Crotalaria brevidens, prepared in a similar manner has a wider range within Kenya, extending from Eastern Province to Lake Victoria and is distinguished by its wider leaves and longer, thinner pods.  Crotalaria is also a nitrogen-fixing legume.

Jute (Corchorus olitorius), mlenda (Swahili), murere (Luhya), chikosho (Kambe), namale (Turkana), omotere (Kisii), vombo (Giriama), ntereryan (Tugen), otigo winyo (Acholi), mutere (Lusoga).  An erect woody herb growing up to 2.5 meters high belonging to the family Tiliaceae and originally from Asia but now naturalized in Africa and Tropical America.  The elongate leaves reach 15 cm long with serrated margins and are eaten as a cooked green.  The raw leaves contain 5% protein and 12% carbohydrates and are high in vitamins B and C.  Jute is usually combined with other greens such as cowpea leaves or Crotalaria as it is somewhat slimy when prepared on its own.  Jute seldom grows above 1500 meters above sea level.  It is planted from seed in rows and is usually harvested by uprooting whole plants or cutting branches and combining them into bunches.  This last method of harvest stimulates the production of more branches.  Jute is also used in Asia to make a coarse fibre and the bark and root have medicinal properties.

Pumpkin (Cucurbita maxima), malenge (Kiswahili), marenge (Kikuyu), lisebebe (Luyha), risosa (Kisii), ulenge (Kamba), bododa (Borana).  A spreading annual belonging to the family Cucurbitaceae and native to North America.  It was cultivated in Mexico as much as 7000 years ago.  This species and the related ones provide pumpkins, squashes, gourds and their leaves are usually used as vegetables. These species which are North American in origin include C. pepo, C. moschata and C. mixta.  Distinguishing them is often difficult.  Pumpkins have long-running, bristled stems, large deeply-lobed leaves often containing white “blotches” and yellow or orange flowers separated into male and female types on the same plant. 

Pumpkins are grown from seed by planting in hills 1 to 2 m. apart and prefer well-drained soils that are fertilized with compost or manure.  The fruit may rot when in contact with moist soil, so often cut grass or leaves are placed beneath the fruit. Pumpkin is susceptible to leaf fungi (mildews) and virus disease (mosaic), but these usually appear later in the life of the crop.  Pumpkin leaves that are sprayed with fungicide should not be eaten as spinach.

The leaves, fruit and seeds are edible, with the fruit usually boiled or steamed and the seeds roasted.  The younger leaves are collected and the outer tough skin of petioles (stalk of leaf) removed (together with the large leaf veins) then washed, chopped and boiled.  The fruit is variable in shape and color but is often white, cream or green, containing about 70% flesh and several large white seeds.  Pumpkin fruit contains 1% protein and 8% carbohydrates, and the dried seeds contain 23% protein, 21% carbohydrates and up to 50% oil, but little information is available about the nutritional characteristics of cooked leaves.

Solanum species (Solanum nigrum complex), nightshade (English), mnavu (Kiswahili), managu (Kikuyu), namaska (Luhya), osuga (Luo), isoiyot (Kipsigis), kitulu (Kamba), ormomoi (Maa), ndunda (Taifa), nsugga (Luganda). This plant is an erect, many-branched herb growing 0.5 to 1.0 m high that is widely distributed throughout the tropics.  The plant bears thin, oval, slightly purplish leaves up to 15 cm in length, numerous white flowers and usually purple to black, round  berries about 0.75 cm in diameter containing many small, flattened, yellow seeds. Plants are established on raised beds from seeds that are planted at a spacing of approximately 10 cm.  Solanum plays an important role in traditional medicine in Africa and elsewhere, but the leaves are considered poisonous in some areas of the world so one should be careful about obtaining seeds for planting.  Seeds are marketed by Simlaw Seeds in Nairobi under the name Black Nightshade in 25 gram packets and another source with particularly large, tasty leaves is available from SACRED-Africa, Bugoma, Western Kenya (see Appendix).

The leaves are eaten as a cooked vegetable, often mixed with other vegetables and the fresh fruits of some types are also consumed.  Some Solanum varieties are preferred for their bitter taste while others are considered “sweet”, particularly after being boiled and the water discarded. The raw leaves contain 4% protein, 6% carbohydrates and are moderately high in vitamin C.  Many types of Solanum species are fond in Kenyan vegetable gardens including S. americanum, S. eldorettii, S. scabrum (in picture), and S. villosum.  The plant’s leaves and growth tips are susceptible to mites (very small, sucking arthropods) that result in twisted growth and low productivity. 

Spider Plant (Cleome gynandra), cat’s whiskers (English), saga, mwangani  (Swahili), thageti (Kikuyu), tsisaka (Luhya), alot-dek (Luo), saget (Kalenjin), chinsaga (Kisii), mwianzo (Kamba), jjobyu (Luganda), yobyu (Lusoga).  Spider plant is an erect herbaceous annual herb with hairy, often purple stems and many branches growing to a height of 1.0 meter.  The plant has edible leaves that contain up to 7 leaflets spreading like the fingers of the palm and leaflets growing up to 8 cm long.  The flowers are rather showy, long and bearing many small white or pink flowers.  The elongate fruit resembles a pod, but is refered to as a capsule, containing many small, dark seeds.  Spider plant originated in Africa and Tropical Asia but now has a worldwide distribution, including North and South America, the Far East, Australasia and the Pacific Islands.  It belongs to the family Capparidaceae.  In Kenya, It grows from sea level to 2400 metres.  The plant is either cultivated or harvested from the wild, and when cultivated, it is usually grown by broadcasting seeds on raised beds.  It is a fast-growing plant that is ready for harvest in as few as three weeks. 

The leaves are eaten as a cooked green vegetable, have a mildly bitter taste and contain 5% protein, 6% carbohydrates and are high in vitamins A and C, calcium, phosphorus and iron.  The bitter taste is derived from polyphenolics, which constitute from 0.5% to 0.9% of the edible leaf (Chweya and Mnzawa, 1997).  The plant is able to tolerate infertile soils and short-term drought but is susceptible to chewing insects and birds.  The leaves are usually cooked when fresh but may also be dried and stored for up to two years although this practice greatly reduces the crop’s nutrition value.   Spider plant is believed to replenish blood and therefore referred to as a 'traditional meat' by some Kenyan communities.

Other, less common traditional green vegetables include traditional kale (Brassica carinata), water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica), arrowroot (Colocasia esculenta) and stinging nettle (Urtica massaica).  More information on the characteristics and preparation of these vegetables may be obtained from Maundu et al. (1999) and Woomer (2002).

FORMAT and the Traditional Green Vegetable Cooking Contest

Organic resources that were overlooked or taken for granted in the past are now becoming recognized as valuable assets by farmers and entrepreneurs.  Substantial gains are made in the use of organic resources but these accomplishments seem insufficiently communicated among farmers, entrepreneurs, agricultural extension specialists, grassroot organizations, policymakers and research scientists.  The Forum for Organic Resource Management and Agricultural Technologies (FORMAT) was formed in 2000 as an informal association of stakeholders whose common purpose was to popularize innovation in organic resource management.   One of FORMAT’s goals is to inform the public on how to better conserve, cultivate and prepare Kenya’s indigenous and traditional foods.  In keeping with this goal, FORMAT frequently includes Traditional Green Vegetable Cooking Contests within its events (Woomer, 2002).  The rules of the cooking contest are as follows.

1. Entries must primarily consist of indigenous leafy green vegetables that are boiled, fried or steamed and must be prepared start-to-finish within two hours using no more than two cooking vessels. 

2. Each contestant is provided similar cooking facilities but must supply their own pot, utensils and ingredients. 

3. Only one entry is allowed per participant in a single contest.  Every entry must be accompanied by a list of ingredients and recipe and will be judged shortly after preparation in the presence of the contestant.

4. The following ingredients are strictly forbidden; meat, fish, cheese, canned products, noodles, cocoyam corms and cassava roots (due to the lengthy cooking time necessary to detoxify cassava roots).  Cooking fat from animals may be used at the contestant’s discretion. 

5. Entries are permitted the use of non-indigenous plants, herbs and spices, but excess dependence upon non-traditional ingredients will be penalized during judging.

6. There are three judges, including a head judge, drawn from the scientific, academic or epicurean communities who evaluate the entries on the basis of taste, texture, presentation and any other criteria they deem important. 

7. Contestants may be called upon to sample their own entries before judging, and the judges may ask questions of contestants concerning the preparation of the entry.  The decision of the judges is final.

The event attracts many interested onlookers from the general public.  Many contestants preferred to cook on wood or charcoal fires using clay pots and traditional wooden utensils, a preference that was encouraged as it adds to the atmosphere of the event.  After judging, the entries are distributed in small paper plates and sampled by spectators.  Winners are announced and prizes distributed by the head judge.  Organizations hosting events designed to promote traditional foods are encouraged to include similar contests.

Selected Recipes

Amaranth, spider plant and groundnut relish (contributed by Adija Baraza)

Ingredients

Preparation.  Clean and wash both the green vegetables, chop the vegetables, onion and tomatoes and set aside for later use.  Heat the shortening or fat and fry the onion until soft and slightly brown.  Add the tomatoes, stir and cook until soft.  Add the green leafy vegetables, stir, cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Mix the groundnut powder into a smooth paste and add to the simmering vegetables, then salt to taste.  Cook for an additional 5 minutes.  Preparation yields four to six small portions and is best served while hot with ugali or mashed bananas.

Cream of nightshade spinach (contributed by Mathew K. Kwambai)

Ingredients

Preparation.  Pinch the leaves of nightshade from the main stalk while retaining a very small leaf stem.  Wash the leaves in a basin and drain off the water.  Bring the water to boil and put the leaves into the boiling water for 25 minutes, then remove from fire and drain excess water.  Heat vegetable oil in a pan and add the chopped onions, stirring occasionally until the onions are soft.  Add tomatoes and the boiled nightshade leaves and cook for two minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the cream and one liter of water, cover and simmer for five minutes.  This preparation makes four servings and is best served while hot with ugali.  An alternative recipe involves the addition of 1 to 2 cups of other traditional green vegetables, particularly spider plant or amaranth, with the nightshades.

Crotalaria and jute with boiled milk (contributed by Mary Wangila)

Ingredients

Preparation. Remove the Crotalaria and jute leaves from the stems and discard the stems.  Wash Crotalaria and jute leaves, drain and allow to dry for several minutes. Add Crotalaria and jute leaves to ½ litre water, 1 tablespoon of traditional salt and 1 tablespoon ordinary salt and heat the mixture to boiling.  Boil the leaves for 20 minutes while stirring occasionally.  Add ½ litre milk, stir gently and simmer for 10 minutes. The preparation yields from four to six medium portions and is best served with ugali.

Spider plant with coconut milk (contributed by Maryam Imbumi)

Ingredients

Preparation.  Harvest the young spider plant leaves including the stem tips then remove the leaf stalks. Wash the leaves with clean water and cut into small pieces.  Place into a pot containing 0.25 liter of water, add 1 teaspoon of salt then vegetables and boil over a medium fire for 10 minutes. Next add 0.25 liter of dilute coconut milk and boil for 10 minutes.  When leaves are cooked, mash in pot and add oil (or cow fat). Using a separate sufuria fry onions till brown, add tomatoes then vegetables and 0.25 liter of thick coconut milk (or fresh cow’s milk), then cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Provides 4 to 6 medium portions.  Best served with chapati, rice or ugali. To mix with other vegetables, boil Amaranth leaves and spider plant separately. When cooked, mix both then mash in one pot. 

Recent Commercial and Consumer Trends

Traditional green vegetables are marketed in Kenya’s urban areas.  Harvesting the relatively small leaves one-by-one is labour-consuming and generally not practiced when traditional green vegetables are grown commercially.  Rather, whole plants are harvested when they are 20 to 40 cm in height, tied into bundles and sent to market.  These bundles are marketed through both informal (roadside) and formal outlets and it is not uncommon to find bins of traditional vegetables being sold in Nairobi’s largest supermarkets.  In effect, selling these vegetables in bundles transfers the labor requirement of obtaining leaves that are ready-to-cook to the consumer and this task is not greatly appreciated.  Opportunity exists for entrepreneurs to develop frozen or dried products that are more readily prepared.  One such pilot product, Instant Mboga, was displayed at FORMAT-West in 2002 by Alice Masinde.  Leaves of various green vegetables, including pumpkin, Solanum and spider plant, were blanched, air dried and then packaged with dried onions and tomatoes.  This product cooks very quickly and is difficult to distinguish from the fresh vegetables. 

Another approach is to obtain, clean and cook larger quantities of green vegetables and then bag and freeze them.  These frozen vegetables may be added to sautéed onions and tomatoes, and different recipes prepared by adding milk, coconut or groundnut as described earlier in this chapter.  Processing the leaves then becomes an occasional weekend family activity.  Opportunity also exists to prepare these vegetables in a more innovative manner.  For example, I recently prepared vegetarian lasagna using a mixture of amaranth, Solanum and spiderplant spinach, and dinner guests were amazed at the results.  Whether they are obtained from the home garden or the supermarket, traditional green vegetables remain an important food in Kenya but we must continue to find new and more convenient ways to process, market and prepare these important foods. 

References

Chweya, J.A. and Mnzawa, N.A. 1997. Cat’s Whiskers (Cleome gynandra L.) International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, Rome. 54 pp.

IPGRI. 1997. Traditional African Vegetables. Promoting the conservation and use of under-utilized and neglected crops.  The proceedings of a conference held by the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), August 1995, ICRAF, Nairobi, Kenya.  171 pp.

Maundu, P.M., Ngugi, G.W. and Kabuye, C.H.S. 1999. Traditional Food Plants in Kenya. Kenya Resource Centre for Indigenous Knowledge. National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi. 270 pp.

Woomer, P.L. 2002. The Traditional Green Vegetable Cookbook. Forum for Organic Resource Management and Agricultural Technologies. Nairobi. 46 pp.

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