Talbos ng Sayote

Divine Enya Mesina tells us why this is one of her fave vegetables.

                                                     

I discovered this longtime favorite leafy vegetable (of folks in Baguio, Mountain Province, and even parts of Ilocos) only last year. I first tasted it when a carpenter working on our house came to work one day carrying a bag loaded with a huge bunch of talbos ng sayote (sayote tops). "Nakatikim ka na ba nito?" (Have you tasted this?) he asked me. When I answered with "Hindi pa, pero nakikita ko na ’yang gulay na ’yan sa palengke," (Not yet, but I've seen that in the market)  he recited a litany of how delicious and nutritious it is.

Then for lunch, he pinched off the young shoots and steamed them for me. Those tasty greens together with crispy fried tilapia, a dip of juicy ripe tomatoes and red onions, and steaming white rice—mmm, I loved every single bite! And with green mango slices paired with bagoong alamang  (shrimp paste) on the side, it was one of the most satisfying meals I have ever had.

While the texture of sayote tops can easily be distinguished from other edible leaves and vegetable stems (it's a little rough and fuzzy to the touch), it's quite difficult to describe its taste. Just like the pear-shaped light green sayote this plant bears, talbos ng sayote is quite mild in flavor. Although it does have a slight hint of vegetable sweetness (absent in talbos ng kamote), talbos ng sayote doesn’t really have a strong distinctive taste, unlike the peppery dahon ng sili or the bitter talbos ng ampalaya.

Although I’ve heard that some people sauté talbos ng sayote with garlic and onions then simmer it with coconut milk while others use it as an ingredient in sinigang, I myself have never had talbos ng sayote beyond its simple steamed goodness. I might try upgrading it someday. But for now I’m quite content having it unadorned because these delicious and nutritious tendrils taste superb by itself.


Photography by At Maculangan

This article was published in the December 2009 issue of Yummy magazine.

• alvin Feb 28 2011 @ 08:47pm Report Abuse

     

  try to saute it with garlic and onion with fish sauce and dried hibe.