Malungay leaves fresh from the market.
Malunggay (Moringa Oleifera) is cheaply available in the local market or even the groceries. It is becoming popular as a good substitute for “dahon sili” or chili leaves when cooking the local dish “tinolang manok.” Aside from using malunggay in cooking, it can be made into tea. I usually drink Chinese tea the whole day but I have turned to malunggay tea lately. It is not only cheaper but also more healthy. I share here the step by step process of making tea from malunggay leaves. Try making your own malunggay tea as it is very easy to do.
Strip the branches of leaves and put the leaves in a drying container. I use a mesh tray (actually a stationary tray) to dry it as the open mesh helps in drying the underside of the leaves. Solid trays accumulate moisture under the leaves which slows the drying.
You can dry the leaves under the sun or in an oven. Here I used my small oven turned to the lowest heat to dry the leaves. Set the timer of the oven at 5 minutes intervals so the leaves do not burn. After every 5 minutes, turn the leaves around for better drying.
After drying, use a blender to pulverize the leaves. Use flash mode in blender so it will not be so fine but coarse in texture. Store in air-tight container before use.
Using a coffee maker, put 2 to 3 tablespoon of malunggay leaves in coffee filter. Pour water in coffee maker enough for about 10 to 12 cup measurment. The result is a richly colored tea that can be consumed throughout the day.
To vary the flavor, I sometimes add lemon grass in tea bag on top of the malunggay leaves. The lemon grass tea bags are made by Carica. A box of 30 lemon grass tea bags costs P160.
Malunggay tea contains nutrients to support our body. It has many anti-oxidants and anti-inflamatory components that promotes proper and healthy circulatory system, healthy digestion and cellular structures. It enhances the skin’s health and apperance, strengthens immune system, increases energy and good metabolism. It also promotes cholesterol natural serum, normal function of liver and kidney and nourishes the eyes and brain.
Moringa is a beautiful fast-growing medium sized tree that is also a fierce power bloomer.
Moringa Oleifera locally known as Malunggay is considered one of the most beneficial trees in the world. From the foothills of the Himalayas to the shores of the Philippines, Moringa is actively cultivated as nutritional food. Dubbed as the “Miracle Plant,” nearly every part of the Moringa can be eaten for food and other beneficial properties. In fact, there is a huge global industry devoted to selling Moringa extracts via pills and liquid refreshments. Even the green pods are consumed and are said to taste like asparagus. You can also pick green seeds and treat them like garden peas. Or, dry pods are opened and the seeds toasted. The flowers are eaten cooked and taste like mushrooms. Since I got to know the wonderful properties of Malunggay, I use it in lieu of the more traditional chili leaves (“dahon ng sili”) in the Filipino dish, Tinolang Manok.
Moringa leaves are super nutritious. Claims include 7 times the vitamin C of oranges, 4 times the vitamin A of carrots, 4 times the calcium of milk and twice the protein, and 3 times the potassium of bananas Even the roots are eaten. Moringa roots taste like horseradish (root) hence it’s common name used in Florida, Horseradish Tree.
It is also known to be the best nutritional support for nursing mothers because it is not only rich in nutritional content but for its medicinal properties as well. By making vegetable soup out from fresh Moringa leaves, it has been found to increase the volume of breastmilk produced by lactating mothers. Another established medicinal property of Moringa Olfeira is its anti bacterial action. French scientists had found that Moringa contains an anti bacterial peptide (a molecule composed of two or more amino acids, the building blocks of proteins) that can destroy the cell membrane of many infectious bacteria.
Aside from its nutritional and health benefits of Moringa, through its seeds it has the full potential of producing biofuel, cooking oil, personal care products, cosmetics, aromatheraphy, perfume, industrial oil and lubricants. Its oil is comparable to sunflower and olive oil. It is much better than palm oil in terms of properties, for it has a low transfatty acids. Twelve kilograms of moringa seeds one liter of oil can be extracted and about eight and a half kilograms of cake among others as by products.
A nice shady tree for the streets of Metro Manila.
Moringa is a beautiful fast-growing medium sized tree that is also a power bloomer. Fragrant white flowers with yellow throats are seen most of the year in great masses. Moringa is tough and drought resistant. They are not only nice but most importantly beneficial trees. I wish they could be planted in the streets of Metro Manila instead of the plants and trees that we now have.
Fragrant white flowers with yellow throats are seen most of the year in great masses.
