Veggie & Fruit Guide
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Imifino (marog)
Imifino is a leafy, green vegetable
that often grows wild and can be cooked and eaten in the same way as
spinach.1
In South Africa, the use of leafy
vegetables is as old as the history of modern man. Khoisanoid people who
have lived in Southern Africa for at least the past 120 000 years, relied
heavily on the gathering of plants from the wild for their survival. The
Bantu-speaking tribes which started to settle in South Africa about 2 000
years ago also collected leafy vegetables from the wild. In their food
system hunting and the collection of edible plants were particularly
important during times of emergency, when crops had failed or livestock
herds had been decimated.1
Collecting and cultivating green
leafy vegetables continues to be widespread among African people in South
Africa even though western influences have considerably modified their food
consumption patterns. 1
Leafy vegetables are plant species
of which the leafy parts, which may include young, succulent stems, flowers
and very young fruit, are used as a vegetable. In South Africa, more than
100 different species of plants have been identified that were being used as
leafy vegetables. African people refer to these plant species collectively,
using the term morogo (Sesotho, isiPedi) or imifino (isiZulu,
isiXhosa), which freely translated means leafy vegetables. What exactly
constitutes morogo or imifino is subject to spatial and
temporal variability. The plant species that are included depend on the
local ecology and culinary traditions. 1
When recent additions, such as Swiss chard, are ignored,
the available evidence obtained from different parts of the country
indicates that seven groups of leafy vegetable species are of particular
importance in contemporary South Africa. These are amaranth (Amaranthus
spp), spider flower (Cleome gynandra), rape or Chinese cabbage (Brassica
rapa subsp. chinensis), nightshade (Solanum retroflexum
and selected other species belonging to the S. nigrum complex), Jew’s
mallow (Corchorus olitorius and C. tridens), cowpeas (Vigna
inguiculata) and pumpkins (Cucurbita pepo, C. maxima and
C. moschata), melons (Citrullus lanatus and Cucumis
melo) and selected other indigenous cucurbits, such as balsam pear (Momordica
balsamina).1
Seasonal
Availability
Most of the species
that are consumed as leafy vegetables grow in summer.
Exceptions are the local Brassica species and
Chenopodium album which grow during winter.
Serving Size
Half a cup of cooked imifino (90g)
provides one serving of vegetables.
