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Also known as Chinese spinach or han cai this is an excellent salad vegetable that is used in Chinese, Indian, Malay and South American cooking. It is often used as a substitute for spinach, the whole plant is edible but I prefer to pick the young leaves. The flowering head produces thousands of tiny seeds and these are used in breads and other baked goods. A relation of the goosefoot family it is also grown as a grain crop and makes very good flour.
 Red Amaranth How to Grow I grow two types of amaranth, red and white. The red produces beautiful purple leaves and both are easy to grow. I sow the seeds direct and thin out as necessary to a width of 8-10 cm. The leaves are ready for harvesting after six or seven weeks. Keep the soil moist at all times and pick regularly, amaranth likes plenty of heat so I would recommend growing under glass. How to Cook Treated in the same way as spinach or other leafy vegetables it is delicious steamed or stir-fried. Keep it simple with a little garlic and ginger, some soy, chilli and a squeeze of lemon at the end is usually enough to make a satisfying side dish. Use the red variety wherever possible as the colour runs into the other ingredients with wonderful effect. Content and picture © Miles Collins |