How the Super 5 salad came about

Over the years, I have continued my research on the various herbs and plants that I have planted at the farm.  I read up research articles, talked to alternative medicine practitioners as well as tried them out myself.  It is born out of my love for healing, gardening and keeping our tradition alive.  So this article is based on what I have learnt and experienced.  

We live in a country rich in natural resources that we have only just begun to document with many of the information passed over the generations by word of mouth.  Whilst pharmaceuticals tend to address corrective measures, our ancestors had a diet full of preventive measures and my aim is to focus more on preventive measures but at the same time look for curative measures.  

In our fast-paced life, I find that salads are one of the best mechanisms for eating food that is nutritious and full of preventive measures - all of it being organic since introducing chemical pesticides and herbicides only adds toxins and cancer-causing elements to out diet.  In selecting the Super 5 salad elements, I focussed on our main major illnesses such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, gout to name a few.  So in my research, I looked at what were the major causes and how to control them within our bodies.  Another important factor was the ease of growing and caring for these plants so people can succeed in growing them in their home gardens.

My Super 5 consists of ulam raja (cosmos caudantus), ruku or selasih hitam (holy basil), kemangi (lemon basil), tujuh bilah or bintang tujuh (pereskia sacharosa) and selasih putih (white basil).  

1. Ulam raja is rich in vitamins, antioxidants and minerals.  With this herb, it is addressing almost all our major organs as well as our bones.  It is easily propagated from seeds.
2. Ruku, with its anise-like flavour, adds the respiratory health elements as well antioxidants and anti bacteria.  With this herb, we are focussing on the respiratory system.  It is easily propagated from seeds.
3. Kemangi, with its citrus aroma has blood cleanser, antioxidant, anti bacteria as well as heart strengthening element.  With this herb, the focus is our blood system.  It is easily propagated from seeds.
4. Tujuh bilah is known in the herbal world as being an anti-cancer agent and antioxidants.  It is easily propagated from stem cuttings.
5. Selasih putih has antioxidant, anti-cancer and anti-bacterial properties and helps in the digestion process.  With this herb, we are focussing on the digestion system.  It is easily propagated from seeds.

All these plants grow in full sun or semi-shade and are easy to care for.  Regular pruning will encourage new growth and maintain a healthy plant.  It can all be planted in pots or polybags so not having any ground to plant is not an issue.  With the exception of tujuh bilah, all are annuals although the life expectancy can be increased with regular pruning.

To further enhance the value of the salad, a serai or lemongrass infused olive oil dressing can be prepared by placing chopped, cleaned lemongrass stalk and leaves at least overnight in the olive oil to allow the flavours and essence to infuse into the olive oil and adding salt and pepper as well as a dash of lemon juice to taste.  This will further add cleansing and anti-cancer properties to your salad as well as nutrients.  So, next time you want to have a salad, try this and taste the flavour of these leaves and reap the benefits.