Ulam is a side dish of local salad comprising raw plant shoots, leaves or local herbs and vegetables.
It's a delicious, flavourful and nutritious dish amongst the locals. It looks as pleasing as it tastes as it is colourful and vibrant. The fresh leafy vegetables and fruits give you complex carbohydrates, plant fats, protein, enzymes and an excellent source of vitamins and minerals.
The US Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that people should seek not only the abundant quantity but also the full spectrum of colours when it comes to fruits and vegetables.
The type of food that most appeared to be protective against cancer and other diseases are raw fruits and vegetables.
Thus, this recommendation gives Ulam a bigger lap in contributing good health to everyone.
Here are some beneficial properties of fruits and vegetables that are categorised by their colour.
RED FOOD contain the powerful antioxidant lycopene, which has demonstrated benefits for fighting heart disease and cancer. Example: Chilli, Red Onion, Red Pepper, Watermelon, Engkala (litsea), Jambu Air and Red-Fleshed Dragon Fruit, etc.
GREEN FOOD contains carotenoid lutein and zeaxanthin, which helps protect the eye's health. Example: Paku (wild jungle fern), Petai (twisted cluster bean), Cucumber, Kangkong (convolvulus), Ladies' Fingers (okra), Long Bean, Guava and many more.
ORANGE AND YELLOW FOOD provide Vitamin C, beta-carotene and folate, helping to protect your immune system and heart health. Examples are Papaya, Mango, Carrots, etc.
BLUE AND PURPLE FOOD offer proanthocyanidins, powerful antioxidants that protect the eyes and help defend the body from carcinogens. Examples of blue and purple food are Dabai, Brinjal (eggplants), Purple Sweet Potato, etc.
WHITE FOOD contains compounds such as allicin, known to lower cholesterol and blood pressure. Example of white food is Garlic, White Onion, Jicama (sengkuang), Soursop, Banana, Coconut, Mangosteen and many more.
The cruciferous vegetable contains several phytochemicals that help prevents cancer. Some example of cruciferous vegetable is like Lollo Rosso Lettuce and Cos Lettuce.
Besides the minerals and vitamins, Ulam is also known to be beneficial for various metabolic functions. Fruits and vegetable also provide a great source of dietary fibres, both insoluble as well as water-soluble.
Even though our body can absorb the nutrients from fruits and vegetable in raw and cooked form, bear in mind that some fruits and vegetable need to be cooked first. One example is the tapioca leaves where it must be soaked and pressed before cooking. This method is to neutralise the poisonous prussic acid. So, it is safer to follow traditional Ulam practice.
A meal of Ulam cannot be complete without the sambal belacan, a spicy paste or sauce made from a blend of pounded fresh red chillies, roasted belacan, ginger, garlic, shallots, onion, lemongrass, turmeric, anchovies and dried shrimps and sometimes with a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Just listening to these ingredients made us salivating!
Some might worry about the cholesterol content in sambal belacan. But think about all the ingredients in making the sambal! What is so harmful and bad about that small amount of sambal belacan when there are so many healthy ingredients in Ulam to balance it out?
Try the Ulam; it is purely organic and healthy. Most importantly, it is DELICIOUS!
Cover Photo: www.goingplacesmagazine.com
