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Verdolagas (Mexican Common Purslane)

Verdolagas (Mexican Common Purslane) is a traditional Mexican recipe for a classic vegetarian dish of purslane and mushrooms in a chilli and tomato base. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Mexican version of: Mexican Common Purslane (Verdolagas).

prep time

10 minutes

cook time

10 minutes

Total Time:

20 minutes

Serves:

6

Rating:

Tags : Wild FoodVegetarian RecipesMexico Recipes

Verdolaga is the Spanish name of Common purslane in Mexico (also known as Mexican parsley) where it’s commonly consumed. This recipe marries purslane with mushrooms. Traditionally local wild mushrooms were used. I have substituted chestnut mushrooms here as they are commercially available and have a meaty texture. Puya chillies are the traditional ones used, which are a dry medium-hot chillies. You can substitute your favourite chilli depending on your preferred hotness. For example, you could substitute arbol chillies (spicier than puya) or guajillo (milder than Puya)

Ingredients:

50g (2 cups) Verdolagas (purslane), coarsely chopped
1–2 large chestnut (Portobello) mushrooms, diced
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 garlic clove
1 Chile Puya or dried chilli of choice
60ml (1/4 cup) water
1/2 onion, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
Oil, for frying
Salt and freshly-ground black pepper to taste

Method:

Lightly toast the cumin seeds in a dry pan until aromatic (about 90 seconds) then grind in a molcajete or a mortar. Add the garlic clove, puya chilli (or your choice of pepper), a splash of water, and salt. Grind until a thick paste forms and continue adding water to form a sauce that you can pour out.

Place a pan over medium heat and add a little oil. Once the oil is hot, add the diced onions and fry for about 5 minutes, or until softened and just starting to colour. Now add the diced tomatoes and the chilli and garlic sauce.

Cook for 1 minute then add the mushrooms pieces and cook for 5 minutes before adding the verdolagas along with salt and black pepper. Cook for about 3 minutes until verdolagas are wilted but not overly cooked.

Serve immediately with beans, tortillas, cheese and/or rice.