The bayam or hern chai is from the spinach family. It can be easily grown in Sarawak. A gardener can even grow them without preparing a bed! But the best and sweetest of the hern chai is grown in a well prepared bed with burnt soil
The Foochows are good agriculturalists and they use an age old practise of soil burning. They call it "siew boon" which means soil burning to create fertilize soil.
Both my paternal and maternal grandfathers were good farmers. My paternal grandfather however was famous for planting many acres of bananas. He had this vision of becoming a banana king according to my father but then Sibu was too small a town and the transportation was not good enough to help him export. Besides the shipping facilities in those days could not help him refrigerate his bananas. He was before his time.
Hence he encouraged othrs to plant fruits and vegetables. He himself grew a lot of bayam and we all grew up liking the sweet vegetables, especially the stems. His relatives in Sg. Bidut grew a lot of bayam and other vegetables to Sibu town.
Bayam can be eaten every day. Most Foochow families had bayam soup, fried bayam, added bayam to their rice noodles and even porridge.
Bayam according to some health experts it has many health benefits.
1. Good for digestion
2. Strengthens bones (rich in iron)
3. Helps children grow
4. Relieves swelling and pain.
5. Prevents prostate cancer
6. It is anti hypertension.
7. Good for eye health
8. Good for the brains
9. Prevents diabetes
10. Can help in losing weight
11. Other benefits :
Nourish the skin
Prevent acne
Anti aging
Protects skin from UV rays
Prevent the pollution of the pollution effect
Anti-hardening of blood vessels
Prevent heart disease
Anti blood pressure is low
Maintain the immune system
Drug bleeding on the gums
Helps the calcium binding process
Nutrition for joints
Helps memory
Good for intestinal health
Helps the heart work
Source of energy
(Bayam is often blended and help to colour home made noodles green)
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