Salted Ensabi (Indigenous Mustard Greens)

 While the Iban padi farmers wait for their padi seedlings to grow, they sow ensabi seeds on burnt soils around their hill padi or payah padi fields.  This practice of growing some vegetables before the the harvest of the padi in a few months' time is a sustainable farming practice from time immemorial,

Besides ensabi, pumpkins, cucumbers, long beans, ladies' fingers and other vegetables are planted. At the same time the padi seedlings will cover the prepared ground , if transplanting is preferred for wet padi. Hill padi farmers do not practise transplanting.

Very often padi farms of the Ibans are demarcated by lines of bamboos which would also provide bamboo shoots.

Wild vegetables are also foraged during the "waiting period". 

The waiting period is from nursery stage to just before harvesting time and usually it will be the women who "wait". The men could go for their adventures, or berjalai, when they look for urban jobs which will help them bring home cash. Town jobs like construction work, grass cutting, odd jobs etc help add cash flow to the Iban farmers.

Those who do not seek temporary employment in towns would stay home to do hunting, fishing and attend to other daily tasks.

When the ensabi grows to maturity, the vegetables would be cooked . The surplus would be made into preserved vegetables or kasam ensabi.

Today kasam ensabi is a welcome treat in urban homes. It is delicious as a stir fry or part of a soup. The Chinese also make use of kasam ensabi to cook with pork, chicken or chillies. It is a popular item in urban economy fast food stalls.