From Farm to Table: Jamaican Callaloo

What is the Jamaican callaloo plant?

Callaloo is a fast-growing tall leafy green vegetable from the amaranth family. You can harvest the young tender leaves or the mature leaves/stems for cooking. It is a nutritious green. The flower buds and seeds can also be eaten.

Jamaican Callaloo is a famous local staple green leafy vegetable. Cooked with onion, garlic, tomatoes, thyme, and Scotch bonnet pepper, this healthy side dish is for a tropical breakfast, lunch, or supper. Callaloo, also known as amaranth, is an ancient green leafy vegetable that has been consumed for thousands of years. It tastes like spinach but with a stronger flavor.

In Jamaica, farmers produce callaloo seeds and sell the plant in local markets.

How to Grow Callaloo

• Callaloo, Amaranthus Spinosus, or Jamaican or Caribbean spinach, is something you can easily grow in a garden bed at home or in a community garden.
• Plant callaloo in the early spring after the last frost. Wait until April or May, depending on the last frost in your area, to prepare a garden bed for your callaloo seeds.
• Choose an area that gets at least 6 hours of sunlight a day
• Add well-draining compost to the garden bed for extra nutrients.
• Press seeds into the soil 7–10 inches (18–25 cm) apart in the rows. Callaloo plants can handle a little crowding, so don’t worry too much about getting the spacing exact.
• Cover the rows of seeds with 1⁄4 in (0.64 cm) of soil. The goal is to firm the soil up just enough to cover the seeds and keep them in place in their rows.
• Water the seeds gently to moisten the soil. Use a watering can or a hose with a light spraying attachment to water the soil. Avoid using a hard stream of water that could disturb the seeds.
• Water the plants 1-2 times a week during dry periods. Spray down the whole seedbed with a hose and a misting attachment. Wait a few seconds for the water to seep into the soil, and spray any dry spots.
• Callaloo plants are considered drought tolerant, so it’s fine for the soil to dry out between waterings.
• There's no need to water callaloo unless the soil is totally dry. If you can feel any moisture in the soil, leave the plants alone for now.
• You don’t have to fertilize callaloo for it to grow well.
• Removing weeds lets the callaloo plants get all the nutrition out of the soil because no other plants compete for it.
• Get rid of pests by spraying the leaves with a pest control spray. Watch out for pests on the leaves, like beetles, aphids, and mites. Spray the foliage with an organic pest control spray to remove any pests if you plan on eating the callaloo.
• Callaloo is very disease tolerant, so you only really have to look out for pests, which can cause the plants to yield less foliage for harvesting.
• You can harvest callaloo as soon as the leaves are big enough to handle, usually within the first couple of months after planting it.
• Collect leaves every 2 weeks or so during the summer. Allow plants to regrow for a couple of weeks after each harvest. Trim off up to 1/3 of the oldest leaves again after 2 weeks to encourage new growth throughout the growing period.
• You should be able to do this through late September if you live in a seasonal climate in the northern hemisphere. In the southern hemisphere, you could do it until March or around then.
• There’s no pruning necessary to care for callaloo plants.
• Callaloo is naturally resistant to most pests and diseases.
• You can substitute callaloo for spinach in most recipes that call for spinach.

How to Cut Callaloo for a 

Continuous Harvest All Season Long  

 

Nutrition Information

Recipe: Jamaican Callaloo
Serves 2

A friend stopped by and brought over Jamaican Callaloo. It was delicious. Jake says it is better than spinach. It is unique and favorable. 

Ingredients
4 cups callaloo, chopped 

1/2 tsp Salt
1 tablespoon olive oil, or coconut oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, chopped
2 sprigs thyme
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 Scotch Bonnet pepper, whole 
2 tablespoons water


Directions

1. Remove the outer old leaves and peel the outer membrane of each callaloo stem.
2. Cover callaloo in cold water, add 1/2 teaspoon salt, and leave aside while prepping the remaining vegetables.
3. After discarding the water, rinse with water and drain. Callaloo should be chopped.
4. In a large pot, heat the oil and saute the onion, garlic, spring onion, thyme, tomato, and scotch bonnet pepper until the onion is transparent.
5. Add callaloo. Allow to boil for 5-10 minutes on low heat, or until the callaloo is soft.

Reference.

1. Callaloo, Wikipedia. "There are many variations of Callaloo across the Caribbean, depending on the availability of local vegetables. The main ingredient is an indigenous leaf vegetable, traditionally either amaranth (common in Jamaica, also known as callaloo), taro leaves, or Xanthosoma leaves."