In Sri Lanka, it is used to make different kinds of curries, especially with
dal. In the Philippines, the leaves of this vegetable are one of the main ingredients in an all vegetable dish called
utan served over rice. It is usually cooked with sardines, onions, garlic, and parsley. In
Mangalorean
Tuluva cuisine, a coconut based gravy called gassi is paired with
Basella alba, making a delicacy called Basale gassi to be eaten with rice dumplings called pundi soaked overnight in the gravy, or with red rice. Some variations have tiny prawns, clams, horsegram or dried fish in the gravy. In
Kongu Nadu cuisine, it is
pureed and used as a curry with rice. In
Bengali cuisine, it is widely used both in a vegetable dish, cooked with red pumpkin, and in non-vegetarian dishes, cooked with the bones of the
Ilish fish and may also be cooked with shrimp. In
Odia cuisine, it is cooked with mustard paste to make "poi saaga rai". In
Andhra Pradesh, a southern state in India, a curry of
Basella alba and yam is made. In
Gujarat, fresh big and tender leaves are washed, dipped in besan mix and deep-fried to make crispy pakodas called "poi na bhajia". The vegetable is used in
Chinese cuisine. It has many names including flowing water vegetable. It is often used in stir-frys and soups. In
Vietnam, where it is called
mồng tơi, it is cooked with shrimp, crab meat,
luffa and
jute to make soup. In Africa, the mucilaginous cooked shoots are most commonly used. The stems will last a week in the refrigerator. They should be placed in water if not refrigerated to preserve their freshness. Historically, the red variety of
B. alba has also been used to make red
dye in China. This dye was used as a cosmetic and to make colored
sealing wax. ==Gallery==