Collard greens are a staple vegetable in almost every household in the Valley. This year, infestation has reduced the quantity of haakh in the market, resulting in soaring prices and a severe shortage of this Kashmiri staple, causing significant distress to Kashmiris, for whom this leafy green is an everyday staple. Shaizan Nadaf and Saqib Manzoor share two recipes to make collard greens the Kashmiri way.

It is a leafy green common to every household in Kashmir.

The region has a variety of collard greens: kawdari haakh, khanyaar haakh, vaste haakh, sabz haakh, heanz haakh. And there are numerous other varieties that are self-seeding and grow wild in Kashmir — pambh haakh, vapal haakh, vanpalak, kunna, kralmonji.

Collard greens are always present in abundance in Kashmiri home gardens. “There are severeal varieties of haakh — vaste haakh, sabz haakh, and pambh haakh grow wild in our backyards. If you pay attention, you will be astonished at the downright green carpet covering the earth,” says Saleema, a 55-year-old homemaker.

“Haakh is core to our food culture. Without it, our cuisine is incomplete,” says Saleema, who grows haakh in her kitchen garden.

Cultivated and cooked in every season, collard greens are a staple in Kashmir, from pickles in winter to light dishes in spring and summer. It is for the workers in the fields and also, for special guests at a wedding feast. Collard greens make a superb pairing with cheese (haakh chaman), meat (haakh maaz), and dried fish (gaadi haakh). There’s also daagith haakh, pounded collard greens with spices.

“Back then, we would make collard green pickles, to share with neighbours and relatives. At times, we would sacrifice one of the hens at home, and make koker te haakh (chicken and collard green), or chaman te haakh (cheese and collard greens),” says Khadija, an octogenarian, who enjoys farming, and pickling. Her homemade collard green pickles are popular in her hamlet.. Pickling is one of the ways people preserve haakh; sun drying is another method — haakh leaves are washed, laid out on flat surface or clean mats, and left to dry for several days. “We would store the haakh or pickles in an earthen pot or a pit dug in the earth, to retain its flavour and freshness,” adds Khadija.

Collard greens have medicinal properties. It has substantial amounts of Vit K and is a rich source of Vit A, C, B6 and manganese, and recent research has revealed significant anti-cancer elements.

This year, an infestation has reduced the quantity of haakh in the market, resulting in soaring prices and a severe shortage of this Kashmiri staple. This is causing significant distress to Kashmiris, for whom this leafy green is an everyday staple.