Barang-Barang Farm is a division of KEDI Enterprises Pty. Ltd. which is involved in the research and development of alternate Asian foods crops which also have medicinal properties  Of particular production interest are the Chinese Water Chestnuts Hon Matai (Eleocharis Dulcis) and Sacred Lotus (Nelumbo Nucifera).   

The company has been in existence since 1994 and seeks to produce a commercially viable crop of water chestnuts and sacred lotus to market to the Australian Asian community and gourmet palate amongst Perth’s finer restaurants, grocers and shoppers.   

Once product quality can be consistently produced and a core market has been established for the fresh product, Barang-Barang Farm will introduce value added products to the market including preserved, vacuum sealed, peeled and sliced and food recipes.

Chinese Water Chestnuts (hON mATAI)
Eleocharis Dulcis

Photo: Water Chestnut Paddy Field at Barang-Barang Farm

The water chestnut is the edible corm of a tropical/sub tropical water-loving sedge that has long been valued throughout Asia as a vegetable and as a source of medicine and starch.  It is a common ingredient in a variety of Asian Dishes, however this delicacy is generally unavailable fresh in Australia.

 They are appreciated as much for their crisp texture as their delicate sweet flavour, which has been described as a cross between an apple and coconut.  Even after cooking they retain most of their crispness.  Once you have tried fresh water chestnuts you can never look at the canned alternative again.  The fresh variety also has a greater food value than the canned product.  With carbohydrate levels at 30% and protein at 1.5% they are a nutritious food source.

Washed and peeled the water chestnut has a variety of uses:

• Common ingredient in many Asian dishes

• Eaten raw

• Thin raw slices added to salads (even fruit salads)

• Clear soups

• Stews/casseroles

• Curries

• Stuffing for poultry

• Made into flour

• Minced and made into puddings

• Pickled in vinegar or preserved in strawberry syrup

• Crystallized in sugar or honey as a sweet

The water chestnut also contains a natural medicinal health food or antibiotic called puchiine, which is destroyed during canning, so the fresh product is the way to go.

Source:
J R Burt Horticultural Adviser, Department of Agriculture, Horticulture 2001
J F Morton & C A Sanchez/GH Snyder: State Horticulture Society Florida
Alanna Moore, Earthcare Enterprises
 

SACRED LOTUS

Lotus is not only a beautiful water garden flowering plant, it is a food source for many Asian cultures.  All parts of the lotus plant can be used which is the point of interest in the plant for Barang-Barang Farm.  The seed can be eaten, the root (or rhizome) can be used in soups and other dishes, the leaves can be used to wrap foods for charcoal or steam cooking, the stems and stunning flowers can be used for floral displays and the seed pod and stem can be used for ornamental dried flower displays. 

• Boiling the leaves with Mimosa pudica (Lajjaalu) in goats milk to treat diarrhea

• Application of the leaf past to the skin for fever and inflammatory skin conditions

• Taking of young leaves with sugar to treat rectal prolapse

• Mixing of the stamens with ghee and jaggery to treat haemorrhoids

• Use of the leaves and flowers in varieties of bleeding disorders

• The prescription of the flowers to promote conception

• Use of the petals to alleviate thirst and inflammations

• Mixing of seed powder with honey to alleviate cough

• Roots are said to promote healthy teeth

• Taken with ghee, milk and gold it is a general tonic said to promote strength, virility and intellect

Please do not attempt these remedies at home.  Please see your medical practitioner if you require treatment for health issues. 

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