Ceylon spinach (Basella alba)
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Basella alba is a perennial vine found in the tropics where it is widely used as a leaf vegetable.
Basella alba is a fast-growing, soft-stemmed vine, reaching 10 m in length. Its thick, semi-succulent, heart-shaped leaves have a mild flavour and mucilaginous texture.
The vegetable is used in Chinese cuisine. Its many names include flowing water vegetable (潺菜, Mandarin chāncài, Cantonese saan choy, shan tsoi), fallen hollyhock (落葵 Mandarin luokui, Cantonese lor kwai), wood ear vegetable (木耳菜 muercai) and emperor vegetable (帝王菜 diwangcai).
In Africa, the mucilagenous cooked shoots are most commonly used.[1]