Haggun Suni (Spinach in Coconut Milk) Recipe

 

 Haggun Suni (Spinach in Coconut Milk) Recipe 

By: Amber Ritter-Cruz 

Truthfully, Haggun Suni was a meal I did not learn to appreciate as a child, but learned to love as an adult. Family members would always ask my mom, whom I call Nana, to make it for parties, fiestas (specifically Santa Rita Fiesta), and other special occasions. I have vivid memories of my Nana making it in our childhood home where she didn't follow a recipe and just used her heart. Her fresh turmeric-stained hands would reach for a spoon to do a taste-test when adding each ingredient to make sure it was just right. This recipe has come full circle and means a lot to me, because now it has become the recipe that people request for me to bring to special occasions! So up until writing this recipe down, I used my heart like my Nana taught me to. Taking my time to do a taste test at various times throughout, until I hear my Nana's voice in my head tell me that it's just right.  

Ingredients:

1/2 an onion

4 8 oz. boxes of spinach 

1 can of coconut milk

1 tsp. lemon powder 

1 tsp. donne' (hot chili pepper) or donne' denanche' (hot chili pepper paste)

1 tbsp. turmeric powder  

1 tbsp. of your salt of choice (I use garlic salt.) 

Prep:

- Thaw out 4 boxes of spinach. 

- Slice onion into thin pieces and set aside.

1. Squeeze your thawed spinach to get as much water out as possible and add to a pot. Turn your stove on medium heat. I like to cook off any water that's left in the frozen spinach so that it doesn't make it watery. 

2. Add your turmeric, lemon powder, and salt throughout the pot slowly and mix well to ensure there are no clumps. 

3. Add 1 can of coconut milk and turn your heat down to a simmer.

3. Lastly, add your onions and donne' or donne' denanche' and let it simmer until your onions are translucent and turn off heat. *If you notice that the Haggun Suni is too thick for your preference, you can add a little bit of water to your can of coconut milk to your Haggun Suni.

 

4. Pues boka! (Then eat)