Halas (food)

Halas (Arabic: حلص, romanizedḤlṣ) is a Yemeni food made of halaṣ leaf. The food is eaten during drought periods in Yemen.[1]

The halaṣ leaves have a very bitter taste but they are boiled in water until the taste is gone. It is then added to traditional buttermilk known as ḥaqin.[1]

Ḥalaṣ is often confused with halqa or ghulaf (Cyphostemma digitatum (Forssk.)), which, according to Lisan al-Arab, is a plant that grows in Yemen whose leaves are similar in shape to vine leaves. It is roasted and dried, then used over meat.[1][2] Halqa is used in traditional Yemeni ethnomedicine.[3]

In 2018, people of the Yemeni town of Tihamah have survived by eating halaṣ due to the famine in that area.[4]

  1. ^ a b c Iryānī, Muṭahhar ʻAlī (1996). المعجم اليمني: في اللغة والتراث، حولة مفردات خاصة من اللهجة اليمنية (in Arabic). [س.ن.]،. pp. 193, 194, 195.
  2. ^ دياب, كوكب (2001-01-01). المعجم المفصل في الأشجار والنباتات في لسان العرب - لونان (in Arabic). Dar Al Kotob Al Ilmiyah دار الكتب العلمية. ISBN 978-2-7451-3138-6.
  3. ^ Al-Duais, Mohammed; Jetschke, Gottfried (2012-01-01). "The Miraculous Plant halqa (Cyphostemma digitatum): From Grandmother's Kitchen in Yemen's South-western Highlands to Modern Medicinal and Culinary Applications". Herbal Medicine in Yemen: 167–184. doi:10.1163/9789004232075_011.
  4. ^ "Yemenis in an isolated district eat leaves to survive". AP NEWS. 2018-09-14. Retrieved 2019-12-29.