WILD PEPPER (Piper Sarmentosum)
More commonly known by its Malay name of Chabei or Daun Kadok, this erect herb has long runners which develop into plantlets. The plant becomes a weed once it is left untended in a shady place, as evident now in a lot of shady roadside areas in Singapore. The leaves are simple and heart shaped. The leave is an important ingredient in the Penang version of ‘otah’ and also one of the many herbs that goes into the traditional Malay Nasi Ulam (a type of herbal salad with rice.). The roots are used in Chinese medicine as a cure for toothache and in Malaysia, the leaves are used to treat headache and pain in the bones. In Indonesia, the rootlets are chewed with betel nut and the juice swallowed as a remedy for coughs and asthma.