Simple Stir Fried Water Spinach

Water Spinach, aka “ong choy” is one of the most popular green in Vietnamese and Chinese cooking. There are so many sauces to accompany this vegetable that offers both tenderness and crunch. In Cantonese cooking, fermented shrimp paste is often used to stir fry water spinach. In Vietnamese cooking, it is stir fried in garlic and fish sauce or simply boiled and dipped into a prepared sweet and savory fish sauce. I chose to use miso paste and garlic for some umami. Stir fried water spinach is a lovely addition to a simple weeknight dinner. It’s quick, easy, and very healthy.

How to Prepare Asian Leafy Green Vegetables

Always wash your produce before consuming it. Asian leafy green vegetables such as water spinach contain lots of dirt on their stems. Moreover, you want to wash off as much of the pesticides as possible. For most Asian leafy greens, you’ll want to submerge the vegetables completely in a large bowl of cold water. Slosh them around gently. Then, lift your vegetables up from the bowl of water to leave the dirt and impurities behind. Repeat at 1-2x depending how dirty your vegetables are. Usually, spinach and taku choy have the highest levels of dirt and require lots of washes. Once your veggies are clean, place them into a colander to drain for at least 10 minutes. Then start making your stir fried water spinach.

Stir fried water spinach

A simple stir fried water spinach recipe with garlic and miso paste.

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 minutes mins

Servings: 4 people

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Chinese

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 1 large bunch water spinach
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp neutral oil
• 1/2 tbsp miso paste
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 fresno chile sliced, optional

Method

 

1. Wash water spinach by submerging it in a large tub of water (mixing bowl). Repeat 2-3 times until the water is clear. Then drain. Cut into 3-inch pieces.
2. Heat a large saute pan on high heat. When the pan is hot, add in oil. Add in minced garlic. Allow to become lightly brown, then add in all vegetables and water. Cover with a lid and allow to steam for 2-3 minutes.
3. Then remove the lid and stir the vegetables to bring the softened vegetables to the top and place uncooked vegetables on the bottom. Cook with lid covered for another 1-2 minutes.
4. Then add in miso paste and soy sauce. Mix thoroughly into cooked vegetables. Cook for another minute and then remove from heat.

A main dish to serve with water spinach could be basil garlic pork stir fry.