Name: Stir-Fried Water Spinach with Garlic and Shrimp Paste
Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings as part of multi-dish meal
Cuisine: Singaporean
Ingredients: 2 Tbsp. Vegetable oil; 1 med. Long red chili or other spicy red chili, minced or pounded; 1 tsp. Sesame oil; 1 lb. (454 g.) Water spinach (pg. 76) (about 8 cups); 1 tsp. Malaysian shrimp paste (belacan), toasted; as needed Kosher salt; 4 cloves Garlic, roughly chopped

Preparation info

Makes
4 to 6
servings as part of multi-dish meal

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Southeast Asian Flavors

By Robert Danhi

Published 2008

About

Water spinach has as many aliases as a Cold War double-agent: “morning glory,” “hollow heart spinach,” “ong choy,” and “kangkong” are just a few used in Malaysia and Singapore. This very popular green vegetable grows in shallow water all around Southeast Asia. Its unique structure allows for a peculiar preparation for cooking. The large top leaves hide tiny, tender baby leaves, or “leaflets” lower on the straw-like stem. Snap and pick the greens underneath each stem leaflet.