water spinach

Chinese Water Spinach Stir Fry, Healthy vegetable stir fry

Chinese Water Spinach Stir Fry

garlic

chili peppers

tbsp. vegetable cooking oil

Sichuan peppercorn

Discard the tough stems and keep the tender parts. Then break the water spinach into 10cm length sections. Wash carefully and drain.

Heat oil in wok over highest fire, add dried chili pepper and heat until they turn dark red. Add garlic, fry for a short time (around 5-8 seconds). Add water spinach and salt, quickly fry for no more than 20 seconds until all of the vegetables get seared evenly. Add salt and mix well.

Serve immediately. After around 8-10 minutes, the vegetables become dark due to oxidation process. So this should be the last to make dish if you are preparing a large meal.

Ong Choy or water spinach is a popular Chinese leafy green vegetable that’s worth pairing with luxurious XO sauce. Ong Choy has become a "standard" offering at Chinese restaurants

Ong Choy with XO sauce

Ong Choy ((water spinach))

ginger

garlic ((sliced))

XO sauce

sugar

salt

Prepare the Ong Choy by first cutting off the larger, tough bottoms of the stems. You want to leave the more tender parts of the stems, because part of the experience of eating water spinach is the hollow stems, which complement the tender leaves, giving a nice overall crunchy texture.

We like to wash our veggies thoroughly (3 times), and after the last rinse, we give everything a good shake in a large colander to drain the excess water. See our Chinese leafy green vegetables page for a complete description, and tips on how we like to wash our veggies!

Heat your wok over high heat, and add the oil and ginger. Stir for about 10 seconds to let the ginger infuse the oil, and then add the garlic and the XO sauce.

Give the mixture a quick stir--your wok should be close to smoking now, and add the Ong Choy, immediately moving the vegetables around with your spatula. The vegetables should cool the wok a bit, but it is important to stir the vegetables right away, and use a folding motion with your spatula to mix the oil and sauce evenly in with the vegetables.

If the vegetables get too tightly tangled into a ball, just use your wok spatula to spread the vegetables out in an even layer so each piece gets its fair share of oil and sauce. Season with sugar and salt.

After about a minute of stir frying, your vegetables should be coated evenly with the oil and sauce. Next, move the vegetables into a mound in the middle of the wok, keeping the heat on high. This technique is to allow the sides of the wok to super heat, so you can get that elusive “wok hay” signature flavor you taste at your favorite Chinese restaurants.

After about 30 seconds of high heat, there should be some liquid building up at the bottom of the wok--this actually protects your vegetables from burning and produces some steam to help the vegetables cook nicely. Next, use your wok spatula to spread your vegetable mound in a circular motion around the wok to get that searing “wok hay” effect for another 15-30 seconds. An essential technique is to turn your wok spatula upside down when spreading the water spinach around the side of the wok to get that sear.

Plate and serve immediately. If you’re feeling generous, add a bit more XO sauce on top for extra flavor and garnish.

This is the easiest way to cook morning glory aka water spinach or 空心菜 (kōng xīn cài) in Chinese, which in my biased opinion is one of the top 3 leafy greens. The crunchy hollow stems are so good. Here’s a quick stir-fry that you can enjoy in just 10 minutes.

stir-fried morning glory 蒜炒空心菜

oil, canola

garlic (peeled and sliced)

((use

flaky sea salt (to finish)

prep

Cut the morning glory into 3-inch sections starting from the bottom (stem) end.

wash

Thoroughly rinse with cold tap water until the water runs clear, then drain in a colander. Allow the washed vegetables to drain well so there&#039;s minimal excess water. Otherwise, you won&#039;t get the &quot;breadth of the wok&quot; 鑊氣 flavor. See notes below on more fibrous stems.

heat

Heat a 12-inch seasoned wok or cast iron pan over medium-high heat until the pan is hot (about 15 seconds for a wok or 3 minutes for a cast iron pan).

cook

Add the canola oil, tilt the pan to evenly coat the cooking surface, and add in the sliced garlic. Stir for about 10 seconds until the garlic is fragrant and turn the heat to high right before adding the morning glory. If the stems are thicker than what’s shown in the photos above, you can cook the stems first for 1 minute, toss with a spatula, and then add the leaves.

stir-fry

Stir-fry the contents in the pan by constantly flipping and moving the vegetables with your spatula to prevent burning. Season with salt and continue to toss the morning glory with your spatula. Stir-fry until the stems and leaves turn brighter green (about 5 minutes) and immediately turn off the heat.

serve

Transfer to a serving platter, top with flaky sea salt (optional), and serve hot.

So fun learning about new vegetables. This looks so fresh and vibrant and super nourishing too!

This looks so easy and so good! My Asian market in Denver doesn't have the greens now but I can't wait until summer, when they should.

Thank you for sharing your "morning glory" recipe. I always wanted to know how to cook these vegetables. I did not know it was called that either. I am really glad I found this.

Super recipe, added some chilli flakes too!

Haha!! I’m a spice addict too. I’d definitely add some chilli  flakes to this too. It looks awesome and super healthy.

Water spinach, known as ong choy in Cantonese or kōngxīn cài (空心菜) in Mandarin, is a hollow-stemmed leafy green vegetable native to Asia. Here&#039;s how to prepare it.

How to Cook Water Spinach

With the water spinach still bunched, trim away the lower 1-2 inches of the stalks, unless it is very young and tender. Cut the water spinach into 3 inch lengths, including the stems.

Soak the vegetables in a large basin of cold water to remove sand and dirt. Change the water 3 times, being sure to lift the vegetables out of the water each time to avoid agitating the grit that’s settled at the bottom of the basin. Drain thoroughly, shaking off any excess water. 

Prepare using your favorite recipe: Stir-fried Chinese Water Spinach or Stir-fried Ong Choy with XO Sauce

I didn't realize water spinach wasn't a type of spinach! I got some at my local farmer's market (in Wisconsin) and I've been substituting it for regular spinach in my morning smoothies. I used what I had left of the bunch and stir fried it with ginger, garlic &amp; XO sauce and it was delicious!

Wow this leafy green is so delishies I only a teaspoon of sesame oil and sunflower  oil 2 cloves of garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of sesame seeds  and a desert spoon of Vietnamese fish sauce absolutely yum  .  And this web site glad I found it so informative.

In Bangladesh and West Bengal, it's called Kolmi Shak (কলমি শাক), and the basic version involves frying sliced onions, garlic, and dried/fresh chili peppers w/ salt. However, there are many yummy variations

Top 4 water spinach recipes from across the web

The most viewed water spinach recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

Top Tags

Chinese Water Spinach Stir Fry

Ong Choy with XO sauce

stir-fried morning glory 蒜炒空心菜

How to Cook Water Spinach

Top 4 water spinach recipes from across the web

The most viewed water spinach recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Chinese Water Spinach Stir Fry

Ong Choy with XO sauce

stir-fried morning glory 蒜炒空心菜

How to Cook Water Spinach

The most viewed water spinach recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 20,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine