Stir-Fried Water Spinach Dishes
Qiang Chao Kong Xincai (炝炒空心菜)
These stir-fried greens are an extremely common side in many Chinese homes and restaurants – the simple flavors helping to balance more complex and heartier dishes.
There are two common ways to flavor Stir-Fried Water Spinach – one spicy and numbing; the other garlicky and robust. In the first recipe, the Water Spinach is full of delicious fried garlic flavor. The latter recipe has Water Spinach stir-fried with dried red chilies and Sichuan pepper.
But, what is water-spinach?
Water Spinach (空心菜) is a common leafy green vegetable found in southern China. It's Chinese name literally means hollow vegetable, which makes sense, as the stems are hollow and straw-like. No need to use a knife – these greens tear easily with a satisfying snap. Along with the hollow stems, Water Spinach also has narrow, tapered leaves. Its flavor is far different from regular Spinach – milder and smoother. However, the techniques for stir-frying Water Spinach are often used with Spinach and other greens like Baby Bok Choy (小油菜), Baby Napa Cabbage (娃娃菜), and Chinese Lettuce (油麦菜).
Garlicky Stir-Fried Water Spinach
Qiang Chao Kong Xincai - Suan Xiang (炝炒空心菜 - 蒜香)
Fresh Water Spinach is stir-fried with an abundance of fragrant garlic, giving it a simple but bold flavor and making it the perfect side for any garlic-lover.
Simple, garlicky, and scrumptious – when the Garlic and Water Spinach hit the hot Oil, they create a delicious sauce that coats every tender leafy stalk. This sauce will later soak into rice, filling it with delicious flavor every time a green leaf is laid atop the fluffy bed of white. Garlicky Stir-Fried Water Spinach is an incredible side, a MUST for any Sichuan meal, and the perfect accompaniment to a spicy main course.
Fried Garlic is the key to this dish, and Stir-Fried Water Spinach can be quite garlicky in China. The Garlic is often roughly minced with large granules of Garlic visible in the mounds of Green. The purpose is to prevent the Garlic from burning in the searing hot Oil of the wok. The Garlic can be finely minced for those who dislike eating the little bits of Garlic; however, the dish will lose a touch of that fried Garlic flavor along with the flavor from the ‘Breath of the Wok’ (锅气). Regardless of how the fried Garlic is minced, I highly recommend adding some finely minced or grated fresh Garlic either with the Brightening Oil or after the dish is plated as a Garnish. The fresh Garlic flavor combined with the fried Garlic flavor provides a one-two punch of deliciousness.
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Prep Time: 5 min |
Cook Time: 5 min |
Total Time: 10 min |
Serving: 2 - 4 people |
Ingredients
250 grams of Water Spinach (OR Spinach)
4 - 6 cloves of Garlic (More or less depending on preference)
1/4 cup of Peanut Oil
Seasonings
1/2 tsp. Salt (You can also reduce the salt slightly and use a pinch of either MSG and/ or Chicken Bouillon Powder)
Brightening Oil
1/4 tsp. Sesame Oil (Optional)
Directions
1.) Snap the stems of the Water Spinach into 2-inch to 4-inch-long pieces, but do not tear the leaves. Place the Water Spinach in a bowl and fill the bowl with water to wash the pieces. Pour the contents of the bowl into a colander, straining out the greens, and allow the Water Spinach to drip dry.
2.) Peel, smash, and mince the Garlic cloves, placing them in a small bowl.
(The Garlic can be sliced, chopped, diced, minced, or even finely grated depending on preference. Usually, the Garlic is roughly minced for this dish when it’s prepared at most restaurants in China. Larger bits of Garlic can handle higher heat better than Garlic that’s been grated or finely minced. I’d recommend roughly mincing most of the Garlic and finely mincing about 1 or 2 cloves, separating the roughly minced Garlic and finely minced Garlic into separate bowls).
3.) Heat about 1/4 cup of Peanut Oil in a seasoned wok on medium-high until you see the tiny tendrils of smoke rising known as the ‘Breath of the Wok’ (锅气). Remove the wok from heat and add the roughly minced Garlic, stir-frying it just a few seconds until fragrant.
4.) Add the Water Spinach to the wok, return the wok to heat, and stir-fry the greens vigorously for about 1 to 2 minutes until the leaves have wilted and the stalks are tender.
5.) Remove the wok from heat, add the Seasonings to taste along with the Brightening Oil. Increase the heat to high, return the wok to heat, and toss everything together quickly for just a few seconds.
6.) Spoon the greens onto a plate, garnish with finely minced fresh Garlic, and serve the Garlicky Stir-Fried Water Spinach with individual bowls of white rice.
Sizzling Spicy Stir-Fried Water Spinach
Qiang Kong Xincai - Mala (炝空心菜-麻辣)
Fresh, crisp Water Spinach is stir-fried with dried red chilies and Sichuan peppercorns – every bite of this simple side dish is exploding with spicy, tingly heat.
Simple, classic, and delicious – this healthy side can be prepared quickly to brighten any table with its colorful greens and reds. Freshness is key, not only with the leafy greens, but also with the dried Red Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns. This is a simple dish with only a few ingredients, so each of those ingredients need to be high-quality. Your tongue should sizzle and pop with every bite.
Stir-Fried Water Spinach should have tender-crisp stems and a light sauce coating the greens. This ‘sauce’ is actually just Oil combined with the natural liquid within the Water Spinach. Much of this liquid will, of course, evaporate, but a small remainder will fuse with the Oil. Nevertheless, this should not be a soupy dish; there should not be an excessive amount of water in the wok. Perfectly cooked Water Spinach will have the right balance – not too watery and not too oily. Every leaf perfectly coated in sauce and lightly salted.
|
Prep Time: 5 min |
Cook Time: 5 min |
Total Time: 10 min |
Serving: 2 - 4 people |
Ingredients
250 grams of Water Spinach (OR Spinach)
Chilies
1/4 cup Dried Red Chilies (Amount When Snipped in Half; About 5 grams)
1/2 tsp. Sichuan Peppercorns
1/4 cup Peanut Oil
Seasonings
1/2 tsp. Salt (You can also reduce the salt slightly and use a pinch of either MSG or Chicken Bouillon Powder)
Brightening Oil
1/2 tsp. Sesame Oil
Directions
1.) Snap the stems of the Water Spinach into 2-inch to 4-inch-long pieces, but do not tear the leaves. Place the Water Spinach in a bowl and fill the bowl with water to wash the pieces. Pour the contents of the bowl into a colander, straining out the greens, and allow the Water Spinach to drip dry.
2.) Snip the Dried Red Chilies into 1/2-inch-long or 1-inch-long pieces and remove most of the seeds. Place the Chilies in a bowl along with the Sichuan Peppercorns.
3.) Heat about 1/4 cup of Peanut Oil in a seasoned wok on medium-high until you see the tiny tendrils of smoke rising known as the ‘Breath of the Wok’ (锅气). Remove the wok from heat and add the Chilies and Sichuan Peppercorns, stir-frying them just a few seconds until fragrant.
4.) Add the Water Spinach to the wok, return the wok to heat, and stir-fry the greens vigorously for about 1 to 2 minutes until the leaves have wilted and the stalks are tender.
5.) Remove the wok from heat, add the Seasonings to taste along with the Brightening Oil. Increase the heat to high, return the wok to heat, and toss everything together quickly for just a few seconds.
6.) Spoon the greens onto a plate and serve the Sizzling-Spicy Stir-Fried Water Spinach with individual bowls of white rice.
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