WATER SPINACH STIR-FRY
It is hard to imagine the Viet table without water spinach (a.k.a. morning glory in English, rau muông in Vietnamese, and ong choy in Cantonese; illustrated on page 174), a long, tubular leafy green that is part of the lifeblood of the country and appears in many guises. The tender tops with their pointy leaves are often boiled or stir-fried. The hollow stems are sometimes laboriously split into slender pieces, dropped in water to curl, and then the crunchy raw spirals are used as a garnish for certain noodle dishes, such as Crab and Shrimp Rice Noodle Soup (page 215); as a bed for a beef stir-fry; or as a lightly dressed salad. Water spinach is also pickled. Even today my parents become wistful at the mention of a rustic meal of boiled rau muông, soup prepared from the left over cooking liquid, a heady fish kho, and rice. So, it was a sad moment when we arrived in the United States to discover that we could not afford water spinach, which cost nearly two dollars a pound and was not widely available. What had once been an everyday vegetable was suddenly a splurge. When my parents did buy it, my mother would stir-fry the greens with garlic and fermented shrimp sauce (mâm tôm) and finish the dish with lots of lime. Aromatic, earthy, and tangy, the traditional combination was a comforting reminder of our culinary roots. Nowadays, rau muông is thankfully much less expensive and is easily found at Chinese and Southeast Asian markets. During the peak summer season, prices are downright cheap. Here are two options for stir-frying the bounty: first, the soulful dish of my youth, followed by a more modern preparation flavored with garlic and oyster sauce, which pairs well with Eastern and Western dishes (try it with a steak). If you can't find water spinach, Western spinach can be used for either of the two stir-fries that follow.
Yield serves 4 to 6 with 2 or 3 other dishes
Number Of Ingredients 1
Steps:
- Take each stem of water spinach and snap, twist, or cut off the bottom 4 inches, which tend to be too fibrous to eat. (As a test, try chewing on some of the hollow stem to see how much you should discard; in general, stems over 1/4 inch wide are too tough. Tough stem sections may be split for noodle soup; see page 216 for details.) Cut the trimmed water spinach into 3-inch sections and wash well in several changes of water, discarding any unsavory parts. Drain in a colander.
- In a large pot, bring a generous amount of water (enough to cover the water spinach) to a rolling boil. Add the water spinach, moving it around with chopsticks or a spoon to ensure even cooking. Once it has wilted, after just under a 1 minute, drain it in the colander and flush with cold water. Press gently to expel excess water and then place near the stove and use for one of the following stir-fries. You may also ready the water spinach several hours in advance of stir-frying; cool, cover, and keep at room temperature.
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