Water Spinach Side Dish

1. Unlike other veggies, it contains a higher content of iron, so when you cook it, the element will oxidize and make the water spinach turn into a gray color. I will show you a method called water stir fry, and you have beautifully cooked water spinach in a vivid green color all the time.

INGREDIENTS

• 400g / 14oz of water spinach
• 3 tbsp of oil
• 1/4 cup of hot water
• 6 Thai bird eye chilies, diced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 piece of fermented bean curb
• 1.5 tbsp of soy sauce
• 1 tsp of cornstarch
• 1/2 tbsp of oyster sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Wash and rinse the water spinach several times. Then, drain thoroughly.
2. Remove the end and cut the spinach into 2.5-inch long stalks. Separate the stem and the leaves because they take a different amount of time to cook.
3. Put the Thai bird eye chilies and minced garlic with the water spinach stem because they will go into the wok together.
4. In a bowl, add cornstarch, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and fermented bean curd and mix well. If you don’t have fermented bean curd, use a tsp of miso paste or Korean soybean paste as a replacement.
5. Heat the wok until smoking hot. Add a big drizzle of oil and wait until the oil is slightly smoking.
6. Here is the water stir fry trick. Pour in 1/4 cup of hot water and add the water spinach stems, garlic, and Thai bird eye chilies at the same time. All these ingredients calm the splash. Under high temperatures, the oil and water will form a stable mixture, which can cover the surface of vegetables, preventing the iron from oxidation. So your water spinach stays green.
7. Add the stir fry sauce and water spinach leaves. Keep mixing until the leaves are wilted.
8. Serve as a side dish.