Spicy Water Spinach, Easy Omelet, and an Award
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Water Spinach also known as Water Convolvulus is a tropical semi aquatic plant grown as a leaf vegetable. It is commonly grown in parts of Asia and Southeast Asia. It is known in those parts as “kangkong” or “ong choy”. A popular way of preparing this vegetable is to fry it with chili and shrimp paste. Shrimp paste also known as “belacan” has a strong smell but provides great flavor. Its use is widespread in Southeast Asia and has recently made culinary inroads to China and Japan. Premium grade shrimp paste is rarely found in the United States.
A simple way of preparing this vegetable is to do a stir fry with just minced garlic. Chilis and fermented bean curd can be added for greater flavor. This dish is best served with steaming bowls of cooked rice.
When I saw this vegetable recently at the Asian market, it reminded me of LeQuan at Luv to Eat. LeQuan cooks some of the most delectable Chinese dishes. The “ong choy” is one of her favorite vegetables and she often cook this dish which she calls Fuyu Ong Choy. Her version has a little more gravy with the addition of rice wine.
The secret to a great stir-fry is to get the pan really, really hot and have the ingredients well drained. The hot pan will sear the food, sealing in the juices. In the case of vegetables, I like to prepare, wash, and leave them to drain in a colander at least an hour before frying. If time does not permit, I use a salad spinner to get rid of as much water as possible.
Spicy Fermented Bean Curd Water Spinach
1 lb water spinach, cut into 3-inch lengths
3 to 4 cubes fermented soybean curds
2 tsp garlic chili sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp canola or vegetable oil
Be sure to rinse water spinach well as it can be gritty. Allow vegetables to drain in colander for at least an hour or use a salad spinner to get rid of excessive water.
In a large pan or wok, heat oil. Add minced garlic and sauté till fragrant. Add fermented bean curds, mashing with your spatula for about a minute. Add garlic chili sauce and stir to combine. Quickly add vegetables and stir fry on high heat for 2 to 3 minutes until vegetables are wilted. Remove and serve immediately.
Often times an egg or tofu dish is prepared as a filler dish in an Asian meal. These are quick and easy dishes using ingredients from the fridge or pantry. One such dish is my Steamed Tofu. This tofu is simple, healthy, and delicious. Only takes about 5 to 6 minutes to prepare. All the cooking is done in the microwave and cleanup is minimal.
Simple home-cooked meal with oi kimchi, beef stew, lotus root and peanut soup, steaming bowl of white rice, and omelet.
This omelet is prepared with whatever suitable vegetables you may have in the fridge or pantry. Onions, tomatoes, green beans, Chinese chives, and green onions are all good choices. For a picture of Chinese chives, refer to my post on Chinese Savory Pancakes.
Omelet with Chinese Chives and Onions
3 large eggs
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 oz Chinese chives, sliced into 1-inch lengths
1 red Anaheim chili, seeded and finely sliced
1 tbsp soy sauce
Pepper to taste
1 tbsp canola oil
Crack the three eggs into a medium sized bowl. Add soy sauce and pepper. Whisk with a fork until well combined.
Heat oil in a medium sized pan. Fry onions until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add Chinese chives and chili and fry for another minute or so. Reduce heat to medium. Pour in eggs to cover base of pan. Let cook for about 2 minutes. Using a wide, flat spatula flip eggs in sections and let cook for another 2 minutes. Remove and serve immediately.
Award time…..
Not too long ago I received this award from these five wonderful bloggers and today I would like to acknowledge and thank three more who have so kindly nominated me. They are:
1. Christiane at The Mom Chef. She has a truly unique blog where she writes about making food from magazine recipes and whether those recipes are good and accurate. She takes the guess work out for us.
2. Mina at Authentic Vegetarian Recipes. She blogs about mouth-watering traditional home-cooked Indian food.
3. Megan at Foodalution. Megan blogs out of Madison, Wisconsin using farm fresh ingredients. She also shares with us her delicious food finds.
Now, to share another fun(?) summer activity with you…..
All work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy.
All food and no work, makes Jack a flabby boy.
Ro-Taro (eldest son) taking the lead.
Ro-Jiro (second son) doing his share.
Thank God for teenage boys!
Enjoy…..and have a wonderful day!
My other blog
Tags: gluten-free, Malaysian, side dish
Biren, thanks for the awesome recipes! I love Chinese chives and Japanese loves to use for daily stir-fry and dumplings too. Plus that's good for surviving the summer heat.
Sending my summer greetings to Taro and Jiro
Chinese chives are really good in dumplings.
Taro and Jiro asked me to say "Hi" to you
Love your home cook Chinese dishes, look absolutely delicious !
Wow! That's what I call a home cooked meal!! Love everything on the table, but if I had to choose favourites , I would go for the kang kong and kim chi!
Speaking of chive dumplings, I can never resist those, though they can raise eyebrows with their stink LOL As delicious as they are smelly
Love this set meal Biren especially the kang kong. I've also cooked fried eggs with prawns yesterday. Next time I'll try your recipe.
Aww, you're a sweetheart for the mention Biren! I love the use of garlic chili sauce in your ong choy dish! Although these day I must adjust my recipes to my two extra tiny mouths. Teehee. My hubby actually prefers it your way, with less gravy, but my kiddies like to have a bit of the gravy on their rice, so more gravy it is. Either way, ong choy is simply delicious. I also love your chive omelet. This is such a great meal. Don't be surprised if I come knocking on your door before dinner time.
That's is so awesome that both your boys are willing to help out with the chores. You know the teenage years can be quite the rebellious years. Kudos to you Biren!
PS
Almost forgot to congratulate you on your award, how rude of me. Needless to say, this award is definitely well deserved!
Congrats on your awards. Your homecooked meal looks delicious and wholesome!
Hmmm I don't think I've had water spinach before but I love the spices in this dish! Full of flavor.
Congrats on your award–and the teenage boys! I'll have one of those in about 8 years! The dishes look fabulous. Chile paste and green veggies just belong together, don't they?
It's a pleasure LeQuan
Yes, I have had to adjust my recipes when the boys were little and even now. Sometimes, I come up with a new dish altogether and that is the fun and joy of cooking. Well, I guess that's what we do as moms so that our little ones are well fed.
You can come over any time. Would love to have you and your family join us for dinner
They have their moments but they are good boys. I thank God they are mine
wow!! I love the spicy water spinach, it looks yummy. Love the platter.
Congratulations on your award!
I adore all the homey dishes you have prepared!
I've never heard of this spinach before…but then again, when I'm in the Asian market I've not heard of so many of those wonderful veggies they offer. I feel so sheltered.
Congrats on the award!
wow!! so yummy!!
congrats on ur award…
Hey Biren, that water spinach dish reminds me of LeQuan too! She loves healthy dishes like that-the ones that seem to be packed with flavor from things like shrimp paste and such. Ooh, I love shrimp paste by the way, so, if I see water spinach at our Asian market, I will not be afraid to grab some now!
Oh, and I do that type of omelet too, Biren. I thought it was weird that I love egg omelet with the kitchen sink thrown in and with a side of rice and soy sauce no less. I'm glad I'm not alone (smile). Yum!
p.s. I got your e-mail. I don't want you to feel pressured to make a bread b/c of me-only if it fits you guy's schedule…
I love water spinach too! and yes I remember that from LeQuan's. Both versions are slightly different than my mom's. The chili sauce is a good touch! And, the omelett is oh so good! I love everything on a table you showed!!
Congrats on the awards! I love that whenever I come to your blog, I know I will always find a tasty and unique recipe. I have never heard of water spinach, but I would gobble this up in a heartbeat. It looks absolutely delicious!
What a fantastic meal. I've not heard of water spinach. There is a new Asian market nearby that my friends are raving about. I'll have to see if they have it. It looks so healthy. I love those green vegetables!
My teenage boy is grown and gone. Enjoy while you can.
I buy water spinach sometimes at my local farmers market. It's a nice change from regular American spinach. And yes, I stir-fry it with garlic all the time, too!
It's the first time I see water spinach, it looks yummy. And what a feast…everything looks so good.
The dishes are all so good with rice. I like the kang kong and simple omelet. yum yum yum…
What a lovely plate.. looks great:)
Water spinach is something new for me! I bet it's delicious in the stir-fry. And I would love to try those other dishes too – what a great spread! You have good boys for helping out.
Congratulations on your well-deserved awards. Water spinach is not always available here. I'll give your recipe a try the next time I see it. Your omelet sounds delicious and is very easy to do. I love that. I hope you are having a great day. I loved the photos of your sons at work. Blessings…Mary
Both recipes look fabulous. Congrats on your well deserved award.
the last picture of the homemade spread is tempting me to go to my fav Asian restaurant to get a bellyfull of these goodies. love the omlette recipe.
You like shrimp paste? Wow…you must be pretty well versed in Asian food
I think you will not be disappointed with the water spinach. Yes, eggs are good with most things. Maybe I'll introduce you to egg and canned sardines.
Anyway, don't worry about the bread. I've actually made a loaf using the bread machine and will be trying out the hand beater version soon. It's a good bread and we enjoy it. The first loaf is almost gone
I use a lot of green leafy vegetables in our daily meals. It is really easy to prepare and very good for us.
Thanks Kristi! They seem to grow up faster and faster when they hit middle school. Right now, I am afraid of the prospects of being an "empty nester"
Thanks Reeni! My boys are home bodies and I welcome all the help they can give me
They are growing up too fast.
They both look delicious and congrats on your award. Good for you!
Love Kangkung, love the egg omelete and love the lotus root soup. I wanna have dinner at your house
I need some teenage boys to mow my lawn too 
Congrats on the award, the dish and the boys helping out! I am not sure what to talk about first!
Congrats for the award! You deserve it. You have such a lovely blog. I love that water spinach too. I ate almost everyday when I was back for holiday. That meal looks wonderful too. I wish I can have that for lunch
Hope you have wonderful day.