Water spinach stir-fried with garlic
A simple taste that brings freshness and lightness to a meal.
Ingredients
- 500 g water spinach
- 5 cloves garlic
- 2 slices ginger (optional)
- 1 tbsp rice wine (Shaoxing (optional))
- 1 tsp oyster sauce (optional)
- 1 tsp black sesame oil (optional)
- vegetable oil
- salt
Method
- 1Clean the water spinach well, then separate the stems from the leaves. Cut the stems into pieces about 5 cm long. Set aside.
- 2Mince the garlic and julienne the ginger. Set aside.
- 3Heat a pan over high heat. When it starts to smoke, add the oil. Add the ginger and half of the garlic. Stir-fry for 20 seconds.
- 4Add the water spinach stems. Stir-fry for 1 minute.
- 5Lower to medium heat. Add the water spinach leaves. Add the rice wine and oyster sauce. Salt. Cover and cook for 1 minute.
- 6Add the second half of the garlic. Stir-fry for 1 minute.
- 7Turn off the heat. Add the sesame oil. Stir.
- 8Serve immediately.
Notes
This recipe can be made with just water spinach and garlic. The other ingredients are optional. The stems are added earlier than the leaves because they take longer to cook. Covering the leaves while cooking lets them steam and shrink, which then makes it possible to toss everything together. It's essential to eat water spinach very promptly (within 15 minutes), otherwise its colour and taste will fade. Green vegetables are very important in a meal in China because the goal is to find a general balance between dishes in terms of tastes (sweet, salty, bitter, sour, umami), colours, and types of products (meat, fish, vegetables etc.). Vegetables therefore have a place of choice.
