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Tender water spinach stir fried with smashed garlic and fermented tofu – I have many favorite veggies, but this is my favorite veggie dish of all times! In this post, I’m going to show you how we usually cook it – easy and delicious, and nutritious too!

What is Water Spinach?

Water spinach is a long, leafy green with long tender hollow shoots. That’s why in mandarin it’s name is Kongxincai 空心菜, which directly translates to empty heart vegetable.

This veggie actually has several names – it is also known as kangkong, river spinach, water morning glory, or ong choy is a vegetable that originates from Southeast Asia.

Water spinach is commonly cultivated in Southeast Asia, East Asia, and South Asia where it is warmer and receives more rain, as it grows abundantly near waterways and requires little to no care.

It grows so well, in fact, that it’s actually illegal in most states! Water spinach is considered an invasive species. But because it’s such a staple in Asian cooking, this leafy green is finally unbanned in some places – most recently, Georgia, where I live!

Water spinach is often used in Indonesian, Burmese, Thai, Lao, Cambodian, Malay, Vietnamese, Filipino, Chinese, and Taiwanese cuisine.

Also – this veggie can be eaten both cooked and raw.

What does Water Spinach taste like?

Water spinach is not technically or scientifically related to spinach, but its taste has been described as a cross between spinach and watercress.

I prefer it to spinach and watercress though, as it has more of an earthy taste and it is not bitter like spinach and watercress can be.

Is Water Spinach healthy?

Water spinach is a healthy vegetable! It has many nutrients that boost your skin and brain as it contains iron, vitamin C, vitamin A. This veggie has also been used in Ayurvedic medicine for the treatment of jaundice and liver problems.

About the ingredients

This dish is very simple and uses only a few ingredients. You can cook your water spinach with just oil, garlic, salt, however, we almost always also cook with fermented tofu (aka fermented bean curd).

Fermented tofu is a Chinese condiment consisting of processed, preserved tofu. The ingredients typically include soybeans, salt, rice wine and sesame oil or vinegar.

If you’ve never used this ingredient before, be warned – it is not one that smells great, and can be an acquired taste!

You can find some in your local Asian supermarket or even amazon:

Fermented Beancurd Tofu (Chunk) in dressing with mini Minced Chili -Spicy 10.5 oz (3 Packs)

Szechuan Fermented Beancurd Tofu Spicy 10oz (pack of 3)

Water Spinach Recipe

All right let’s get to the good part. This is our favorite go-to way of cooking this delicious veggie!

Gather your ingredients

• 1 bunch of water spinach
• 1 tbsp cooking oil
• 3-5 cloves of garlic, smashed
• Salt, as desired
• 1 tsp Fermented bean curd (optional)

Preparing the water spinach

Wash the water spinach by soaking in a large bowl of water in order to remove any dirt. Rinse and then remove from water.

Trim off the bottom 2 inches of the water spinach. Don’t cut off too much, as most of the stem area should be tender, so leave the leaves and the tender parts of the stem.

Then cut the veggie into about 3 inch lengths and discard leaves that are wilted or heavily bruised.

Cooking the water spinach

In a wok or cooking pan, add cooking oil and let it heat up in high heat. Then add the smashed garlic, and let it cook for about a minute.

Add the water spinach in to the wok/pan and stir fry until veggies are halfway wilted.

Add the fermented bean curd along with a bit of the juice/water (optional) and salt to taste.

Stir fry until veggies are soft, and then remove from heat immediately to avoid overcooking and making it all mushy.

If you like this veggie dish, or you do not have access to water spinach, check out a very similar veggie dish I have here (it’s my second favorite leafy green!) – Stir Fry Sweet Potato Leaves Recipe!

By the way – there’s so many delicious Chinese veggies out there, I wrote a whole article about them here!

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