Why does water spinach turn black?
Water spinach becomes black when stir-fried or boiled because it contains a lot of sap. When they are not in contact with enough water or not fully ripe, they will turn black and bitter.
If water spinach is stir-fried too long, it will become yellowish and lose its crunchiness. Therefore, to stir-fry water spinach to keep it green and crunchy, it is necessary to ensure it is cooked enough but the whole vegetable is evenly heated and in contact with water to prevent it from becoming dull.
Preparation:
Choose water spinach: There are white and red varieties of water spinach. To keep water spinach green and fresh after stir-frying, choose white water spinach, fresh without damage, old or withered.
When you break off a stem of water spinach and white sap flows out, it is fresh and will taste better when cooked.
You will need about 500g of water spinach.
2-3 cloves of garlic
Vegetable oil or lard according to your taste
Seasonings: salt, monosodium glutamate, stock cubes
Instructions:
Step 1 Blanch the vegetables:
Wash the water spinach and bring a pot of water to a boil. Then blanch the water spinach in the boiling water quickly to make it green and crunchy. The boiling water should be slightly salty, add the water spinach and stir until the water boils again, then immediately remove the water spinach and put it in a bowl of ice water, let it soak in the ice water for a few minutes, then remove and drain.
Note that blanching the vegetables should be done in boiling water and there should be enough water to submerge the vegetables. If you put the vegetables in water that is not yet boiling and leave them there until it boils, the vegetables will become dull, similar to boiling vegetables with insufficient water.
This blanched water spinach can be used as a soup, add some lime or tamarind as desired or not.
Blanching the vegetables in this way makes them crunchy and reduces the amount of oxalic acid in water spinach, reducing bitterness and dullness when stir-frying.
Step 2 Stir-fry the vegetables:
Wipe the pan dry and heat the oil until hot, then add the minced garlic and stir-fry until fragrant. Add the vegetables and quickly stir-fry, season with the desired amount of seasonings. If you want the vegetables to be softer, you can use oyster sauce to make the vegetables soft and crunchy with a stronger flavor.
Notes for stir-frying:
To keep water spinach green when stir-frying, you need to use high heat and quickly stir the vegetables to evenly distribute the heat and avoid the surface being exposed to the heat for too long, causing it to become black and only partially green.
When finished stir-frying, remove the vegetables onto a plate and spread them thinly on the plate, so that there is not too much piled up on the plate, which will make the vegetable lose its crunchiness. The bottom part will not taste as good.
When blanching and stir-frying the vegetables, do not cover the pan.
It is best to eat the stir-fried vegetables immediately to ensure their hotness and crunchiness. If left for too long, the vegetables will lose their deliciousness.
Water spinach stir-fry is a popular dish often found in households, but many people are hesitant to make this dish because they are afraid that the vegetables will turn black, taste bitter, and lose their crunchiness. One part of the technique is in the stir-frying and one part is in the choice of water spinach variety. So you need to pay attention when choosing water spinach to stir-fry.
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