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This peppy way to cook spinach livens up meals that feature familiar vegetables.
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Quick and easy ways to liven up familiar vegetables give your meals extra appeal. This peppy way to cook spinach was created to use with a far eastern plant called water spinach, or swamp spinach, which has both a firmer texture than North American spinach and juicy stems.
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Sometimes grown in the southern U.S. and stocked in Asian specialty shops, its flavour has been compared to watercress and it lacks the slight bitterness of our regular spinach, which is used in this recipe. U.K. chef Petty Pandean-Elliott, a native of the Indonesian island of Manado, includes this recipe and several adaptations in her beautiful cookbook The Indonesian Table (Phaidon, $49.95). She adds to the flavour of spinach in her stir-fry that includes hot peppers.
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Spinach With chili and miso
Serves 4
10 ounces (284 g/6 cups) fresh spinach
2 tablespoons (30 mL) miso paste
2 tablespoons (30 mL) coconut or canola oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 bird’s eye chilis or 1 jalapeño pepper, thinly sliced
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
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Salt
Trim stems from spinach and reserve. Wash leaves well and dry. Cut leaves and stems into 1-inch (2.5 cm) strips. Place leaves and stems in separate bowls.
Measure miso paste into a small bowl and mix in 4 tablespoons (60 mL) water. Set aside.
Heat oil in a wok or heavy frying pan over medium heat and sauté garlic and chilis for 2 to 3 minutes, until garlic is golden.
Increase heat to high, add stems and tomatoes and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes, until stems have softened.
Add leaves and cook just until heated through and leaves have wilted.
Stir in miso mixture and cook one more minute.
Add salt to taste.
julianarmstrong1@gmail.com
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