How to Make South East Asian Kangkung Belacan - Water Spinach with Shrimp Paste and Chilies Asian Cooking Recipe Cuisine

Singapore and Malaysia Kangkung Belacan (Water Spinach with Shrimp Paste and Chilies)

This recipe was taken from centuries old cooking techniques and when possible applied modern cooking methods and/or ingredients.  It uses Asian cooking styles, Asian Spices, Asian Sauces and Asian Ingredients.  The style of cooking may have a slight alteration while still maintaining the dish's overall purpose.  In this blog we touch on recipes that may be predominant for the Chinese Cuisines.  We will also share recipes based upon country, or regions such as: Burma, Cambodia, Indian, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Tibet and Vietnam.  Some cuisines are considered South Asian, South East Asian dishes, Central Asian and/or Middle Eastern and may not be strictly connected to a specific country or culture.

Recipe makes for 4-6 Servings

2 tbsp dried shrimp, rinsed

boiling water, for soaking

1 lb water spinach

5 Asian shallot or 1/2 small white onion, coarsely chopped

4 garlic cloves

3 long, fresh red chilies, coarsely chopped without seeds OR 1 tbsp prepared chili paste

2 tsp dried shrimp paste

3 tbsp veg oil

2 tsp sugar

salt to taste

Directions:

Soak dried shrimp in enough boiling water to cover and drain when softened. Reserve 2 tbsp of the soaking liquid.

Wash the water spinach in cold water and drain well. Discard the bottom 4 inches of the root ends of the kangkong. Cut into thirds and separate the steams and leaves.

Combine the dried shrimp, shallots, garlic, chilies and dried shrimp paste and whirl into a thick, clumpy paste in a food processor. Do not overprocess.

Heat oil over medium heat in a large wok or skillet. Drop in a little shrimp paste and when it sizzles, add in the rest of the paste. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring and scraping the wok continuously to cook paste evenly and precent scorching. If paste starts to burn, pull off the heat for a bit or add in a little bit of oil. (Paste is ready when its original pungent smell has mellowed to a pleasantly sweet fragrance with no trace of raw shallots or garlic and is visually darker and separating from the oil)

Toss in the water spinach stems and stir to mix the paste for about 30 seconds. Add spinach leaves, sugar and reserved liquid from the dried shrimp. Stir in until leaves are wilted but still bright and the stems are crisp. Taste and add salt if desired.


*Try the recipe with okra, asparagus, green beans or broccoli.

For the adventurous palate, a great side dish that compliments this recipe is Jaew Bong.  Discover more about Jaew Bong, check out www.jaewbong.com.

Enjoy..

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