Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Fried Kangkong with Otah

My family loves this vegetable, kangkong or water convolvulus cooked in shrimp paste chilli.
Whenever we eat out, this dish is always first on the order list. BUT I usually eat very little because the veggie comes to us swimming in oil and tasting very salty! (Guess that's what makes it so tasty!)

Today is one of the rare occasions that I cook this veggie. Reason being, I dislike having the whole house errr.. flat, smelling like sambal belachan. Besides that, the odour clings to the hair and clothes!
However, I have managed to resolve this problem quite significantly. I sauteed the spices on low heat till the oil showed and then added the rest of the ingredients. Tastewise, it's still good and smell-wise, the odour was cut down by more than half! Hooray!



What I Used:

2 packets kangkong (I got them from ntuc)

Spices:
3 teaspoons coarsely ground dried prawns
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 or more red chillies (depends on preference for spiciness)
1 teaspoon belachan

1 packet otah, cut into chunks (bought from jb)
1/2 packet kara coconut milk, diluted with some water (optional)

oil
salt (optional)


What I Did:

1. Grind all spices together.

2. Heat some oil and saute spices till fragrant or till oil shows.

3. Add otah chunks and let fry till 3/4 cooked.

4. Add coconut milk and bring to semi-boiling stage and then add veggie. Mix quickly.

5. Bring to a boil and turn off heat. Do not overcook this veggie.

I gave it extra gravy so that I could drench my rice in it! :)



12 comments:

  1. I never try to cook kankong with otah before. Looks very delicious and I'm hungry now ;D

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  2. It has been ages since I last had Kangkong....sighs...miss them a lot! I love them stir-fried with minced garlic and a bit of fresh chillies.

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  3. What a lovely new way with kangkong. The colour is so beautiful. Looks spicy and delicious...mmmm.

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  4. Very creative to do this with otak-otak.
    First time seeing this.

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  5. That's the beauty of homecooking, we can adjust the amount of anything to suit our taste.
    In summer, I always love to cook water convolvulus with fermented beancurd for my family.

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  6. I love kangkong with sambal belachan! I have never had it with otah, but just the look of it makes me drool!

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  7. ha ha I did the same way if I am cooking some Malaysian food. I will turn down the heat in order not to stink up the house. Same goes with fish too. Usually will steam them or pan fried in very low heat :)

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  8. Hi Ann,
    Got this tip from a very old colleague a long time ago.

    Hi Angie,
    My family prefers it to be spicy or lemak. Have yet to try your way.


    Hi Mary,
    It's spicy and lemak! We ate extra rice today!


    Hi Wendy,
    Been doing it with otah for quite some time.
    It has its special taste.


    Hi Christine,
    Have never tried with fermented beancurd. Don't know if I will, cause my family prefers it spicy.


    Hi HHB,
    Try it one day for a change.


    Hi ICook4Fun,
    Agree to the 'odour' it leaves behind! But the eating is 'shiok'!

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  9. Yep, the otah is the unique touch :)...once you can cook that at home, you don't have to pay $10 for a plate of greasy Sambal Kang Kong from the eatery stalls any more!

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  10. my family love kangkong with sambal belachan but we nvr try with otak, good combination since both are our family's favourite.

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  11. I have not had Otah for a while. Nice recipe.

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  12. I like otah and I like kangkong too, but combination of both .... never tried it before.
    However, as long as it spicy food ... I'm sure eat it ..... :)

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