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Your backyard Kangkong is a Health Food
| By Pinoy Farmer | July 12, 2009 | 
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Whether it is from the pond or from the garden, kangkong is a commonly used food plant in Asia. Folkloric data indicate that the plant is a general tonic for neuralgia and other nervous diseases and can be used as poultice for skin ulcers. We enjoy this vegetable in our “sinigang” or just stir-fried with garlic and tofu, as with any other vegetable that we consume, kangkong should be washed thoroughly before cooking.
This vegetable is rich in iron and is also relatively rich in S-methyl methionine (so-called Vitamin U – this is pseudovitamin) and is used traditionally to treat gastric and intestinal disorders. S-methyl methionine is a substance that strengthens the cell membrane and overall immune system. It was also reported that S-methyl methionine can act as a hypolipidemic agent or lowers our cholesterol/fat in our blood. Kangkong has also been found to have insulin-like properties, acting as an anti-hyperglycaemic agent.
Ipomoea aquatica or water spinach is a semi-aquatic tropical plant grown as a leaf vegetable. Its precise natural distribution is unknown due to extensive cultivation, with the species found throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world.
Ipomoea aquatica grows in water or on moist soil. Its stems are 2-3 m or more long, hollow, allowing them to float, and these root at the nodes. The leaves vary from sagittate (typical) to lanceolate, 5-15 cm long and 2-8 cm broad. The flowers are trumpet-shaped, 3-5 cm diameter, usually white in colour.
Cultivation and culinary uses
It is most commonly grown in East and Southeast Asia. Because it flourishes naturally in waterways and does not require much if any care, it is used extensively in Malay and Chinese cuisine, especially in rural or kampung (village) areas. It is not to be mistaken with watercress, which often grows in similar situations.
It has also been introduced to United States of America where its high growth rate caused it to become an environmental problem, especially in Florida and Texas. It has been officially designated by the USDA as a “noxious weed.” Despite this ominous label, the plant is not in any way harmful when consumed (“noxious” is, in this context, a legal term denoting the plant’s harmfulness to native plants). In fact, the plant is similar to spinach in its nutritional benefits.
The vegetable is a common ingredient in Southeast Asian dishes. In Singapore, Indonesia and Penang, the leaves are usually stir fried with chile pepper, garlic, ginger, dried shrimp paste (belacan/terasi) and other spices. In Penang and Ipoh, it is cooked with cuttlefish and a sweet and spicy sauce. During the Japanese Occupation of Singapore in World War II, the vegetable grew remarkably well and easily in many areas, and become a popular wartime crop.
In Chinese cuisine, there are numerous ways of preparation, but a simple and quick stir-fry either plain or with minced garlic is probably the most common. In Cantonese cuisine, a popular variation adds preserved beancurd – a method known in the Mandarin language as furu (The Chinese Cheeses). In Hakka cuisine, yellow bean paste is added, sometimes along with fried shallots. The vegetable is also extremely popular in Taiwan, where it grows well.
In Thailand it is frequently stir fried with oyster sauce and shrimp paste. It can be eaten raw with Lao green papaya salad. There is concern that, eaten raw, the plant could transmit fasciolopsiasis, a parasite of humans and pigs.
In Vietnam, it once served as a staple vegetable of the poor (known as rau mu?ng). In the south, the stems are julienned into thin strips and eaten with many kinds of noodles, and used as a garnish as well. Over the course of time, Ipomoea aquatica has developed into being an ingredient for many daily vegetable dishes of Vietnamese cuisine as a whole. Rau mu?ng is one of the tastes that remind Vietnamese people of their simple and peaceful rural hometown life.In the Philippines, it is usually sauteed in cooking oil, onions, garlic, vinegar, and soy sauce. This dish is called “adobong kangkong”. It is also a common leaf vegetable in fish and meat stews like sinigang. There is also an appetizer in the Philippines called Crispy Kangkong, it is mixed with eggs, water, cornstarch, flour, salt and pepper then the leaves are coated with the batter. The leaves are fried until crispy and golden brown.
Sources: Herbal Blog, Wikipedia
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