INDONESIAN COOKING: Kang Kung with Squids

Ipomoea aquatica is a semi-aquatic tropical plant grown as a leaf vegetable. It is known in English as Water Spinach, Water Morning Glory, Water Convolvulus, or by the more ambiguous names "Chinese spinach" and "swamp cabbage". It has many other names in other languages, such as "Phak bung" in Thai and "Kangkung" in Malay and Indonesian. It is found throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of the world; it is not known exactly where it originated. It has been mistakenly called kale by some people in the West, although kale is a different family of plant belonging to the Brassica oleracea Acephala Group and completely unrelated to the Water Spinach.

Ipomoea aquatica is most commonly grown in East and Southeast Asia. Because it flourishes naturally in waterways and requires little if any care, it is used extensively in Thai, Lao, Cambodian, Malay, Vietnamese and Chinese cuisine, especially in rural or kampung (village) areas.

It has also been introduced to the United States where its high growth rate has caused it to become an environmental problem, especially in Florida and Texas. It has been officially designated by the USDA as a "noxious weed"[2] (the term "noxious" refers to its effect on the environment, not to any toxicity)

The vegetable is a common ingredient in Southeast Asian dishes. In Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, 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.

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• kangkung
• belachan
• kang
• kkung

[AndrosTalal]

that looks great