Pad Pak Boong Fai Daeng ผัดผักบุ้งไฟแดง Thai Stir-Fried Morning Glory
My mother made this at home, and I looked at it the way a small child looks at a vegetable, noticing the bright green, the garlic, the glossy sauce, without quite knowing what to make of it yet. She kept it gentle for me, no spice, because I was still learning. We sat at our table and I ate what made sense and left the rest. Then I grew up, and this simple dish finally made complete sense to me. A hot wok, good garlic, the right sauce, three minutes and something genuinely wonderful arrives at the table. I wish I had understood sooner. You will understand right away. Make this tonight, it is simpler than you think and better than you expect.
Equipment
- Wok or large heavy skillet
- wok spatula
- small bowl for the sauce
Ingredients
- 1 pound large bunch fresh morning glory pak boong / water spinach / ong choy, washed, tough stems trimmed, cut into 3-inch pieces
- 4 garlic cloves roughly chopped
- 4 fresh Thai bird's eye chilies roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons tao jiao fermented soybean paste
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 cups steamed jasmine rice to serve
Instructions
- Get everything ready before the heat goes on: Before the wok goes on, mix tao jiao, oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar together in a small bowl. Stir well and set it right next to the stove. This dish moves so fast that having everything ready is not optional. Also have your chopped garlic and chilies in a small pile right beside the wok, and your morning glory washed, trimmed, and within arm's reach.
- Fry the garlic and chilies: Heat your wok over the highest heat your stove can produce. Add the oil and swirl to coat. When the oil is shimmering and just beginning to smoke, add the garlic and chilies all at once. Stir-fry for about 15 to 20 seconds only. You want them fragrant and just beginning to color at the edges, not soft and cooked through.
- Add the morning glory and sauce: Add the morning glory stems first and toss immediately. Give them about 20 to 30 seconds over the high heat before adding the leaves. Once the leaves go in, pour the sauce over everything at the same time. Toss constantly and vigorously, making sure every piece of morning glory gets coated in the sauce and exposed to the heat.
- Toss until just wilted: Keep tossing for about 60 to 90 seconds total. The leaves will wilt quickly and the stems will turn bright green and slightly glossy. The morning glory is ready when it is vibrant green, just wilted, and coated in the savory sauce. The stems should still have a little crunch. Do not walk away from this wok for even a moment.
- Serve immediately: Transfer immediately to a serving plate and bring it straight to the table. Serve over steamed jasmine rice. Pad Pak Boong waits for nobody. Every second it sits off the heat it loses a little of its brightness and crunch. Make it last, eat it first.
Notes
The wok must be very hot. Heat the wok for two full minutes before the oil goes in, then keep the heat on high through the entire cooking time. This is what keeps the morning glory bright green, what gives the leaves their slight char, and what makes the garlic golden rather than bitter. Three minutes at proper heat gives you a completely different dish than five minutes at medium.
Mix the sauce before the wok gets hot. Tao jiao, oyster sauce, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar combined in a small bowl, done in thirty seconds, ready to pour when the moment comes. One bowl, five ingredients, thirty seconds of stirring. This dish moves fast and having the sauce ready means you are in control rather than scrambling.
The fermented soybean paste, tao jiao, is the ingredient worth finding. It is what gives this dish the depth that makes it taste like the restaurant version rather than something close to it. Asian grocery stores carry it in jars and it keeps refrigerated for months. Buy it once and it will be there every time you make this.
Morning glory is one of the fastest-cooking vegetables you will ever put in a wok. The moment it is coated in sauce and bright green and slightly charred at the edges, move it to the plate. Wok to plate, immediately. You will be glad you did not wait.
Make it vegan. Swap fish sauce for soy sauce and oyster sauce for vegetarian oyster sauce. Tao jiao is already vegan. The dish loses nothing.
Nutrition
Calories: 140kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 4gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 760mgPotassium: 419mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3g
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