Envoy at 15:49, 14 September 2007

2007-09-14T15:49:21Z

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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Ipomoea aquatica''
| image = N Ipoa D1600.JPG
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[flowering plants|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[dicotyledon|Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Solanales]]
| familia = [[Convolvulaceae]]
| genus = '''''[[Ipomoea]]'''''
| species = '''''I. aquatica'''''
| binomial = ''Ipomoea aquatica''
| binomial_authority = [[Peter Forsskål|Forssk.]]
}}

'''''Ipomoea aquatica''''' is a semi-[[aquatic plant|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.

Common names include '''water spinach''', '''swamp cabbage''', '''water convolvulus''', '''water morning-glory''', '''kangkung''' ([[Malay language|Malay]]), '''kangkong''' ([[Tagalog language|Tagalog]]), '''tangkong''' ([[Cebuano language|Cebuano]]), '''kang kung''' ([[Sinhalese language|Sinhalese]]), '''trawkoon''' ( [[Khmer_language|Khmer]]: ត្រកូន), '''pak boong''' (in Thai: ผักบุ้ง) ([[Thai language|Thai]]), '''rau muống''' ([[Vietnamese language|Vietnamese]]), '''kongxincai''' ({{zh-cpl|c=空心菜|p=kōngxīncài|l=hollow heart vegetable}}), '''home sum choy''' ([[Hakka_language | Hakka]]), or '''ong choy''' ([[Standard Cantonese|Cantonese]] pronunciation of {{zh-cp|c=[[wikt:蕹|蕹]][[wikt:菜|菜]] ngônkcôi|p=wéngcài}}).

''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 [[leaf|leaves]] vary from sagittate (typical) to lanceolate, 5-15 cm long and 2-8 cm broad. The [[flower]]s are trumpet-shaped, 3-5 cm diameter, usually white in colour.

===Cultivation and culinary uses===
[[image:Ong choy water spinach.png|thumb|left|Ong choy water spinach.]]
It is most commonly grown in [[East Asia|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 a legal term denoting harmful, in this case, 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 frying|stir fried]] with both [[Malaysian cuisine#Malay food|Malay]] and [[Malaysian cuisine#Chinese food|Chinese]] seasonings, including [[chile pepper]]s, [[garlic]], [[ginger]], dried [[shrimp]] paste ([[belacan]]) and other [[spice]]s. 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.

[[Image:Kangkungblacan.jpg|thumb|[[Penang]]Kangkung Blachan]]
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 [[tofu|beancurd]] - a method known in the [[Mandarin language]] as ''furu'' ([[pickled tofu]]). In Hakka cuisine, yellow [[bean paste]] is added, sometimes along with fried [[shallot]]s. 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 [[som tam|green papaya salad]].

In [[Vietnamese cuisine|Vietnam]], it once served as a staple vegetable of the poor (known as ''rau muống''). In the south, the stems are [[Julienning|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 muống'' is one of the tastes that remind Vietnamese people of their simple and peaceful rural hometown life.

''Anh đi anh nhớ quê nhà,''

''Nhớ canh rau muống, nhớ cà dầm tương.''

(Leaving far and far away, we're nostagic much

Remembering rau muống soup as well as [[eggplant]] with [[soya sauce]].)

In the [[Philippines]], it is usually sauteed in cooking oil, [[onion]]s, garlic, vinegar, and [[soy sauce]]. This dish is called "[[adobo]]ng kangkong". It is also a common leaf vegetable in sour fish and meat stews like "[[sinigang]]".

There is concern that, ''eaten raw'', the plant could transmit [[fasciolopsiasis]], a [[parasite]] of humans and pigs [http://www.stanford.edu/class/humbio103/ParaSites2002/fasciolopsiasis/trans.html].

===Cultural references===
There is a belief in [[Chinese culture]] that discourages extensive consumption of ''Ipomoea aquatica'' as a [[staple food]] [[agriculture|crop]] (in contrast to [[rice]]) with the explanation that the hollow stem makes the person weak and hollow like the plant, although this belief does not advocate refraining from eating the plant entirely. But the [[elderly]], for example, are discouraged from consuming it. This belief probably derived from ancient observations following attempts to replace consumption of rice with the relatively resilient ''Ipomoea aquatica'' during times of food shortages and [[war]] and noting loss of muscle strength, probably due to the fact that ''Ipomoea aquatica'' contains less [[food energy]] than rice. Despite this, it is a common vegetable in Asian cuisine.

== External links ==
*[http://www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/taxon.pl?20138 Germplasm Resources Information Network: ''Ipomoea aquatica'']
{{unimelb|Ipomoea.html#aquatica}}
*[http://www.ku.ac.th/AgrInfo/fruit/veget/v31.html Water spinach nutritional information] from [[Kasetsart University]]
*[http://protist.i.hosei.ac.jp/Asagao/Yoneda_DB/E/PCD2522/htmls/40.html Photo of heart-shaped variety]
*[http://aquat1.ifas.ufl.edu/ipaqpic.html Aquatic, Wetland and Invasive Plant Particulars and Photographs]
*[http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/weeds/7cfr360-06.pdf USDA Noxious Weed Regulations (Possession in USA requires permit)]
*[http://ss.jircas.affrc.go.jp/engpage/jarq/33-3/yoshihara/yoshihara.htm ''Helminths and Helminthiosis of Pigs in the Mekong Delta Vietnam with Special Reference to Ascariosis and Fasciolopsis buski Infection'']

[[Category:Convolvulaceae]]
[[Category:Leaf vegetables]]
[[Category:Vietnamese cuisine]]
[[Category:Singaporean cuisine]]
[[Category:Taiwanese cuisine]]
[[Category:Malaysian cuisine]]
[[Category:Indonesian cuisine]]
[[Category:Thai cuisine]]

Ipomoea aquatica - Revision history

Envoy at 15:49, 14 September 2007