Covid-19 stay-home recipe: Easy, healthy wolfberry dish

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At a loss as to what to cook today? Fret not. In this daily series, STFood Online Editor Hedy Khoo features nourishing recipes you can whip up during the circuit breaker period

Tired of eating the same old vegetables like caixin and kailan? Try whipping up this simple dish of stir-fried wolfberry leaves with wolfberries.

 

Wolfberries are believed to be beneficial for the eyes, liver and kidneys in traditional Chinese medicine. Wolfberry leaves - known as gou qi ye in Mandarin and gao kee cai in Teochew - are edible.

 

Unlike the fruit, which is sweet, the leaves have a trace of bitterness which not everyone may like.

 

But I have loved the leaves since childhood. My grandmother and father used to cook them in a soup with wolfberries, egg and ikan bilis.

 

The leaves contain beta-carotene, betaine (beneficial for cardiovascular health), calcium, choline and vitamins B1, B2 and C.

 

I like to stir-fry wolfberry leaves with wolfberries, seasoned with oyster sauce. It is easy to cook and a nice change from the usual vegetable stir-fries.

 

The wolfberry leaves wilt very quickly once they are in the wok, so you do not have to fry them for long. The only troublesome part is having to pluck the leaves off the thorny stems.

 

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STIR-FRIED WOLFBERRY LEAVES WITH WOLFBERRIES

 

INGREDIENTS

 

• 320g stalks of wolfberry leaves
• 25g dried wolfberries
• 2 Tbs cooking oil
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 Tbs oyster sauce
• 1 Tbs cornflour
• 100ml water

 

METHOD

 

1. Remove the leaves from the stalks. Discard the stalks. You should have about 220g of leaves.

 

2. Wash and rinse the leaves. Set aside in a colander to drain.

 

3. Rinse dried wolfberries and set aside in a bowl for 15 minutes.

 

4. Heat 2 Tbs of oil over medium-high heat in a non-stick wok.

 

5. Add chopped garlic and fry for 30 seconds until fragrant.

 

6. Add wolfberry leaves and stir-fry for 30 seconds or until leaves are half wilted.

 

7. Add oyster sauce and stir-fry for 15 seconds, then add the wolfberries.

 

8. Mix the cornflour and 100ml of water. Add the mixture into the wok.

 

9. Stir-fry for 15 seconds until the gravy begins to bubble.

 

10. Turn off the heat and transfer the vegetables to a serving dish.

 

11. Serve immediately.

 

Serves two to three

 

Source: The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.

 

 

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