The Best in the World Kang Kong Stir Fry

My father, Chang Ta Kang, was quite peculiar in his tastes. He loved good food and especially different meat dishes.

Although he was a great reader and knew a lot about medical and health topics, he was quite adamant about eating pork.

His kangkong must be cooked with lard, some smashed garlic and a bit of salt.



Whenever my mother ran out of lard and did not cook his favourite vegetable with lard, he would know straight away and would not eat. He would not get angry but he would not eat it.

The next day he would  quietly go to the market and buy chunks of pork fat for my mother to make lard. Lard making takes time and my mother was really good at it. We loved to see the solidified lard in the enamel pot.

The lard was always stored in a big blue lidded enamel pot which my mother would place on top of the Foochow stove. Some how the lard never seemed to go bad.

My father was very traditional when it came to the tastes and flavours of Foochow dishes. Lard was a very important ingredient in his opinion.

It is true, a little bit of lard always makes kangkong more flavourful.