Sunday 29 July 2012

Stir Fried Cabbage With Pork



Ingredients:

1/2 of cabbage (cut into bite sizes)
150g pork tenderloin (slices thinly)
1 bundle Tang Hoon (soak till soften)
2 garlic (minced finely)
4 pcs ginger
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/3 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp oyster sauce

50g water
1 tbsp cooking oil

Methods:

1. Marinate the pork with light soy sauce and sesame oil for 30 minutes.

2. Heat a tbsp of cooking oil in the wok. Saute the pork.

3. Push the pork to the side of the wok. Sauté the ginger and garlic. Add a little oil if there's not much oil left.

4. Toss in the cabbage and stir fry for a minute.

5. Add the Tang Hoon and mix well.

6. Add the oyster sauce and water. Continue to cook till the sauce almost dry up. Add a little sea salt if too bland.


Shredded Chicken Congee



Ingredients:

Serve 6

3 chicken thighs (skinned and deboned, scalded with hot water)
1 1/2 cup of rice (soaked for 20 minutes)
3 pcs ginger (julienned)
Salt
Water

Garnish:
You Tiao
Chopped spring onions
Fried shallot with oil
Few drops sesame oil
Julienned young ginger
Light soy sauce (optional)
Pepper

Methods:

1. Boil about 3 litres of water in a big pot.

2. Once the water starts to boil rapidly, put in the chicken thighs and bones. Simmer for 30 minutes and remove the chicken thighs. Continue to simmer for another 30 minutes.

3. When the chicken thighs have cooled down, shred them.

4. Remove the chicken bones. Add the rice into the pot and let it cook. Stir in between. Add more water in between and keep stirring. Once the rice have soften and break, add some salt and julienned ginger. Turn the heat off and leave the pot covered for about 15 minutes.

5. Turn the heat up again and add more water. Keep stirring till you get a smooth consistency.

6. Ladle the congee into a bowl. Add some shredded chicken, you tiao, julienned ginger, chopped spring onions and fried shallots on the congee.

7. Add few drops of sesame oil and a dash of pepper.



Sambal Long Beans



Ingredients:

1 bundle of long beans (ends trimmed and snapped into 5cm length)
1 handful of dried shrimps (washed)
4 shallots
4 garlic
2 chilli padi (chopped)
2 tbsp sambal chilli (store bought or homemade)
100ml water

Methods:

1. Blend the dried shrimps, garlic, shallots and chilli padi together.

2. Deep fry the long beans for few minutes till they look slightly wrinkled. Drain and set aside.

3. Remove the oil for deep frying and leave about 3 tbsp oil in the wok.

4. Sauté the dried shrimps, garlic, shallots and chilli padi till fragrant.

5. Add the sambal chilli and continue to stir fry for a while.

6. Add the long beans and mix well with the chilli paste.

7. Add the water and let it simmer for a minute. Turn the heat off.


Fried Shallot (With Oil)



Ingredients:

Shallots (sliced)
Cooking oil

Methods:

1. Heat the oil in a wok. Turn the heat down.

2. Put the shallots in and stir. Make sure the oil is enough to cover all the shallots.

3. When the shallots are almost all brown, turn off the heat. Let the oil cool down a little and pour into a container.

The shallots will continue to cook even the fire is turn off. So do not wait till all the shallots are browned to turn off the fire as the shallots might burnt.


Saturday 28 July 2012

Fishball Noodles With Minced Pork (Dry)



Today, I really got no idea what to cook. It's either rice, porridge or bee hoon. I wanted to cook porridge at first because I have some braised duck wings in the fridge. But I don't know what other side dishes to cook.

So my sister suggested to cook fishballs noodles. Well, it's something new... Why not?

You may add other ingredients such as pork balls, pork livers, etc.

Ingredients:

Serve 5

Soup:
2 litres water
3 tbsp ikan bilis powder
150g yellow beans

2 fish cakes (pan fried till nicely browned)
15 fishballs
5 tbsp minced pork (cook in boiling water with a strainer)
Spring onions (chopped)
Chilli padi (chopped)
Fried garlic (with oil)
Lettuces
2 packs Mee Pok or other types of noodles
Soy sauce
Sesame oil
Chilli paste (homemade or store bought)
Water for cooking noodles
Black pepper

Methods:

1. Boil about 2 litres of water in a pot.

2. Once the water starts to boil rapidly, add the ikan bilis powder and yellow beans. Simmer for an hour.

3. Prepare the fish cakes and minced meat ahead. Pan fry the fish cakes and set aside. Slice the fish cakes once cool down. Using a strainer, cook the minced meat with boiling water in a smaller pot. Drain and set aside.

4. Cook the fishballs in the soup. Set aside.

5. Put a tbsp of chilli paste, a tsp of light soy sauce, few drops of sesame oil and 1/2 tsp of fried garlic in a bowl. Ladle some soup into the bowl and mix well.

6. Boil some water in a pot. Toss the Mee Pok few times to loosen the bundles. Once the water starts to boil rapidly, cook the mee pok with a strainer for about 10 seconds. Using chopsticks to stir the noodles. Drain and place the noodle into the bowl.

7. Mix the mee pok with the chilli paste. Put some lettuces, sliced fish cakes, 3 fishballs and minced meat onto the noodles. Sprinkle chopped spring onions onto the noodles.

8. Ladle some soup in another bowl with some lettuces. Add some fried garlic and sprinkle with black pepper and chopped spring onions.

Serve with chopped chilli padi and soy sauce.


Sunday 15 July 2012

Pan Fried Soy Sauce Tiger Prawns



Ingredients:

1 kg medium or large tiger prawns
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp cooking wine
2 cloves garlic (slightly crushed)
1 handful of spring onions (about 5-6cm length)
1 tbsp cooking oil

Methods:

1. Heat the oil in a non stick pan. Saute the garlic. Remove the garlic.

2. Toss in the prawns. Pan fry 1 side of the prawns until the shells become red and turn to another side to pan fry.

3. Drizzle the soy sauce on the prawns and let them absorb the sauce.

4. Drizzle the cooking wine. Add the spring onions and continue to cook til the pan starts to get dry. The shells should look slightly crisp and charred.

French Beans With Minced Pork



Ingredients:

1 packet of thin French Beans (ends trimmed)
150g minced pork (marinate with 1 tbsp soy sauce and 1/2 oyster sauce)
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 clove garlic (minced finely)
1 tsp cooking oil
Cooking oil for frying
Sea salt

Methods:

1. Heat some oil in the wok to fry the French beans till they are slightly wrinkled. Remove and set aside. Remove the oil.

2. Heat 1 tbsp oil in the wok and sauté the garlic.

3. Add the minced pork and sauté for a minute.

4. Drizzle the dark soy sauce and continue to cook till the sauce dries up.

5. Add the French beans and stir well with minced pork... Sprinkle the sea salt and stir well.


Long Beans And Chai Po Omelette



Ingredients:

4 eggs (beaten)
6 stalks long bean (chopped)
2 tbsp heap of chai po
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp cooking oil

Methods:

1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a wok. Saute the long beans for a minute before adding the chai po. Sauté for another minute.

2. Sprinkle the garlic powder and stir well. Turn off the heat.

3. Remove the long beans and chai po from the wok and mix them with the egg mixture.

4. Heat 1 tbsp oil in the same wok. Pan fry the omelette both side until evenly cooked.


Watercress Soup



Another cooling stuff for my son to reduce the heat in his body. This soup is easy to make. Healthy and nice soup to have with the hot weather like now.

Ingredients:

2 bundles of Watercress (separate the stems and leaves, washed)
12 red dates
1 tbsp wolf berries
2 chicken bones
3 litres water

Methods:

1. Scald the chicken bones with hot water. Drain and set aside.

2. Boil 3 litres of water in a big pot.

3. Once the water starts to boil rapidly, add the chicken bones and red dates into the pot. Boil for 10 minutes.

4. Add the stems of Watercress. Simmer for 40 minutes.

5. Add the leaves and wolfberries. Continue to simmer for another 20 minutes.

6. Add salt and stir well.

Glutinous Rice In Lotus Rice



I still have some glutinous rice left from making the Mango sticky rice. I didn't want to waste that 800g of glutinous rice until the next mango season!

I was thinking what I can make with glutinous rice. Ok, why not glutinous rice in lotus leaf? And I have a nice pot of braised pork belly simmering in the kitchen. So I decided to mix the rice with the braised pork belly and let them steam for an hour. Wow, it was really fragrant with the lotus leaf. Oh yes, please add some salt, oyster sauce or soy sauce (with the glutinous rice, braised pork belly and sauce), otherwise it will taste bland as the pork belly sauce isn't salty enough to cover 500g of rice! That is why I added 1 tsp of salt while mixing everything.

Ingredients:

500g glutinous rice (soaked for 3 hrs)
30g dried shrimps (washed)
4 lotus leaves (cooked with hot water for a minute and continue to soak for a minute before removing)
6 dried mushroom (soaked till soften, sliced thinly)
8 pieces of braised pork belly (pls look at my Braised Pork Belly Recipe)
400ml of braised sauce (pls look at my Braised Pork Belly Recipe)
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp cooking oil

Garnish:
Fried shallots
Chopped spring onions

Methods:

1. After soaking for 3 hours, drain the glutinous rice and set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a non stick pan. Sauté the dried shrimps.

3. Add the dried mushrooms and sauté.

4. Add the braised pork belly, sauce and salt into the pan. Let it boil and turn the heat.

5. Add the glutinous rice into the pan and mix well. After a while, the sauce should have dried up in the pan. Turn off the heat and let it cool.

6. Wipe the lotus leaves dry. Divide the rice mixture into 4. Carefully place 1/4 of the rice onto each leaf. Wrap like an envelope. You may secure it with toothpicks.

7. Steam for an hour. Sprinkle with fried shallot and spring onions!


Green Bean Soup



Green bean soup is a 'cooling' dessert. During the weekend, I brought my son to the Chinese physician as he injured his foot. The Chinese physician said that my son is 'heaty'. I don't know how she knows by seeing my son's tongue! Hahaha... So I intend to make some cooling stuff for my dear son!

He doesn't like green bean so I filtered the beans and just gave him the liquid. He still doesn't like the drink... But I forced him to drink! Hahaha

Ingredients:

250g Green Beans (washed)
100g Pearl Sago
6 pandan leaves (tie 3 into a knot. Make 2 knots)
Rock sugar
2 litres Water

Methods:

1. Boil the water in a pot.

2. Once the water starts to boil rapidly, put in the pandan leaves and green beans. Turn the heat down and let it simmer for 40 minutes

3. Put in the pearl sago and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes.

4. Remove the leaves and add the rock sugar.

Saturday 14 July 2012

Vegetables Curry



Vegetables Curry to go with Nasi Lemak... Comfort food for a rainy day like today...

Ingredients:

6 tbsp Earthern Pot Vegetables Curry Powder
8 shallots (minced finely)
8 cloves garlic (minced finely)
1 cabbage (chopped into big pieces)
2 carrots (chopped into big chunks)
8 stalks long beans (snapped into 5cm length)
2 potatoes (chopped into bite sizes)
6 tofu puff
2 tbsp oil
250 litres coconut milk
1 tsp sambal chilli paste
1.2-1.5 litres hot water
Salt

Methods:

1. Heat the oil in a big pot. Sauté the shallots and garlic.

2. Add the cabbages, carrots, long beans and potatoes. Stir fry.

3. Add the curry powder and stir with a wooden spoon.

4. Add the hot water water and stir well.

5. Cook for about 15 minutes with high heat. Add the tofu puffs and continue to cook for another 2 minutes.

6. Add the sambal chilli paste and salt. Stir well.

7. Lastly add in the coconut milk and stir well. Once the curry starts to boil rapidly, turn off the heat.


Nasi Lemak (Rice)



One of my son's favorite local delicacy would be Nasi Lemak. I remember at a point of time, he had Nasi Lemak for lunch almost everyday! Well, that's my son! He can have the same food for a period of time until he likes something new or tire of it...

By the way, my son suggested that I should add more coconut milk the next time. :p

Ingredients:

2 cups of uncooked rice
100ml coconut milk
6 pandan leaves (washed)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pandan paste
Water

Methods:

1. Wash the rice.

2. Add the coconut milk and water into the rice (usual amount to cook the rice).

3. Add the salt and pandan paste. Stir well.

4. Using 3 stalks of pandan leaves together to tie a knot. Make 2 knots and place into the rice mixture.

5. Cook in the electrical rice cooker as per normal.

Serve with chicken wings, eggs, fish cakes, ikan bilis, sambal chilli etc.


Sunday 8 July 2012

Deep Fried Chicken Wings



I always marinate chicken wings with soy sauce, oyster sauce, honey, ginger juice and garlic powder. But today I omitted ginger juice and honey. The wings tasted great even without both. I guess it's because the wings were marinated for few hours. 16 wings gone into our stomach! And it's still not enough!!!

Ingredients:

16 mid joint chicken wings (washed and drained)
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp garlic powder
Oil for deep frying

Optional:
1 - 2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp ginger juice


Methods:

1. Marinate the chicken wings with soy sauce, oyster sauce and garlic powder. Leave the wings marinated in the fridge for 2 hours.

2. Heat the oil in the wok. Make sure to use enough oil to cover the wings. I cook into 2 batches.

3. Once the smoke is coming out from the heated oil, turn the heat down before putting in the wings. Deep fry for about 10 - 15 minutes till the wings are nicely brown and crisp.

Onion Omelette



What types of omelette you like best? Prawn omelette, Seafood omelette, Minced pork omelette, etc.. How about Onion Omelette for dinner? Drooling...

Ingredients:

5 eggs (beaten)
1 large brown onion (sliced)
3 chilli padi (deseeded and chopped)
3 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp soy sauce

Methods:

1. Heat 1 tbsp of cooking oil in the non stick pan.

2. Sauté the onions and chilli padi until the onions are soften (less than a minute). Remove and set aside.

3. Add the soy sauce into the eggs and mix well. Then add the onions and chilli padi into the egg mixture. Stir well.

4. Heat 1 tbsp cooking oil in the pan. Pour half of the onion egg mixture into the pan. Flip to another side after a while and make sure that the omelette is cooked. Once the omelette is cooked, remove and place it on a plate.

5. Add 1 tbsp cooking oil in the pan and continue to cook with the remaining egg mixture with Step 4.


Stir Fry Lady Fingers




Another Stir Fry Vegetables that goes well with porridge and rice...

Ingredients:

1 packet of Lady Fingers
1/2 carrot (sliced thinly)
2 cloves garlic (lightly crushed)
2 chilli padi (deseeded and chopped)
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp cooking oil
Water

Methods:

1. Wash the lady fingers and slice.

2. Heat the cooking oil in the wok. Sauté the garlic and chilli.

3. Toss in the carrots and lady fingers. Stir fry. If its too dry, add some water into the wok.

4. Drizzle the soy sauce and continue to stir fry. Add the oyster sauce and some water. Stir fry for another minute until the vegetables start to turn slightly limp. Turn off the heat.



Sunday 1 July 2012

Fried Rice



I don't really like fried rice... Fried rice tends to be oily and I hate peas! Hahaha... But I did taste some really good fried rice from Tze Zhar stalls and restaurants. The wok hei which we can't get from our kitchen stove.

Today I decided to cook fried rice as I have the ingredients on hand and I have ran out of idea what to cook...

Ingredients:

Cooked rice for 5 pax
3 tbsp diced carrots
3 tbsp kennel corns
4 dried mushrooms (soaked till soften and diced)
3 eggs beaten
5 cloves garlic (minced)
5 shallots (minced)
5 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp cooking oil

Methods:

1. Heat the oil in a wok. Sauté the garlic and shallots.

2. Add the carrots, corns and dried mushrooms. Stir fry.

3. Add the cooked rice into the wok. Stir and mix.

4. Pour in the eggs mixture and toss with the rice evenly.

5. Add the soy sauce and continue to stir and mix well.

6. Lastly, add 1/2 tsp of salt. Mix evenly.