Spinach in Superior Broth

11.9.2012 

Nourishing and heartwarming

SPINACH WITH DRIED SCALLOPS AND SHRIMPS IN SUPERIOR BROTH (makes 5-6 servings)

350g - 400g spinach, washed

5-6 cloves garlic, flattened

1 tbsp white baits

1 tbsp anchovies

1 tbsp dried scallops

2 tbsp dried shrimps

½ tbsp oyster sauce

¼ tsp salt

1 tbsp wolfberries

1.25l - 1.5l water / chicken stock

1 century egg (optional), diced

3 Chinese black mushrooms (optional), soaked

2 tbsp peanut oil

Method

Rinse the spinach leaves thoroughly and peel away the fibrous strings from the stems. Then submerge them in salted water until required.

Peel the garlic and flattened them with a knife. Then soak the wolfberries in water until they are plumped. Drain and set aside. Rinse the dried scallops, dried shrimps and white baits.

To make the superior stock, heat some oil in the wok to stir-fry the garlic, dried scallops, dried shrimps, anchovies and white baits together for 2 minutes. When they turn slightly golden, add water / stock and bring it to the boil. Simmer over medium to high heat for about 15-20 minutes until flavours come together and all the dried seafood is soft.

Add oyster sauce and salt to the broth. Tip in the spinach and cook over high heat for 5-7 minutes or until tender. Be careful not to overcook them. Lastly, stir in the wolfberries and diced century egg. Simmer for an additional 1 minutes.

Serve immediately while it's still hot.

Malaysian Chicken Curry

9.3.2012

Who can resist curry and potatoes?

CLASSIC MALAYSIAN CHICKEN CURRY (makes 6-8 servings)

½ chicken (or 600g - 700g), cut into pieces
1 packet chicken curry paste (I prefer Tean's or A1) 
4 waxy potatoes,washed and peeled
1-2 stalks lemongrass, bruised
400ml coconut milk
½  cup water
2 tbsp peanut oil

* add 10-20 bruised kaffir lime leaves (for a Nyonya-style chicken curry)
 


Method 

Cut potatoes into large chunks and soak them in cold salted water for 10 minutes to remove excess starch. Drain and set aside.

Heat a large non-stick sauté pan and add 2 tablespoons of oil. Sauté the chicken curry paste and lemongrass (and kaffir lime leaves, if preferred) for about 3 minutes over medium to low heat.

Tip in the potatoes and stir-fry for 10 minutes over low heat. Be careful not to burn the curry paste. Gradually drizzle 100ml of coconut milk. Subsequently add the chicken pieces and fry them for 3-5 minutes until they are coated with curry paste. Stir in another 100ml of coconut milk and water. Bring it to the boil. Then cover and gently braise the chicken and potatoes over low heat for 30-40 minutes or until chicken is tender.

Pour in the remaining coconut milk. Put the lid back on and let it come to the boil. Turn off the heat once it reaches boiling point. The residual heat will cook through the potatoes without them falling apart or turning mushy.

Vanilla Butter Cake

30.8.2012

A slice of buttery love

SUPER MOIST AND FLUFFY VANILLA BUTTER CAKE (makes 8 servings)

250g butter, softened

200g self-raising flour

½ tsp baking powder

180g caster sugar

3 large eggs / 4 small eggs (room temperature)

¼ cup milk (room temperature)

2 tsp vanilla essence

1 tbsp brandy / rum

Method

Preheat oven to 200°C.

Sift flour and baking powder together. Set aside until required.

Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Do not add eggs until the mixture has achieved the consistency of cream and turned into a lovely pale yellow colour.

In a separate bowl, loosely beat the eggs. Gradually pour eggs into the sugar butter mixture until fully incorporated. 

Fold in the flour using a spatula. Be careful not to over beat the batter as gluten will develop, resulting in a cake that is soggy and dense.

Finally, stir in milk, vanilla essence and brandy. 

Pour into a 9" x 9" (or 8' x 8") cake pan and bake at 200°C for 10 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 180°C and bake for another 35-40 minutes.

Remove from the oven immediately and let the cake cool for 10-15 minutes before slicing it.

Steamed Water Egg (Three Emperor Egg)

16.8.2012

Deceptively simple

STEAMED WATER EGG / THREE EMPEROR EGG (makes 4 servings) 

2 eggs
1 salted egg

1 century egg, diced

water / chicken stock (12 x ½ egg shells) 

1 tsp salt 

½ tsp sugar 

½ tsp chicken powder

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tbsp fried garlic oil 

½ - 1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp crispy garlic

1 tbsp crispy shallots

1 pinch white pepper

spring onions, chopped

Method 

Remove shell from the century egg. Dice it and set aside. Fill a large wok / pot with water and bring it to the boil.

In a wide-based bowl, whisk the eggs and salted egg with a fork until fully incorporated. Break the solidified salted egg yolk into chunks. Stir in water / stock. Add salt, chicken powder, sugar, white pepper and sesame oil. Mix in the diced century egg.

Make sure the boiling water does not touch the bottom of the bowl. Steam for about 1-2 minutes then turn off the heat.The residual heat will cook the egg mixture through. Leave it in there for another 10-15 minutes until set or slightly jiggly.

Once ready, pour a tablespoon of water over the steamed eggs to prevent a thin layer of film from forming. Drizzle some fried garlic oil and sesame oil immediately. Add a dash of premium soy sauce. Sprinkle with crispy garlic and crispy shallots. Garnish with chopped spring onions.

Serve while it's still hot.

 

Super Flaky Spring Onion Pancakes

15.8.2012
 
Ancient secrets revealed...

SUPER FLAKY SPRING ONION PANCAKES  (makes 2 servings)

1 cup plain flour
½ cup boiling water
1 cup spring onions
2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
2 tbsp sesame oil
¼ cup oil for frying
salt to taste



CHILLI GARLIC VINEGAR DIPPING SAUCE

11 red chillies (fresno / serrano)
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
5 cloves of garlic
2 ½ - 3 tbsp white rice vinegar
½ tbsp water (optional)

Salted Fish Bone Soup with Silken Tofu

15.8.2012

A strong whiff of salted fish wafting through the air

SALTED FISH BONE SOUP WITH SILKEN TOFU (makes 6 servings)

4 salted fish bone, rinsed
2 boxes of silken tofu, soaked in salted water
10 stalks of spring onions (white parts), flattened
2-3 inch ginger, flattened 
4 large cloves garlic, flattened
2.75l - 3l water / fish stock
1-2 tsp chicken powder
1 tsp sugar
flat leaf parsley 
3 tbsp oil


For the pork 

150g -200g pork loin, finely sliced  
1-2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp salt
½ tsp sugar
1-2 tsp cornflour
1 tsp water 
1 tbsp oil


Method 

Marinate pork with light soy sauce, salt and sugar. Mix well, stir in cornstarch. Add water to loosen the pork strips. Set aside until required.

Bring 2l of water / stock to the boil in a large ceramic pot.

In a medium-sized pan, heat oil over medium high and sauté ginger for 3-5 minutes before adding garlic and spring onion whites. Subsequently add salted fish bones. Fry them until they are slightly golden and pour them into the water / stock. Be careful not to over-fry the salted fish bones otherwise there will be nothing you can do to disguise the smoky burnt taste in the soup.

In the same pan, heat some oil. Stir-fry pork strips until golden brown. Deglaze the pan with 500ml water. Pour into the boiling pot water / stock as well.Add sugar and chicken powder.

Boil the soup for about 20-25 minutes over high heat and 30-35 minutes on low heat until all the flavors are amalgamated. Carefully drop in the silken tofu and stir gently. Simmer for another 5 minutes. The tofu will have absorbed some of the flavours so taste the soup before adding an additional 250ml hot water / stock.

Turn off the flame and let the pot sit unopened for a few minutes. 

Garnish the soup with chopped spring onions and parsley. Serve with a bowl of piping hot white rice. 

Super Spicy Spaghetti Bolognese

18.7.2012

Spicy spaghetti bolognese in the making