Author Archives: chefquak

Pencai 盆菜 (My First Attempt) on 15Feb2018

Posted on by

pencai 盆菜

made  a real full-size pencai 盆菜 first time successfully on 15.2.2018. ^^

braised pig trotters

there is the usual chicken feet, whole chicken leg, chinese dried scallops & also canned abalone juice that can be used as the stock base.

i decided this time to use braised pig trotters as i wanted the gelatinous 胶 stock base.

braised pig trotters

so just usual braising the trotters, about 1 hr sufficient as there is another 2hrs to braise the fish maws.

the belly pork was braised together for 2.5hrs, and set aside for the topping/layering.

added sea cucumber & fish maw

i used 11 ingredients for the layering-

1 cabbage
2 leek
3 braised pig trotters
4 braised fish maw
5 braised sea cucumber
6 braised belly pork
7 pan-fried chicken thighs
8 pan-seared scallops
9 small abalones
10 brocoli
11 prawns

added sea cucumber & fish maw

added the cabbage & leek to layer the bottom in a claypot, then the braised trotters

added the fish maws, and braised another 2hrs.

& add sea cucumber towards the end and braised for 15-30mins, then ready for layering & serving.

pencai 盆菜 topped up ingredients

i had the other ingredients ready – poached brocoli, pan-grilled chicken thigh, canned small abalones, steamed prawns, and the braised belly pork…many pencai 盆菜 included roast duck, roast pork & even poached chicken..i just used braised belly pork for convenience in preparation since i was braising the trotters.

pan-seared hokkaido scallops

and also pan-seared scallops..

topped up pan-seared hokkaido scallops, grilled chicken thighs, steamed prawns, poached broco

topped up pan-seared hokkaido scallops, grilled chicken thighs, steamed prawns, poached brocoli

i just topped up the claypot with the other ingredients – pan-seared hokkaido scallops, grilled chicken thighs, steamed prawns, poached brocoli..

my first attempt, so i did not want to add too expensive ingredients, also lazy to go buy them..anyway the stock base is to me most important. i can certainly try a lot of chicken feet plus whole chicken leg to give the sweetness & also the gelatinous texture/flavour of the stock.

for this time actually the stock was very good, just that ingredients like grilled chicken thigh, steamed prawns, even braised belly a bit ordinary…

i not very fascinated with pencai 盆菜  as a dish in any case. i had bought a 6pax one from tunglok like 6-7 years ago for like S$248 or thereabout & i thought it was really ordinary and miserly in ingredients, and totally not worth it. and i feel most important is first the taste of the stock, so a good braise; & second the texture of the various ingredients, if trotters, belly pork, fish maws &  sea cucumbers done nicely they can be very tasty & enjoyable too.

my first attempt, perhaps nothing standing out for this dish, just a decent looking pencai 盆菜  & quite tasty dish la.^^

c.h.e.f andy

 

 

Sumptuous, Delightful Chorizo Lobster Valentine Dinner for Wife & Newly Weds on 14Feb2018

Posted on by

pumpkin salad

made a sumptuous, delightful chorizo lobster valentine dinner for wife this evening on 14.2.2018. ^^

last year in 2017, i did a fine chinese/fusion valentine dinner. lobster in superior stock & mini pencai 盆菜 etc… 🙂

4pax valentine dinner

our newly wed daughter asked if she & her hubby could join dinner. i told her to ask my wife. i knew what the answer would be.

Valentine Dinner Menu

we had 4-5 dishes this evening for 4pax-

1 pumpkin salad
2 pan-seared hokkaido
3 teriyaki cod
4 chorizo lobster
5 paella mixta

later after dinner, daughter & her hubby shared with us what they had for the last few valentine day dinners, like some edible tomato pasta, some other not so edible stuff, finally graduating to a nice instant noodles last year…ie hoping to get themselves invited next year…lol! ^^

pumpkin salad

i made a nice pumpkin salad, my wife’s recipe. australian butternut squash (20mins in oven), with rockets & cherry tomatoes in extra virgin olive oil, balsamic & some agave nectar. refreshing & tasty,  simply excellent!

roasted miso cod & pan seared hokkaido scallops

roasted miso cod very good this evening, and nice, plump hokkaido scallops pan-seared… 🙂

roasted miso cod

firm, flaky, oily & flavourful, bits nicely charred, a whole dining experience, an excellent rendition of nobu miso cod! ^^

pan seared hokkaido scallops

the scallops were nicely pan-charred in a bit of gourmet butter, sea salt & black pepper. sweet, plump, tasty.

chorizo lobster

the highlight of the dinner was chorizo lobster.

i made a very good chorizo prawns, so it was just making a delightful tasting stock, with 12 slices of chorizo, whole bulb of browned garlic cloves in olive oil, sweet basil, white wine, intense chicken stock, and reduced to a very very tasty stock.

chorizo lobster

then added red pepper to add to the colours & taste, and lightly braised, steamed the lobster for few minutes so the right, bouncy texture, and just cooked. & then garnished with sweet basil.

a beauty to behold & an excellent tasting dish. ^^

paella mixta

paella mixta was very tasty with the intense stock, prawns, squid & pan-grilled chicken all added to the flavours for a very tasty dish.

it was not as good as the superb paella mixta i made recently for the 10pax tapas + pasta dinner for my RI budddies….

paella mixta

paella mixta 

still, looked nice enough, very tasty because of the stock, sotong were good, prawns were ok…

roasted miso cod 

for the dinner preparation, basically just my nobu miso cod recipe.

pan seared hokkaido scallops 

pan-seared hokkaido scallops with butter, seasalt, black pepper on a non-stick pan.

2 lobsters from phoon huat

2 small 370g frozen boston lobsters from phoon huat, cut in halves & pincers & legs shelled.

2 lobsters from phoon huat 

small but enough for 4pax, 1/2 lobsters + pincers each…

cooking chorizo lobster

just braised (steamed in covered pan) lightly for few minutes will do.

paella mixta (80% done) 

paella was 80% done, about 9mins in a 210degC oven..

basically olive oil, whole bulb of garlic cloves browned & softened, chorizo, 1/2 onion, whatever veg available (i used brocoli steams), a bit of salt, then added carnaroli rice to fry, then added intense chicken stock, boiled & place in oven with the green, red, yellow peppers on top. a bit of tumeric, 1/4tsp…

paella mixta (80% done) 

nice to look at..

pan roasted chicken thigh 

& i had browned chicken thighs to add.

paella mixta

when serving, add chicken stock, boil & reduce to cook the rice & cover the pan to steam the prawns & sotong.

c.h.e.f andy

 

Teochew Street Bakchormee, Fish Head Beehoon & S$2 Old Amoy Chendol @ Chinatown Food Centre on 13Feb2018

Posted on by

$3 teochew street bakchormee

went with lwife & daughter for some meeting at mosque street..

after that decided to walk over to Chinatown food centre on 13.2.2018.^^

teochew street bakchormee

wife had S$3 teochew street bakchormee…

$3 teochew street bakchormee

it was ok…not quite like tai hwa or lai heng standard…vinegar, qq, chilli ok, ingredients ok, and only S$3.

about same standard as man yuan at toa payoh lor 8 food centre.

seafood fish head

daughter & i settled for fish beehoon.

S$3.50 fried fish beehon

daughter had S$3.50 fried fish beehoon…

S$4 fried fish head beehoon

 & i had S$4 fried fish head beehoon..fish head boney not much meat..

soup was tasty enough, fried fish ok but no match for the fatty thai at beach road..

S$2 old amoy chendol

we decided to try the S$2 amoy chendol.

old amoy chendol

old amoy chendol

S$2 old amoy chendol

s$2 old amoy chendol was good standard, but cannot match four seasons at tpy lor 8 la! if i happen to be here, i will still take this..

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(1) Teochew Street Bakchormee

Address:

335 Smith St, Singapore 050335

(2) Amoy Chendol

Address:
335 Smith St, 02-008, Singapore 050335
Opening Hours:
daily
  • 10:30AM–6:30PM

Best Coffee @ Tiong Hoe Specialty Coffee on 13Feb2018

Posted on by

flat white 

LKY & TKF came for T-rex bkt lunch today on 13.2.2108.^^

i added a bit of kongbak with mushrooms & fried kang kong. 🙂

today bkt ok, not among my best renditions like here = https://chefquak.com/…/13/best-prime-ribs-bakuteh-on-7feb2…/

after that we went to tiong hoe at stirling street for a nice cuppa 👍 good recommendations by LKY. one of the best coffee i had.

the flat white was excellent! the latte art & microfoam was perfect & made the coffee silky smooth, and flavoir of the coffee was simply wonderful.

you just have to walk past or be near the shop, and the wonferful coffee flavour wafted through the air, felt energised already la! ^^

pour over

pour over 

LKY got the pour over.

i asked the barrista…they agreed the flavour of pour over is less intense, c/w the 15-20bar pressure machine, but it is pure, and clear fragrance…

tiong hoe specialty coffee 

you can buy the specialty coffee beans.

the one the used for the regular latte, cappuccino, piccolo latter & flat white is about S$48/kg, still cheaper than the S$65 lavazza from culina!

tiong hoe specialty coffee

very nice ambience, relaxing, great aroma, quite perfect for conversation & chill! ^^

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Tiong Hoe Specialty Coffee

Address:
170 Stirling Rd, #01-1133, Singapore 140170
Contact:
tionghoe.com
6474 5442
Opening Hours:
Mon-Fri
  • 8.30AM–5.30PM
Sunday
  • 9AM–4PM

 

Great Yong Tau Fu @ Xiu Ji Ikan Bilis Yong Tau Fu Chinatown Food Centre on 12Feb2018

Posted on by

yong tau fu 

2 RI bros were meeting in chinatown, so they organised a 9pax lunch at xiu ji ikan bilis yong tau fu on 12.2.2018. ^^

this was CL’s favourite ytf stall. my favourite is hakka niang tou fu at circuit road food centre.

i had taken this couple times like 15-20 years ago when they were located ta the temporary hawker centre at outram park…i liked the yong tau fu here & also the tiong bahru yongtaufu at tiong poh road/eng hoon road corner coffeeshop…the ytf in both stalls were quite similar.

xiuji ikan bilis yongtaufu  

the usual long queue about 15pax. probably about 20mins..

3 of us queued up to order 8 bowls dry (S$3 for 8 pieces) + beehoon ($0.50) + several bowls fish cake (S$0.80)…i wasn’t eating.

the ytf looked great, and the chilli too! all the friends enjoyed it….

QTC brought a friend to introduce to us. he is a burnt victim, recovering well with lots of help. it was good to see him!

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Xiu Ji Yong Tau Fu
Address:
Smith Street #02-88, Chinatown, 050335
Opening Hours:
daily
  • 5:45AM–3PM

 

Curry Chicken & Potatoes – 55th Teban Gardens Community Breakfast on 9Mar2018

Posted on by

curry chicken & potatoes

made curry chicken & potatoes for teban gardens community breakfast this morning on 9.3.2018.^^

this my 55th friday breakfast community meal dish at teban gardens community service centre.

i first started doing a community meal dish for teban gardens CSC on 8.1.2016.

the centre was started in 2002 after much effort & challenge by our RI friend who is a pastor of pasir panjang hill brethren church (pphbc) which owns & runs the CSC.

curry chicken

curry chicken

i used about 2.5kg boneless chicken thigh from sheng shiong, defrost the evening before, cut, & drained in sieve in fridge overnight.

heng’s chicken curry sauce

this morning i got up at the usual 7am, seasoned chicken in fish sauce (2tbsp) and white pepper, fried curry leaves (from one stalk) in heng’s nonya curry paste.

curry chicken 

curry chicken

then fried chicken in curry for about 8mins. no need to add water as there is a lot of liquids in the chicken, then added 200ml coconut milk. then i removed the chicken.

potatoes 

cut 7-8 potatoes & cooked in the curry, about 8mins…

potatoes are just cooked (not overcooked) when it breaks when pressed against the wok or a chopstick pokes through with small resistance.

curry chicken & potatoes 

then i added back the chicken.

curry chicken & potatoes

mixed together a bit, then off fire & transferred to aluminium carrier.

curry chicken & potatoes

curry chicken & potatoes 

carrier was a bit full, so i dished out some curry chicken & potatoes, and kept for later.

curry chicken & potatoes 

a lovely dish! curry was spicy & very flavourful, and chicken was very tender & tasty, though it was frozen chicken. & potatoes were done just right, not mushy & very tasty.

c.h.e.f andy

Best Chirashi Don @ En Sakaba on 11Feb2018

Posted on by

en chirashi don S$28 

went with sis for 2pax chirashi don dinner at en sakaba on 11.2.2018. ^^

today was my second time here. was here a while ago with wife on 22.7.2017.

food here a bit temperamental, maybe depends on the day, freshness of sashimi etc…

anyway today’s chirashi don was excellent, but when i came afterwards couple weeks later, not as good!

beef tataki S$13 

carpaccio was excellent too, nice tender beef and the slightly tangy ponzu dressing was perfect! again it was not as good when i returned with my wife 2 weeks afterwards..

grilled kurobuta collar S$12 

grilled kurobuta was poor.

grilled kurobuta collar S$12 

meat itself was ok, marbled &  flavourful, but overall not great, dry, overcooked i thought…

en chirashi don S$28 

chirashi don the best!

anago was really really good, and unagi too!

aka ebi good, almost the size like botan ebi! crab claw was sweet, there was a good blob of uni & sashimi all fresh & sweet.

en chirashi don S$28 

this would rank as the best chirashi don i had for S$28!

again, when i was back with wife 2 weeks later, not as good, sashimi not as fresh, uni serving like 1/2. crab claws, anago & unagi all still as good!

still like the place, will go back again!

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

En Sakaba @ Orchard Central
Address:
181 Orchard Rd, 01-16, Singapore 238896
Located in: Orchard Central
Contact:
6634 1018
Opening Hours:
Sunday
  • 12–11PM
Monday
  • 12–11PM
Tuesday
  • 12–11PM
Wednesday
  • 12–11PM
Thursday
  • 12–11PM
Friday
  • 12PM–12AM
Saturday
  • 12PM–12AM

Braised Belly Pork with Chinese Mushrooms – 54th Teban Gardens Community Breakfast on 2Mar2018

Posted on by

braised belly pork & chinese mushrooms 

made a braised belly pork with chinese mushrooms for teban gardens community breakfast this morning on 2.3.2018.^^

this my 54th friday breakfast community meal dish at teban gardens community service centre.

i first started doing a community meal dish for teban gardens CSC on 8.1.2016.

the centre was started in 2002 after much effort & challenge by our RI friend who is a pastor of pasir panjang hill brethren church (pphbc) which owns & runs the CSC.

braised belly pork & chinese mushrooms 

i used just >2kg belly pork (about S$20) & about 90 pieces chinese mushrooms (2packets – i bought 3packets for S$10)

2 kg was too much belly pork to cook in slow cooker (which is my preferred method to get a tender crystalline texture)…

so i cooked the pork with one bulb garlic & braising sauce for 15mins. then transferred to covered pot, adding water to cover the pork fully, & put in 95degC oven for 6hrs to get the tender crystalline texture..

removed pork & transferred the braising sauce to a wok & cooked the chinese mushrooms & reduced the sauce to very flavourful gravy. add water as required…braised mushrooms for 2-3hrs…covered the belly pork with the mushroom & sauce.

braised belly pork

all these i did the evening before.

got up this morning at 7am. removed the pork & cut in small pieces.

braised belly pork 

the pork looked perfect outside!

braised belly pork 

& even more brautiful crystalline texture inside.

braised belly pork 

i arranged the cut pieces in the aluminium tray for transport.

braised belly pork 

could feel the wonderful texture when cutting, no fraying, no sinewy, and not much resistance to the cut ie very tender…

braised belly pork 

filled up the tray, all these while mushrooms & sauce were heating up to boil…

braised belly pork & chinese mushrooms

transferred the piping hot mushrooms & sauced over the belly pork.

braised belly pork & chinese mushrooms

i tasted the mushrooms & the pork. both well infused with the tasty braise, and belly pork was tender & tasty!

an excellent dish for the residents at teban gardens…

c.h.e.f andy

Braised Chicken with Chinese Mushrooms – 53th Teban Gardens Community Breakfast on 23Feb2018

Posted on by

braised chicken thighs & mushrooms 

made a braised chicken with chinese mushrooms for teban gardens community breakfast this morning on 23.2.2018.^^

this my 53rd friday breakfast community meal dish at teban gardens community service centre.

i first started doing a community meal dish for teban gardens CSC on 8.1.2016.

the centre was started in 2002 after much effort & challenge by our RI friend who is a pastor of pasir panjang hill brethren church (pphbc) which owns & runs the CSC.

braised mushrooms 

this time I lazy. braised whole as chicken thigh steak last evening..means one entire boneless thigh slab not cut..

(usually i cut the chicken into pieces & cook in the morning..)

i braised the chicken thigh the usual preparation – fried cinnamon stick, star anise, cloves, bay leaves & whole bulb garlic cloves in oil till fragrant, added chicken thighs, then added tai hua braising sauce.

then took out the chicken thighs, and boiled 2 packets of chinese mushrooms (maybe 40pieces/packet) in the braise. added water & braise the mushrooms for 1-2hrs till well infused with the braise & tender.

braised chicken thighs 

braised chicken thighs & mushrooms 

there were 11 large chicken thighs, which i cut into 10-12 pieces each.

braised chicken thighs & mushrooms 

not a bad method actually as chicken steak very easy & fast to cut…

mushrooms no problem of overcooking so after bringing mushroom braise to boil just dump cut chicken pieces, cover & warm up..

braised chicken thighs & mushrooms 

chicken has the look of cold cut chicken but was tender & both chicken & mushrooms well infused with the braise….

braised chicken thighs & mushrooms

stir-fry a little on high fire, then cover & let it heat up the chicken.

braised chicken thighs & mushrooms 

then transfer to aluminum carrier for transport.

lohei

lohei

today is 8th day of CNY.

the teban gardens staff came early at 6am to prepare the lohei for the residents.

lohei 

the staff made their own lohei with the shredded veg ingredients & arranged like a dog with tail even!👍👍👍

after breakfast, the staff organised the residents to have the lohei celebrations. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

6pax Home Dinner for OPS Bros, WW & WQ on 9Feb2018

Posted on by

OPS Bros + WW & WQ

made 6pax homecooked dinner with WM, WT, WW & WQ this evening on  9.2.2018. ^^

WW is living in shenzhen 8 yrs now, and the last time we visited HK & SZ on 10-14sep2017 he was the one who met us at shenzhen luohu & brought us around. WQ is WT’s second son studying in tokyo & returning singapore for CNY holidays.

we had-

1 claypot rice
2 spicy black bean sauce song fish head 豆豉松鱼头
3 hong steamed red garoupa 港蒸松鱼头
4 braised hock 香卤元蹄
5 tofu prawns 豆腐虾
6 fried brocoloi 炒芥蓝花

claypot rice

claypot rice was the usual great flavours…

braised hock 卤元蹄

braised hock 卤元蹄  was tender & flavourful.

braised hock 卤元蹄

i actually had trotters too, but when serving, the serving bowl tilted over, and i dropped the trotters. so threw them away. sayang!

usual HK steamed red garoupa 港蒸红斑

usual HK steamed red garoupa 港蒸红斑

HK steamed red garoupa 港蒸红斑 so easy to do & everyone always wonder at how fragrant in smell & taste the top quality light soy sauce delivers.

song fish head 松鱼头

song fish head 松鱼头

the spicy black bean sauce this evening was very good. all my friends commented. much better that what i made recently for 7pax OPS Bros dinner on 25.1.2018.

tofu prawns

tofu prawns was ok. tofu well infused. prawns texture perfect, bouncy, fresh & sweet.  very tasty stock.

garlic fried brocoli

WT did the brocoli while i took photos of the other dishes.

after dinner WM helped me with the dishes…

WT brought cut fruits, WM brought box of korean pears, HC brought durian love letters & pineapple tarts.

we had a wonderful evening & great fellowship.

c.h.e.f andy

Delightful 10pax Spanish Tapas + Pasta RI Friends Dinner on 5Feb2018

Posted on by

RI friends 10pax tapas + pasta home dinner

had a fun, delightful spanish tapas + pasta evening with my RI buddies on 5.2.2018. ^^ it was good to s OCH, now resident in california, who was visiting his parents over CNY.

i made 10 dishes.

Tapas
1 pumpkin salad
2 tortilla-spanish omelette
3 nobu miso cod
4 teriyaki salmon belly
5 miso belly pork
6 red wine pork ribs
7 chorizo prawns
8 grilled vegetables

Pasta
9 seafood “fiduea”
10 paella mixta
11 harold’s orange chocolate chip cake 🎂

HCK brought spanish red wine

HCK, a good friend during my sec1/2 days, now infrequent guest to my dinners, brought a nice spanish wine…

#1 – pumpkin salad

the first dish was a pumpkin salad. i prepared the aussie butternut squash the evning before, 20mins in 250degC oven, just the right texture, and marinated with extra virgin olive oil, balsamic & honey (didn’ have agave nectar)

i bought rockets from giant but they looked not fresh after spinning(to dry after wash), so aunty Bes got some rockets from my own pot. i added the cherry tomatoes & rockets when serving & added sea salt, oliv oil etc to taste..

#1 – pumpkin salad

a wonderful salad, great colours & a beauty to look at.

#1 – pumpkin salad

& great taste with the olive oil & honey.

#2 – tortilla (spanish omelette) + tamago (jap rolled egg omelette)

i did my usual tortilla or spanish omelette.

#2 – tortilla (spanish omelette)

simple & good, nice combination of potatoes, onions & egg.

#2 – tamago (jap rolled egg omelette)

i made a jap tamago rolled egg just as a counterpoint…always good..

tapas dishes

nobu miso cod & teriyaki salmon belly

nobu miso cod & teriyaki salmon belly

and nobu miso cod & teriyaki salmon belly ..

#3 – nobu miso cod

both are nice..some friends would like the cod better, some the salmon.

#4 – teriyaki salmon belly

& i served with dill, also form my garden…

#5 red wine pork ribs & #6 miso belly pork

for meats, i made red wine pork ribs & miso belly pork.

both were slow braised in 95degC oven for 6hrs. the red wine pork ribs ad a great marinade. the ribs were ok tender (can be better) and quite excellent with the marinade. TW thought the belly pork was more tender but he tasted the ribs again with the marinade & liked it too.

#6 – miso belly pork

the miso belly pork was flamed just before serving & very tender..& very nicely miso flavoured.

#7 – roasted vegetables 

& i had grilled vegetables – potatoes, brocoli, sweet corn, green & red peppers. a nice balance to the meat dishes.

#8 – chorizo prawns

TC was delayed as he had to be at the airport to see of some foreign worker who he had attended to. he arrived about 8.15pm.

we kept the tapas items on a plate for him, and went as plan with the hot tapas & pasta when he arrived.

chorizo prawns had really wonderful tasty chorizo flavours, and the prawns were done just right, fresh, bouncy, sweet.

#9 – paella mixta

the paella mixta was wonderful this evening, and such a beauty to the eye too.

paella was 80% done. when ready to serve, i added more chicken/prawn stock to cover the rice, then high fire to boil & low fire to cook the rice. then i added the marinated prawns & covered, and next the sotong & covered. so the prawns & sotong were steamed as the paella cooked. lastly added the pan-grilled chicken thigh as topping & garnished with coriander.

then serve! voila!

#9 – paella mixta

very tasty, flavourful paella. everything is in the stock!

#9 – paella mixta

paella texture was just right, al dente not mushy…prawns & sotong texture also perfect. chicken thigh was tasty if ordinary..

#10 seafood ‘fiduea’

& my last dish, a seafood “fiduea”. again it was the stock that did wonders…

very very tasty, flavourful fiduea, though i used broken up angelhair as proxy.

it looked like beehoon, but of course pasta has that special al dente texture & bite, not the soft beehoon texture..

rojak

LCM brought nice rojak, 2 packets x $6, with sauce in separate packets. nice rojak.

HT’s orange chocolate chip cake

& HT made a nice orange chocolate chip cake..

Hs orange chocolate chip cake

liked the cake.

after dinner, TW gave a useful short talk on yield investing, as we enjoyed HT’s cake 7 the strawberries LCH brought.

it was a wonderful evening with good friends. HT was at my place first time, OCH was visiting from california & HCK was infrequent at my dinners, so a great time to catch up with them as well.

c.h.e.f andy

Great Bento Lunch with Godsis @ Anzu Japan Food Town on 9Feb2018

Posted on by

S$15 lunch bento at anzu 

had a wonderful 2pax bento lunch with godsis at anze, japan food town level 4 wisma atria on 9.2.2018. ^^

meimei doesn’t take sashimi much. last time we had yakiniku at heijoen so we thought we have something different this time.

the dainty bentos are not really my preferred dishes, but this one only S$15 & i don’t really mind tonkatsu (breaded pork) as a main..

the set turned out to be quite delicious & good combo of dishes…meimei was very happy with the meal..

nice salad 

the salad was actually quite nice with the dressing. it was just shredded cabbage & some pickled radish..

nice salad 

the pickled radish was very good, and went perfectly with the salad. i tried the yuzu dressing (good), the pepper cream dressing (even better) and also the sweet tonkatsu sauce (quite ok)..

S$15 lunch bento at anzu 

there was chawamushi, miso soup, seaweed, cold soba, pumpkin, tamago (very good, better than my own for sure), and a very good fish kakiage…

S$15 lunch bento at anzu 

my preference still sashimi don & beef but this bento was very ok for me, and for just S$15 + 10% no GST.

after lunch meimei bought kopi at toast masters…nice lunch & chat with godsis.

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Anzu

Address:

435 Orchard Road, 4F Wisma Atria, Singapore 238877
Contact:
japanfoodtown.sg
6262 3408
Opening Hours:
daily
  • 11:30AM–11PM

Best T-rex Prime Ribs Bakuteh on 7Feb2018

Posted on by

prime ribs bakuteh

i bought some nice fresh indonesia prime ribs to make the red wine pork ribs for the 4pax OPS homecooked donburi on 1.2.2018. 

so there were 6 large meaty ribs left in the chiller, i would say easily 600g+.

today i decided to cook bakuteh on 4.2.2018. ^^

one OPS friend used to joke T-rex bkt!

of course the ribs already cut in 1/2, otherwise its even larger…what is important thought is the meaty ribs with layer of fat that makes it very tasty & heavenly sinful…what am i saying???

prime ribs bakuteh

making bakuteh is like next to effortless…

1 packet ilc bkt sachet. 1kg pork ribs..today about 600 – 700g..a bulb of garlic cloves. & that’s it. boil for 50mins.

prime ribs bakuteh 

the bakuteh was absolutely delicious, for all the reasons i mentioned – meaty, layer of fat flavouring the meat, though tender texture with bounce in the bite.

prime ribs bakuteh

prime ribs bakuteh 

totally better than sin ming road bkt…ribs were better, soup much, much better la…

prime ribs bakuteh

now see also lau nua!

c.h.e.f andy

Lovey Fish Belly Noodles & Fatty Thai Wanton Mee on 7Feb2018

Posted on by

WM & me

my OPS bro WM has been waxing lyrical about this fried fish head noodles & thai wanton mee at beach road. so this morning we decided to meet for makan there at 10.30am on 4.2.2018.

S$5 fish belly noodles soup

like early time for me & no customers but they said they sold out the fish head.

deep-fried fish head can be very nice but often they are boney & no much meat, so i don’t miss it much unless i know it is good…

S$5 fish belly noodles soup

this fish belly soup as it turned out was very good! nice batter, fresh fish & thick cut about 6+1smaller pieces.

the broth was so very tasty, lots of ooomph! & the noodles were really interesting, lite a very tasty yeemeen perhaps al dente??? anyway very nice la & not common like the thick bee hoon (which also nice, i like).

fish head & fish belly noodles stall

not sure the name of this fish noodles stall…they also served tomyam fish noodles so maybe it’s the same owner as fatty thai…

fish noodles soup stall

 like this fish noodles best this morning…

S$4 thai wanton noodles

the thai wanton noodles was also good…

S$4 thai wanton noodles

it looked no different from our wanton noodles…there were 2 crispy & 2soup wanton…the char siew was better, more flavourful than most wanton mee..& they gave lots of vegetables & lar pok (crispy lard)..

& the special was some spicy thai chilli powder..it looked a small teaspoonful, but it did add a subtle quite wonderful flavour to the noodles..maybe can get this powder & do at home..

thai wanton noodles

very enjoyable bowl of goodness..

fetty thai wanton noodles

i would take this again.

S$3 char kuay teow

since we were there, decided to share a S$3 char kuay teow..

it was good too, not exceptional, completely competent..

S$3 char kuay teow

enjoyed it too..

he ji 和记

a great outing this morning, like brunch just enjoying a few noodle dishes together & chatting & sharing.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++

Fatty Thai Wanton Mee
Address:
341 Beach Rd, Singapore 199567
Contact:
9383 8842
Opening Hours:
daily
  • 9AM–7PM

(closed sunday, monday till 8pm)

Ho JIak! Saba Don 烧鲭鱼丼 on 4Feb2018

Posted on by

roasted saba 烧鲭鱼

had some vinegared sushi rice leftover fro the 4pax OPS homecooked donburi dinner on 1.2.2108.

& some long unused cheap frozen saba in the freezer.

saba is fishy & oily fish so actually very flavourful…difficult to eat w/o rice.

i cleaned & washed the fish thoroughly with salt & pat dry with kitchen towels. i decided to roast it in the oven instead of pan-fry as it gave a dryer less oily (outside) texture, more like what you get in japan…so 10mins in 250degC oven.

roasted saba 烧鲭鱼

came out quite perfect actually.

saba was very “pang” flavourful becos of the oil & not fishy…would still be fishy for wife but for me very the ok…

saba don 烧鲭鱼丼

& of course quite perrrrfect with the vinegared sushi rice.

saba don 烧鲭鱼丼

a statisfying quick meal.

c,h,e,f andy

Ah Seng Mao Shan Wang & Tapao Weiyi Laksa 唯一辣沙 on 4Feb2018

Posted on by

weiyi laksa 唯一辣沙 

LKY came by on 4.2.2018.

weiyi laksa 唯一辣沙 

i was at sheng shiong tanglin halt when he called. on the way back home, passed by weiyi laksa 唯一辣沙  & saw that the queue was quite short.

stopped to queue up to tapao the laksa….waited maybe 10mins.

weiyi laksa 唯一辣沙

my usual order = S$5 No 6 (shredded chicken, cockles, taupok) & thick beehoon mee.

was as good as always…great savoury lemak laksa gravy, tender chicken, big cockles & nice taupok, noodles just right.

MSW

i bought D24 & MSW from ah seng the evening before, so we had our own durian feast, 2 of us….

 

D24 was very good slight bitter..MSW initially i thought not as good as last evening but i had it again later it was very good la!

c.h.e.f andy

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Tian Shui Chicken Rice Tanglin Halt Road
Address:
48 Tanglin Halt Rd
Contact:
9757 5532
Opening Hours:
Tuesday – Sunday
  • 9AM–8PM
Monday
  • Closed

 

Very Good Hup Seng Braised Duck on 2Feb2018

Posted on by

hup seng braised duck & kong bak

had 2pax makan with my OPS bro WM at hup seng braised duck rice on 2.2.2018. ^^

hup seng braised duck & kong bak

the braised duck here is really good!

meat was tender, sweet & the braise (lor) was really flavourful. this among the best braised duck i had, very good standard!

hup seng braised duck rice

WM was early before me & queued up for the duck & kong bak, he also tapao some wings back, all for S$20. quite ok…

S$7 sin min road (rong cheng) bakuteh

we ordered one sin ming road bakuteh, $7 for 2 prime ribs, to share.

pretty good, though one rib was like 1/2 the size of the other…WM gave me the bigger rib…

S$7 sin min road (rong cheng) bakuteh

still nice but not so great as before..really the ones i made were better, both the ribs & the soup.

S$6 roast duck drumstick

saw the roast duck rice stall, decided to buy a roast duck drumstick to try.. S$6! i guess that’s the going price nowsadays.

S$6 roast duck drumstick

roast duck pretty good too, but nothing special also, can do w/o it too.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++

(1) Hup Seng Duck Rice

Address:

22 Sin Ming Road, Singapore 570022
Contact:
ieatandeat.com
6454 3810
Opening Hours:
daily (closed on thurs)
  • 7AM–2:30PM

(2)  Sin Ming Road (Rong Cheng) Bakuteh

Address:
Blk 26 Sin Ming Lane, #01-114 Midview City, 573971
Contact:
rongchengbkt.com
6684 1889
Opening Hours:
daily
  • 7AM–9PM

 

Very Expensive Bingsu @ Nunsongyee Korean Dessert Cafe on 1Feb2018

Posted on by

4pax OPS Bros bingsu

after our nice homecooked donburi dinner, we decided to go get some dessert.

WT suggested bingsu at nunsongyee korean dessert cafe at 9 yuk tong ave on 1.2.2018. ^^

nunsongyee korean dessert cafe

nice modern clean ambience, open 24hrs.

WM & WT @ nunsongyee korean dessert cafe

WT @ nunsongyee korean dessert cafe

we ordered the 2 featured signature premium bingsu – black sesame & choco banana.

black sesame bingsu

quite nice, both of them, but i not much wowed over…

black sesame bingsu

red beans nice & sweet, ice cream & ice shavings good flavours..

choco banana bingsu

choco banana bingsu

choc banana also nice.

HC bought 2 bingsu share by 4pax for S$32..

it was fun for us just to chill after a nice home dinner…

but really overall experience & enjoyment, i didn’t find it better than adam road S$2 ice kachang or four seasons S$2 chendol..they are different of course but the S$2 dessert gave me more satisfaction than the S$16 one albeit the S$16 portion is enuf for 2pax sharing…

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Nunsongyee Korean Dessert Cafe (Bukit Timah)
Address:
9 Yuk Tong Avenue, Singapore 596314
Contact:
9728 8563
Opening Hours:
daily
  • Open 24 hours

4pax OPS Bros Home Donburi Dinner on 1Feb2018

Posted on by

4pax OPS bros dobburi dinner

made 4pax donburi dinner for my OPS bros today on 1.2.2018. ^^

dinner was only decided 10am this morning…these dishes didn’t need much preparations la… 🙂

donburi

i made the sushi rice, 2 cups for 4pax, and added 3 tbsp sushi vinegar. wife told me just take out the rice onto a large bowl & mix…donburi sushi rice doesn’t need to be taken hot..

the rice came out nicely, just the right vinegar flavours.

we had –

  1. pan seared hokkaido scallops
  2. teriyaki cod
  3. braised belly pork + flamed miso belly pork
  4. USDA prime ribeye steak
  5. tamago
  6. sushi rice

donburi dishes

i planned scallops, cod, belly pork & beef & also tamago.

donburi dishes

a rather nice gourmet spread, i might add. ^^

jap donburi dinner ingredients

hokkaido scallops

i bought the IQF frozen hokkaido scallops S$23.88 for 1kg from giant.

pan seared hokkaido scallops

pan seared quite nicely over butter on a non-stick pan…scallops must be bone dry…drizzled a bit sea salt.

pan seared hokkaido scallops

scallops were excellent, nicely seared, succellent, plump, sweet..

tamago – japanese rolled egg

i did the usual tamago japanese rolled egg omelette – 3 eggs, 2 tbsp mirin, 1.5tbsp tsuyu, 2tbsp water.

tamago – japanese rolled egg

came up nicely too.

tamago – japanese rolled egg

tamago – japanese rolled egg

it’s a good complement to the meat items…

teriyaki cod

there was no time to do my usual miso cod which required 3days marination in the chiller…

so i just added  <1tbsp flat sugar, 2tbsp light soy sauce, 2 tbsp mirin, 2 tsp chopped garlic, 2cm chopped ginger & marinated for about 6 hrs.

then grilled 15mins in 250degC oven.

over grilled teriyaki cod

very tasty cod, done nicely, less firm than a 3 day marinated miso cod..a great dish

braised belly + flamed miso pork belly

i did the braised belly, & also miso belly 6hrs in 95degC oven.

braised pork belly

braised belly was marinated with sugar, light soy sauce & mirin. & miso belly with miso.

flamed miso pork belly

for the miso belly, i flamed it also with a torch. it was more flavourful than the braised belly.

grain fed black angus ribeye

i had a USDA prime ribeye at S$67/kg from QBfoods. this piece should be about 300g+

grain fed black angus ribeye

the USDA prime steak was excellent!

grain fed black angus ribeye

very sweet, tasty, no residue.

grain fed black angus ribeye

all my friends loved the steak & the donburi dinner.

WT’s pineapple tarts & almond cookies

WT gave me a bottle of pineapple tarts & almond cookies.

i love both both of them, took too much last year also, & now.

we had a great evening. after dinner, wash-up and some chit chat, we decided to go out for some dessert – bingsu!

c.h.e.f andy

 

CL Bought 5pax RI Friends Toptable Lunch on 31Jan2018

Posted on by

5pax RI friends toptable lunch

had to check out of aloha loyang at 9.45am this morning on 31.1.2018.

i had brought all my change, so dressed appropriately for toptable lunch.

had some time to kill, so sent LKH to his condo & had a coffee chat till 11.30am, got to toptable punctually at 12pm..

toptable S$13.80 3-course set lunch menu

CL bought 5pax lunch today, with EPL, LS & SK, and me. 🙂

grilled prawn salad

all my friends had the grilled prawn with green apple salad, with toasted pine nuts. looked great & tasted great too.

last week i had the grilled chicken salad, so this time i opted for soup.

leek & parsnip soup

cream of leek is a soup i like.

today’s was leek & parsnip soup.

leek & parsnip soup

nice creamy tasty soup.

sauteed red snapper with pumpkin resoni pasta

all of us took the red snapper with resoni, a rice shape pasta..

sauteed red snapper with pumpkin resoni pasta

looked great. the red snapper was done nicely, good texture, competent for sure, nothing special i guess.

resoni texture was good, sauce was ok  quite tasty…

trio of dessert – hazelnut cream tart

dessert like most dishes here, always good.

we had cappuccino, latte & tea..

always enjoy this great value lunch here & a very pleasant time with good freinds.

c.h.e.f andy

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Top Table @ Temasek Polytechnic

Address:

31 Tampines Avenue 1, Temasek Polytechnic, Singapore 529757
Contact:
6780 6369
Opening Hours (for a short period where the program is putting out actual lunches by students):
weekend
  • Closed
weekday
  • 11:30AM–1:45PM