#1 panroasted snapper fillet in green jalapeno chilli veloute

my OPS bro & his friend caught 29 fishes in 7hrs at the pond recently.

he gave me 2 huge fishes=>2kg garoupa & >1.5kg golden snapper..

So we decided to have a homecooked dinner at my place. the friend who gave me the fishes called it 全鱼宴, aka ”everything fishy dinner“. 🙂

Garoupa in 3 ways-

1. Claypot fish head (my first time-actually kind of complicated)
2. Poached garoupa in superior broth (chicken+fishbone)-this one nothing to do.
3. Stirfry garoupa fillet with veg-quite straight forward

Golden snapper in 2 ways-

1. Panroasted fillet in green jalapeno chilli sauce – first time, quite successful
2. Nonya steamed snapper fillet – using Jeanette’s gimson nonya sauce

we had 7pax this evening = my wife & i, 2 OPS bros & their wives, and another OPS bro.

4 of us (these 3 OPS bros & I) had the most wonderful trip together to hong kong recently in feb2017 = hong kong eat & hike 20-24feb2017.

#1 panroasted snapper fillet in green jalapeno chilli veloute

my first course was a panroasted snapper fillet in green jalapeno chilli veloute.

very good i thought. snapper was flavourful & the sauce had body & was just the right texture not too viscous, and just spicy enough.

#2 poached garoupa fillet in superior chicken & fish broth

second course was poached garoupa in superior chicken & fish broth.

the garoupa fillet was excellent=so fresh, perfect texture & sweet. for me it was very good.

poached garoupa fillet in superior chicken & fish broth

the soup was tasty, intense goodness. similar to the fish head thick beehoon soup variety.

for wife it was a bit fishy, i had forgotten to add ginger. usually i cook chicken stock so do not add ginger. since i added fish bones this time, should really have added.

my friend commented that the soup would have been perfect with ginger & whole pepper. i thought so too. for me the soup was very good & smooth (albeit fishy for wife) but of course would have been better with ginger & whole pepper. i will do that next time.

#3 nonya steamed snapper fillet

the first 2 courses i served in individual portion. the planned dining logistic was to reuse the bowl & dish for the first 2 courses for the rice & the next 3 dishes served together.

3rd dish was nonya steamed snapper fillet.

this dish everyone liked, including wife.

it was flavoured by the good quality light soy sauce, and with the tangy, slight sour taste of the nonya sauce, excellent combination.

#4 stirfry garoupa fillet with sweet peas, baby corn, carrot, onions & snow fungus

the 4th dish was garoupa fillet fried with sweet peas, baby corn, carrot, onions & snow fungus.

#4 stirfry garoupa fillet with sweet peas, baby corn, carrot, onions & snow fungus

very tasty dish & good wok hae. i kept the wokpan quite dry, just adding little bit water as required.

#5 claypot fish head

the claypot fish head was my first attempt.

for me it was very good! the vegetables (onions, chinese cabbage, carrots, shitake & shimeji mushrooms) made the base very naturally sweet. & i had deepfried egg tofu, yam, sio bak (roast pork) & of course the deepfried garoupa fish head which was itself very “pang” = flavourful.

the dish was very tasty even standalone w/o adding the fish head la!

#5 claypot fish head

excellent dish really! most delicious/yummy…

i was most happy how it turned out but it was quite a lot of work, especially as this was the first time, so the steps, planning etc were more uncertain & hesitant…still it was fun & the results were rewarding.

my friends brought a soju (烧酒)-a pretty good one; a cake of puer tea (普洱茶)=must take the tea next time we gather, and my fish supplier friend brought very nice small seed lychee (糯米荔枝)which were very very sweet.

i had some red dragon fruit but everyone was too full to eat. haha! 🙂

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

2kg+ garoupa in 3 eats

1.5kg+ golden snapper in 2 eats

as for the preparations & planning, i was able to take out a sizable garoupa fish head.

2 garoupa fillet for (1)poach & (2)stirfry

& still left with good portions of garoupa fillet for 2 dishes (1)poached fillet & (2) stirfry fillet

for claypot fish head, i looked up recipes for claypot fish head & decided on the ingredients & method.

sio bak – airfryer recipe

one ingredient i needed was sio bak = roast pork.

i did the airfryer recipe couple times previously, about 2 years ago。

sio bak – airfryer recipe

this time my sio bak was pretty good, moist, tender & the skin was crackling(still can improve la…).

after scalding & cleaning, i steamed about 300g belly pork for 10mins. this made it easy to stab the skin furiously with a fork. i rubbed the bottom & side with 1 tbsp shaoxing wine. then i covered skin with a layer of salt & left in the fridge overnight. this is to draw out water from the skin so it canbecome crackling!

next morning i put in the airfryer 180degC for 25mins. scrapped away the salt, then 200degC for 20mins. voila!

golden deepfried egg tofu

i also needed to deepfry the egg tofu, yam & fish head.

this the bothersome part, unhealthy (deepfry), and wastage (what with do with the fishy oil??).

anyhow i cut 2 egg tofu into 14 pieces (2each for 7pax). tofu quite easy to deepfry.

deepfried yam

next i did for the yam.

deepfried fish head

& lastly for the fish head. i seasoned with ginger sauce, 1tbsp shaoxing wine & 2tsp light soy sauce, about 2 tsp flour.

deepfry actually made substantial difference. the fish was more “pang”=flavourful, firm, some parts like softer bones crispy

claypot fish head ingredients inc sio bak

after that, it’s frying onion, chilli padi, ginger, then chinese cabbage, carrots, flat beans, covered & boiled for 15mins, then shitake & shimeji mushrooms & lasty sio bak.

i added some corn starch to thicken the sauce a bit, & light soy sauce to taste (1 tbsp should be ok).

& my! the sauce was really delicious = naturally sweet & very tasty!

claypot fish head

then i placed the deepfried fish head in a claypot, and covered it with the sauce & ingredients.

when serving, i cracked 2 eggs, added 2tbsp shaoxing wine, smoothed over. then garnished with cut scallions & coriander.

the dish was quite pretty. but alas i did not manage to take a photo of the nicely presented dish as i was preparing the other dishes.

pan roasted golden snapper

the other dishes were quite easy to do by comparison with claypot fish head.

for the golden snapper, i made 2 preparations – both fillet dishes.

the panroasted snapper fillet was simply seasoned with sea salt & coarse black pepper just before frying skin down in butter in high heat non stick wok to get the crispy skin.

green jalapeno chilli sauce

the veloute was done by frying the onions, jalapeno chilli & green pepper(capsicum), adding intense chicken/fish stock, then blending 1/2 of it with 2 tbsp olive oil & 1tbsp light soy sauce & 1tbsp mirin.

i had done this previously with spinach. jalapeno chilli is much better. taste was sweet, spicy & natural. a key step is frying before blending, otherwise it can be “siap” or astringent.

nonya steamed snapper fillet

and the nonya steamed snapper fillet

it was very easy to do, just the usual hong kong steamed 港蒸 ie light soy sauce plus olive oil (or veg oil).

nonya steamed snapper fillet

as i am adding the gimson nonya sauce, i reduced light soy sauce from 2.5tbsp to 1tbsp+1tsp and steamed in the steam oven for 11mins..

the combination was just perfect. very easy to do, and so delicious!

we had a really fun enjoyable evening, good friends spending an evening together sharing delicious food, soju, lychees (& some puer tea to be taken next time).

c.h.e.f andy

lobster in superior broth 龙虾上汤焗

originally i proposed to cook a mother’s day family dinner at home on 14.5.2017.

while i was away in london & wales, wife decided to have brunch at pimpam by foc on mother’s day.

the 2 daughters now not available for dinner, so we decided to do homecooked family dinner another day.

claypot chicken rice

son had earlier joined my homecooked dinner 8pax for my friends on 24apr before i left for london & wales trip on 27.4.2017.

he liked the claypot rice & wanted to take claypot rice again this evening..

So did wife! so i cooked a 3pax dinner instead.

though i did not garnish & take a great photo this evening, the claypot rice (above photo) was very good, as good as i did other times. ^^

lobster in superior broth 龙虾上汤焗

i decided that though last minute, i should do something more than just claypot rice since it was mother’s day.

so i went to sheng shiong & got a 680g live lobster for S$41+.

i made lobster in superior broth 龙虾上汤焗 this evening. this the second time i made this dish & this time it was excellent.

will do a separate recipe post on lobster in superior broth 龙虾上汤焗

kai garden’s braised 2x main lobsters in superior sauce – one FREE second S$48

perhaps not comparable with kai gardens (above photo).

but still very good c/w with many others la…

lobster in superior broth 龙虾上汤焗

of course live lobster & done correctly & right texture not old or overcooked always very sweet, bouncy & tasty.

but also the superior broth 上汤 is the key!

i had chicken stock (chicken bones boiled with carrots), then added the lobster shells & reduced to very intense broth, very tasty & flavourful.

stir-fried romaine lettuce

& my usual stir-fried vegetable dish.

this evening, i made romaine lettuce, my wife’s favourite!

like i told my son, best flavours dry water don’t add water (there’s water in the veg) just add some oyster sauce. of course one school said to sprinkle just a little water when 起锅, to create the wok hae…yet to try that though…

cheese board

after dinner we had some cheese.

very nice cheese especially with the truffle honey dip. excellent!

chroizos son bought from porto

son brought back a few type of chorizo from porto.

we started with the cheaper lot. but this lot really not too good. will open the better ones when when have more pax.

white port son brought back from porto

and the cheese & chorizo were perfect with the white port (which has the whiskey fermentation stopper added). this really excellent port!

white port son brought back from porto

we had that during our holiday in porto, and we all love it, so son brought back a bottle from porto for my wife.

a simple 3pax dinner put together for mother’s day, and a very good & enjoyable one!

c.h.e.f andy

8pax homeooked dinner dishes

made 8 homecooked dishes for my friends, a 8pax dinner on 25.4.2017. ^^

not met up with these friend for a while.

wife joined dinner, & son is back from London, so he joined dinner also this evening. 🙂

it’s the same HK daipaidong dishes (and indeed JB & singapore zi char dishes) i made for my RI buddies 10pax dinner recently on 13.3.2017. ^^

(my friends brought nice shuu dessert puffs with 4 flavours-macha, coffe, black sesame, cream;  nonya kueh NOT cakes😜; wine, gimson sauce etc…)

8pax homeooked dinner dishes

the 8 dishes were –

1 Singapore claypot chicken rice
2 HK claypot rice 腊味煲仔饭
3 JB shoon huat claypot wine chicken
4 HK minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室 steamed minced pork in light soy sauce
5 steamed angkorli (seabream) fillet with Jeanette’s gimson sauce
6 steamed pork soft bones
7 zai shun’s egg bittegourd with minced salted egg
8 fried leek with onions

claypot chicken rice

today’s claypot rice was still as good.

wife, son, all the friends liked it.

though as i told them i made a mistake & emptied the marinated wine chicken into the claypot by mistake & had to rescue a bit. haha! :-p

claypot chicken rice

still very tasty, smokey, flavourful la!

HK claypot rice 腊味煲仔饭

the HK claypot rice 腊味煲仔饭 was also good. this time my friends thought the Singapore claypot rice was more flavourful, so 2 against one now, with my RI buddies going for the Singapore claypot rice & my OPS buddies the HK claypot rice.

HK minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室 steamed minced pork in light soy sauce

the steamed minced pork in light soy sauce was again very good.

though i used more fatty minced pork, it was very smooth & very “pang” with top quality light soy sauce.

my friend who brought me again the gimson nonya sauce from JB, liked it especially.

JB shoon huat claypot wine chicken

the claypot wine chicken i overcooked a bit this evening, so the chicken breast was not perfect like last time. the thighs etc were still very tender & tasty. my friends liked this dish too.

JB shoon huat claypot wine chicken 

certainly more tender than Shoon Huat’s & most other such dishes in restaurants which tended to be “old” & more tough.

nonya steamed angkorli (sea bream) fillet with gimson sauce

the nonya steamed angkorli (sea bream) fillet  i used the gimson sauce my friend bought me.

nonya steamed angkorli (sea bream) fillet with gimson sauce (before steaming)

it was more unique than the usual hong kong steamed preparation with the nonya flavour giving it a tangy, distinct flavour.

steamed pork soft bones

today though the pork soft bones were very far from perfect.

perfect last time as the meat was very tender from 1 hr 20mins steaming like the steamed pork ribs in any dimsum restaurants.

today though the pork soft bones were “soh”, has a very porky smell. friends said tasted like beef.

steamed pork soft bones

these were frozen ribs from QB Food, had always been good previously, and just taken out of the freezer.

the only step i missed was washing, cleaning with salt as my helper blanched it & i didn’t tell her to do this step before blanching.

zai shun’s egg bittegourd with minced salted egg

today my minced salted egg with the egg bittergourd was almost perfect though.

the ast time i did for my brother i added 1/2 egg, and the flabour did not come out.

this time i added the whole salted egg, and the flavour was very good indeed.

zai shun’s egg bittegourd with minced salted egg

this the second time i did this dish, so almost got it right now.

fried leeks & onions

fried leek & onions were ok, the usual, but this dish usually not so popular.

fried leeks & onions

leek something that teochew like my sis & me like, but my wife doesn;t like it & many people do not fancy it much.

nice shuu dessert puffs

nice shuu dessert puffs

nice shuu dessert puffs

nice shuu dessert puffs

a friend borught very nice shuu cream puffs.

there were  flavours – macha, black sesame, coffee & vanilla.

i liked the macha & coffee best…these were light puffs, quite pleasant.

nonya kueh

another friend who last minute could not joined dinner, brought some nonya cake & came after dinner. i missed the lapis sagu, but took couple of the others.

very fun dinner with this group of friends which i don’t meet often.

will do another dinner, a western dinner later when i back from my travel…

c.h.e.f andy

yong tau foo

my eldest daughter like yong tau foo. in recent times we get to eat more of this dish. wife buys yong tau foo from the first stall at the basement next to the lift at chinatown market, so we strated cooking ytf at home.

the ytf items are fresher & have more generous, plump fish meat filling, and generally are much better than most at ytf hawker stalls.

my helper uses yellow beans & ikan bilis to prepare the soup. so the soup standard also comparable with ytf hawker stalls outside.

minced pork noodle

my helper also does an awesome minced pork noodles.

this minced pork is done with some prawns & sliced mushrooms & oyster sauce, and she also has tau gay to add to the stringy hong kong noodles.

this minced pork is quite excellent taken on its own, and about perfect with the tasty ytf. ^^

yong tau foo

wife went to chinatown the day before, so we had quite a lot of yong tau foo for dinner this evening on 19.4.2017. ^^

yong tau foo 

they were all nice.

there was one we like with with pig skin covering the fish meat filling, and all the usual with tau pok & bean curd skin,

the fishballs though were not the best.

yong tau foo 

the piece at the bottom (above photo) had cabbage wrapped inside. quite interesting too ya. 🙂

minced pork noodle, with mushrooms, prawns 

the minced pork topping was very good.

uhakka’s minced pork noodles yong tau foo釀豆腐 

there are a few ytf stalls that do minced pork noodles.

so  far the best ytf  i had was at u hakka ytf at circuit road food centre, which a good friend brought us a year back on 24.2.2016. time flies!

that’s a stall i would like to go back.

noodles, with a dash of oyster sauce 

my helper’s noodles were quite perfect, totally qq & stringy, al dente.

minced pork noodle 

& the toppings were generous.

minced pork noodle 

i took a bit less noodles. with lots of tau gay….

minced pork noodle

& the combination made a very good noodle dish all by its own.

wok fried manila clams on 19.4.2017

this evening i also bought some manila clams from sheng shiong earlier, so i made wok fried manila clams. lagi shiok la!

c.h.e.f andy

8 teochew muay dishes

today is an important day!

brother arranged to meet at 光明山 at 7am，to 扫墓祭祖 for 清明.

i actually not keen on the date, as i thought it being good friday & PH (public holiday) it would be jammed pack. every year we came during this period & it was always jammed pack. our cars had to be illegally parked very far away (the police smart enough not to book your car on such occasions). so i had come with my sis during the actual anniversary dates, at around 3pm+ (they open 7am to 4pm during non-peak normal days).

i plan to do that next year onwards ie come like 2-3weeks before actual day.

i didn’t check this year, but actual day for 清明 was 4apr2017, but you can come within 2 weeks of that date.

sis & bil were earliest. they came by mrt & bus, left their home before 6am.

wife & i reached there just before 7am….surprise surprise, no jam, no traffic at all! brother, sil & their son arrived shortly…

there was no hassle to lay out the fruits, light up the candles & joss sticks, then proceed to level 5 where the rows of urns are kept & to worship/pay our respects.

teochew chilled mullet & chilled yellow croaker

we arranged to have breakfast at my place after 清明.

so i got up at 5.30am. i needed 1 hr to prepare the 7 dishes, leaving the spinach to fry when we are back for breakfast. i left the house at 6.35am.

first thing i did was to steam the mullet & yellow croaker. these i cleaned with salt & washed the evening before & kept in the fridge.

one thing unique about chilled mullet is it has to be steamed with the scales, so that can be removed together with the skin later easily. and also we need to keep the innards, so i do not ask the fishmongers (at sheng shiong) to clean, but clean the mullet myself.

steaming took 13minutes. after that left to cool before putting in fridge to chill.

both the fish were excellent, just like eating outside.

fried cabbage with tanhoon, taupok & ikan bilis

while fish steaming, i did the other dishes.

first the wonderful fried cabbage, as this took longest.

so fried ikan bilis (washed & dried in fridge evening before), cut chilli padi. then added cabbage & chopped garlic, oyster sauce, high fire. then added taupok (i cut 6 pieces, 4 strips per piece). added 1/2 cup water, covered to cook. about 10mins, added water as required, but small amount. added tanhoon (soaked & cut) last when about ready. set aside.

steamed minced pork with light soy sauce 

while cooking the cabbage, i added 1 tbsp corn flour & 1 tbsp light soy sauce & cut scallions to about 350g minced pork, and arranged it in a metal tray for steaming. i added 1 more tbsp light sauce & 2 tbsp olive oil, then steamed for 12 mins. that easy.

the egg i added when reheating when we were back for breakfast – egg yolk in the cleft & egg whites with the sauce.

this dish everyone liked, very “pang” & the texture very tender, moist & malleable. though minced pork was a bit fat for my brother (but i chose the fatty ones st sheng shiong which i prefer)

fried leeks & onions with smoked sausage 

next the delicious leek dish.

fried 1 cut red onions, cut chilli padi. added leeks (3 stalks) and 2 sausages, oyster sauce. covered for short period. no water.

fried egg plant 

next the egg plant.

nothing much to do here. just fried cut chilli & chopped garlic, added egg plants & oyster sauce. very little water, covered for short period.

zai shun’s incredible fried bittergourd egg with salted egg white

my last dish to cook was the bittergourd egg.

i tried to emulate the famous zai shun dish, so added the salted egg.

salted eggs

i boiled the salted egg evening before. & chopped 1/2 egg – all of egg white & yolk.

bittergourd fried egg with salted egg

i fried cut chilli padi, chopped garlic, bittergourd (which i poached in boiling water & cleaned with salt & soaked in water overnight), & the 1/2 salted egg, then added 2 eggs & fried.

this dish was ok, ordinary & nothing like the excellent dish at zai shun. my 1/2 salted egg not enough , will add whole salted egg next time. my preparation of the bittergourd has to change too…very thin slices…

fried spinach with ikan bilis

& of course i cooked the teochew porridge the evening before, just 1 cup for 7pax. i added one chicken leg (no skin) & some salt.

they all like the porridge.

so when we were back before 8am, my sis & brother prepare the taujeon & removed the scales & skin of the chilled mullet, while i just heat up the dishes. & fried the last dish, spinach with ikan bilis on the spot. no water.

a simple & most wonderful breakfast.  everyone enjoyed!

sis & bil stayed back to watch chinese tv drama = 亲爱的翻译官..i really enjoyed this tv drama, and the lead actress 杨幂!

i cooked a simple lunch for them – nonya steamed sea bass & olive veg fried rice…^^

c.h.e.f andy

#1 hong kong claypot 煲仔饭

did a 9-course hong kong daipaidong dinner for 10pax RI VSOP (very special old pals) today on 13.3.2017. ^^

1 HK claypot rice 腊味煲仔饭
2 Singapore claypot chicken rice
3 JB soon huat claypot wine chicken
4 Steamed Minced Pork with Light Soy Sauce 蒸肉饼
5 steamed pork soft bones
6 Teochew Light Braised Pork Trotters 潮州鲁猪手 & belly pork
7 Teochew Bittergourd Pork Rib Soup 苦瓜排骨汤
8 fried brocoli 清炒西兰花
9 fried romaine lettuce 清炒油麦菜 (last 2 by my helper)

was considering to postpone because not feeling well but manage to organise dinner quite smoothly anyway with help from my helper & minimum energy & effort…

thanks all my friends…dinner went very well & smoothly…very fun & happy for me…such moments, & thanks to our resident photographer, the wonderful photo & video memories are to be treasured.

thanks my helper for cooking too. Thanks my friends for the fruits. white wine, another a Riesling, magnum, red wine…Thanks to our pastor friend for saying grace & to all for our company. 🙏🙏

hong kong daipaidong dishes

must say it was really a wonderful meal…

most of the dishes I did last week for my OPS buddies on 7.3.2017.^^

I just made couple of changes to reduce the effort because I was unwell, and also got my helper to fry the 2 vegetable dishes. 🙂

#1 hong kong claypot 煲仔饭

the hong kong claypot 煲仔饭 looked great. very tasty too.

the steamed pork soft bones (very tender basically dimsum restaurant standard) was great & also the drizzle sauce I prepared was great with the rice. & of course the duck liver sausage I bought in hong kong was ever so fabulous.

#1 hong kong claypot 煲仔饭

but it was not as good as what I did last week. this time I cooked a bit more rice (2 cups instead of 1.5cups) & my timing was not too good, so had a lot more burnt parts at the bottom.

#2 Singapore claypot rice

this time all my friends prefer the claypot chicken rice.

of course chicken was very tender, tasty & more substantial than the sausage & pork soft bones in flavours.

#3 steamed angkoli with cloud fungus

I added a steamed angkoli with cloud fungus. this a new dish I did not have last week for my OPS buddies.

steamed grass carp @ minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室

inspiration came from the steamed grass carp dish we had at in hong kong.

this was another simple dish at the daipaidong where the main play was actually the excellent light soy sauce.

#3 steamed angkoli with cloud fungus

I bought a whole angkoli fish at sheng shiong at S$8.80/kg & fillet the meat for steaming & kept the head & bones.

I just steamed it with sliced ginger, cut chilli paddy in light soy sauce & cloud fungus.

#3 steamed angkoli with cloud fungus

it was so simple to prepare, and my friends all loved the dish.

#4 steamed minced pork with light soy sauce

the steamed minced pork with light soy sauce, after a few practices, I kind of quite perfected it.

so this time actually I think it was better than what I had for my OPS buddies last week. probably still cannot match minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室, but otherwise it was very good, and one friend commented that was his best dish for the evening.

#5 JB shoon huat wine chicken

the JB shoon huat wine chicken was an adjustment I made.

last week I did the hand tear chicken手撕鸡 for my OPS buddies. that required a bit more effort – have to poached chicken, quenched in ice water, kept in fridge, then deboned & tore the chicken.

for the wine chicken, my helper cut up 1/2 chicken for me, no need debone, so I only have to marinade & cook it. almost effortless la…

& this was also one dish which quite unanimously all my friends said was superb…very tender, tasty chicken, great Chinese wine flavours.

I think it was much better than shoon huat & better than most of the restaurant dishes. because my chicken texture was very tender whereas most restaurants (like JB shoon huat) would overcook their chicken.

#6 Teochew braised pig trotters & belly pork

I did the Teochew braised pig trotters & belly pork for my friends. I did not take any (because unwell).

the trotters very gelatinous, tasty braising sauce, texture a bit softer. my own preference is a firmer texture. however today I am not tasting my food when cooking just judging by timing & look & feel, so I err on the safe side let it cook a bit more.

#7 bittergourd pork rib soup 苦瓜排骨煲

& I made also quite perfect bittergourd pork rib soup 苦瓜排骨煲, better than last week. this time I boiled the bitter gourd a short while to remove the bitterness.

& my steamed pork soft bones (1/2 used for the hong kong claypot 煲仔饭 & 1/2 for this dish) was excellent & with intense chicken stock as base so overall the taste of this soup was excellent.

fried romaine lettuce 清炒油麦菜

fried broccoli 清炒西兰花

my helper cooked both vegetable dishes for me.

both were excellent, very tasty, superb vegetable dishes.

all cleared 风卷落叶

everything was wiped clean!

fruits

2 friends brought the fruits, very sweet Korean strawberries & grapes, the red ones sweeter.

we had a really wonderful diner & time together.

this evening the friends got ready to leave a bit earlier. they knew I was a bit tired. I was very happy though.

everything went perfectly & I did not exhaust myself or use too much energy in preparing the dishes, thanks to my helper.

still at this age my illness took the usual time to heal though this time I managed the symptoms pretty ok, so basically I did not leave the house for 2 weeks to let the body fully recover.

c.h.e.f andy

9 hong kong daipadong dishes

while eating & hiking in hong kong during our recent trip 20-24.2.2017,

my friends had been sharing a constant stream of food & place photos with our other OPS primary school friends group whatsapp chat.

so when we were back, i invited them to a 8pax hong kong daipaidong homecooked dinner on 7.3.2017.

9 hong kong daipadong dishes

i did 9 dishes for 8pax-

1. HK claypot rice 腊味饭
2. Singapore claypot chicken rice
3. hand tear chicken手撕鸡
4. Steamed Minced Pork with Light Soy Sauce 蒸肉饼
5. steamed pork soft bones
6. Teochew Light Braised Pork Trotters 鲁猪手
7. Teochew Light Braised Large & Small Intestines 鲁猪大肠小肠
8. Teochew Bittergourd Pork Rib Soup 苦瓜排骨汤 
9. & fried kang kong (this one friend, a good cook, cooked thist for me) while i went to freshen up..^^

singapore claypot chicken rice & hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭

it was a wonderful dinner, great food, close friends, good fun & sharing.

hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭 before adding steamed pork soft bones

i wanted to let my friends try out the hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭 & also the singapore claypot chicken rice which i do often.

steamed pork soft bones

i thought that the hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭 might be quite plain with just pork & liver sausages, so i steamed some pork soft bones, similar to that served at dimsum restaurants.

i also prepared the simple ubiquitous drizzling sauce (which is used to drizzle steamed rice 一口饭 & fun cheung 粉肠 at dimsum restaurants).

hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭

when serving, i asked my friends if they wanted to take the pork soft bones separately. we decided to just add to the claypot rice.

singapore claypot chicken rice 

the singapore claypot chicken rice was good as always.

at first, most friends said it was tastier than the hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭.

but the duck liver i used which i bought in hong long was really good, and so was the xo pork sausage from sheng shiong.

in due course we all thought that the hong kong claypot rice 腊味饭 was very “pang” fragrant, thanks to the duck liver sausage; and i think the steamed pork ribs with sauce & the drizzling sauce also contributed significantly to the taste.

steamed minced pork in light soy sauce 7mar2017

the steamed minced pork in light soy sauce was good.

steamed minced pork @ minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室 

one friend who was with us in hong kong & tried the one at minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室 said it was 80% -90% the standard of the ones we had.

hand tear chicken手撕鸡7mar2017 

likewise the hand tear chicken手撕鸡 was very good.

it is still not my preferred preparation for chicken. but it is a very good change from usual & very nicely done.

手撕鸡 had tear chicken @ minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室 

though this not really comparable to minsheng daipaidong 民声冰室.

teochew light braised pork trotters 7.3.2017

& we had great tasting teochew light braises at振记粥面店, a cheung chau market stall.

so i did this light braised pork trotters.

teochew light braised pork trotters 7.3.2017

it was very good. the skin was gelatinous & the braise was “pang” & tasty.

some parts of the pig skin though, after leaving out for >1hr, tougher just slightly.

teochew light braised big & small intestines

light braised big & small intestines

the intestines were very good too.

texture was tender, no smell, great “pang” braise flavours.

teochew bittergourd pork rib soup 苦瓜排骨汤

& for the teochew bittergourd pork rib soup 苦瓜排骨汤, i added the steamed pork soft bones. and additionally i used the intense chicken stock for the soup. so the soup was very tasty.

fried kang kong

the last dish was just a simple garlic fry kang kong.

among our friends we have a very good cook, our travel buddy on the hong kong trip, so he took over from me while i went to freshen up for dinner. basically he cooked this dish la..

9 hong kong daipadong dishes

so we had 9 hong kong daipadong dishes. ^^

emptied/wiped out

we had…but no more… all emptied/wiped out, quite laku la…

friend brought 6 very sweet yellow dragon fruit from ecuador

the 2 friends who travelled with me brought fruits.

one brought 6 yellow dragon fruit (from ecuador)…these were like S$58 for 6.

another friend brought like 10kg of D13 durians

another friend brought like 10kg of D13 durians

the other friend, the good cook, brought D13 durians from sin kian choon at tiong bahru. i think it was like 11kg.

we had a very enjoyable, memorable evening together- F3=food, fun & feel good la! ^^

c.h.e.f andy

chirashi don

wife brought back fresh ingredients from hokkaido on her return….airflown sashimi grade la… so she made chirashi don for family dinner on 4.3.2017. ^^

topping ingredients – chirashi don

we had ikura (salmon roe), uni (sea urchin), & hotate (scallops).

my job was to make tamago (egg roll).

topping ingredients & rice – chirashi don

wife cooked the japanese rice & mixed in sushi vinegar & mirin to make sushi rice.

hotate from hokkaido

hotate so very fresh & sweet!

uni & ikura from hokkaido

& uni, excellent la, very sweet…ikura too…

tamago

my tamago very good too…

i think restaurant standard la… in taste if not presentation..better than some supermarket sushi tamago..

hotate from hokkaido & tamago from me

very nice!

salmon with seaweed from hokkaido

the salmon was very good too, poached i think, marinated & layered with seaweed.

kurobuta

there were some iberico pork collar in the freezer, so i think the kurobuta pork.

kurobuta on don

didn’t do well today though, basically overcooked & not as tender & moist.

kurobuta though still good not like ordinary pork which can turn rubbery.

chirashi don

of course our chirashi don not the standard of top top restaurants, but still pretty good standard la…^^

c.h.e.f andy

duck ragout fettuccine

made 2 delicious pasta for 4pax family dinner this evening on 12.2.2017. ^^

duck leg ragout

this the first time i am making a duck leg ragout pasta.

this was inspired by the superb top class duck leg ragout pappardelle at labrezza recently on 7.2.2017.

duck leg ragout

i got everything right, made a wonderful ragout sauce. first time lucky… 🙂

i tried the the sauce, taste was really great, savoury, perfect texture & flavour for the duck, & great taste of tomatoes.

duck ragout fettuccine

a really, really good duck leg ragout pasta. the best la!

prawn in white wine sauce

the prawn pasta in creamy white wine sauce was also a new dish which i did couple times recently & served to my friends-

1. everyone’s birthday 9pax dinner on 28.12.2016.
2. 8pax dinner for wife’s close friends on 14.1.2017 (did not blog/take photos)

prawn in white wine sauce

this time i did not have/prepare chicken stock so i used prawns stock from the prawn heads/shells.

then added white wine, reduced.

when serving, i added 4tbsp heavy cream & prawns (seasoned with fish sauce & white pepper). then toss the pasta.

prawn fettuccine in creamy white wine sauce 

a very tasty pasta. prawns were plump & sweet.

prawn fettuccine in creamy white wine sauce

this an excellent pasta in it’s own right.

the duck ragout though was everyone’s favourite, over this.

also the last time i used chicken stock & while the taste was thicker & more intense this time, we all prefer chicken stock to prawn stock.

vongole pot

& i bought some littleneck clams at sheng shiong this morning when getting the fresh duck leg, about 540g.

vongole pot

no mussels (don’t see much fresh mussels in te supermarkets & chinatown these days).

so i do a vongole pot.

just brown garlic in olive oil. add butter, chopped onions, shallots, sliced ginger, cut chilli padi. then add stock, and heavy cream, salt to taste. lastly add the clams, cover, & clams ready when they opens up, just few minutes.

vongole pot

clams & soup were very tasty.

daughter said last time i did (maybe 2 years back), i had orange peel & that taste combination was even better.

a quite simple & most satisfying sunday home dinner for all. very shiok!

c.h.e.f andy

chicken rice dinner & other dishes

recently, a RI friend invited some of us to try out his legendary chicken rice.

that got me going again & i did a very good chicken rice 2.0. ^^

my RI friends saw the photos i posted & one friend organised a 10pax chicken rice dinner at my place this evening on 6.2.2017. ^^

lohei 珍姐best in town (chinatown)

this is CNY day10, so 3 friends went to get the best in town (chinatown haha!) lohei from 珍姐 at chinatown.

lohei 珍姐best in town (chinatown)

it’s among the loudest, most boisterous lohei i had. ^^

tai kor was reading out the auspicious phrases from his hand phone, & the rest of us shouting “huat ah”…

lohei 珍姐best in town (chinatown)

while i was putting out the dishes, the guys arranged the lohei.

lohei-salmon

lohei-abalones

they also got salmon & abalones.

lohei-sauces & toppings paraphernalia

& the paraphernalia of sauces & toppings.

lohei with salmon & abalone

it was a good lohei, refreshing not too sweet (we did not add all the sweet sauce & plum sauce).

poached chicken

for today i made 2 different preparations of chicken rice chicken 白斩鸡.

this was the poached method = 12 mins boiling water, 25mins off fire poaching, then quenched in cold water/ice. i cut chicken in two halves, if poaching whole chicken, about 15mins+30mins.

braised & steamed chicken

the other preparation is braised & steamed, recipe explained here.

very good homemade chilli (wiped clean)

& i made an excellent chilli.

i used 4 large red chilli, 2 chilli padi, 3cm ginger, 5 cloves garlic, 1/3cup (80ml) chicken stock, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp olive oil, and blend.

you could smell the chilli aroma when i lifted the cover. 🙂

this was totally cleaned out. my friends added some gravy from the veg & wiped clean every drop la…haha. 🙂

poached chicken + braised & steamed chicken

poached chicken + braised & steamed chicken

theory says the braised chicken should be sweeter.

& some friends thought so too.

poached chicken

poached chicken

but on balance, most including myself still preferred the poached chicken 滑鸡. texture did make a difference, enhancing the taste experience. 🙂

it is also easier to do, no need as much attention.

poached chicken + braised & steamed chicken

both chicken were tender, moist & sweet, & especially so with the chilli & chicken rice dark sauce.

i cooked 5 cups of rice for 10pax, it was quite enough. we did not take photo of the rice. it was quite fragrant & flavourful. again the best taste experience was with the chilli, and most of us except one took the dark sauce as well.

other dishes

i made a few other dishes.

black & white braised belly pork

i braised the black belly pork with lor 鲁汁.

& the white belly pork with the chicken stock braise.

when it was first served, a friend tasted & it was excellent in flavours & texture. but the white belly pork dried out a bit (which i think means the timing was not good enough), the black nelly pork was still tender.

i didn’t notice as i only took it later when it’s almost finished.

pig stomach & pig skin

so when i found the same with the pig skin (the pig stomach was ok), i returned it to the braise & heat up.

pig skin

& then it was perfect. everyone was surprised with the difference in the texture.

this something i have not fully figure out yet. but i think if it dries out too quickly over the course of dinner, it means that the braise timing was not enough & should have been longer.

that’s a trial & error thingy.

stirfried kang kong & romaine lettuce

i did the usual sit-fry veg.

stirfried romaine lettuce

stirfried kang kong

bot vegetables were quite competent, pretty ok.

wiped clean 风扫落叶

we finished every morsel of food! ^^

strawberries

cherries

one friend brought really sweet cherries & strawberries.

strawberries, cherries orange & jackfruits – fruits all very sweet

orange & jackfruits

another brought very sweet orange & also honey jackfruit, shiok la!

ritz apple strudel

& a friend brought ritz apple strudel from royal ville 833 bukit timah shop.

very full so i share 1/2 a slice, pretty good & quite enjoyable, so actually i could have taken one whole slice.

my homemade kaya butter bread

i also made some fresh kaya.

so we had some white bread to enjoy kaya butter bread.

a friend brought some soda biscuits. we used to eat them when young. i had these with the kaya the next day & it went perfectly!

we had a great wonderful time together, making new memories la!

c.h.e.f andy

20pax dinner dishes

had a wonderful homecooked dinner for wife’s relatives on chinese new year day 2 on 29.1.2017. ^^

wife’s quinoa salad – the best!

we all chipped in with some dishes.

wife made her excellent quinoa salad…never get tried of this.

so wonderful to look at & refreshing, tasty to eat, and great texture with quinoa, mesclun, pomegranate, blueberries, strawberries, roasted almond flakes etc.

teriyaki salmon belly – everyone’s favourite!

today’s teriyaki salmon belly almost perfect.

wonderful flavours, & my helper’s homegrown dill a perfect match.

nobu miso cod

today’s nobu miso cod also quite excellent. my s-i-l hubby prefers the cod to salmon.

pan grilled iberico pork collar

& they all liked the iberico pork collar. wiped clean la…

i had 8 pieces, just over 1kg, & pork requires longer cooking time so i covered the pan to speed up. & had to cook 4 times, 2 pieces each time.

deep-fried chicken wings

my helper;s chicken wings always good.

deep-fried chicken wings

i think better than most chicken wings outside.

wife’s oven grilled prawns

wife made oven grilled prawns. nice, fresh & quite easy to make.

braised oxtail

& i made a very good braised oxtail.

braised oxtail

this from 2 packets from phoon huat delicatessen, about 1.75kg.

braised oxtail

there were some leftovers, which i enjoyed the next day.

helper’s cheese sausage pasta

helper’s chicken & prawns alio olio

my helper also contributed 2 pastas – a cheese sausage pasta & a chicken & prawn alio olio.

wife’s sister brought rice & pork and duck liver sausage

wife’s sister brought pork & duck liver sausages with pickled leeks & some rice to match.

i love the duck liver sausage, very “pang”, flavourful…

wife’s s-i-l brought almond jelly

wife’s s-i-l brought cheng chow

& wife’s s-i-l brought 2 dessert – cheng chow & also almond jelly.

20pax dinner dishes

i made tiramisu also. the grand nephews loved it & it disappeared in no time.

a great family time together, lots of food & catching up.

today was the australian open grand slam finals between nadal & federer so we watched that as well. i saw a bit of the final set, and heard federer said if there could be a draw he would share it with nadal…

c.h.e.f andy

blue cheese with jam 

wife bought some nice cheese.

we had a wonderful wine & cheese evening on 26.1.2017! ^^

cheese board 

wife bought a really nice blue cheese, which was super taken just like that or topped with some fruit jam.

cheese goes well with anything citrus thingy, so fruit compote, jam, dried fruits like apricots & dates, even fig would be excellent accompaniments.

we had 3 cheeses- in addition to the superb blue cheese, we had a truffle cheese which was great with the wafer crackers, with or w/o jam; and another cheese which went perfectly with truffle honey. this truffle honey & cheese combination was a lot more flavourful than the truffle cheese standalone.

wine & cheese 

& of course we had a very good red to go with the cheese.

cheese board

and blue eberries & dried apricota.

blue cheese with jam 

really enjoyed the wine & cheese evening with my wife & duaghter.

c.h.e.f andy

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with salmon

wife made truffle oil capellini this evening on 18.1.2017. ^^

both wife & i made mentaiko & truffle oil pasta quite a few times.

this lagi the best!

portico prime’s caviar truffle capellini with sakura ebi

the best truffle capellinin we had was at portico prime recently on 2.1.2017.

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with salmon

wife added the usual truffle oil, little seasalt,  a bit extra virgin olive oil, little mentaiko & tossed.

the winning difference is the salmon.

this a japanese mentaiko marinated salmon from isetan at shaw house.

salmon was top draw, and the combination of taste was just wonderful! ^^

topped off with some cut nori – seaweed…

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with salmon

really nice, tasty salmon.

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with salmon

& the slight salty salmon enhanced & brought out the flavours of the truffle oil pasta.

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with caviar

she tried some cheap black lumpfish caviar.

nice too but not comparable with the salmon take.

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with jap mixed prawn flakes

& also tried with some mixed japanese dried flakes….ok…nicer with jap sushi rice.

wife’s quinoa salad

i am in love with wife’s quinoa salad.

always looked wonderful, and taste perfect!

ika sugatayaki

i tried ika sugatayaki, which just means whole squid grilled.

momor izakaya’s ika sugatayaki – grilled whole squid – really good! 

a lightyear cry from momor izakaya’s ika sugatayaki la!

ika sugatayaki

anyhow, taste was better than the last but squid was also slight overcooked.

as wife said, need to grill for shorter time about 12mins then torched it.

truffle oil mentaiko capellini with salmon

this was a really fun 3pax dinner with wife & daughter at home.

c.h.e.f andy

6 lunch dishes 

a RI friend was in town for w week leaving on 18.1.2017.

so i invited him for a 7pax homecooked lunch with our close RI friends on 13.1.2017. ^^

this friend i used to spend a lot of time together when we were in the twenties. he spent some time in china & hong kong & his family migrated to USA 10yrs+ ago. they stayed in cupertino now, and the children are attending college.

claypot rice 

i did my claypot rice.

not my best perhaps but still a very flavourful “pang” claypot rice that everyone liked.

it had very tender, tasty chicken, and mushrooms & sausage, a bit of salted fish.

a friend has been missing the previous get togethers where i  made claypot rice so he was very much satisfied that he got to taste it finally.

tofu prawns 

tofu prawns another dish i do very well these days.

the best was the one i made for a 5pax family dinner on new year eve on 31.12.2016. ^^

today’s tofu prawns was ok, but like one friend mentioned, it would have been better if i had infused the tofu a little longer in the sauce. overall, everyone liked the texture of the tofu & the tasty sauce.

spicy bean sauce fish 

also did steamed seabass with my own spicy bean sauce.

i like this bean sauce a lot myself, especially when used with 松鱼头song fiah head.

spicy bean sauce fish 

for today, i used it for seabass as not everyone like fish head.

braised pork belly & pork ribs 

the braised pork belly & pork ribs were a failed experiment actually.

as i made braised chicken for teban gardens community breakfast this morning, i had the braising sauce.

so i used it for the pork belly & pork ribs in a oven dish 6hrs in a 95deg oven.

texture was ok but the braising sauce became diluted & not well infused, so i braised it further over the stove to get the taste right.

& taste was good. all the friends liked it but the texture was out.

i did a very good braised pork belly recently on 1.7.2017.

so this method is better & preferred as it produces both great taste & texture.

fried celery with salted fish

fried spinach 

i did my usual vegetables.

3 friends preferred the celery & 3 the spianch.

i like both haha!

lunch dishes 

we had a great time, delectable food & wonderful friends & company.

nice cherries 

a friend brought very nice cherries, the left ones sweeter.

garrett popcorns 

another friend brought 2 packet of garrett popcorns.

i can’t stop eating this things so i got him to bring back one packet. anyway i finished most of the first packet.

this friend also bought me a nice present – a beautiful wallet.

c.h.e.f andy