Category Archives: Recipes

RI V.S.O.P. (Very Special Old Pals) 11pax Homecooked Lunch on 15Oct2014

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crackling roast belly pork

crackling roast belly pork

had a homecooked 11pax lunch for my RI buddies on 15.10.2014. the last we had was a 10pax kueh chap lunch on 17.9.2014. 🙂

& this lunch highlights-

1. sio bak (crackling belly pork) from a friend
2. “tunglok” big prawn noodles (in golden broth)
3. vietnamese street food – chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon & fish sauce (forgot my mint leaves & basil leaves)
4. banoffee pie (very 1st try)

crackling roast belly pork

crackling roast belly pork

like the last time, a friend brought his 成名 renown supergood sio bak (crackling roast belly pork) – this time the crackling was less than the last. i told him he made me gave up on sio bak & saved me from a lifetime of unfulfilled tedium (making sio bak unsuccessfully)..haha! 🙂

my motto – why try so hard when someone can do better? just invite him to bring lor! 🙂

阳春面 - a cheap flat chinese noodle

阳春面 – a cheap flat chinese noodle

dry wok chilli garlic prawns

dry wok chilli garlic prawns

big prawn noodles in golden broth – this should be served last in a course dinner, before dessert. lately i decided to try to serve all the food buffet style instead of as a course meal. it is not always possible but many dishes can be adapted. as this has to be served hot, we took this first dish first. 🙂

tunglok lobster ramen - 龙虾焖拉面

tunglok lobster ramen – 龙虾焖拉面

the key was the golden broth. it was my own recipe emulating the lobster noodles at tunglok (above). 🙂

from the feedback everyone loved this dish.

the 1/2 poached chicken – 白斩鸡 & saliva chicken – 口水鸡 were now a standard dish. it was easy, require little effort to make, and both were very tasty.  i brined the chicken in sugar & salt for 48hrs before poaching on the day.

miso salmon belly

miso salmon belly

miso salmon belly

miso salmon belly

miso salmon belly was another new experiment.  i created this new miso marinade recipe & was not sure if i would serve it for lunch. it turned out to be an excellent dish. my wife brought some to office for her packed lunch & all her colleagues liked it. & all my friends at lunch liked it! 🙂

V.S.O.P. = Very Special Old Pals...hahaha!

V.S.O.P. = Very Special Old Pals…hahaha!

a friend brought V.S.O.P. = Very Special Old Pals…hahaha! 🙂

could not quite make the connection lunch & V.S.O.P. so had to assume he went everywhere with one. haha! 🙂

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon. i did this the second time. first was for 3-4pax, so this first time for 11pax.

i bought mint but forgot to serve both the mint & my homegrown basil!

& i forgot to make the all important fish sauce mix beforehand to serve together, so had to make 1 batch then a second batch while having lunch.

anyway the guys all liked it. although our self-proclaimed vietnam expert was actually clueless when it came to assembling the dish. haha! 🙂 this a dish that you feast on sitting on a very low stool next to a very clean vietnam street vendor!

garlic fried romaine lettuce

garlic fried romaine lettuce

my help made a nice garlic fried romain lettuce which everyone liked.

the banoffee (banana toffee) pie was the very first virgin attempt!

the guys walloped the whole cake, though a few including me, felt it was kind of sweet though ok to eat. anyway i made another one the next day with 1/2 the toffee & 50% more bananas, & it was an excellent very well balanced cake. 🙂

post event leftovers - chargrilled pork neck beehoon

post event leftovers – chargrilled pork neck beehoon

口水鸡阳春面

口水鸡阳春面

i had just a little leftovers, so i made myself dinner with the chargrilled pork & the saliva chicken with 阳春面. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Sous Vide Duck Breast & Tea Smoked Duck Fettucine (Gordon Ramsay’s Cold Pan Method)

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6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast

6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast

was in 2 minds whether to make this post.

anyway i had 1/2 duck leftover from my recent 15pax homecooked dinner for friends on 3.10.2014. i used 1/2 duck to make a 盐水鸭.

& i read 2 interesting recipes & thought i would try out sous vide duck breast & use the drumstick for a tea smoked duck fettucine. 🙂

the results were not that great so i thought of not posting it as a recipe. anyway, i will give the tea smoked duck another try to see if i can get it right.

6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast

6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast

6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast

6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast

the 6hr sous vide pan-roast duck breast was fine actually. i made quite a good one for my canard l’orange anyway, so the main difference was just the sauce.

the grape ginger sauce was kind of an overkill. next time i will just do it as a small dip. pouring it over the medium rare duck breast actually killed the photo & also masked the taste. i tried the duck w/o the sauce & it was quite good on its own. unfortunately i did not take a photo of the nicely medium rare duck after slicing it. 😦

i would rate it as passable but not great.

tea smoked duck fettucine

tea smoked duck fettucine

the tea smoked duck fettucine was an exciting recipe for me, as i can use this method to smoke meats (duck, belly pork, pork kuckles, even beef i think) w/o a real smoker.

however my first attempt wasn’t right in terms of timing. i did only 45mins in the oven at 130degC after smoking the tea & other condiments on a aluminium foil in an oven-proof wok over high heat & crimping the foil to make a fully sealed “smoking chamber”, i placed it in a preheated oven at 130degC for 45mins. for the crispy skin i used gordon ramsay’s cold pan method.

removing the aluminium foil, the tea smoked duck gave off a nice aroma in the room but the flavours could not really infuse to the meat..need longer than 45mins. i will probably try it for 2.5hrs to 3 hrs instead.

the fettucine recipe was actually ok & my 2 daughters ate up the pasta on the day & next. but the tea smoked duck achieved nothing & the texture was a bit tough nearer the bones as it was not smoked for long enough time.

my current standard of sous vide duck breast (much ado about nothing) is no match for my simple & easy to do 盐水鸭…

i can use both methods – 6hrs sous vide at 70degC OR smoking chamber method to produce the tender meat & then the cold pan method to produce the cripy skin. then a small grape ginger sauce dip would do.

i will post the recipe later when i get the correct preparation & results for the tea smoke duck.

c.h.e.f andy

 

Wife Made Simple & Tasty Chicken Wrap

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chicken wrap

chicken wrap

wife made packed lunch most days, for herself & sometimes daughter. 🙂 it’s nice & healthier for busy lunch. & very simple to do. 🙂

i made pan-roasted brined chicken, miso cod, teriyaki cod or simply plain grilled cod which was just as nice for her some days. she (& helper) made her own very nice oven baked prawns, pan-grilled chicken breast, grilled pumpkin, quinoa, rocket salad, very sweet grilled peppers etc and lately very nice wraps. 🙂

chicken wrap

chicken wrap

chicken wrap

chicken wrap

today’s wrap was excellent. so was the one few days back. chicken breast was seasoned & pan-grilled by helper, very tasty & heathy.  the salad included grilled sweet peppers, rockets, cherry tomatoes, honey mustard, agave nectar etc.

wonderful! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Vietnamese Chargrilled Pork Neck with Cold Beehoon (Vermicelli)

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vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar with cold beehoon

today i experimented quite successfully a vietnamese street food = a chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon (vermicelli). 🙂

the pork neck was marinated with fish sauce, chilli padi, sugar, paprika, orange marmalade, yuzu salad sauce, chopped shallots/garlic & grated ginger. & i kept it for 48hrs in the chiller.

i followed this video recipe.

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

i chargrilled the pork neck over 1 tablespoon oil in non-stick pan over high heat. it was really good! so tasty & tender! 🙂

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar with cold beehoon

i did not have many items. so i improvised. earlier for the marinade, i did not have honey so i used fruit jam (orange marmalade) & yuzu sauce.

then i did not have tau gay (bean sprouts) so i used kang kong (morning glory) – not ideal!

i did not have mint so just used basil. no peanuts & no spring onions, just skipped.

it was nice. first layered the sliced japanese cucumber & kang kong (for bean sprouts), then add the bee hoon (vermicelli), pickled carrots & radish (sugar, rice vinegar, chilli padi). then add the pork neck, prawns & then the chopped shallots & basil.

drizzle with the fish sauce dip (chicken stock, fish sugar, sugar, rice vinegar, chilli padi)

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck

vietnamese chargrilled pork collar

once more, the chargrilled pork neck was fabulous! 🙂

i served this vietnamese chargrilled pork collar to my friends at 11pax homecooked lunch on 15.10.2014, & everyone just loved it.

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon

that’s the real thing in the video.

miso garoupa

miso garoupa

i had some experimental miso garoupa. it was ok, not fantastic.

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon

vietnamese chargrilled pork neck with cold beehoon

this was fun! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

  • 300g pork collar, sliced 5mm across grain
  • 150g bee hoon (vermicelli)
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp honey (i used 1 heap tbsp orange marmalade + 1 tsp yuzu salad sauce)
  • 1 flat tbsp sugar
  • 1 tsp paprika (or coarse black pepper)
  • 4 spring onions, white part only
  • 2+2 chopped shallots
  • 2 chopped garlic
  • 1cm grated ginger
  • bunch of bean sprouts (i used kang kong)
  • sliced japanese cucumber
  • pickled radish & carrots
  • mint leaves (i used thai basil)
  • 1/6 cup crushed peanuts

fish sauce dip

  • 1/3 cup (80ml) chicken stock
  • 4 tbsp fish sauce (more to taste)
  • 1 tsp rice vinegar (more to taste)
  • 1 chopped chilli padi

Directions:

  1. scald pork neck to remove scum. cut 5mm slices across grain. mixed fish sauce, honey, sugar, pepper, garlic, shallots, ginger to make marinade. season pork neck in marinade, cover with cellophane & refrigerate for 48hrs in chiller.
  2. put 1 tbsp oil in non-stick pan on high heat. stir fry the pork neck (cooled to room temperature first) over high heat to caramelised the pork. turn to medium & cook for 5 minutes. pork will be charred & very flavourful.
  3. to serve – first layer the sliced japanese cucumber & bean sprouts, then add the bee hoon (vermicelli), pickled carrots & radish. then add the pork neck, prawns & then the chopped shallots & basil. drizzle with the fish sauce dip.

 

Fun & Satisfying Homecooked 13-course Dinner for 15pax on 3Oct2014

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had a very s  satisfying homecooked dinner last evening on 3.10.2014. 🙂

while i really enjoy cooking for my family & friends even if there is considerable effort (& a close friend said exactly what it felt like – he really enjoyed it so he did not see it as effort), the point is how to plan the dishes & keep improving to manage the dinner smoothly & achieve best results with least effort. this is also part of the fun. 🙂

i decided to follow a friend’s lead to serve all dishes pre-cooked or served at the start buffet style instead of course by course (i enjoyed the delicious food at 4 of his makan sessions, most recently at a scrumptious homechef mooncake dinner on 8.9.2014).

it is quite important actually not to be disrupted from dinner conversation even though going into the kitchen to cook every course does have its own satisfaction. 🙂 i may even try that for my monterosso seafood risotto, lobster pasta. for king prawn ramen in golden sauce etc which are best served in individual portions, it seems best still to serve them course by course. so i do those for smaller sit down dinners. 🙂

#1 poached chicken

#1 poached chicken

#1 poached chicken – i brined in sugar & salt for 48hrs which made it tasty & moist & then 10mins simmered & 20-25mins poached, then cold water. this a crowd favourite with many supporters. 🙂

#2 braised pig trotters & #3 braised belly pork – i did them together using the cold crockpot method & set meat thermometer to 82degC. this would take about 5hrs, gentle slow & low temperature braising. i did this 1 day before. both were tender, gelatinous but still firm. i prefer this firmer texture.

#4 盐水鸭 – i applied a dry brine seasoning rub & put in chiller for for 48hrs (main condiment is sichuan spicy chilli sauce). cooking method same as poached chicken, but 15mins simmered & 30mins poached. duck was tender & tasty but i felt the 风味 taste was not pronouced enough like last time.

＃5 蒜泥白肉 – i got the pork a day before dinner so only brined 24hrs. used the same cold crockpot method to produce a very gentle braise using chicken stock from the poached chicken. this one again many supporters.

#6 6hr "sous vide" miso lamb shoulder

#6 6hr “sous vide” miso lamb shoulder

#6 6hr “sous vide” miso lamb shoulder – more or less perfected this dish. the miso tempered the strong gamey taste & 90degC was apparently the optimum temperature to break down collagen (tough connective tissues) to tasty gelatine, so a very tasty, tender dish. 🙂

1 friend said she especially liked the dish. another mentioned it was a bit sweet. i would probably reduce the sweetness in the miso marinade a bit.

#7 peanut carrots pig trotter soup

#7 peanut carrots pig trotter soup

#7 peanut carrots pig trotter soup

#7 peanut carrots pig trotter soup

#7 peanut carrots pig trotter soup – peanut porkrib soup is a common nice lie tong 例汤. i preferred to do my pig trotters w/o bones & the toe ends so i used those leftovers for the soup, which worked perfectly & added a gelatine texture to the soup. i added some carrots & also as the amount of soup was not enough for 15pax & i did not want to dilute the soup (better not enough soup than enough diluted soup), the chicken stock came to rescue. this i added & the soup tasted quite perfect for me. 🙂

so it was kind of a planned & orderly execution. braised pig trotters & belly pork i did 1 day before, and the leftover pig trotter bones & tips I made soup 1 day before. this freed up the crockpot for the 蒜泥白肉 on the day. chicken & duck were brined 48hrs before & an easy 10mins+20mins for chicken & 15mins+30mins for 1/2duck simmered + poached. miso lamb was marinated 3days before & just gone into oven for 6hrs on dinner day.

easy eh? 🙂

i only had to do the seafood fried rice & wok grilled prawns, nearer dinner time.

i cooked the rice in rice cooker in the morning (forgot to do day before), & i fried the rice with the sichuan spicy chilli early.

about 1 hr (530pm) before dinner at 630pm, i fried in butter the small prawns & squid. when 90% guests arrived, i heat the fried rice & seafood in the wok together, & i did the dry wok king prawns with ginger, garlic, chilli padi & fish sauce. so every dish was ready to serve together. 🙂

#10 sambal seabass

#10 sambal seabass

#11 poached hk kailan with shitake

#11 poached hk kailan with shitake

aunty bes did the #10 sambal seabass & #11 poached hk kailan with shitake. everyone loved the fish. 1 friend commented the kailan was so vibrant in colour. kailan was poached & usually looked greener.

& everyone loved the tofu cheese cake & tiramisu. i did them 1 day before. 1 friend said the dessert topped everything. 🙂

1 friend would be celebrating her birthday few days later, so i asked another to bring a candle (i did not have one) & used the tofu cheese cake as the birthday cake. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Spicy Sichuan Poached Chicken 口水鸡

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口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

decided to try 口水鸡, the sichuan spicy poached chicken. 🙂

we had 口水鸡 many times at crystal jade lamian xianglongbao. 🙂

poached kampong chicken

poached kampong chicken

i can do a very good poached chicken, so like many dishes, getting the spicy sauce right is the key.

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

口水鸡 sichuan spicy poached chicken

saliva chicken (口水鸡)

crystal jade version of saliva chicken (口水鸡)

i decided to use a modified 蒜泥白肉 sauce recipe, as it was a dish i served several times & everyone liked. 🙂

i did without all the additional stuff like cinnamon bark, clove, anise seeds, cumin, and just added chicken stock, sliced ginger, chopped shallots, chopped garlic, brown sugar & sichuan spicy chilli oil, looks something like this-

  • 1 cup stock (chicken stock or from the pork)
  • 2 tbsp light soy sauce (80ml)
  • 1 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 cm sliced ginger
  • 2 tsp chopped garlic
  • 2 chopped shallots
  • 2 tbsp sichuan spicy chilli oil

the sauce was delicious, mildly sweet & delivering the spicy punch.

comparing with crystal jade version (above photo), it looked just as potent but actually not as 麻辣 as crystal jade version which is itself not very 麻辣. guess i missed the toasted sesame part (i did have coriander for garnishing though not in the photos).

though some like me will take it even spicier, the current preparation is easier on the palate for most. & many friends had enjoyed the 蒜泥白肉 in no small part because of the sauce. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

 

Kueh Chap Homecooked Lunch for 10pax Friends on 17Sep2014

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braised belly pork, pig ears & ter tau bak

braised belly pork, pig ears & ter tau bak

i have been applying the pot roast method using a crockpot (slow cooker) to produce very tender & moist & more gentle slow-braised meats. 🙂

i tried it very successfully on 蒜泥白肉, spicy garlic pork, and i used it once also to make a good braised belly pork, pig ears & ter tau bak (猪头肉).

for this 10pax lunch for my friends on 17.9.2014, i added braised pork trotters & also kampong chicken.

the gentle braising started with a cold crockpot on low & took about 4-5hrs to produce the very tender & still firm texture (“kar kar”) which i prefer over the more overcooked soft texture. i was able to reproduce the same tasty braising sauce. see the detail steps in the recipe here.

tau kua, tau pok, lor nerng

tau kua, tau pok, lor nerng

i used the braising sauce for the tau kua & lor nerng (braised egg) to infuse the flavours. i cheated for the tau pok & added water to dilute the braise as tau pok absorbs too much & i won’t have any sauce left for the “kueh chap”. 🙂

big intestines

big intestines

ter kar (pork trotters)

ter kar (pork trotters)

i braised the ter kar (pork trotters) separately by the same method, and took out some braising sauce to do the big intestines separately.

the big intestines from sheng shiong were already cleaned but i could not take the risk so i washed them thoroughly then rubbed with flour and salt & turned inside out. of course all the meats were scalded with boiling water to remove the scums before braising.

getting feedback from the friends –

  1. they all felt the dishes (belly pork, ear, pig head meat & trotter) were all quite ok comparable with good hawkers, both taste & texture.
  2. one mentioned that the intestines were good w/o the odour (even though it was still a strong tasting dish) and good texture.
  3. another didn’t think the intestine was as good as these were the thicker-walled tua terng tau (大肠头) whereas usually the ones outside were the thinner walled type. it’s just that on this day sheng shiong did not have the thinner walled type. 😦
  4. & of course they all noted as i did that i added the braising sauce to the trotters & big intestines but forgot to add to the 2 large plates of belly pork/ear/pig head meat & tua kua/tau pok/lor nerng. that would have enhanced the flavours. the braising sauce were used up after diluting for the “kueh chap” which i used hor fun to substitute as i could not get the flat sheet kueh chap. one thought the kueh chap sauce was a bit sweet though it was ok for me.
  5. one friend missed the “crunchy” birth intestines (生肠) i made last time. this time round sheng shiong did not have 生肠 so bought large intestines instead. not quite the same i guess. 🙂
  6. & i thought my pig trotters was almost the standard of 幸福潮州小食 pig trotter at whampoa, and much better than the han jia bakuteh pig trotters at east coast lagoon food village.
poached kampong chicken

poached kampong chicken

i was confident of my poached kampong chicken, which was tender, moist & sweet.

excellent crackling belly pork (shio bak)

excellent crackling belly pork (shio bak)

excellent crackling belly pork (shio bak)

excellent crackling belly pork (shio bak)

a friend brought 1kg of shi0 bak (roast belly pork). it was really good. just look at the crackling skin + the really nice meat layers colour. texture & taste was excellent. this motivated me to want to try again to do this difficult roast pork dish. 🙂

garlic brocoli

garlic brocoli

my helper did a garlic broccoli everyone liked it!

the lunch spread

the lunch spread

the lunch spread

the lunch spread

i experimented on a slow braised beef briskets & ribs with daikon (radish) & carrots but it was not good & we did not take photos. i will give it another try again, having thought about how i can do it differently & hopefully better. 🙂

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu was a crowd favourite. one friend had 3 helpings and all enjoyed this light & very flavourful tiramisu recipe.

c.h.e.f andy

Prawn Ramen in Golden Braising Sauce – 黄焖草虾面 (Part 1)

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prawn ramen in golden braising sauce – 黄焖草虾面

tunglok lobster ramen - 龙虾焖拉面

tunglok lobster ramen – 姜葱龙虾焖拉面

enjoyed much the lobster 6-course dinner set last evening at tunglok signature orchard parade hotel 0n 13.9.2014.

the  lobster ramen – 姜葱龙虾焖拉面 came with a yummy golden sauce. i didn’t know the recipe but was thinking how i could replicate a sauce that looked the same pleasing golden & had similar texture & taste good.

prawn ramen in golden sauce

prawn ramen in golden braising sauce – 黄焖草虾面

i defrosted 7 small grass prawns & used kitchen sears (scissors) to de-vein the prawns. i marinated lightly with some fish sauce & white pepper.

for the golden sauce, i added 5 tablespoon vegetable stock (leftover soup) – that’s about 75ml approx 1/3 cup. i added 1 tablespoon each of mirin & sake. i then added 1 teaspoon white sugar &1 teaspoon fish sauce. i also added  1 teaspoon corn flour & 1 egg yolk for body & the yellow colour, then whisked.

i boiled a very cheap china noodle called white jade noodles for 4 minutes+ tasted it almost al dente & drained in a strainer & placed in cold water.

i placed a piece of butter (about 10g), some sliced ginger, cut spring onions & chilli padi in the pan. then immersed the prawns in the golden sauce & placed them in the hot pan & cooked for 2 minutes. i then added the golden sauce, cooked the prawns & added some water to achieve the slight starchy consistency.

i placed the noodles in a bowl & added the prawns & golden sauce, then garnished with chopped spring onions & coriander leaves. voila! 🙂

the key experiment here was the golden sauce. the current version was tasty, had the colour & body. it had just a little corn starch taste. egg yoke was fine. i am thinking of trying some pumpkin puree to replace the corn starch & see how it goes.

with a good tasty golden sauce, it would be quite easy to vary the ingredients like using lobster, some better ramen (but this cheap one was light & quite ok), and i can also cook this as a larger dish to serve say 6pax or 8pax as a light carb dish for my dinners.

c.h.e.f andy

P.S. – see latest update @ King Prawn Noodles (黄焖大虾面) – Part 2

Salted Egg Curry Leaves Prawn Spaghetti – An Experiment

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salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti

salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti

did a quick experiment on a salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti this morning…

tried a salted egg pasta at a quite excellent dinner at petite menu earlier on 22.3.2014 & wanted to try cooking the dish. had 2 salted duck eggs left from a recent 12-course homecooked dinner where i tried the chinese style salted egg prawns, so decided to cook it for lunch for my son.

salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti

salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti

salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti

salted egg curry leaves prawn spaghetti

i minced 2 salted egg yokes after boiling the eggs earlier.

i had some browned garlic cloves in olive oil in the fridge leftover from the day before so i added that to a pan & fried 1 stalk of curry leaves (w/o the stem) to bring out the flavour, then i added the minced salted egg yokes. lastly i added 1/2cup of white wine & some sugar to taste (1 teaspoon).

i had my spaghetti done as usual just below al dente.

i decided to practice deep fry prawns instead the usual pan fry.  i added fish sauce, sea salt & white pepper PLUS yuzu salad sauce & fresh egg yoke to a pack of shelled small prawns (about 20+) & seasoned. then i put 3 tablespoon flour in a bowl & heated a small saucepan of oil. i coated the prawns & dropped into the oil for a very quick fry.

when all ingredients were ready, i reheated the pan with the salted egg sauce till it boiled, then i off the fire and added the spaghetti & tossed & lastly added the deep-fried prawns.

i tasted the dish. it was very tasty as good as my usual seafood alio olio. the deep-fried prawns were fresh & good too though nothing special. there was curry leaves flavour but i could not detect much of the salted egg flavour.

my son enjoyed the pasta very much & walloped the entire plate. 🙂

while the dish was quite tasty & looked good with the colour & garnishing of the chopped salted egg yokes which also contributed texture, it was just another tasty dish & did not really stood up as a salted egg pasta.

c.h.e.f andy

Tiramisu – A Charming Dessert

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tiramisu

tiramisu – a charming dessert

my wife & i are not very dessert people. so i never thought i would get into cakes & baking etc. 🙂

i chanced on the chocolate lava cake early on. it was easy to make, had the wow factor and solve my problem of having to buy cakes or just eat fruits after my homecooked dinners which i started in mar2012. 🙂

after that i tried apple pie. it was pretty good or at least ok, but if i also had to make the dough which i did, it was quite a bit of trouble, so i made about 3 apple pies & gave it up.

after a very long break, like almost 2 years since my first lava cake (& i also stopped lava cake for 9 months having gotten tired of it after serving it for many homecooked dinners), i tried a jam crumb cake which was pretty good as well, though it had far less wow factor. then in may2014, after buying the tofu cheesecake from sun with moon wheelock for my domestic helper’s birthday, i again chanced on a tofu cheese cake. it was easy too like the lava cake, all you have to do was blend. 🙂

so tofu cheese cake went on for couple of months, & i made it again for a friend’s party this evening. anyhow i was inspired by 1 of my wife’s friend who did an awesome tiramisu.

after googling for the recipe including videos recipes, i did my no-bake tiramisu for the very first time, and it turned out wonderfully the first time, on 26.7.2014. i was happy enough with it to serve it to my friends at a 11pax lobster menu dinner on 30.7.2014 & everyone simply swore by it, and according to one, it now displaced my lava cake & tofu cheese cake as his favourite, but you know often times it’s just a change, something new for the time. 🙂

tiramisu

tiramisu – a charming dessert

it was a surprise to me but as it turned out, tiramisu was the easiest of all the desserts i have made. 🙂

i used 1/2 portion of the video recipe i saw here.

i separated the egg yolks & white of 3 eggs. my son had bought me a hand mixer from UK when he was back in dec2013 & i decided to use it for the first time.

whisking the eggs to soft peaks was a breeze. 🙂 i added 2 tablespoon sugar as i whisked to soft peaks, as chef john of food wishes.com called, the shaving cream consistency. haha! 🙂

i added 250g mascarpone cheese to the yolks & whisked to get the nice custard. then i folded the meringue in 2 batches into the custard. that’s done.

i put 200ml freshly grounded expresso from my coffee machine in a flat dish & added 1.2 tablespoon of brandy (otard), 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence & 1 teaspoon sugar.

then i took the savoiardi finger biscuits & dipped them lightly in the expresso & lined one layer on the glass dish. i added 1/2 the custard then another layer & the custard again. i finished off by dusting cocoa powder through a sieve & then using a large knife scrapped the chocolate flakes from the back of a chocolate bar & added to the cake. then i left it in the fridge overnight.

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu

tiramisu – a charming dessert

well the result was nothing less than sensational, not too sweet, nice expresso & liquor, and marvellously consistent malleable textured cake. 🙂

i think i know what’s the next cake i will try to make – a banoffee cake!

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients –

  • 250g mascarpone cheese
  • 3 eggs separate into egg yolks & whites
  • 16 finger savoiardi biscuits
  • 200ml expresso
  • 4 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
  • default 2 tablespoon brandy (sometimes i use 4 tbsp or 60ml for some of my friends who love more brandy, haha!)^^

Directions –

  1. separate the egg yolks & whites of 3 eggs.
  2. using a hand mixer, whisk the eggs to soft peaks. add 2 tablespoon sugar as you whisk to soft peaks, as chef john of food wishes.com called, the shaving cream consistency.
  3. add 250g mascarpone cheese to the yolks & whisk to get the nice custard. then fold the meringue in 2 batches into the custard.
  4. put 200ml freshly grounded expresso in a flat dish & add 1.5 tablespoon of brandy (otard), 1 teaspoon of vanilla essence & 1 teaspoon sugar.
  5. then take the savoiardi finger biscuits & dip them lightly in the expresso & line one layer on the glass dish. add1/2 the custard then another layer of finger biscuits & the custard again. finish off by dusting cocoa powder through a sieve & then using a large knife scrap chocolate flakes from the back of a chocolate bar & add to the cake. then i leave it in the fridge overnight.

Very Good Kueh Chap

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kueh chap

kueh chap on 4.8.2014

toyed with making kueh chap.

there are many hawker places one can get good kueh chap in singapore, so may not be a very worthwhile venture.

since i can use either of the (1)5hr sous vide method OR (2) cold crockpot on low method to produce just the right texture belly pork, i figure it should be quite easy to do the other items for kueh chap.

anyway i decided to try it on 24.6.2014 for my sis. it was pretty ok (bottom 2 photos). 🙂

kueh chap

kueh chap on 4.8.2014

kueh chap

kueh chap on 4.8.2014

kueh chap

kueh chap on 5.8.2014

a few friends decided to watch guardians of the galaxy (which btw was an excellent movie), so i invited them to come over to have simple kueh chap dinner, and with 1/2 a kampong chicken thrown in. 🙂

i went to sheng shiong & bought a 400g frozen belly pork (about S$4) & 1/2 pig head or face (S$4). the pig head came with the ear, so i had both ter tao bak 猪头肉 & ter heenh 猪耳. i tried the big intestine last time on 24.6.2014. both texture & flavour were good but it was still a bit strong taste, so i decided to be more conservative & bought the birth intestine aka fallopian tubes 生肠 instead. maybe you don’t think that was conservative. haha! 🙂

i prepared my own braising sauce (see recipe), which later became the soup for the kueh chap.

i did the usual preparation, scalding the belly & pig head after cleaning (i used a large kitchen knife to scrap off hair from the belly & face) to remove the scums. i then placed the pig head, belly & ear in the crockpot, added the braising sauce to cover the meat completely, then turned on low.

i learned this cold crockpot method to make a good pot roast which i have applied to cook belly pork very successfully e.g. 蒜泥白肉, a spicy garlic pork. what it does is that because the temperature rises quite slowly initially over 2-3hrs depending on the amount of cold liquid, it is equivalent to mild low temperature braising, resulting in a gentler, moist & tender meat. for this meat, total about 1kg, it should take about 5 to 6 hrs. you can also use a meat thermometer which i do & set at 90degC. i then set the meats aside. the braising sauce was now very tasty. i added the tau kwa, tau pok & the shelled cooked eggs & cooked on low for 2-3hrs.

for the birth intestine, i washed with salt (for large intestine the last time, i washed with salt & flour), cleaned thoroughly & left in a large bowl of water in the fridge overnight.  i was worried about the taste so i took out a small amount of braising sauce & cooked over the stove on low fire for 20minutes then dropped it in cold water. my friends later commented the texture was excellent, crunchy as it should be, flavourful & no strong taste. 🙂

the belly, pig head meat & pig ear were all quite good. nice flavour & just the right texture. 🙂

on 4.8.2014, i could not get the kueh for kueh chap from sheng shiong (i went to 2 different stores w/o success), so i used kueh teow instead. the next day my sis brought the kueh from another sheng shiong outlet & we walloped the leftovers. 🙂

the kueh only took 1 minute. by now the sauce was very tasty & i just added water & salt to taste to make the soup to add to the kueh. 🙂

when serving, garnish the dishes with chopped coriander & add fried shallots to the kueh chap.

kueh chap

kueh chap on 24.6.2014

kueh chap

kueh chap on 24.6.2014

overall, i think it was very successful, and comparable to a good kueh chap at the hawker stalls. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

  • 400g belly pork
  • 500g pig head meat
  • 100g pig ear
  • 1 birth intestine
  • 1 packet (2 pieces) tau kwa
  • 1 packet (10 pieces) tau pok

braising sauce

  • 3 tbsp dark sauce
  • 5 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 2 tbsp zhengjiang black vinegar
  • 1 tbsp heap sugar
  • 2 cinnamon bark
  • 4 aniseed
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 bulb peeled garlic
  • 3cm sliced ginger
  • 1 tbsp 5-pice powder
  • 1 litre water
  • salt to taste (about 2 -3 tsp)

Directions:

  1. mix the braising sauce.
  2.  scalding the belly & pig head after cleaning (use a large kitchen knife to scrap off hair from the belly & face) to remove the scums. place pig head, belly & ear in the crockpot, add the braising sauce to cover the meat completely, then turn on low & braise for about 5 to 6 hrs. you can also use a meat thermometer. set it at 90degC. the mild low temperature braising results in a gentler, moist & tender meat.
  3. set the meats aside. add the tau kwa, tau pok & the shelled cooked eggs & cook on low for 2-3hrs.
  4. wash birth intestine with salt (for large intestine, wash with both salt & flour), clean thoroughly & leave in a large bowl of water in the fridge overnight.
  5. take out a small amount of braising sauce & cook birth intestine over the stove on low fire for 20minutes then drop it in cold water. this produce a crunchy, flavourful dish & w/o the strong taste.
  6. when serving, garnish the dishes with chopped coriander & add fried shallots to the kueh chap.

Seafood Risotto Par Excellence

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seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

i repeated my lake como, cinque terre, milan grand tour tasting menu for 11pax friends get-together on 30.7.2014.

while overall it was not as good as the last round, the seafood risotto though was outstanding. and so was the tiramisu. 🙂

seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

seafood risotto modelled after monterosso miky

i am very happy with this risotto. the key was the intense stock from prawn shells & heads. there was also the vegetable base from chopped carrots, celery, leeks, yellow onions & green pepper which i softened before adding 1.2 cups of rice. the vegetable sweetness balanced well the prawn stock sweetness. the aborio rice was done al dente by putting in a 210degC oven for 10 minutes, which took it to about 90% cooked.

the prawns & squids were pre-cooked, fried in butter.

the mussels & mango clams were cooked when serving the dish. i did them separately adding sliced ginger, chilli padi & orange peels. they took only few minutes. then the risotto was put on high fire with remaining stock added & just before serving the prawns, squids, mussels & mango clams were added, & cooked for 1 minute. 🙂

the risotto was so very tasty, almost dare i say as good as miky’s…almost but never quite…& the seafood were all so very fresh, tasty, done just right & not overcooked. 🙂

& my friend took such nice photos above as well!

c.h.e.f andy

Andy’s Lake Como, Cinque Terre, Milan Grand Tour Tasting Menu on 2Jul2014

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grand tour tasting menu

coming back from a wonderful trip to amsterdam, lake como, cinque terre, and milan, i was much motivated to recreate some of the delectable dishes we had. 🙂

may calendar was crowded as i had the 11pax RI friends “fine” chinese dinner on 5.5.2014 & also the 27pax G20 RI friends dinner on 28.5.2014. some friends were away in june, so the dinner was fixed on 2.7.2014. 🙂

1 of the (dining) highlights of our cinque terre tour was the flamed pasta seafood risotto at miky restaurant in monterosso on 18.4.2014 (the lobster, langoustine cold platter was likewise excellent). it was so good we went back again 20.4.2014 to enjoy one more time before leaving for milan the next day. we also had very good pasta at manarola, levanto & milan, both pesto & tomota sauce based; & excellent grilled octopus in tremezzo, bellagio, monterosso, manarola, levanto & milan.

for my menu planning, i added lobster pasta, and since i reckoned the reason miky’s risotto was so very tasty was mostly because of the stock & i used prawn shells & heads for the stock, i added lobster bisque which made use of the same stock plus the lobster shells. i had wanted to do a pesto pasta like what we had at fresco in duomo, milan which was very good too, but it was easier to do squidink.

i wanted also to recreate the grilled octopus tentacles (alle darsene at bellagio, miky at monterosso & at manarola) but i could not find any octopus in singapore, the only ones at meidi-ya liang court were the sashimi variety selling at astronomical price.

a popular appetiser in lake como (alle darsene at bellagio, al darsena at tremezzo & miky at monterosso) was 5 or 7 different preparation of fish. i couldn’t do that but i could play with different preparation of seafood.

both the lobster bisque & risotto already included lots of vegetables, so the easiest way was to round up with rockets & mesclun salad to accompany teriyaki cod & pan-seared scallops & bring balance to the seafood tapas. 🙂

teriyaki cod

#1 teriyaki cod

pan seared hokkaido scallops

#2 pan seared hokkaido scallops

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rockets + mesclun salad

squid ala plancha

#3 squid ala plancha

pan seared teriyaki cod, hokkaido scallops, mesclun salad

pan seared teriyaki cod, hokkaido scallops, mesclun salad

pan seared teriyaki cod, squid, hokkaido scallops, mesclun salad

pan seared teriyaki cod, squid, hokkaido scallops, mesclun salad

steamed oysters

#4 steamed oysters

we started with a seafood tapas medley.

#1 teriyaki cod & #2 pan-seared scallop were accompanied with a rockets + mesclun salad. my friends loved the teriyaki cod (marinated 3 day with self-made teriyaki sauce, well infused & very flavourful).

#3 squid ala plancha (teppanyaki) came about as i could not get octopus. as squid cooked very fast & curled every time, i did not use the crockpot or sous vide method. to create flavours i used the same sichuan slight spicy sauce i used for 蒜泥白肉 and marinated 2days. taste was good.

#4 the steamed oysters were a crowd favourite. i just added 2 teaspoon light soy sauce & 2 tablespoon olive oil, some sliced ginger & chilli padi to 9 large oysters of the IQF (individual quick frozen) variety from sheng shiong which i bought for a very inexpensive S$11.95 for 1 kg. i do good orh luah (oyster omelette) with them too. 🙂

the key was the timing. i did 1.5minutes steaming & left it for another 1 minute or so poaching with fire off. the result was a delectable, plump, tasty oyster. 🙂

cured salmon

#5 cured salmon

#5 the cured salmon was another very simple new dish, following chef john of foodwishes.com recipe. i bought a very fresh salmon fillet from sheng shiong, cut like sashimi as in the video, then cured in salt & sugar but for a much longer time like 3-4hrs. the salmon was very tasty, looked great & had firmer texture than sashimi. this was great stand-in dish. i had wanted to do a razor clam ala plancha but there were no razor clams at sheng shiong that morning.

2 live lobsters from sheng shiong

2 live lobsters from sheng shiong

lobster bisque

#6 lobster bisque

lobster angel hair pasta

#7 lobster angel hair pasta

#6 lobster bisque was the another crowd favourite. everyone found it to be very intense & flavourful & smooth, like XO. indeed i had added otard. 🙂 the key to a good shellfish bisque is (1) the stock made from prawn heads & shells with the lobster heads & shells added later (2) a good vegetable base (chopped leek, celery, onions, carrots) to combine the vege sweetness with shellfish sweetness & to give the bisque “body” when blended smooth with hand blender, then adding some heavy cream & brandy ( i used otard).

#7 lobster pasta was a popular dish at restuarant miky monterosso. i did not take it during the recent trip as we already ordered the lobster platter. I bought 2 live lobsters from sheng shiong, grilled the lobsters on very hot pan & flamed with otard, then scooped out the meat & tomalley (the creamy lobster liver & pancreas in the head), and throw the heads & shells into the prawn stock for the lobster bisque & also the stock of the seafood risotto. when tossing the angel hair pasta for serving i scooped back the tomalley to the lobster heads.

Andy's "Monterosso Miky" seafood risotto

#8 Andy’s “Monterosso Miky” seafood risotto

Andy's "Monterosso Miky" seafood risotto

#8 Andy’s “Monterosso Miky” seafood risotto

Andy's "Monterosso Miky" seafood risotto

#8 Andy’s “Monterosso Miky” seafood risotto

#8 i was quite proud of my “Andy’s “Monterosso Miky” seafood risotto“. 🙂 while miky’s risotto has no peers & i was not able to do the flamed pasta which was very good too, my risotto was very tasty & flavourful, infused with sweetness from the prawn stock & also the same vegetable base as the lobster bisque. 🙂

squidink spaghetti

#9 squidink spaghetti

#9 squid ink spaghetti was another late replacement. it was quite good, tasty, just a touch more salty.

i thought of doing a pesto pasta at first. pesto is a good vegetarian pasta, though you can also add prawns & chicken. the vegetables (grilled sliced egg plants, mushrooms, zucchini, tomatoes etc) actually required more effort. squid ink was a bit easier to do. it was basically alio olio method with white wine & squid ink.

tofu cheese cake

#10 tofu cheese cake

#10 tofu cheese cake was a popular dessert as i only lately discovered. the lime juice & yogurt provided the very mild sour taste, enhanced by the mild sweetness, and a very smooth & light cream cheese & tofu texture. an excellent ending. 2 friends brought very nice rambutans & also the usual strawberries. 🙂

a friend took the very nice photos. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy Orh Luah

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Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

continuing on my quest for the starchy orh luah (蚝烙), i bought sweet potato flour from sheng shiong after my passable first attempt on orh jian (蚝煎) – crispy oyster egg.

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

Oyster Omelette (蚝烙) Starchy OrhLuah

this time i tried a smaller portion, so i used only 1 heap tablespoon sweet potato flour & mixed about 30ml water, adding 1 teaspoon fish sauce & some white pepper(& i would add some chopped spring onions if i have). i used only 1 egg, beating well & adding 1/2 teaspoon fish sauce & some pepper.

i added 3 tablespoon oil & make sure the pan is totally greased, then i spread the  sweet potato flour mixture over the pan on low fire. the difference c/w cornflour is that you see the familiar light transparent batter (whereas cornflour batter is opaque). somehow just the familiar look made it feel delicious. haha. 🙂

i then added the egg & 1 tablespoon of chilli paste & spread with the egg. then i turned fire to high to crisp the egg starch mixture, used the spatula to break up into smaller pieces & pushed to 1 side while i added the oysters. i cooked the oysters for (say) 2minutes making sure it was cooked but not overcooked (it would shrink & become tougher if overcooked).

i would probably need to tweak a bit & do proper garnishing with coriander, but this preparation was nearly there in producing a good oyster omelette, certainly it tasted better than the average hawker stalls. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

 

蒜泥白肉 Spicy Garlic Pork

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＃5 蒜泥白肉

蒜泥白肉

蒜泥白肉, a spicy garlic pork, is a common sichuan dish which i like but don’t take often.

it was 1 of the dishes i explored when planning a “fine” chinese menu for 11pax RI friends on 5.5.2014. 🙂

spicy garlic pork 蒜泥白肉

spicy garlic pork 蒜泥白肉

i also tried drunken chicken. it was ok but several friends though my chicken rice chicken白斩鸡(a much easier preparation) was better. i tried ter kar tan (teochew pig trotter jelly) but so far not very successful. the other which i have not yet try out is 镇江肴肉, a cured pig trotter terrine.

spicy garlic pork 蒜泥白肉

spicy garlic pork 蒜泥白肉

i already produced a very tender belly pork by brining in sugar & salt & then using the crockpot method – place the belly pork in a crockpot & add enough brine to cover completely, turn on crockpot to low & cook for about 4hrs (OR use a meat thermometer set at 76degC & off the crockpot when alarm sounds).

i felt that the key to a good 蒜泥白肉 is a good sauce. so i googled & picked what i thought would be a good sauce recipe for 蒜泥白肉.

#5 蒜泥白肉 sichuan spicy garlic pork belly

蒜泥白肉 sichuan spicy garlic pork belly

i added 1/3 cup light soy sauce (80ml), 2 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 cm sliced ginger, 1 cinnamon bark, 1 clove, 2 anise seeds, 1 teaspoon cumin to 1/2 cup stock (chicken or from the pork) to a pan on low fire. i then added 4 cloves chopped garlic, 2 chopped shallots & 2 tablespoon sichuan spicy chilli oil. i heat it for until fragrant (5mins or more). i checked the taste. it should be very mildly sweet, just slight spicy & quite fragrant/flavourful. sliced the belly pork thinly, lay out on a dish with sliced zucchini, & drizzle the sauce over the pork. serve. 🙂

the result was in the above photos. when i brought out at the 27pax dinner for RI friends on 28.5.2014, everyone liked it. so was the case for the 11pax family birthday dinner on 14.6.2014. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

  • 400g belly pork
  • small zucchini (sliced)

sauce

  • 1/3 cup light soy sauce (80ml)
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 cm sliced ginger
  • 1 cinnamon bark
  • 1 clove
  • 2 anise seeds
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1/2 cup stock (chicken stock or from the pork)
  • 4 cloves chopped garlic
  • 2 chopped shallots
  • 2 tbsp sichuan spicy chilli oil

Directions:

  1. scald the belly pork in boiling water to remove scum. place in 600ml water (or enough to cover the pork fully) with 2 heap tbsp sugar & 1 heap tbsp salt & brine for 48hrs. placed the belly pork in a crockpot (cold) & add enough brine to cover completely, turn on crockpot to low for cook for about 4hrs (or use a meat thermometer set at 76degC & off the crockpot when alarm sounds).
  2. add 1/3 cup light soy sauce (80ml), 2 tbsp brown sugar, 1 cm sliced ginger, 1 cinnamon bark, 1 clove, 2 anise seeds, 1 teaspoon cumin to 1/2 cup stock (chicken or from the pork) to pan on low fire. add 4 cloves chopped garlic, 2 chopped shallots & 2 tbsp sichuan spicy chilli oil. heat until fragrant (5mins or more). check the taste. it should be very mildly sweet, just slight spicy & quite fragrant/flavourful.
  3. slice the belly pork thinly, lay out on a dish with sliced zucchini, & drizzle the sauce over the pork. serve.

 

Kaya (Coconut Jam)

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kaya toast

kaya toast

this truly a 10 minute kaya (coconut jam)! 🙂

i decided to try after watching this video by kitchen tigress. the same recipe was repeated in many other blogpost. i kind of got inspired after having a scrumptious lunch at a friend’s house on 30.5.2014 & brought home some of his homemade kaya to go with the kee chang he made for us. 🙂

kaya (coconut jam)

kaya (coconut jam)

kaya (coconut jam)

kaya (coconut jam)

kaya (coconut jam)

kaya (coconut jam)

it’s so easy to make, just like in the video. i just added 200ml coconut milk (i used packet ones), added 45g palm sugar (gula melaka), 3 flat tablespoon white sugar (it was supposed to be 45g white sugar but i preferred it less sweet) & 4 pandan leaves. i put under low heat & stirred till the sugar melt & the liquid just began to boil.

i beat 4 egg yolks & added 1/2 the liquid into the egg yolk & stirred continuously. then i added the mixture back to the remaining liquid & stirred & reduced over low heat (as in the video) till i got the right viscosity & texture. it really tasted good. i think much better than kaya you get in the stalls. 🙂

i wonder what you can do with kaya apart from kaya toast & recently i discovered kee chang. perhaps i will try it with cheese! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

盐水鸭 Dry Brined Spice Salt Marinade Duck

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#4 盐水鸭 spicy dry brined duck

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭 (thigh)

i started exploring 盐水鸭 as even though my teochew braised duck was pretty ok, especially for large group buffets, i was looking for a “finer” chinese preparation for sit-down dinners. also often if i do my sous vide crispy skin canard a l’orange, i only used the breast & was left with the thighs. i also tried tea smoked duck couple of times. it was ok but the preparation was a bit elaborate & also the method i used with only 15minutes of tea-smoking offered more fragrance aroma when serving than was actually infused in the duck.

盐水鸭 spicy duck – 6.2.2015

盐水鸭 spicy duck – 6.2.2015

i googled & found 1 recipe here 🙂 = http://home.meishichina.com/recipe-33399.html

after couple of tries, i quite perfected it (the above 2 photos) & served this beautiful dish at the 22pax RI friends get-together on 6.2.2015.^^

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭 (thigh)

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭 (breast)

dry salt spice brined duck

dry salt spice brined duck 盐水鸭 (thigh)

the preparation was really quite easy, and much rest with the dry brining marinade.

i added table salt to a non-stick pan, then added sugar, spicy sichuan chilli sauce, and cinnamon bark, anise seeds, clove, sliced ginger, bay leaves & some fennel, and fried over low fire until fragrant, and set aside.

i cut 1/2 duck & exfoliate with salt & dried. then i used a tablespoon to apply the dry brine rub all over the duck, on the skin & on the inside. i then wrapped it in cellophane & left it in the chiller for 48hrs.

when ready to cook, i took out the marinated duck let it rest to room temperature then added to boiling water with 1 teaspoon salt. i let the duck simmered for 15minutes, off fire & poached in the hot water for another 30minutes. the poaching produced a gentler more tender texture & the dry brining produced a very nice flavourful duck.

i tried these twice for my RI friends on 5.5.2014 (only duck thigh) & for my brother & sister birthday on 14.6.2014 (1/2 duck include thigh & breast). i found that (surprisingly) it was better with thigh. i think the breast was thicker & the flavour was not infused enough. anyway it was ok result for me as i can keep the breast for the western sous vide preparation & the thigh for this 盐水鸭. 🙂

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 duck

dry brine marinade

  • 1 heap tbsp table salt
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 small cinnamon bark
  • 2 anise seeds
  • 1 clove
  • 1cm sliced ginger
  • 1.5 to 2 tbsp spicy sichuan chilli
  • 1 tsp fennel

Directions:

  1. add table salt to a non-stick pan, then added sugar, spicy sichuan chilli sauce, and cinnamon bark, anise seeds, clove, sliced ginger, bay leaves & some fennel, and fry over low fire until fragrant, and set aside.
  2. cut 1/2 duck & exfoliate with salt & dried. use a tablespoon to apply the dry brine marinade rub all over the duck, on the skin on on the inside. wrap it in cellophane & left it in the chiller for 48hrs.
  3. when ready to cook, take out marinated duck let it rest to room temperature then add to boiling water with 1 teaspoon salt. let the duck simmer for 15minutes, off fire & poach in the hot water for another 30minutes. the poaching produced a gentler more tender texture & the dry brining produced a very nice flavourful duck.

Squid-ink Seafood Spaghetti

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squid ink manila clams with squid spaghetti

squid ink manila clams with squid spaghetti

reserved the squid-ink pouch in the freezer when i was cooking a grilled large squid. there was also a defrosted squid in the chiller & couple prawns which needed to be used before the head turned black, so decided to cook squid-ink pasta. this my first attempt. 🙂

squid-ink seafood linguine

squid-ink seafood linguine-added 24.10.2014

i used the squid-ink from 3 squids, from the large one & 2 medium ones.

squid-ink linguine with clams & squid

squid-ink linguine with clams & squid – added 24.10.2014

squid ink manila clams with squid spaghetti

squid ink manila clams with squid spaghetti

squid-ink linguine with clams & squid

squid-ink linguine with clams & squid – added 24.10.2014

as usual i browned a whole bulb of garlic cloves in olive oil over low fire, and set aside. i seasoned the prawns & squid in 1 teaspoon fish sauce & white pepper. i added 2 teaspoon butter to the pan & turned to high fire till it just began to smoke, then i added the squid & prawns & cooked to about 90%. i removed the squid & prawns & added back the garlic olive oil & added 1 chopped chilli padi and the squid ink. then i added white wine & 1 teaspoon sugar & reduced.

meanwhile i boiled some spaghetti till just before specified time (just before al dente). i added back the squid & prawns & then the spaghetti, off the fire & tossed.

it was a really good squid-ink pasta, really tasty. i would say matching in taste the squid-ink pasta at al borgo. well almost la. haha! 🙂

c.h.e.f andy

Orh Nee with Pumpkin & Ginkgo Nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

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orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

decided to try making the popular teochew dessert orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥).

looked up some internet recipes, surprisingly turned out to be quite easy to do. 🙂

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

orh nee with pumpkin & ginkgo nuts (白果金瓜芋泥)

i bought a thai taro (yam) from sheng shiong (about 600g) & 1/2 a pumpkin (i used a 1/4 about 300g). i also had an unused packet of ginkgo nuts (200g) in the fridge.

ginkgo nut took a while. i added 3 heap tablespoon of brown sugar over the ginkgo nuts & melt the sugar over medium heat. i added some water & boiled the ginkgo nuts until the syrup reduced. then i repeated the process. took 15 to 20 minutes for ginkgo nuts to fully soften & be infused with the syrup.

i fried 2 shallots (sliced) in 4 tablespoon oil over low fire till brown and set aside.

i peeled & cut the yam in 1/2 & then 1 cm thickness. i diced a 1/4 pumpkin. then i placed both in a steamer & steamed for 20 minutes. i then mashed the yam & pumpkin (separately), pressing with the flat of the knife. it was quite easy to do. i added 1 tablespoon brown sugar to the pumpkin & 2 tablespoon to the yam. i then heat the yam over low fire in the non stick pan & added the onion oil, and checked for taste. i added another 2 tablespoon oil & some water, then mixed in the ginkgo nuts & topped off with the pumpkin.

the orh nee was quite good in colour, texture & taste. i would say better than the average ones in restaurants, some quite bland & tasteless.

c.h.e.f andy

Ingredients:

  • 1 thai yam (600g)
  • 1/4 pumpkin (300g)
  • 1 packet ginkgo nuts (200g)
  • 2 shallots (sliced)
  • 6 tbsp oil
  • 6tbsp brown sugar
  • 1 cup water

Directions:

  1. add 3 heap tbsp brown sugar to ginkgo nuts & melt the sugar over medium heat in a non-stick pan. add some water & boil ginkgo nuts till syrupy. repeat the process adding water, take about 15 to 20 minutes for ginkgo nuts to fully soften & be infused with syrup.
  2. fry 2 shallots (sliced) in 4 tbsp oil over low fire till brown and set aside.
  3. peel & cut the yam in 1/2 & then 1 cm thickness. peel & dice a 1/4 pumpkin. place both in a steamer & steam for 20 minutes. mash the yam & pumpkin (separately), pressing with the flat of the knife. add 1 tbsp brown sugar to pumpkin & 2 tablespoon to yam. heat the yam over low fire in non-stick pan & add onion oil, checking for taste. add another 2 tbsp oil & some water, mix in the ginkgo nuts & top off with the pumpkin.

Oyster Egg (蚝煎) – Orh Jian

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orh luah = oyster omelette

orh jian = oyster egg

had a very nice orh jian (蚝煎) – crispy oyster egg – at beng thin hoon kee on 1.6.2014. 🙂

IQF (individual quick freeze) plump oysters from China

IQF (individual quick freeze) plump oysters from China

i enjoyed it so much i decided to have a go at it myself. i bought a 1kg packet of huge frozen oysters from sheng shiong for S$11.50. these were IQF=individual quick freeze, so very easy to just take out a few & put the remaining in freezer w/o defrosting them. i took out 12 plump oysters.

orh luah = oyster omelette

orh jian = oyster egg

beng thin's version orh jian = crispy oyster egg

beng thin’s version orh jian = crispy oyster egg

i saw a good internet video a hawker making crispy oyster omelette & also look at some recipes.

i mixed 3 heap tablespoon cornflour in a mixing bowl & added 1/3cup tap water for the batter, 1 teaspoon fish sauce & some pepper. i beat 2 eggs with chopped spring onions, 1 teaspoon fish sauce & some pepper.

i added 4 tablespoon oil to a non-stick pan on high fire, then drizzle the batter on the hot pan to form the base. i then added the egg on the batter, slightly spilling over the edges. i then pushed the egg batter aside (like in the video) & added in the oysters, making sure the oysters are not overcooked (& still plump & not shrunk). then i covered the oysters with the egg batter & flipped it on a serving plate. voila!

it was pretty ok for the first attempt. the egg batter was crispy. c/w beng thin’s version orh jian (crispy oyster egg) in above photo was like paper thin crisp.

i will probably try out sweet potato flour ( in place of cornflour ) OR a mix to see if i can get the more sticky starchy batter texture orh luah (蚝烙) that i like. & get some coriander to garnish. 🙂

c.h.e.f andy