Coffee Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons instant coffee powder
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the shortening, sugar and coffee. Beat in the egg, flour, vanilla and chopped nuts. Mix until well blended. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets
3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are golden. Let cool on wire racks.

Creamy Cajun Chicken Pasta

Ingredients:

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
• 4 ounces linguine, cooked al dente
• 2 teaspoons cajun seasoning
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 thinly sliced green onion
• 1 -2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons chopped sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl and toss to coat.
2. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté chicken in butter or margarine until chicken is tender, about 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Reduce heat add green onion, heavy cream, tomatoes, basil, salt, garlic powder, black pepper and heat through.
4. Pour over hot linguine and toss with Parmesan cheese

Prep Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 25 mins

Mother’s Recipe Fried Idlis

Ingredients :
1 cup semolina(sooji),
1/2 cup curd,1 tsp eno powder,
1 onion finely chopped,
1 capsicum finely chopped,
1 grated carrot,
1/2 cup grated cabbage,
2-3 green chillies,
curry leaves,
tomato ketchup,
mustard seeds,
black pepper and salt to taste.

Method:
1.Take a bowl and add semolina,curd,eno and salt.Add some water.Make a smooth atter
2.Rest a batter for sometime.Now take an idli stand and apply some oil on it
3.Now pour the batter in the stand and steam it in the pressure cooker for 15-20 mins.
4.Cool the idlis and then cut them into 2 halves.
5.Take a wok.Add some oil in it.
6.Then add mustard seeds and curry leaves.
7.Now add all the vegetables into it and stir for 4-5 mins.
8.Add salt and black pepper.Then add idlis into it.
9.Add tomato ketchup and stir for 2-3 mins.
10. Serve the fried idlis with coriander chutney.

Kentucky Fried Chicken Recipe

FOR this Kentucky fried chicken recipe, you can use lard, crisco (shortening), or one of the vegetable oils. You can also add butter, if you choose, skimming off any foam that rises to the top while heating the oil. You can toss in chunks of ham or bacon to add flavor. Crucial are the skillet or pan, and the temperature of the oil. On my first try the oil was too hot; the result was burned, undercooked chicken. Oil that is not hot enough will not deliver crisp chicken.

IDEAL frying temperature is about 365 degrees F (185 C) - ascertained with a frying thermometer or by dropping a 2" square of bread in the hot oil - it should turn golden brown in about 60 seconds.

WHEN you have the right temperature, add the pieces slowly, one by one, and do not crowd them. Be patient and do two or more batches, if you must.

Ingredients

• 1 good chicken (Kosher or 'natural' chickens are usually best), cut into serving pieces, or use 8 to 10 leg pieces (drumsticks and thighs), trimmed of excess fat.

• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

OR - Fines Herbes mix:

• 1 tsp chopped tarragon
• 1 tsp chopped chervil
• 1 tsp chopped chives
• 1 tsp chopped parsley
• (or any combination of the above, plus whatever else you fancy)

Plus

• 1 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less to taste)
• 1 egg
• 1 cup flour
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Enough oil or lard to fill skillet to a depth of about 1/2" - lard, lard and butter combined or vegetable: Crisco shortening, corn, canola, peanut. Canola or corn oil imparts the least flavor, lard the most. Crisco shortening seems to result in the 'crispest' chicken. Canola is considered the healthiest.

Large heavy skillet or casserole with cover; large mixing bowl; tongs or a big fork for handling chicken pieces, frying thermometer (ideally).

Method
IN a bowl, mix chicken with salt, pepper, spices, garlic, chili, egg and 2 tablespoons water. When thoroughly combined, blend in flour, using your hands. Keep mixing until most of the flour is blended with other ingredients and chicken is coated (add more water or flour if mixture is too thin or too dry; it should be dry but not powdery and not too wet - it has to adhere to the chicken).

1. ADD enough fat (oil) to your skillet to come to a depth of about 1/2 inch and turn heat to medium. If you are using butter, skim any foam as it rises to the surface.
2. WHEN oil is hot (see introductory paragraphs) raise heat to high. Slowly add chicken pieces to skillet. Cover skillet, reduce heat to medium (more or less - oil should sizzle but not smoke) and cook for 7 minutes.
3. UNCOVER skillet, turn chicken and continue to cook, uncovered, for another 7 minutes.
4. TURN chicken again and cook for about 5 minutes more, turning as necessary to ensure that both sides are golden brown.
5. REMOVE chicken from skillet and drain on paper towels placed on newspaper (for additional absorption). Serve chicken immediately, or cold.

Asparagus Fried Wonton

Wonton is the delicious and unique Chinese Food taste very perfect with the compliment of asparagus .
From the chinese recipe asparagus used as ingredients for many type dishes . Here's a delicious Asparagus Wonton Recipe suitable for light breakfast or snack .


Ingredients :

Oil for deep frying
1 Envelope vegetable soup mix
1 cup Asparagus, finely chopped
1/4 cup Water chestnut, finely chopped
20 Won Ton wrappers (about 3" square)
note : Buy package at stores or see link " Wonton Wrappers Recipe " for home making
Soy sauce, (optional)


Cooking Directions:

Heat a saucepan till hot

Meanwhile, in medium bowl combine 1 envelope Instant Spring Vegetable Soup Mix, asparagus, and water chestnuts.

Place 2 teaspoonful of the mixture on the center of each Won Ton wrapper.
Moisten corners with water, fold wrappers in half to form a triangle, and press edges to seal.
Form Wonton by bringing together two opposite points and overlapping
Moisten overlapping points and press to seal well
(see link " Basic Wonton Filling " for some wonton forming ideas )

Fry in hot oil until golden brown; drainServe, with soy sauce ( if desired )

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Tuna Fish Tacos

Tuna Fish Tacos is one various Tacos recipe . Tacos is an original Mexican Food is a delicious aromatic food for whole family and guests . Always interesting serving this food recipes in any occasions . Fish is a healthy food ingredients in any type of dishes and surely testeful . Combine with the aromatic herbs this tacos becomes more full taste dish


Tuna Fish Tacos Recipe

Ingredients :

1/3 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped red onion
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon minced canned chipotle chilies*
1 8-ounce ahi tuna steak, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 taco shells


Cooking Direction :

Mix the sour cream, red onion, chopped cilantro, and the chipotle chilies in a small bowl.

Place tuna in another medium bowl, sprinkle with taco seasoning.

Heat oil in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat.
Add tuna; sauté to desired doneness ( about 3 minutes for medium. )
Reduce heat to medium-low.
Stir in sour cream mixture.
Cook just until heated through, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes (do not boil).

Heat taco shells in microwave 20 seconds.
Fill taco shells with tuna mixture.

note :
Chipotle chilies canned is a spicy tomato sauce, sometimes called adobo, are available at Latin American markets, specialty foods stores and some supermarkets

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Lobster And Crab Wonton Filling

Wonton is one type of Chinese Food which are familiar to some countries in America, Europe, or Asia. Wonton / Wontons is a bite-size small parcel made up of a paper-thin wheat-based sheet wrapped around a filling of minced meat with a variety of complementary ingredients.
Now days there are so many various fillings of wonton which creatively made or combine between one, two or even more than three types of ingredients .
Here's a special Lobster and Crab Wonton Filling Recipe which can be eaten as itis or can be used as ingredients for another type of dish Wonton Recipes .


Lobster And Crab Wonton Filling Recipe

Ingredients :

8 oz. lobster meat
8 oz. crab meat
1/3 cup onion, finely diced
1/3 cup celery, finely diced
1/3 cup carrot, finely diced
1 cup Napa cabbage, finely diced
2 tablespoonful soy sauce
2 tablespoonful cilantro, finely chopped
2 tablespoonful oyster sauce
1 tablespoonful fish sauce
1 teaspoonful cayenne pepper


Cooking Directions :
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and stir together.

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Tuna Fish Tacos

Tuna Fish Tacos is one various Tacos recipe . Tacos is an original Mexican Food is a delicious aromatic food for whole family and guests . Always interesting serving this food recipes in any occasions . Fish is a healthy food ingredients in any type of dishes and surely testeful . Combine with the aromatic herbs this tacos becomes more full taste dish


Tuna Fish Tacos Recipe

Ingredients :

1/3 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped red onion
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon minced canned chipotle chilies*
1 8-ounce ahi tuna steak, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
1 tablespoon taco seasoning mix
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 taco shells


Cooking Direction :

Mix the sour cream, red onion, chopped cilantro, and the chipotle chilies in a small bowl.

Place tuna in another medium bowl, sprinkle with taco seasoning.

Heat oil in heavy medium skillet over medium-high heat.
Add tuna; sauté to desired doneness ( about 3 minutes for medium. )
Reduce heat to medium-low.
Stir in sour cream mixture.
Cook just until heated through, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes (do not boil).

Heat taco shells in microwave 20 seconds.
Fill taco shells with tuna mixture.

note :
Chipotle chilies canned is a spicy tomato sauce, sometimes called adobo, are available at Latin American markets, specialty foods stores and some supermarkets

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Indonesian Chicken Satay

Satay is a common street food in some Asia countries, such as Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Satay is best grilled on a barbecue but can also be grilled under the broiler.
Satay recipe is basically a marinated meat which arranged into a bamboo skeewer and grilled on barbecue to cook . Satay can be using chicken meat, beef meat or lamb meat .
Here's an Indonesian Satay Recipe made from chicken, which easy recipe and quick prepare
lihat link " Resep Sate Ayam " (bhs Indonesia)



Indonesian Chicken Satay Recipe

Ingredients :

1 large skinless and boneless Chicken Breast, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 large Shallot, finely chopped
4 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
2 Fresh Chillis, seeded and finely chopped (or 1 tsp chili paste)
2 tablespoonful Fresh Ginger, finely chopped
1 tablespoonful Fresh Coriander, chopped
1 teaspoonful Sesame Oil,
2 teaspoonful Dark Soya Sauce (kecap manis)1 tablespoonful Fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup Coconut Milk
1/4 cup Water


Cooking Direction :

Put all ingredients together in a plastic bag and mix and coat the chicken well.
Put chicken in the fridge to marinate for two to six hours.

Soak bamboo skewers in warm water for at least 20 minutes before skewering the chicken cubes.
Arrange chicken into the bamboo skewers
Leave a bit of space between meat pieces to ensure even cooking.

Barbecue over medium-high temperature for 5 to 8 minutes, basting with the marinade and turning frequently
Serve with Indonesian Peanut Sauce for dipping

note :

Put fresh meat or chicken in the freezer for about 20 minutes before slicing or cutting, or if using frozen meat, cut or slice while it is still partially frozen and firm.


See another Best Chicken Recipe :

• Rosemary Baked Roasted Chicken
• Crispy Fried Chicken
• Oven Barbecue Chicken
• Maple Sauce Chicken Roasted

Lamb Fried Rice

A special fried rice recipe with the compliment of a spesific taste of lamb meat . It's simple in ingredients, quick prepare and sure an easy recipe of fried rice to make as a daily food recipe at home .

Lamb Fried Rice Recipe
lihat link " Resep Nasi Goreng Kambing "

Ingredients :

3 cups of rice
200 gr lamb stir-fry strips
3 small brown onion, sliced
2 garlic clove, sliced
1/2 onion
1 teaspoonful kecap manis (Soy sauce)
2 small red chilies,chopped (optional)
3 tablespoon oil
a pinch teaspoon all spice ground
a pinch Chinese five spice blend
salt and pepper to taste


Cooking Direction :

Heat a wok over high heat until hot.
Add 1 teaspoonful of oil and swirl to coat wok.
Add half the lamb. Stir-fry for 1 minute or until seared.

Transfer the lamb to a plate.
Repeat these step with oil and remaining lamb, set aside

Add remaining oil to wok.
Add onions, chili and garlic cook for 1 minute
Add all spice and five Chinese five spice, cook again for another 1-2 minutes till fragrant.
Add rice stir-fry for 5 to 10 minutes
Return lamb to wok, add kecap manis and season with salt and pepper.
Stir-fry for 2 minutes or until heated though.

Serve hot

Baechu Kimchi / Korean cabbage pickle

Kimchi or Korean Cabbage Pickle is a national Korean Food . Kimchi Recipe develop with many variations such as kaktugi, based on radish and containing no cabbage . And the other variants are Baechukimchi, Gotkimchi, Backimchi, Kkakdugi Kimchi (Daikon pickle), and so on
Want to know more about Kimchi . Including the many health Benefits of Kimchi see this link " Kimchi "


Baechu Kimchi Recipe / Korean cabbage pickle Recipe
( Makes about 2 quarts )

Ingredients :
1 head ( 2 1/2 to 3 pounds ) Chinese cabbage, outer leaves removed, cut into 1-inch squares
1/2 cup Kosher or sea salt
4-6 Scallions, finely chopped
2-4 cloves Garlic, minced
1 tablespoonful Ginger, minced
4-6 tablespoonful Korean chili flakes
1 tablespoonful Sugar


Cooking Direction :

Put the cabbage and salt to a large bowl and toss together well with clean hands.
Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for 2-5 hours.

Place the cabbage in a colander. Rinse out the bowl and then rinse the cabbage well with water to remove the excess salt
Squeeze out excess water and return cabbage to the bowl.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir together with a wooden spoon.
Place into a large clean glass or plastic crock, container or jar and tamp down to remove any air bubbles.

Cover with a lid and let set in a cool, dark place for 2-3 days.

Transfer to a new container and store refrigerated for up to two weeks

Low-Fat Cooking for Healthy Eating

Cooking for a family can be difficult, as you have to satisfy a range of different needs and tastes. How can you reduce the amount of fat in your daily diet? What does it mean to make healthy choices? If you frequently asking yourself above questions, then the recipes in this 101 Healthy Easy Food Recipes website will help to translate all the confusing advice into real food and well-balanced meals.

The art of cooking is by nature a very personal things. What I find intriguing about cooking isn't so much the cooking itself, but the science behind the cooking - the cooking styles that you can actually tweak to cater for individual tastes and needs, the ratio of the ingredients that do the magic to your finished dish, the heat control that ultimately gives the wow factor to the dish. The most important factor besides this "oomph" factor is you are liberal to add a "healthy" touch to your piece of culinary art! Try these easy, low-fat, low-carb and low calories recipes, you can be inundated with low-fat dishes without compromising on taste, and may your low-fat regime last!

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How To Make Homemade Char Siew Pau (steamed bun with Chinese barbecued pork filling)

Char Siew Pau (Chinese barbecued pork or ???) is one of the signature dishes prevalent in Chinese dim sum restaurants.The mound of Char Siew fits snugly into the soft and fluffy little steamed bun, and is often gone in a few gulps. It's a stomach filler, to help those needling hunger pangs early in the morning or before the next meal in the evening.

Video below shown the making process of Char Siew Pau by Mrs. Tan from Kepong featured in Star online. You can see how the dough is deftly kneaded with the heel of the palm, and then set aside to rest for a few minutes or until it is doubled in size, before cut into pieces of about 40g each. She then invert each pieces of dough before flattening it with a rolling pin to make a 3� flat round shape. Then place a heap teaspoon of Chinese barbecued pork filling in the middle, wrap and pleat the dough to seal. Enjoy!

Source

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Vegetables Gingko In Belachan Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Vegetables Gingko In Belachan

A twist to our traditional and contemporary ways of preparing kai lan (a.k.a Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale). Instead of having kai lan stir-fried with ginger and garlic, or boiled (or steamed) and served with oyster sauce, a little of local flavor and piquancy thrown in by introducing a bit of Malaysian shrimp paste (belachan) and chilli boh (blended chilli paste). This Malaysian Chinese home-cooked dish is speckled with tiny dices of red chilli peppers (cayenne peppers) and dried shrimps whilst Chinese cabbage (a.ka.a Napa cabbage) serves to mellow it all out. Sweet snow peas (or alternatively sugar snap peas) add some deletable crunch, vibrantly delicious flavor, wonderful texture and packed with a wealth of health-promoting nutrients. To round out the dish with more nutrition, fresh ginkgo nuts which is touted and well recognized for its postive effect on brain functioning, are added in.

Below is the how-to recipe for home-cooked vegetables gingko in belachan. This is a healthy vegan dish which is packed with a great nutritional values.

Ingredients :

1 packet of fresh gingko nuts (??????)

100g kai lan (a.k.a. Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale) (??)

50g Chinese cabbage (a.k.a. Napa cabbage), cut into pieces (???,??????)

50g sweet snow peas (or alternatively sugar snap peas) (??)

1 red chilli pepper (a.k.a cayenne pepper) (???), cut into pieces

Some dried shrimps (??), soaked, chopped

A bit of shrimp paste (locally known as belachan) (???), about 1cm

1/2 tbsp chilli boh (blended chilli paste but not sambal)

2 pips garlic

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp tapioca flour (??), mix with 1 tsp water

Seasoning :

1 tsp light soy sauce

A pinch of sugar

50ml water

Method :

1. Sweet snow peas better to be trimmed off the ends before cooking. Pinch off the stem and then pull the string down the full length of the pod. Repeat the procedure on the other side. If desired, you may leave the strings intact. Some have a calyx and that should be removed for aesthetic as well as practical reasons. A quick snap of the wrist with or without a paring knife will do the trick.

2. Heat up a pot of hot water, blanch all vegetables for a while. Remove for later use. Drain on a sieve to discard excessive water.

3. Heat up a wok (or skillet) with some oil, add in minced dried shrimps, stir fry until fragrant. Add in belachan, chilli boh and all seasonings, stir fry over low heat until fragrant and boiled.

4. Return vegetables, stir quickly over high heat, keep stirring while pouring tapioca flour mixture. Stir till gravy thickens. Serve with steamed white rice.

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Crispy Juicy Chicken Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Crispy Juicy Chicken?????

Too often, we extol the virtues of the posh restaurant even as we eventually give the thumbs up to our favourite local hawker's stalls or home-cooked meals, when we have to choose. Admittedly, it's less painful on our wallet as sometimes we can whip them right out of our own kitchen without breaking a sweat and savor a simpler but equally exquisite western fare. Dunk this succulent chicken cubes which is wrapped in crispy skin in the savory sauce before shovelling into your mouth, each bite is simply palatable.

This is the how-to home-cooked recipe for you to recreate this easy-to-prepare crispy chicken morsels at your own abode.

Ingredients :
1/2 chicken, deboned and cut into few large chunks
some tapioca flour

Marinade :
1 egg
Dash of sugar
Dash of salt
Some rice wine (???)

Seasoning :
1/2 tbsp sour plum sauce (???)
2 tsp light soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
Some sesame oil
1 tbsp Lea & Perrins sauce (?????)
1/2 tbsp chilli sauce
1/2 tbsp tomato sauce
3 tbsp water

Method :

1. Remove bone from chicken. Mix with marinade and marinate for 15 minutes.

2. To prepare gravy, heat up a wok (or skillet), add in all seasoning, cook till boiled, when the gravy reduced, dish up onto a plate for later use.

3. Heat up wok with oil again, coat chicken with corn flour and deep fry till crispy. Cut chicken into pieces and arrange on prepared gravy.

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Photography accessory : Star 8 Filter (Cross-Screen Filter)

Star 8 filter, a photography accessory? Yeah, you read it right, above title deviated from my usual line-up of topic on culinary. I interrupted my regular recipe-sharing and interspersed with bits and pieces of photography in between. For me, food writing and  photography should go in parallel, good photography skills is required to justify good food. I think this explain why the provocative term food porn has become particularly prevalent in food-related blogs, as both elements above boast a spectacular visual presentation of cooking or eating.

Well, before I digress further into food porn, I must admit I am a rookie at photography. As a self-confessed noob cook and budding photographer, I picked up some fundamental skills from my hubby and constantly made some progress on my photography learning curve. Photography accessory is not a necessity but sometimes it does contributes some intoxicating effects that exceeded what you are anticipating. At other time, I just like to unwind myself and experiment with some photography accessories apart from kitchen stuff.

Do you ever seen night scene photos with a very pleasing star burst pattern on the light source or bright objects? For example, night street scene with all the street lights emitting a star burst pattern. Well, my hubby bought a TianYa rotating star 8 point filter weeks ago and to experiment with the star burst effect, he waited for nightfall and captured some night scenes of our condominium garden.

Star burst effect by light source using a TianYa star 8 filter (cross-screen filter)

How is it done? Well, there're two options, stepping down the lens or using a special effect filter called cross-screen filter (a.k.a star filter).

Stepping the lens requires the lens aperture to be stepped down, for example using a smaller aperture, say f/16 or f/32. However, there's limitation to this approach. Common issue via stepping down is that most lens tend to step down too much and resulted in soft image (i.e. image not sharp). Also the number of star point depends on the number of aperture blade, a lens with 7 aperture blade will yield star with 14 point. This means that for a given lens, you're stuck with the number of star point.

A cross-screen filter, commonly known as a star filter, creates a "star" pattern, in which lines radiate outward from bright objects. The star pattern is generated by a very fine diffraction grating embedded in the filter. The number of stars varies by the construction of the filter, as does the number of points each star has. The naming of the filter is pretty straight forward, for example a star filter that produces 8 points star, is know as "Star 8 Filter". Most star filter also allows user to "rotate" the star orientation.

Thumbs up for Star filter from TianYa (well-known for making the another affordable Cokin P-Series compatible square filter). With an affordable price of only RM40, you can experiment with rotating star burst effect!

MY Photo Accessory Online Store

How To Make Tom Yum Soup With Shrimp and Fish

Remember tangy Thai Tom Yam (Tom Yum) fish, a clear, spicy and sour soup? Well, the lingering aftertaste was haunting me and my big cravings was kicking in early this morning - I still remember how's the creeping chilli hot awaken my lethargic appetite that day. Whilst it's still early to whip up a dish at the crack of dawn, I just scoured the video from YouTube hoping to find a good Tom Yum soup recipe to satiate my gluttonous mind, at least. And voila! I found this Tom Yum soup video with a nice and rejuvenating background song - "Right Here Waiting" by Bryan Adams (Written by : Richard Marx). Enjoy!

Ingredients :

Chicken stock or chicken powder
1 stalk lemongrass
4 kaffir lime leaves (sold fresh or frozen at Asian food stores)
12 medium or large raw shrimp, trim off shrimp head, rest intact
1 white meat fish (any type, e.g. black pomfret et cetera), cut across into 2 or 3 portions
3 tbsp of tom yam paste (or alternatively 1 tsp chilli paste with soy bean oil (???))
2 tbsp fish sauce
5 red or green bird's eye chillies (quantity adjusted to your preference), finely sliced
1 tomato
6 fresh shitake mushrooms, sliced thinly
1 lime, squeeze out the juice
Coriander leaves (cilantro), chopped, to be sprinkled on top of the soup
Spring onions (scallions), sliced finely, to be sprinkled on top of the soup
1 red chilli pepper (Cayenne chilli pepper), seeded and sliced (optional)
1 lime, cut into wedges, for serving (optional)

Method :




Source

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Penang Asam Laksa (Sour Fish-based Soup with Noodles) Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

As Penang asam laksa (spicy noodle soup from Peranakan culture, usually served with thick rice noodles) top my food craving list, I always scout for this recipe online and today I am ecstatic to find this Penang asam laksa video from YouTube which traces its origin back to trymasak.my. Since the recipe was written in Malay, I translated it into English for a wider reach.

There're two variants of laksa, namely curry laksa and asam laksa. Curry laksa (coconut-based curry soup with noodles) is more commonly known in Kuala Lumpur or Singapore whilst asam laksa (sour fish-based soup with noodles) is more popular in Penang. Between the two, I'd veer on the latter version which acquires the sour taste from tamarind (or asam in Malay) which right away aroused my taste buds bringing forth a subtle drool. Having said so, I'm going to feature this Penang asam laksa recipe from TryMasak here in no time.

Ingredients :

1 packet of dried laksa
500g mackerel (ikan kembung in Malay), poached and then flaked.
4 sprigs of polygonum leaves (a.k.a Vietnamese coriander, laksa leaf or daun kesum in Malay)
4 shallots, skin peeled off
1 ginger flower (bunga kantan in Malay), quartered (lengthwise)
4 slices of dried tamarind (asam jawa in Malay)
6 bird's eye chillies (cili padi in Malay)
1/2 palm sugar slice (to taste) (gula melaka in Malay)
1 tsp of fried shrimp paste (belachan goreng in Malay)
A pinch of salt (to taste)

Method :

1. Half-filled a stockpot with water. When it reaches rolling boil, pour in the dried laksa noodles (thick rice noodles) and boil until the laksa noodles soften. At this point, remove the laksa noodles and drain the dripping water on a metal sieve. Set aside. Alternatively, commercially available wet laksa can also be used, if you opt for this, then cut down your boiling time.

2. In a blender or food processor, blend shallots, bird's eye chillies, fried shrimp paste (belachan goreng) with some water added in until it reaches a homogenous paste. Then pour this mixture into a stockpot and top it up with water until the pot is half-filled. Heat up the pot and stir the soup well. Then add in polygonum leaves (a.k.a. laksa leaf), ginger flowers (which is cut into 4, lengthwise) and dried tamarind slices.

3. Now back to the blender or food processor. Add in the poached and flaked mackerel (with fishbone discarded), blend until fine. Then add this blended fish paste into the stockpot followed by palm sugar. Stir constantly until the mixture is homogenous and boil. Reduced the flames and let it boils for another 15 minutes. Add some salt to taste.

4. The laksa is now ready to serve. Place the laksa noodles in a bowl, topped with cucumber strips, some fresh greens, polygonum and some chopped bird's eye chillies. You can also add half of the hard-boiled egg for a more substantial noodle soup if you fancy. Then topped with thick sweet shrimp paste (also known as petis udang in Malay or ?? in Chinese), mint, pineapple slices and thinly sliced onion. Well, it really goes with the rhythm of your desire.

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Vietnam-style Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken (Har Jiong Gai) Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Vietnam-style Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken ("Har Jiong Gai") ???

Fried chicken goes global. From Korean-style garlic fried chicken, Japan-style toriniku tatsuta-age, Indonesian-style ayam penyet, Thai-style fried chicken to Vietnam-style "har jiong gai ???" (fried shrimp paste chicken), the crispy skin and moist white meat literally make the world go round.

I used to have belachan (stinky but luscious Malaysian shrimp paste) fried chicken in Super Tanker hawker centre situated in Penang Lip Sin garden and the acquired taste resembled this home-cooked Vietnam-style fried shrimp paste chicken, with a very distinctive pungent and briny shrimp paste flavor. The secret of this flavorful fried chicken relies heavily on the shrimp paste marinade, a brownish-grey-colored condiment made from fermented shrimps (scroll down to see shrimp paste photo). You have to let it marinates for minimum 2 hours and long enough to allow the mixture of strong salty taste of the shrimp paste, ginger juice, rose wine and sugar to seep into the chicken, giving it a distinctive aroma and flavor. The flour (tapioca flour and plain flour mixture in the ratio of 1:1) coating adds a light crispy crust to the exterior, providing a delightful crunch while you chomp on it in your mouth. This fried shrimp paste chicken ("har jiong gai") is simply leaving my hubby and daughter went nut for it, it's such a plate-sweeper!

This shrimp paste chicken can commercially be found in many Hong Kong-style restaurants in Singapore and Malaysia. I'm going to lay out Vietnam-style fried shrimp paste chicken ("har jiong gai" or ???????) recipe here. If the pictures above make you coveting and ravenous with hunger, why not try to lay your hand to make this Vietnam-style fried chicken in your own kitchen? It's an easy home-cooked recipe without require you to break a sweat.

Ingredients :
1/2 chicken, cleaned and chopped into bite-sized pieces
Enough oil for deep-frying
Calamansi limes, sliced tomato or sliced cucumber, for garnish

Chicken Marinade :
5cm length of ginger, grate and squeeze to get 1 1/2 tbsp ginger juice
2 tbsp Chinese rose wine (????)
1 1/2 tbsp Chinese shrimp paste (Cantonese pronounced as "har jiong", ??)
1 tbsp rice flour
1 tsp sugar

For Coating :
50g tapioca flour (???)
50g plain flour

Method :

1. Grate ginger and squeeze to get 1 1/2 tbsp ginger juice. In a large bowl, combine ginger juice with rose wine, shrimp paste, rice flour and sugar. Add chicken and mix well. Cover airtight with cling film wrap and let marinate, refrigerated for at least 2 hours and up to 6 hours, preferably overnight.

Vietnam-style Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken (Har Jiong Gai) : Ingredients and How-To Steps

2. Heat oil until it shimmers and a light haze forms. Sift both tapioca flour and plain flour together onto a plate, and dredge chicken pieces in flour mixture to coat lightly but thoroughly. Shake off excess flour.

3. Fry chicken a few pieces at a time until golden brown and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes per batch. Drain in a metal sieve. Drain briefly on kitchen paper towels and serve immediately, garnished with cucumber, tomato slices and cut limes.

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Ordinary Kitchen Helpers That Do Household Wonders

Kitchen confidential unveiled! I stumbled upon these kitchen tips from food & travel magazine and found them noteworthy. We might never thought of some ordinary kitchen regulars could boost such an extraordinary fix-it powers hidden inside. Have a good read!

Below are the some common products that can work wonders in your home, from polishing silverware to shining your shoes.

Lemon

Try this refreshing lemon trick to remove the eyesore of tough food stains on your light wood and plastic cutting boards. First, slice the lemon in half, squeeze and rub against the soiled surface. Let it stand for about 20 minutes and rinse. With this, you'll get a clean and citrusy-smelling board.

Baking Soda

With this highly versatile kitchen regular, you can polish your silverware to blinding shininess. Start the polishing regime by washing the items and then placing them on aluminium foil in the bottom of a large pot. Drop this baking soda solution of 1/4 cup baking soda, a few teaspoons of salt and 4 cups of boiling water, then cover for a few seconds. Wipe dry and be delighted with the shiny results.

Besides polishing silverware, who knew you could boost your dishwashing liquid with a few spoonful of baking soda, then see it cut through grease like a hot knife!

Vegetable Oil

Put your best foot forward by shining your leather pumps with vegetable oil. Begin by using a damp cloth to wipe away dirt. Thereafter apply a small amount of oil on your shoe with a soft cloth and gently rub to remove scuff marks.

Lint Roller

For those hard-to-reach corners in the kitchen, running a lint roller around those areas should bust the dust bunnies. Furthermore, with the sticky adhesive rounding them up indefinitely, you can be sure your kitchen passes the white-glove test.

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Steamed Ginger Paste Fish Recipe

Steamed Ginger Paste Fish

For those who adore ginger and seafood, here's another gingery treat for you when your big cravings kicks in, besides fried prawn with ginger sauce.  It doesn't matter if your gluttonous mind rules your belly or the other way round, as long as your taste buds being titillated, your spurts of cravings being satiated and you're inundated with intoxicating steamed fish treat at the end of your day! Make sure your fish slabs are uber fresh and steamed until its texture is soft but not mushy, then every spoonful you'll be delighted with meaty sweetness of the fish and pungency of the ginger, making it a blissful meal of the senses.

Here's the how-to recipe for you to steam ginger paste fish at home. Enjoy your home-cooked dish!

Ingredients :

2 thick slices fish fillet (any meaty fish)

Gravy :

80g finely chopped matured ginger

2 tbsp ginger marinade

Seasoning :

1 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tbsp sugar (or to taste)

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tbsp Shaoxing wine (???) (optional)

1 tbsp rose wine (????) (optional)

Garnish :

1 tbsp chopped spring onion

1 stalk coriander leaves, sectioned

1 tbsp shredded young ginger

1 tbsp shredded carrot

1 tbsp sesame oil

Method :

1. Combined gravy and seasoning ingredients in a small bowl, stir well.

2. Clean fish slices and pat completely dry, then place on a heatproof dish. Spread the combined mixture (in Method 1) over the fish slices. Steam over high heat for 12-15 minutes or until fish is just cooked through.

3. Add sesame oil to the steamed fish and garnish with chopped spring onion, coriander leaves, shredded ginger and carrot before serving. Serve hot with steamed rice.

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