Paan Mien

Suddenly this craving for paan mien (a poor man's food with everything thrown in) is spread out across the recipe blogs. Of course it made me hunger for it as well. Here is my own take on the dish as I substituted udon noodles instead of the normal "torn" dough pieces. It gives the dish a chewy bite that goes splendidly with the smooth strong aroma of the soup, which should be the highlight and VIP of the dish to begin with!

Yarr! Pirate Treasure!

I made some instant Jell-O fudge pudding and sliced up some bananas to form "coins". It is the perfect dessert for kids, potassium and calcium with less sugar than most other desserts. I propped some sticking up, but for even more fun, you could make it in a big communal bowl, burying the banana slices inside, and let your kids dig them out like real pirate treasure.

Long Yoke (Bak Kua)

THANKS TAZZ for re-creating and posting this delicious treat for all to enjoy.

Here is the pork mixture as described to be sticky/gluey. It kind of was. Since I could not find any pork mince that was fatty (I could not obtain any at Walmart and they only had the healthy lean pork in Publix) I added 1 tbsp of vegetable oil.

The anticipation builds as I wait for the outcome ... it smelled Heavenly!

After a few more minutes ... TADA! Perfect! The edges were slightly crispy and the center parts gooey and chewy ... woah delightful. I baked it over my cookie cooling rack too, since it had the square marks that is usually found on KL made bak kua. Plus it helped me press out the meat until it achieved the thinness that I wanted.

Char Kuey Teow

Adopted from Malaysianfood.net I found fresh rice noodles at Jin Long (on Bobby Jones Expressway) opposite Walmart. Yay. Still they came out hard and stuck together, so I had to presoak them in warm water but they became too soft afterwards. ARGH! I don't like prawns in my CKT, I don't like lap cheong (Chinese dried sausage) either ... yealar I was brought up on the delicate taste of just the sauce and vegetables alone. I couldn't find si ham (cockles) either so too bad.

With the dark soy sauce my mom sent me (Thank YOU!) the taste I achieved was almost akin to the kind of ckt you will find in KL. Then while I was happily chowing down (the hubby loves it too) the Baby Stewie woke up. So I was carrying him and took a piece of noodle and popped it into his mouth. He was chewing and chewing ... then I took another piece and before it even reached his mouth, he was leaning forward with his entire body and mouth open bigger than I have ever seen before!

This boy is MALAYSIAN guaranteed!

He passed the test, and chowed down on almost half my portion too. Of course I didn't give him the veges as he can't chew those yet, but the egg and noodles, wow ... he loved it so much. Darn the flash in this photo but look he's showing his pleasure at both being up past his bedtime AND having something new and delicious in his mouth.


He is saying "Thanks mum! And poh poh for the kicap pekat!"

Tea Egg (Cha Yue Tan)

I had packets of herbal (tea) egg pouches sent to me from Malaysia by my mom, and I finally gave them a try.

Of COURSE being me, I would actually kick them up a notch using my nose and tummy rumblings.

I added more dong kuai, pak kor, kei chi and some others. I forget now, but I also added dark soy sauce and some sugar. After boiling overnight, it achieved this result:

After two days it looked even darker and more beautiful like this:

It was so delicious! I think I ate over 6 eggs within two days (of course I tossed the yolk and ate just the whites) In order to start a new batch the next time and have it as good as the first, I conserved the liquid in a container in the fridge.

Thanks MUM! For both the packets of herbs and the slow cooker!

Teriyaki Pork Steak

Marinade:
2 tsp sesame seeds
3 tbsp mirin (cooking sake)
2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp sugar
1 tsp dried chili flakes

About 3-4 pork tenderloin fillets, bone-in is optional. The thinner, the less cooking time required and the thicker, the lower stove temperature is needed so you don't overcook it.

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Marinate pork for at least an hour prior to cooking.

Heat up a flat frying pan with about 1 tbsp of butter. Place pork steaks into butter and pan sear on medium to high (depending on thickness) until cooked. Please don't eat it medium rare, you want them to be fully cooked!

Next, remove pork from pan, and pour the rest of the liquid marinade into the pan, cook on high heat until everything bubbles. When it seems to thicken into a gravy, remove from fire.

Serve pork on hot white rice with a side of veggies, and place gravy on the side as a dip, or dribble over pork steaks and rice. It's delicious!

Budget Salad

First you might want to start off with a base, say of baby spinach or the green mix I found at Walmart for only $2.00, and this bag will fill several bowls of salad! A bag of celery, $1 (last you awhile too as you simply use two stalks per bowl of salad) grab a can or bag of frozen beets, $0.97 to $2, a bag of brocolli, caulliflower and baby carrots mix vegetables for also around $2.73, you can leave out any of these of course, I went to Publix and browsed their sandwhich/cheese aisle and found a rather small but sufficient container of marinated olives for only $1.63, two plump tomatoes run you about $1.74 and a bottle of dressing or not will leave you $2 poorer. Now this may seem like a lot at first, but all of these can be eaten over a stretch, especially if you store them in containers. It's healthy, fast and perfectly wonderful for a warm summer day!

Japanese Curry

This is what Japanese Curry roux looks like. Stock up on it because you can make this:

I used pieces of cut up beef chuck, cubed potatoes and carrot. So good with warm white rice. Just follow the instructions basically.

Cajun Baked Fish

Lasagna

One Up Steak Potato Combo

I've never had the ability to cook steaks really well, since I don't actually use my grill often. However this time I actually did a pan sear steak which was delicious. As you know I'm on a tight budget and we purchased a slab of chuck roast for US$7 and used the smaller pieces hanging on by fat and gristle to cube into kebabs which we had the other night. Then the entire middle slab which was leftover became tonight's steak. I sliced it in half because it was so thick, then placed it in a marinade sauce (below) within a ZipLoc bag and pounded it out lightly with my rolling pin. It caused the meat to spread and tenderize at the same time, proving thus, you can have a piece of steak for really cheap and have it come out delicious.

Marinade:
Few drops of Hickory Liquid Smoke
1/2 tsp garlic powder (unsalted!)
1/2 tsp onion powder (unsalted!)
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp dried parsley flakes
1/3 cup water

Marinade overnight for full effect. Heat up some butter or reduced chicken fat at high heat, then drop steaks in. Sprinkle kosher salt and some ground black pepper for seasoning. Sear until meat is halfway cooked (when redness turns pink) then flip and sear the other side for about 5 minutes or until well done, to taste.

Why this is One Up Steaks? Because of this, instead of just letting it go at that, I added a mushroom side dish that doubles as a topping for the steak which is wonderful, sweet and herby complementing the smoky steak flavor, as well as, the buttery potato.

Goods:
1 cup of sliced fresh mushrooms
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 cup red wine (Merlot in this case, get a wine that you would drink with)
Kosher salt

Cook 2 tbsp butter in a pan until melted, add the cup of mushrooms and sautee until slightly soft. Combine with the rosemary and sprinkle with kosher salt for flavoring. Add the wine and simmer for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Simple, no? ^_^ And YUM!

Perfect Blueberry Cupcakes

Sure, I call these the perfect blueberry cupcake. Why? My mother saw me making them and eating them, I almost purred with delight as they came out fluffy and light on top and moistly tantalizing on the bottom (the best part!) You can substitute blueberry for mashed bananas and chopped up pecans, or get chocolate cake mix and add swirls of caramel or unsweeteneed chocolate chips for the ultimate chocolate molten cupcake! The possibilities are endless, strawberries, chopped cherries ... jalapeno cupcakes?

For this, you will need:

A cupcake/muffin tray and liners
Large mixing bowl
Medium whisk

Ingredients:
1 box of Yellow Cake Mix (and all the ingredients it calls for on the box)
1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1. Prepare the cake mix according to the box instructions. Here I combined all the wet ingredients first, eggs the water (or substitute FULL FAT milk, don't skimp here, it makes the cake smell divine) and the butter (or use vegetable oil as a substitute for a healthier, lighter version tastes just the same!)

2. Add your cake mix to the wet ingredients and beat by hand, until all the larger lumps have dissolved. Smaller lumps are fine.

3. Thaw your frozen blueberries in the microwave (or beforehand), drain them and fold into the cake mix. Do not overmix as you want the yellow parts of the cake batter to show, and just have streaks of blue from the blueberries.

4. Scoop out into the prepared lined muffin tray segments up to 2/3rds full.

5. Bake at 350F until lightly browned on the top, they should look solid, pierce with a toothpick or skewer, if it comes out clean, they are ready to go. You want to watch out that they do not overbake! Remove from tray and let cool on a rack. Enjoy!

Liver & Onions

The good kind. My dad loves this dish so I decided for a kick why not make it? It was also because I saw some real good looking frozen beef livers he he ... However, you should get fresh ones for the ultimate taste. For people on a budget, frozen is the way to go.

Serves 2
3 Yellow Onions
4 calf livers
3 cups milk (whole milk works best, but you aren't going to drink it)
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp Worchestershire sauce
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
Vegetable oil

Secret Ingredient - Red wine (I used Merlot)

Flour dressing for livers (can also be used to fry fish and chicken!)
2 cups All purpose flour
2 tbsp garlic powder
2 tbsp onion powder
2 tsp paprika
1 tbsp Kosher salt
1 tbsp black pepper
1 tsbp oregano
1 tbsp basil

1. Before you start cooking, thaw the livers and then place in a large bowl and cover with milk. Soak for at least an hour or two to remove the bitterness from the liver. You do not have to wash it afterwards either!

2. Slice up the onions and separate into rings, toss with sugar and a pinch of salt. Heat pan to medium high and add 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Sautee until slightly transparent. At this point, you can add the red wine and cook for another 10 minutes or until onions are browned all over and softened. Remove from heat and transfer into a bowl.

3. Drain milk from liver and coat lightly with flour dressing. In the same onion pan, dribble some vegetable oil (about 2 tbsp) or butter and melt until hot. Reduce heat to medium and lay livers in like this.

4. This is what it looks like browned. Cook until the other side is browned as well. What you want to achieve is a pinkness in the middle when cut. You do NOT want to overcook livers ^_^

5. This is what you should strive for. Slightly more underdone is okay too, as long as it isn't dripping blood ha ha!

Customer enjoying my dish heheheheh!!! The darn flash on the camera made him shut his eyes, poor dear.

Gizzard Stir Fry

Serves 2
1 pack of chicken gizzards (hearts work too) cut up into bite sized pieces
6 whole baby bok choy
2 tbsp soy sauce
4 cloves of garlic (chopped)
Sesame oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Sautee garlic on medium heat in butter or vegetable oil until fragrant, then add the gizzards and soy sauce. Cover with lid and cook on medium for 5 minutes, until red parts are gone. Add bok choy and cook for another 2 minutes, drizzle on sesame oil to taste. Season with salt and pepper, toss and serve with warm white rice.

Kebobs

They were killer on the tastebuds! Especially since the succulent savory beef combined so well with the sweet pieces of vegetables.

You would need a variety of non-break-apartable vegetables, like what I used. You really want the vegetables to be the star of the show, especially for college students who don't get enough veggies in their diet! This works as well for parents of children who rarely eat veggies. Eating them off a stick would provide some fun! However for this, make the pieces smaller and more children bite size friendly.

Bell peppers, green yellow and red for variety and if you have a little more money to spend
Squash and zucchini
Yellow onions or red, depending on what you have
Eggplant, Chinese, Japanese or American it doesn't matter
Carrots if you would like
Artichokes are good too
Bamboo shoots if you like the taste
You can also put skewarable fruit like pear and apples ... mmm or pineapple!~

For the meat part you can either put lamb pieces or chicken cubes of breast and thigh, but I really much prefer beef. For beef I tend to pick up the packs that say "roast" because these are the parts of the beef that can take high heats for extended periods of time. Remember, you want the vegetables to cook through, and a meat that cooks fast and loses all its juices relatively early is not going to make a great kebab. Cut up the roast into cubes, and marinate in a mix of 2 tbsp Worchestershire sauce, 1 tsp olive oil, a pinch of pepper. A splash of hickory smoke (obtainable from the marinade section of your grocery store) adds a wonderful smoke taste but is optional.

I clean and cut the vegetables into half inch pieces, then toss them all with some olive oil and dried oregano (about 1 tsp per 4 skewers). Skewer your vegetables and meat, for households with children or an adult (like mine) who don't eat vegetables, place the meat in the middle areas of the skewer, making it difficult to just eat the meat and leave the vegetables. Trust me, working for the meat makes the food taste a whole lot better!

Set your oven to 360 deg. and place your skewers on a rack that exposes most of the kebabs to some heat. Then cook for 30 minutes depending on the size of your beef cubes. When your vegetables start to shrivel or blacken, it is about time to take it out. Enjoy.

Siu Mai

Actually, I used the same recipe for wonton to put into siumai, except the skin is different and there is actually more shrimp than pork which gives it a "bouncy" feel in the mouth. I also used har gau skins instead of the wonton skins.

Dough:
3/4 cup wheat starch
2 teaspoons tapioca starch
1/2 cup boiling water, or as needed

6 ounces raw shrimp
2 ounces ground pork
1 tablespoon oyster sauce (optional)
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped green onion (optional)
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil

Blend the dough until it becomes a little stiff, then roll out thinly. For this I used the pinch method and took just a little ball then rolled that out with a plastic wrap covered rolling pin to avoid sticking. I used oil on the rolling surface rather than starch, but you can use either really.

Mince up the shrimp and pork together, add the green onions if you'd like. Then roll out circular pieces of the dough as thinly as possible, place a dollop of the meat mixture into the dough and form a "cup". Then place in the steamer until cooked.

Some people sprinkle bits of cooked preserve duck egg on the top. Yech. Hehe ... I served it with the SriRacha chili sauce.

Chinese Again!

Baby Bok Choy (Easy!)

8 bunches of baby bok choy
2 tbsp sesame oil
Oyster sauce (best is Lee Kum Kee)
2 tbsp chopped garlic

Pour some corn oil to coat a frying pan, omit if using non-stick ware.

Throw in chopped garlic and fry until aromatic. Toss in the bok choy and turn down heat to medium. Cover and cook for about 3 minutes or until "blanched". Mix in sesame oil, drain and arrange on plate. Then drizzle oyster sauce on top. Serve with steamed long-grain rice.

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The next dish is something my mom used to cook for us, and I enjoyed it thoroughly not only because of the taste and texture but the experience while making it. You see, it is scallions that make this dish so delicious, but scallions also attract flies due to its sharp pungent smell. Sean said it smelled like rotten stuff, but I disagree. Everytime my mum would chop up the scallions, big bulbous flies would come into the house and I would hone my skills in fly swatting with a wet rag. I did it again tonight when we had a huge one zooming about, and as usual, stunned it dead on. Then it was sent packing to the trash bin.

I must note that scallions are not spring onions, they are usually found in Asian grocers and mildly difficult to locate in a majority of nationwide grocery stores. I think you can substitute it with chives but it would not taste the same. The pancake might look like a Japanese pizza (okonomiyaki) but I can assure you, it is not.

Scallion Pancakes

3 eggs (one egg per person)
20 stalks of scallions (less if you prefer less, more if you like it stronger, the pancake is supposed to be covered in the stuff and thick)
6 pieces raw shrimp, deveined and shelled (optional)
Dash of salt and pepper to taste

Grind or mash up the raw shrimp until it becomes a rough paste.

In a large mixing bowl, break the eggs and mix in the shrimp paste. Add the scallions last and mix together until well blended. It should look somewhat like green batter, and be slightly thicker than just plain beaten eggs.

Put some oil in a pan and heat at high. At this point I debate if I want to make mini pancakes or just a huge one. I used a 20 inch skillet tonight and made a large sized omelette by pouring everything in, cooking it at medium heat on the underside and covering it with a lid to cook the top. Then after the top of the pancake is solidified, I flipped the pancake to brown the other side. When fully cooked through, remove from heat and serve with plain long-grain rice.

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These two dishes are very simple and delicious to eat. Hope some of you give it a try! :) I know when I bit into the first piece of the pancake, my eyes almost misted up from the memories. This is just good comfort Chinese food!

Steak and Sushi

The other day I tried my hand at cooking prime rib. It came out uber tasty, except slightly more done than I was expecting. I like my meat medium rare to rare. This came out medium well. The au jus was delicious with Merlot, but a little too salty. We also had olive oil roasted asparagus and roast garlic (that I spread on toast!) My parents would have enjoyed this meal at home.

The next day we had fried rice for dinner. I think I basically just threw in whatever I had, hot dogs, spam but this time I put a Japanese flair to it by adding umeboshi (pickled plum) to enhance the flavor. It tasted better than I thought it would have.

Next up is what I made for dinner today ... again. So purdy! California maki with crab stick. avocado and tobikko (capelin roe), and the other is kampyo (marinated root) crab stick and sakura denbu (which gives it the gorgeous pink color!) Everyone needs to eat more neon colored foods!

Sushi Nigiri

The fish was not half bad, although I was quite angry at the cut. I guess getting sushi grade fish from the store was too much to hope for! I marinated them in vinegar and shoyu and they tasted just great! We had tuna and salmon, and after divvying up the pieces, I was actually full. The rice was really perfectly sticky and made really nice nigiri. They did not break apart or anything when picked up and dipped in soy sauce. I forgot about the tobikko though. Oh and this is the photo of the maki sushi from the potluck:

From left: Kappamaki (cucumber), futomaki two kinds - one with kani (imitation crab), kampyo and tamagoyaki (sweet egg roll) one with cucumber, sweet egg, kampyo and kamoi sakura denbu - and oshinko maki (pickled radish)

PohPoh's Fried Rice

PohPoh's Fried Rice (Poh Poh is grandma in Cantonese)
1 can of Spam/Luncheon meat, cut into 1 cm cubes (optional)
1 cup cooked day old rice (the long grained Jasmine or Basmati rice works, why day old? Because it's drier and soaks up more flavor while cooking and doesn't become mush in the pan)
1 stalk of fresh chives, chopped coarsely (optional)
4 pieces of garlic, chopped finely
1 egg (optional, some people don't like egg)
2 tbsp soy sauce
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Fry the Spam cubes in a pan until crispy, scoop out the cubes and lay them on a paper towel to soak up the extra oil. Don't toss the oil in the pan out!.
2. In a wok or large, deep frying pan, heat the Spam oil (and if the oil isn't enough, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil) at high heat and the chopped garlic. This part gets tricky as you have to do everything very fast or it overcooks!
3. When the garlic is browned (gives out an aroma) add the cooked rice and mess it all up with the garlic and oil, then push it aside in the pan to make a space for the egg.
4. Add the egg, and into it, the soy sauce, and some pepper. Scramble it until it's almost all cooked, then mix the rice into it and mess everything up together.
5. Toss in your Spam cubes at this point, and fry mix for another 3 minutes (you can also add more soy sauce here if you want it more salty!) until your rice is light and fluffy. Then last but not least, toss in your chopped chives and mix that up into the rice. Serve and enjoy~!

Notice that most ingredients I put as optional, this is because the rice, soy sauce and garlic are the essential basic ingredients to any fried rice dish. You can add cooked chicken in place of Spam, and omit the egg, or chives. However, this is my grandma's recipe and to follow it to a T ends up delicious :) Tell me if you try it!

Cocktail and Pork Katsudon

On The Menu

Appetizer ~*~*~ Seafood Mango Cocktail (Serves 5)

1/2 lbs of cooked, cleaned and de-tailed shrimp (cocktail shrimp may be substituted but I like the juicier tender large shrimp)
1 pack (about 1 lbs) of frozen or fresh cleaned squid or calamari
1 medium sized mango cut into cubes (use half for the salad, half for dressing)
3 pieces of fine chopped garlic
1 lemon or substitute lemon juice
S&P

For the dressing:
1 tbsp curry powder
2 tbsp dijon or honey mustard
1/2 cup mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
Half the mango, mashed

Slice calamari body into 1/2 inch pieces so they form rings when cooked. Heat pan on medium heat with 2 teaspoons vegetable oil or butter, add chopped garlic. Then when aroma is released, toss in your calamari pieces, stir fry until slightly cooked about 5 minutes, then toss the shrimp in as well. Fry for another 2 minutes while seasoning with some salt and a little pepper.

Remove from heat and ladle the contents into a dish while draining off excess liquid. Squeeze entire lemon over the seafood, place in the chopped mango and mix well. Place into refridgerator while you make the dressing. Serve very chilled.

Blend all the ingredients together, chill and layer dressing and seafood before serving. Top with eiter mint leaves, a sprinkle of tumeric or a wedge of lemon. Enjoy.

I first ran into this dish at the restaurant called Out Of Africa in PJ about 8 years ago. I have since then tried to reinvent the cocktail using my own measurements, ingredients, from taste and from memory! This is probably the best tasting result I have had and Sean loves it! We need cocktail glasses pronto.

Main Course ~*~*~ Pork Katsudon with Miso Soup

1/2 inch pork cutlets dipped in tempura batter and rolled in panko breadcrumbs, deep fried until tender. Serve with rice and instant miso soup. It is THAT simple. Heh.

If you try these let me know what you think! I know a few of you have emailed me for some recipes for food. Well, I will keep it up :) The dishes are 100% cooked from scratch in my own kitchen and I enjoy reinventing or reintroducing oldtime dishes with newer twists. "How can I make it better?" is a common thought in my mind when I cook, and I do it mostly by taste and smell.

Campbell's Chicken Casserole

3 pc chicken thighs
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 tsp each salt, pepper, dried oregano

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Mix salt, pepper and oregano with chicken pieces. Place the chicken in a deep dish for baking. Top with the cream of chicken soup, spread to smother chicken thighs. Cover entire dish with foil, and pierce some holes for "breathing". Bake at 375 F for 45 minutes or until done. Serve hot with rice, mashed potatoes, or any side. Rice is my preference only because I am Asian and the soup gravy goes lovely with it! Tada, yummy meal.

Macha-Mint Frappucino

1 peppermint tea bag
1 green tea bag
Vanilla ice cream
Sugar or honey (optional)
Milk
Ice
Blender that can crush ice

Infuse both tea bags with 8oz water. Add ice cream depending on how creamy you want it to be. Add 5 oz milk and several ice cubes. Add honey or sugar to taste. Blend until smooth. Top with a sprig of fresh mint leaves, serve and enjoy. To reduce the overpowering mint taste, infuse bags separately and mix mint tea to green tea by a 1:3 ratio. Lowering the mint taste will bring out the green tea, and make your frappucino taste like macha ice cream ... yum!

Chicken Curry

MALAYSIAN CHICKEN CURRY
(again!?! but Sean was so happy when I told him what I planned to cook tonight)

You need:
Onion / shallots (chopped fine)
Garlic (chopped fine)

Curry powder (my mom sent me Baba's Meat Curry Powder so I used that)
Chicken pieces (I usually use dark meat - drumsticks / thighs)
Potato (baking potato or red potato works)
Coconut milk (I used canned because it is more convenient and tastes the same anyway)
Butter / lard / oil
Salt and pepper

You want to rub some salt and curry powder all over the chicken pieces, and let sit in your fridge for about 30 minutes minimum.

Then while you wait, you can chop the onions and garlic, as well as cube up the potatoes.

Next, you drop the butter into a heated pot and add the onion-garlic mix. Fry that on medium heat until the aroma is released, and have them slightly browned.

That being done, this is where the potato cubes come into the game. Fry them for a few minutes, until they are coated in the base mixture too. Then add a bowl of water (we are talking chinese rice bowl size here, or equivalent - 1 cup water), cover and cook on medium heat until the potatoes soften slightly.

When potatoes are softened and cooked, lower the heat and then add your chicken pieces and another cup / bowl of water, so that it just slightly covers most of the contents. Here you might want to add more curry powder as well
(and start cooking your rice!)

Simmering it at medium low heat about 15-20 minutes it should look like this:

Or at least simmer until your chicken pieces are fully cooked. I do not recommend boiling on high heat because the chicken meat falls off the bones and disappears into the void! Ha ha

Top off on your rice and DONE! Oh and if you like it more spicy, just add some ground up chili paste, or dried chilis. I always forget :(