Noodle soup with fish balls

My MIL who spent her childhood in Singapore told me about her fondness for deep-fried fish balls so I went and bought some for her last weekend. Since my eyes are bigger than my stomach (gulp), I bought the biggest bag available that day. MIL seemed to enjoy it, the hubby wasn't so impressed (it tastes like deep-fried crab sticks, only a little more chewy, he complained)
Anyway I had so much fish balls that I need to use it up in as many ways as possible. This is something I made up and it actually turns out quite good so here it is.

Ingredients:
Fish balls (4-5)
egg noodle (cooked as per instruction on packet)
kai lan (or pak choi) (a small bunch - chopped)
2 chopped spring onions to garnish
good stock


Method:
Fry fish balls for 5-10 minutes until golden
Cook egg noodle in boiling water for 2-3 minutes, take care not to let it go mushy
Boil stock, place kai lan (or pak choi) into the boiling pot and turn heat down
Add cooked fish balls into the pot.
Put noodle in last and heat it all up for a few minutes.
Sprinkle with chopped spring onions and serve.

Enjoy!

P.S: the white bits on my photo are turnips. I love turnips in noodle soup so I just put turnips in the boiling stocks and let it cook before adding kai lan.

Dau Hu Mam Tom (Vietnamese Fried Tofu with Shrimp Paste Dipping Sauce)

I've been a bit busy recently, what with work, family and the new puppy. This is one of the recipes that I meant to post for ages but never got round to. Incredibly simple! The shrimp paste sauce is a bit pungent so if you're not used to it I suggest a dipping of soy sauce and chilli sauce mixed together.
I first had this dish when visiting Hanoi in 1997. There it was served with fresh thin rice noodles and herbs. Since Vietnamese herbs are hard to come by (or expensive to buy) here, I serve it with steamed rice.
Ingredients:
A block of tofu, cut into 2-inch cubes
rice flour
oil for frying (deep-frying is best but I shallowed fry mine with half an inch of oil in a pan)

Sauce: 1 lime, 1tsp sugar, 1tbsp shrimp paste (mam tom), 2 chopped your-ass-will-hate-you-for-it chillies (any small type chillies would do :)

Method:
Drain the tofu, I put the tofu in a colander with a heavy jar on top to drain off excess water.
Dip the pieces in rice flour to coat. I used to use all purpose flour but it seems like rice flour makes the tofu a bit crispier (Thanks Wandering Chopsticks
Deep-fry or fry til golden.

Sauce: squeeze the lime juice over shrimp paste, mix chopped chillies in and then sugar. Keep mixing until almost frothy, test taste and adjust. I think as long as you achieve a balance of sweet, sour, savoury and spicy then that's pretty it.


Enjoy!

Fried Rice with Hot Dog, Carrot and Kimchee

This is a cross between Fried rice with hot dogs and Fried rice with kimchee and spam
Both recipes are fromWandering Chopsticks

The hubby was very reluctant to eat hot dog with rice (It's just not right - he said). I, on the other hand, am not as fussy.

This dish is handy for Friday night when your fridge is likely to be empty (or when you're skint at the end of the month and you have to make do with what you have in the cupboard)

Ingredients:

Cooked rice (enough for 2 - sorry I hardly ever measure rice)
1 carrot - diced
1 onion - chopped
kimchee (as much as you like really)
8 4 hot dogs (or 8 mini dogs)- chopped into bite-size pieces (Am I being greedy here???)
1 egg

Method:
Heat 1tbsp oil, throw diced carrot and onion and hot dog pieces into the wok. Fry for a few minutes.
Season with a bit of salt and pepper.
Put the cooked rice in the wok and mix thoroughly for a few minutes, take care not to let it stick onto the bottom.
Make a well in the middle of the wok and crack an egg into it, then mix together with the rest of the ingredients in there for a few minutes.
Lastly, put kimchee in, mix together and serve hot.

Enjoy!