Diary of a novice cook

Chicken in gochujang sauce with rice paper or What I did with Wandering Chopsticks' rice paper

2008-08-05T14:15:00.000-07:00

A few months ago I won a prize in a draw and accordingly received two packets of banh trang (rice paper) from Wandering Chopsticks.
The first packet (tapioca rice paper) were gone within a week so I didn't have a chance to take any photos...
OK I admit that's a lie. Truth is, I haven't rolled rice paper for a wee while so my expertise has gone downhill. My practice rolls were either so fat that the fillings burst out half way or too thin that there is virtually no fillings at all. Besides, the hubby kept laughing at my attempt of making a decent roll to be photographed so I thought I'd rather wait until I make a photograph-able decent-ish roll.

This lunch time, whilst browsing for recipes, an idea came to my mind. I love Korean food and obviously Vietnamese food, why not combine the two and make a fusion.

So this is what I came up with.

Recipe for dakgalbi (chicken in gochujang sauce) was inspired by Sue from My Korean Kitchen's dakgalbi

Sue's recipe includes sesame leaves and rice cake, which can only be found in Korean shop so I came up with my own adapted version of dakgalbi

Sauce:
Gochujang - 2tbsp
Water - 2tbsp
Sugar - 1/2 tbsp
Chopped Garlic - 1 clove
Honey - 1tbsp
Soy sauce - 1tsp

Mix all ingredients together and leave aside

Ingredients (for 1)
Chicken breast - 1, sliced into thin strips
Chinese cooking wine - 1tbsp
Assorted veg - anything you fancy really, I use 1 courgette, 1 stick of celery, 1 carrot, all chopped into thin strips
Lettuce and mixed herbs (I use mint and coriander from the garden)

Method:
Marinate chicken in cooking wine, a pinch of salt and pepper and set aside for 15 minutes
Mix sauce with chicken.
Turn heat on medium high, pour 1tbsp olive oil into a pan, pour chicken and sauce in the pan, stir and put lid back on for 5 mins
Stir again after 5 minutes to make sure chicken pieces are not stuck to the bottom of the pan and put lid back on for another 5 mins.
Mix veg in the pan with a splash of water and stir fry until done (should take a couple more minutes max.)

Serve with hot rice or you can make it into cigar-shaped rolls like I do (a layer of lettuce and mixed herbs then chicken on top, roll it and dip in the sauce from the pan)

Maybe it's a case of 'grass is greener on the other side', I don't know, I still think W.C's banh trang taste much better than the ones I bought.
So thank you for your generosity ($11 postage doesn't go to waste I did promise you). Now that I can make a decent roll I shall attempt at some other rice paper dishes in the near future.
For now...good night and enjoy!

Noodle soup with fish balls

2008-07-31T10:02:00.000-07:00

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)

2008-07-06T03:41:00.000-07:00

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

2008-07-02T10:19:00.000-07:00

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!

pan fried lamb with cous cous

2008-06-13T10:09:00.000-07:00

The hubby's creation.
Recipe will be posted later...

Canh cai soong and canh trung ca chua (Vietnamese watercress soup and Tomato and Eggdrop soup)

2008-05-30T14:08:00.001-07:00

Canh cai soong (watercress soup with shitake mushroom and chopped bacon)

Canh trung ca chua (tomato and eggdrop soup)

I am not a big fan of canh (Vietnamese soup). I normally find it too watery to be poured over steamed rice. The hubby finds it too bland in general so I rarely make it. Admittedly though, when I'm too tired to cook I tend to crave for a bowl of steaming hot canh. Served on its own, it is a wonderfully light snack and a kind of pick-me-up that I need now and then.
To make a decent bowl of canh you need decent broth and decent broth, in my opinion, definitely needs some proper pork bones in it (Wandering Chopsticks has a good post on how to make broth for canh)
If you are lazy (like me), a simple broth can be made by frying some ginger and then adding ready made chicken/vegetable stock.

Below are the most basic canh you can conjure up in a matter of minutes.

Canh Cai Soong (Watercress Soup - my version)
My adopted granddad Muoi (my grandma's 10th brother) loved this soup when he was alive. He was a bachelor all his life so he spent quite a few years living with my family. He doted on me when I was little and obviously he was like a granddad to me. He's gone for quite a few years now but I still miss him dearly every time I make this soup.
Ingredients:(serves 1)
Watercress (100g)
Bacon (1 slice - cut into thin strips)
1 cup of chicken stock
3 chopped shiitake mushrooms

Method:
Fry bacon in a bit of oil until the meat has changed colour.
Pour hot stock and shiitake mushrooms in the pot
Let it boil for 5 minutes, taste and adjust if necessary.
Quickly blanch watercress in the boiling broth, turn the heat off
Serve

Canh trung ca chua (Tomato and eggdrop soup)
I make this soup fairly often as a student (since it costs next to nothing to make). It's guaranteed to be fool-proof :)

Ingredients (serves 1)
3 tomatoes, chopped into 8 chunks each
1 egg
chopped spring onion to garnish
chicken stock (1 and a half cup)

Method:
Fry tomatoes in a bit of oil (5 mins would do)
Pour hot stock into the pan and wait until it starts boiling
Turn the heat down 1 notch and crack the egg into the pan, stir it around, make sure you pierce the yolk as well because you don't want to end up eating a boiled egg yolk in your canh.
Garnish with a bit of spring onions and serve (take care when eating the tomatoes since they stay hot for quite a long time - FYI I burnt my tongue last time trying to eat it too fast D'oh)

Enjoy!

Roasted Trout with Spring Onion Oil

2008-05-30T13:37:00.000-07:00

Another wonderful recipe from Wandering Chopsticks
I would prefer to use catfish but unfortunately where I live one can only find catfish in China Town. So I substituted catfish with trout and it turned out just fine.
I didn't change anything else from W.C's recipe and it can be found here
The mo hanh (spring onion oil) makes this dish so worth-while. It feels sooo bad to see the chopped spring onions swimming in what seems like a sea of oil (I use nut oil) but boy, it tastes sooooo good.
I think I must have left the fish in the oven for a wee bit too long so I didn't have as much 'gravy' as W.C. It is still gorgeous though. I served it with some chilli sauce, sliced cucumber and rice.
Enjoy!

"Basic Vietnamese Marinade for Chicken or Pork"

2008-05-24T07:41:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Wandering Chopsticks' own recipe

My ingredients: (pretty much the same except for ginger and five spice)

Fish sauce

Soy sauce

White wine vinegar

Sugar

Salt and pepper

five spice

chopped ginger (about 1-2tsp)

My method:

Unlike W.C, I didn’t really wash the chicken pieces. Instead I rinsed them quickly with a bit of cooking wine before cooking.

I initially dumped into the pot 1tbsp fish sauce, 1tbsp soy sauce, 1tbsp white wine vinegar, 1tsp sugar, 1tsp chilli power, a pinch of salt and pepper, ½ inch chopped ginger and 1tsp five-spice powder.

Then I stirred all the ingredients together with the chicken and put the lid on for 10mins.

I also added 1tbsp of water to make it easier to stir. Then I put the lid back for another 10mins.

When the liquid started thickening, I test-tasted it and added another tbsp white wine vinegar, 1tsp of sugar (I like the sweet taste), ½ tbsp of soy sauce and around ¼ cup of water, mixed it all together and take the lid off.

Then I turned the heat down 1 notch and just wait until the meat is cooked and the sauce’s consistency is that of thick gravy.

I wasn’t so sure at first if the ginger would be too overpowering for this dish but it seemed to blend it splendidly with the rest of the ingredients.

The thick and well-flavoured sauce is indeed lovely to be spooned onto steamed rice. I particularly like this dish because it is so tasty and more importantly, so straight forward it is almost definitely fool-proof (which is ideal for the novice cook).

As you can see mine doesn't look as glossy as W.C's (see below) but it still tastes pretty good.

So there you go. Once again my thank-you goes to Wandering Chopsticks .

Enjoy :D

Kimchi...at last

2008-05-07T09:47:00.001-07:00

For the last year or so I have been desperately searching for a fool-proof kimchi making recipe. The first recipe I tried was from the first link that came up on Google search. There was no mention of the use of gochujang and also, it asked for kimchi sauce, which I honestly didn't really trust. Anyway, I tried and the result was horrendous, so bad that I nearly put the hubby off kimchi for life. He was so put off by my home-made kimchi that he has been buying kimchi for me from my favourite Korean store in town (the one that Park Ji Sung frequently visits :).
To cut the story short, last week I decided to try Wandering chopsticks' napa kimchi. I halved most of the ingredients since I was worried that it was going to be chucked away if it turns out to be another rotten batch (W.C it was my skills that I doubted, not your recipe). I did everything as instructed in the recipe and I swore to myself that I will give up making kimchi if it didn't work.
God must have felt sorry for the novice cook this time. The kimchi turns out to be more than beautiful. The juice is so yummy I can drink it straight. It is so nice that I have even managed to turn the hubby into a kimchi junkie (yipee).
Since I didn't change anything in the recipe, people who are interested can visit the link directly.
Special thanks to W.C :D

Chocolate Cake

2008-03-12T10:57:00.000-07:00

The hubby made this last week but I didn't have a chance to blog about it until now. The recipe is from a local organic food magazine.
Normally I am not too keen on things that are too chocolatey but this chocolate cake is exceptional. I particularly like the cocoa dusting on top. Simply gorgeous!
Serves 6
Ingredients:
125g self-raising flour
125g unrefined soft brown sugar
25g cocoa
125g plain chocolate
125g butter
2 eggs

For the icing:
200g plain chocolate
half a pot of single cream (roughly 150ml)
12g butter
100g icing sugar
cocoa power for dusting

Method:
Heat the oven to 160C
Line a square cake tin (we actually use the bread tin)
Mix the flour, sugar and cocoa together in a bowl. Melt the chocolate and butter together with 100ml water in a pan and then beat this along with the egss into the dry mixture.
Pour this into the cake tin and bake for 1hr or until a knife/screwer comes out clean. It may crack a little on top but we'll cover it up with icing.

To make the icing, melt chocolate with cream and butter until smooth and then cool in the fridge to a spreadable consistency, beat in enough icing sugar to make the icing stiff.
Slice the cake into 2 or 3 layers horizontally and spread some icing between each layer. Ice the outside of the cake in a thick even layer and smooth the icing down.

Dust with cocoa before serving with some pouring cream.
Enjoy.

Birthday cakes - pics only

2008-02-20T12:36:00.001-08:00

The hubby's cake

The niece's cake:

Almost too good to be eaten...

Dakdoritang - tried and tested

2008-01-29T09:56:00.000-08:00

It is supposed to look like this:
Instead mine looks like this:
(steaming hot, aye?)

As some of you may know, I am a huge fan of Korean food. When I came across this incredibly-easy-to-follow recipe, thanks to a blogger called paintroller, I decided to make dakdoritang for my tea last night.

The only differences are:-

I replaced potatoes with sweet potatoes since I was never keen on white potatoes

I also added shiitake mushroom as I am a mushroom addict

There were no spring onions in the house so I had to make do without it.

I served it with rice and beansprout salad (someone please remind me of the Korean name) and spinach (another type of banchan which name has escaped me)

The end result, taste-wise, was quite yummy. Look-wise, it’s not as pretty as it should have looked. However, since I am a sole diner, I wasn’t too bothered about the aesthetic aspect of the dish.

So, without much further ado, please find the much praised recipe below. You can find the proper post (with step by step photo instructions) on paintroller blog.

Note to self: Chinese soy sauce (even the light soy sauce) is naturally more salty than the Korean soy sauce. Go easy on it.

“Ingredients (for 4)

2 chickens
soy sauce
a lot of garlic
fresh ginger
carrots
potatoes
onions
sugar
black pepper
gochujang (red pepper paste)

1. Get two chickens at the market. Tell the chicken man that you're making dakdoritang and he'll cut it up approriately. Outside

Korea

I recommend buying chicken thighs, bone in and skin on, because that's where the flavor is.

2. Put the chicken in a pot full of water and bring it almost to a boil. Some schmaltz will appear on the top of the water.

3. Discard the water.

4. Your chicken should now look like this.

5. Add some soy sauce.

6. More soy sauce.

7. Add even more soy sauce. I reckon she poured in about 1/2 of a cup of soy sauce. At this point it's the only liquid in the pot so the chicken soaks it up.

8. Add red pepper powder. You'll notice that in the picture my mother-in-law is in fact adding red pepper paste. That is because she was not happy with the quality of the two kinds of red pepper paste currently in the house. I suggest that if you are making this outside

Korea

this wil cut down on expenses, in that you too can use red pepper paste twice instead of buying paste and powder. A heaping wooden spoonful will do. Incidentally, my mother-in-law has thrown her weight behind Haechandle brand gochujang (red pepper paste).

9. Add water. My mother-in-law said she added extra water because I like the sauce, but you can leave it up to taste, adding between 1/2 cup and a cup.

10. Add potatoes, cut roughly as for stew.

11. Add black pepper to taste.

11. Add sugar. I would guess about four tablespoons.

12. This much.

13. Stir and taste.

14. This is where you would normally add the red pepper paste. Again, Haechandle, and about a heaping wooden spoonful.

15. Chop and smash about 8 cloves of garlic.

16. Chop and smash one chunk of fresh peeled ginger. Ginger is the Korean's go-to odor eliminator, and I don't know if dakdoritang usually contains it, but, in an interesting side note, my mother-in-law hates chicken. She never ever eats it, since she was a child and she witnessed a particularly gruesome chicken beheading.

17. Add the garlic and ginger. By now the stew should look like this.

18. Add onions, cut large like the potatoes.

19. Add green onions, again cut roughly into one inch pieces.

20. I reminded my mother-in-law at the last minute that I like carrots, so she added half a carrot to appease me.

20. Cover and let it cook for about 10 minutes and it's good to go."

Enjoy!

Baked salmon with black pudding

2007-10-24T10:33:00.000-07:00

I know the idea of combining fish and black pudding sounds a bit bizarre but they actually compliment each other quite well.
A few weeks ago we went to a food festival in town where we was introduced to an interesting idea-black pudding with scallop. Initially I was wondering if the contrast in texture and taste between salty scallop and rich, fatty black pudding would be too much to take. So we decided to do a dish with fish and black pudding that weekend :D
Ingredients:
2 salmon steaks
breadcrumbs
soft cheese
black pudding
salt + pepper
asparagus: 1 bunch
babycorn: 100gr
lambs lettuce
olive oil + lemon + mixed herbs for dressing

Method:
Preheat oven 200C, season fish with salt and pepper
Fry skin side of salmon steaks for 1 minute then transfer onto a baking tray
Spread enough soft cheese (about half an inch thick) evenly on the two pieces of fish
Sprinkle with breadcrumbs
Bake until done (check after 25-30 mins depending on how thick the steaks are)
Meanwhile, saute asparagus and baby corn with a knob of butter and some herbs, season with salt and pepper
Also, fry 2 slices of black pudding until done

To serve, put a bit of lettuce in the middle of a plate, put the fish on top and then the black pudding slice on top of the fish. Veg can go on the side of the plate and last but not least, drizzle dressing to decorate.

If you're brave enough, try it out and let me know. Enjoy.

Coq-au-vin

2007-10-07T10:26:00.001-07:00

This recipe is from a book I picked up a while ago called"The gourmet's guide to French Cooking by Alsion Burt". If you're into French cooking then I highly recommend this book. Not only that it is authentic, it is also super duper easy to follow.
Saying that, all of the recipes we have sampled have been made by the hubby so my personal recommendation is actually based on the lovely end-results I have tasted so far :D
The recipe is pretty much similar to Wandering Chopsticks' coq-au-vin. The recipe will be posted probably tomorrow.
Enjoy :D

My own soon dubu - Spicy Korean tofu soup

2007-09-06T08:04:00.000-07:00

I finally got myself a tub of gochujang. The recipe for this spicy Korean tofu stew/soup is from The Budding Cook and the only change I made was that I used shittake mushrooms instead of enoki mushrooms (due to shittake mushrooms being twice as cheap as the other one).
So I have just added another recipe onto my quick meal recipes collection.Super easy to make and guarantee to be mouth-watering :D
Enjoy

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon sesame oil
A couple tablespoons of garlic
2 tablespoons Hot Pepper Paste (Gochujang)
2 tablespoons Hot Pepper Powder
1 bunch of enoki mushrooms
1 egg
about 7 oz of beef, chicken or veggie stock
1 package of tofu

Pour about 1 tablespoon of sesame oil into pot. Add garlic and sautee. Then drain the tofu and place into pot w/ 2 heaping tablespoons of hot pepper paste. Mix tofu up breaking it into bits and mixing w/ hot pepper paste. Add just enough beef stock to cover the tofu. Add 2 tablespoons of hot pepper powder for a more spicy flavor. Allow mixture to boil. Wash enoki mushrooms and cut off the ends. Add enoki mushrooms just at the end. Make sure to cover them in the stew. Then just before serving crack a egg into the mix. Serve over white rice.
(From The Budding Cook- thanks)

A merry weekend

2007-08-20T09:43:00.000-07:00

My apologies to the few readers who drop by frequently (if there are any). I have been up to my ears in my work since I started working full time, thus, I haven't had much time devoting to cooking. However, the hubby and I have been quite self-indulgent every weekend by making an effort to make a different dish every week and if only I had enough energy to write, I would have done so.
Last week, after my 6-day week we made Vietnamese spring rolls . Recipe is (once again) from Wandering Chopsticks, whose recipes have always turned out beautifully (thanks Wandering Chopsticks x)
Dessert, as can be seen, is a simple yet satisfying stem ginger sponge pudding .

The food was washed down with a ~~can~~ keg of German lager (I swear we didn't drink all of that -)
Overall, we had a good weekend and since we're going away pretty soon, there'll be more holiday food to come on this blog. Have a good day everyone. x

Creme Brulle

2007-06-29T11:15:00.000-07:00

Admittedly I can't do crème brulee :D, the hubby is extremely good at things like this when all I could do is to stare, admire and later on, enjoy :D
The recipe is from a Welsh restaurant. Since I didn't post the recipe on the last post and nobody requested it, I'm doing the same with this post. If recipe is requested then it'll be posted. Otherwise, enjoy what you cook in your kitchen and bye for now.

I think I'm turing Korean

2007-06-25T13:18:00.000-07:00

Foods over the weekend.
1. Tried and tested GALBI from Wandering Chopsticks
Guaranteed to be soft, slightly sweet and juicy. Once you've tried it, I'm sure you'll get addicted to it :D Thanks Wandering Chopsticks for the recipe :D
2. HODDEOK from My Korean Kitchen

These Korean pancakes are lovely treats and the brown sugar, cinnamon and crushed walnuts go together beautifully. Surely will do it again in the near future.
Recipes will be posted tomorrow. Have a good day.

Long time no food

2007-06-23T06:34:00.000-07:00

I haven't done much cooking recently due to my hectic work commitment and thus, I've been so lazy that instant noodles was the only thing I've had constantly for a whole week.
It's now the weekend and having just got back from my weekly shopping, I've decided to try out 2 recipes, one of which is GALBI from Wandering Chopsticks and the other one is HODDEOK from My korean kitchen.
I've never attempted to do galbi before so it'll be interesting to find out if marinating ribs in pear puree will make a significant difference. I made some hoddeok (sweet pancakes) last week for the hubby and they all disappeared before I could take any pictures so I guess I'll have to do another batch this weekend.
So for now, that's my meal planning for this weekend. Cooking is my passion even though I can't do elaborate food. But hey, how can one get better if one doesn't try?

Cá kho tộ (fish braised in caramel sauce)

2007-06-13T11:30:00.000-07:00

This is the first time I've tried a recipe which doesn't particularly state the amount of spices and seasoning. The recipe is from Ms Nguyen Dzoan Cam Van, the equivalence of Nigella Lawson of Britain :D.
Method:
-season fish (any type- I use cod, the best type is catfish)with salt+ pepper+ sugar and set aside
-heat up pan, add oil +1.5 tbsp sugar +fish sauce -> wailt till the fish sauce and sugar have dissolved and thickened, then add fish fillet + more fish sauce +sugar +1tbsp sesame oil
-add enough water to cover fish and cook on medium low heat for at least 30 minutes, then turn heat up to thicken sauce
- add spring onions + chopped chillies and more pepper
-serve with steamed rice
My maternal grandma (ba` ngoai) is the best cook when it comes to making ca kho to and other quintessential southern Vietnam dishes. :sigh: I miss her cooking so much...

Wonton soup

2007-06-11T12:37:00.000-07:00

Somehow my wonton soup never tastes as good as my mum's. When I was small, I remember seeing my dad eating wonton with left-over rice and ~~since I didn't have any egg noodles in the house~~ today I decided to try wonton soup with rice. Yuk! It's truly horrible. I haven't got a clue how my dad seemed to enjoy it immensely. Maybe he was just very hungry. Thank God I only tried it with a bit of soup and thus managed to save the rest of the wonton soup :D
Wandering Chopsticks has a nice post on wontons which is worth a look if anyone is interested in making wontons.
Enjoy.

Mango bread

2007-06-07T12:34:00.000-07:00

I've got to be the first one who try out wandering chopsticks mango bread recipe.
The only thing I would do differently next time is to add more sugar (I only put over 100g sugar for 1 loaf this time and it was no where near sweet enough for my sweet tooth)
The hubby's not keen on mango so I'm taking the loaf over to a friend's tomorrow. Mmm. Special thanks to Wandering Chopsticks :D

Easy-peasy pasta salad - Nicoise style

2007-06-07T06:14:00.000-07:00

I got the inspiration for this dish from a recipe for Salade Nicoise, which basically includes flaked tuna and boil eggs in the ingredients. However, as there was no tuna nor egg in the kitchen, I decided to make my own salad in the same style with different ingredients.
It's super duper easy and since it came from the novice cook's kitchen,it is fool-proof.
Ingredients:
round lettuce
chopped crab/seafood sticks
black olives
chopped tomatoes
cubed hard cheese (I use Cheddar cheese)
cooked and drained pasta (75g for each person) -seasoned with salt and pepper
sliced cucumber
handful of fresh parsley
Vinegairette dressing, made from 2 part white wine vinegar + 1 part of olive oil + 1tbsp honey + pinch of mixed herbs
Coleslaw (you can't see it in the picture because I only remembered to add it after the picture was taken)

Methods:
Wash the lettuce leaves and line them at the bottom of a bowl.
Top with the rest of the ingredients, mix well with vinegairette dressing and coleslaw.
EAT. (Yep, it's that easy)

Enjoy.

Suon nuong xa - Pork chops grilled with lemongrass

2007-06-06T07:47:00.000-07:00

Please ignore the colourful rice and the steamed mange tout. I was feeling a bit too adventurous at the time and only found out when I tasted it that sometimes things just don't go together. Admittedly this dish is much better served with white rice and lightly stir-fried veg e.g. pak choi saute with garlic.
The pork (1 chop) was marinated with:
1 stick of lemongrass -chopped
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp sugar
salt + pepper
1 tsp chilli paste
1 spring onion - chopped

Method:
-Crush lemongrass and chopped spring onion into a rough paste using a pestle and mortar. Add fish sauce, sugar, chilli paste, salt and pepper and marinate the chop in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
-Either grill or shallow fry until done.
Here is a close up picture:

I don't know why but the pork turned out to be very tender and full of flavour. The fragrant smell of lemon grass is simply irresistible. I'm thinking of doing another batch for our BBQ this saturday.
A very similar recipe can be found at Playing with my food
To my surprise, I found out that lemongrass is actually a herb, which can be used not only in cooking but also in drinking. The oil extracted from lemon grass can also be used in treating athlete's foot and back pain. More wonderful information about lemon grass can be found here
This is also my entry for this week's Weekend herb Blogging , which is sponsored by Kalyn from Kalyn's kitchen and hosted this week by Ulrike from Kuchelatein .

Back to basic: Bacon and Mushroom Pasta

2007-06-01T07:53:00.001-07:00

I feel like a student all over again. This is what I used to make at least 3 nights a week when I was a student. The plain and simple reason is because a) it is cheap and b) it is quick and most important of all, it is fool-proof.
Ingredients: (For 1)
75g pasta -cooked and drained
1-2 rashes of smoked bacon - chopped
1 onion- sliced thinly
5 button mushrooms - leave wholes or cut in halves
dry mixed herbs
grated Cheddar Cheese
Worcester 's sauce
chopped fresh parsley - reserve a few sprigs

Method:
1. Lightly fry the chopped bacon in a bit of olive oil until done. Set aside.
2. Heat a knob of butter +1tsp olive oil, stir in onion and mushrooms + 1tbsp water, season with salt + pepper + mixed herbs + chopped parsley, leave on medium heat for 5 minutes.
3. Stir in pasta and cooked bacon. Add a few splashes of Wostershire sauce.
4. Sprinkle grated Cheddar cheese, mix thoroughly.
5. Pour out on a plate, serve hot with a few sprigs of parsley for decoration.

So this is my entry for Presto Pasta Nights
. I know it's nothing fancy or elaborate but it is extremely handy if you're a student or if you are, like me, simply on a tight budget.
Enjoy.

Comfort

2007-05-30T12:18:00.000-07:00

...is re-creating a dish that reminds me so much of my childhood.
As the first child in the family, my parents spoilt me as a kid and I was indeed very picky in what I eat. My mum told me that sometimes it took her over an hour just to get me to eat a bowl of rice. I still remember myself trying to 'escape' all the time when it comes to dinner time and my mum would chase me down the street with a bowl of rice in her hand and almost every single time she would find me at the local pet shop. The pet shop owner was a kind Chinese man who would let me play with his fish while being spoon-fed. Sometimes he even gave us free goldfish to keep so I wouldn't run down to his shop during my dinner time (it didn't really work as I was more into his colourful tropical fish so I always ran down whenever I had the chance :D). Anyway, as picky as I was, one of the dishes that I never had the urge to run away from was PRAWNS IN CARAMEL SAUCE.
I have always loved sweet and savoury dishes. Things like thit kho tau (pork braised in caramel sauce) or thit kho tieu (peppery pork slices) always made my mouth water :D. Prawns in caramel sauce is no exception. The shallots were saute quickly with garlic and sugar to create a caramel coating, then prawns were tossed in and fish sauce was then added. I used sweet soy sauce as an alternative for caramel sauce since I couldn't be bothered making caramel sauce this time. The end result was a sweet yet savoury dish where shallots just melt in your mouth and the sauce is so thick that you can devour every little bit of it.
I guess nothing is better than food that reminds you of your childhood memories.
P.S: proper recipe will be posted if requested.

Kimchi Noodles

2007-05-25T11:54:00.001-07:00

I haven't had instant noodles for ages and this time I made an effort to 'dress up' my normally modest instant noodles. It's also incredibly easy to make and would make a perfect supper or a meal for one of those days when you just can't be bothered cooking.
Ingredients:
1 hard-boiled egg (sliced in half)
3 prawns
3 cherry tomatoes
3 shitake mushrooms
2 spring onions (finely chopped the green parts)
3 tbsp frozen pea
a handful of chopped white cabbage
napa cabbage kimchi (as much as you can take :D)
1 packet of kimchi flavour instant noodles

Method:
1. Boil water, add the seasoning from the noodle packet.
2. Add prawns and boil for 3 mins
3. Add mushrooms, peas and white cabbage and continue cooking for another 5 mins.
4. Add tomatoes and spring onions.
5. Add noodles and continue cooking for 3-4 mins
6. Top with boiled egg and kimchi
7. Devour :D

This dish somehow reminded me a lot of the time when I first left home for college. Admittedly instant noodles are not good for you but it's an integral part of being an Asian :D

Victoria sponge

2007-05-22T10:26:00.001-07:00

Ingredients
110g/4oz butter or margarine
110g/4oz caster sugar
2 medium eggs
110g/4oz self raising flour

Method
1. Heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. Line 2x18cm/7in cake tins with baking parchment
3. Use a hand mixer to cream the butter and the sugar together until pale.
4. Beat in the eggs.
5. Sift over the flour and fold in using a large metal spoon. The mixture should be of a dropping consistency - if it isn't, add a little milk.
6. Divide the mixture between the cake tins and gently spread out with a spatula.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
8. Allow to stand for 5 minutes before turning on to a wire rack to cool.
9. Sandwich the cakes together with jam, lemon curd or whipped cream and berries or just enjoy on its own.

TIP: use a pinch of baking powder as well to help the cake rise.
ENJOY

Ayam Masak Merah

2007-05-21T07:19:00.001-07:00

Special thanks to Melting Wok for the amazing Spicy honey chicken recipe
Minor alteration include:

1. I marinated the chicken with 2 tbsp of fish sauce + turmeric instead of salt and turmeric. I believe the fish sauce goes into the chicken better than salt (be careful though because fish sauce is quite salty itself)
2. I deep fried the chicken instead of pan frying it. It takes a bit more effort because we haven't got a deep fryer at home so we had to use the wok. However, the chicken was crispy and very very tasty.

Except for those above changes, everything else was done in the same way. The hubby was more than impressed with the dish. Admittedly I've got to give him credit for helping me a lot in doing this dish.

Here's the end result. The novice cook proudly presents:

Spicy Honey Chicken served with sweet cabbage in oyster sauce and a bit of kimchi

French cuisine

2007-05-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

First of all I'd like to thank my ~~personal chef~~ hubby for sharing with us this great idea. He's passionate about French cuisine and is capable of making various elaborate dishes that I can't help falling in love with. Maybe it was fate that a hopeless cook like myself ended up with a naturally talented cook like the hubby :D

The main course is called Co^te de porc Normande, which in my language, translates roughly as pork stew in cider and apple.

The potatoes accompanied the dish is called Pommes Duchess; which I believe, is basically mashed potatoes + 2 egg yolks + cream and then baked in the oven for 15 minutes.
This dish is similar, yet very different from chicken in cider. The sweet apples go perfectly well with pork and since the pork was cooked slowly in the oven, herbs and spices have more of a chance to incorporate into the meat.
Yum yum, I love the weekend when I can eat 'restaurant food' at home.
P.S: recipes will be posted if requested.

Blanketed Rice

2007-05-18T12:06:00.000-07:00

This bizarre dish is a cross between teczcape 's Tom Yum Rice ...

...and My Korean Kitchen's omelette rice

The delightful result looked like this:
a> WITHOUT THE OMELETTE

b> WITH THE OMELETTE

The only exceptions with the Tom Yum rice were that beans were replaced by cauliflowers, prawns were chopped instead and chopped shitake mushrooms and tomatoes were also included.
This dish is filling enough to make a substantial meal on its own. Thanks to teczcape and My Korean Kitchen for giving us such nice ideas.

My first (and probably last) attempt to do kimbap

2007-05-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

Now if someone out there is kind enough, I'd like to know what is the main difference between sushi and kimbap? I got this recipe off My Korean Kitchen and altered it a bit so that I didn't have to buy anything except for seaweed wraps. The seaweed wraps were on offer for 87p so I couldn't resist anyway :D.
I'd always thought that sushi/kimbap is pretty bland and I thought maybe if I tried to make it at home it would somehow taste better than the store-bought version. I was right in a way. The kimbap I made definitely had a fresher taste than the ones I used to buy from the supermarket. The only thing is, it is still tasteless. It's not like I don't like Korean food because I couldn't live without kimchi and gochujang. I guess I'm more into the hot and spicy side of Korean food.
Mmmm, even though I didn't like it in the end, at least I tried making it once.

Hainanese Steamed Chicken with Hainanese chilli ginger sauce

2007-05-15T06:18:00.000-07:00

Wandering Chopsticks' post on her great grand-father death anniversary dinner made my mouth water over the picture of Hainanese Chicken. Admittedly I didn't have a whole chicken to follow the proper cooking process (I eat on my own so it'll be too wasteful to attempt cooking the whole chicken). So I cheated by steaming the chicken thigh and served it with Hainanese chilli ginger sauce. It still tastes pretty awesome :D.
I also did a simple canh (watery soup) with ginger, cabbage and shitake mushrooms, which is my mum's favorite food of all time.

It's super duper easy to make- you only need to fry lightly some chopped ginger, then pour in chicken stock and shitake mushrooms, season with fish sauce and simmer for 25 minutes, then the chopped cabbage is thrown in and simmered for another 10 minutes. Voila.
To be honest my mum's version of this dish is much better since she also uses dried shrimps and pork meatballs. Oh well, I still enjoyed it immensely though so it doesn't really matter.

Herbed chicken in cider

2007-05-14T06:06:00.001-07:00

Not only yummy but also nutritious.
The chicken pieces are fried lightly in butter till golden, then mushrooms are thrown into the pot and it is then seasoned with salt, pepper, mixed herbs and simmered in chicken stock and cider for a good hour. Meanwhile, the rice grains are coated with vegetable oil and cooked with chicken stock in the normal method. Side veg i.e. seasonal asparagus spears are saute' in butter/olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
I love slow cooking method as all flavours and spices can incorporate into the food and it is more rewarding to eat something after waiting impatiently for a little while.
As usual, recipe will only be posted if a) I feel like it or b) somebody asks for it.
Also, due to a mini economic recession, the novice cook will have to plan her weekly meals ahead and there will limited trips to China Town supermarkets :sigh: Therefore in the next few weeks or so the food will be pretty basic (erhmm, actually the novice cook's foods have always been basic).Hopefully the novice cook will still find something interesting enough to write about:D

First-time donburi

2007-05-09T05:03:00.000-07:00

Apparently donburi is a bowl of rice served with one or various toppings. Inspired by Cooking Cute, I decided to make my own donburi today. I didn't expect much but it came out quite nicely. The only thing is that I had a heap of dishes to wash afterwards.
The picture is from Cooking Cute website as my camera was playing up and I couldn't take a picture (:D honest, It's not because my dish is c**p). As I didn't have ground beef (or more precisely, I have to save the ground beef for the hubby's tea tonight) ;I replaced it with dried tofu sheet, which is similar in the way that it's another source of protein. The crispy texture of mange tout goes perfectly well with the soft scrambled egg and saute'd tofu. I also added sliced shitake mushrooms sauted in oyster sauce and soy sauce as I absolutely adore shitake mushrooms. After all, I topped it with a bit of gochujang (another confession, I am also addicted to gochujang) and mix everything together (steamed mange tout, shitake mushroom, scrambled egg and sauted tofu and of course, steaming hot rice.).
Hang on a minute, it tastes too similar to bibimbap. Now I'm confused, what is the difference between bibimbap and donburi then? Maybe I altered the recipe too much it has turned from Japanese food to Korean food with a Chinese twist. Or maybe I'm a novice cook after all and I can't tell the difference between Korean and Japanese food. Oh well, whatever, as long as it tastes nice, it's worth my effort.

Quintessential Vietnamese food

2007-05-07T03:35:00.000-07:00

Thit kho tau -( which literally means pork belly braised in Chinese style) or a more common name in Viet restaurants is pork braised in coconut juice.
This is one of the most popular Vietnamese dish, which is served with white rice and sometimes picked bean sprouts. The meat is marinated and refrigerated for 8 hours ahead of the cooking time, then braised and simmered in a pan of coconut juice for at least 2 hours until all the flavour has incorporated into the meat and the hard boiled egg.
It is a lengthy cooking process but it's totally worth it when you chew into the soft and tender pork pieces which are both sweet (from the use of sweet soy sauce or caramel sauce) and savoury (from fish sauce). Eaten with pickled bean sprouts or picked Chinese mustard leaves as side dishes, it is one of my top ten all time favourite food.
Recipe will be dug up some time later if requested.

An English love affair

2007-05-02T08:47:00.000-07:00

To be honest I am not too sure whether this originally came from Scotland or England. I got the recipe from an English cookbook and it was relatively easy to follow. All you need is some self raising flour, sugar, salt, butter and milk to bind.
I mean, If I can do it, anyone else certainly can. I have to admit I love baking despite various disastrous attempts I've made so far. It's hit and miss really with the tiny oven I have. I need a bigger kitchen.
Anyway I'm off now for a scone and a cuppa tea. Will be back later.

Tofu

2007-05-02T08:37:00.000-07:00

I initially wanted to use silken tofu, as inspired by Simcooks post on silken tofu with shallot oil. However, I couldn't find any silken tofu from the local supermarket so I had to make do with firm tofu. The end result tasted a bit like mapo tofu to me. The tip of seasoning the mince pork with cornstarch worked a treat. I never thought of it before but it actually enhances the taste an awful lot.
Thanks simcook for the yummy recipe :D

Pot roasted chicken - ga roti

2007-04-27T11:41:00.000-07:00

The novice cook PROUDLY presents:

At least now and then there is something decent coming out of my kitchen. This dish has always been my favourite. Ga` means chicken in vietnamese and the word ro^ti is supposedly derived from the French word rosti. When I was at home my mum normally roasted it in a mini oven while my grandma opted for the on-the-hob cooking method. I myself prefer cooking this particular dish in a pot as I love to pour the gravy over steamed white rice. The dish is also accompanied by some fresh tomatoes to give a refreshing taste to contrast the rather heavily seasoned chicken.
The marinade mixture used in this dish (for one person)include
1tbsp sugar, 1tbsp fish sauce, 1tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp five spice powder, 1tsp garlic, 2-3 chopped shallots (or 1 chopped onion)
Method:
-Marinate the chicken for at least 2 hours
-Then, lift the chicken out of the marinade and fry in high heat for 7 minutes, just when the chicken starts turning brown.
-Turn the heat down to low, add the marinade, fry for 1-2 mins
-Pour just enough water to cover the chiken, stir and put the lid back on
-cook on low heat for another 45-50 minutes
Note: I also put a star anise in to make it more fragrant and being a mushroom junky means that I also include shitake mushrooms in the pot. The star anise really works wonder but I'm not too sure about shitake mushrooms in this dish. mmm
Anyway, enjoy.

The eyes can be deceiving...

2007-04-27T05:01:00.000-07:00

I've wanted to make cassava cake for a while but was held back because there's not a single Filipino shop in town. So my quick thinking told me that I could try making it with tapioca flour instead, based on the premise that tapioca flour is somehow made from cassava roots;therefore, it should be the closest substitute I have in hand.
The result, was supposed to look like this:

Instead, mine looks like this:

D'oh! Don't let the eyes deceive you though. Mine tastes just as good (I would imagine). It is still soft, chewy and pretty moist.
At the end of the day, even though I don't make pretty cakes,at least I'm getting there (eventually).

Currently craving for...

2007-04-26T08:18:00.000-07:00

1) Cabbage Kimchi

2) Instant noodles

3) Tofu

Chicken pie

2007-04-24T06:09:00.000-07:00

Being a Brit, my hubby is incredibly fond of pies. This is the first time he's tried puff pastry though. Normally he makes his own short crust pastry but today he tried using the ready-to-roll puff pastry. The result was way beyond my expectation. Unlike short crust pastry, the puff pastry doesn't taste as buttery and heavy. Combined with chicken, leek and veg, it's a perfect lunch/dinner on a cold day.
I love my hubby's cooking...

Searching for a REAL gingerbread man recipe

2007-04-23T10:43:00.001-07:00

Ok, I broke the rule of not baking ever again :sigh: Instead of my 45 minutes yoga session I was burying my head in doing gingerbread man. The recipe I got is from The Great British Kitchen, which, judging by the name, has to be the most original. So I followed the instructions:
Ingredients

"Serves: 16

350 Gram Plain flour (12 oz)
1 Teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda
2 Teaspoon Ground ginger
110 Gram Butter, diced (4 oz)
175 Gram Soft light brown sugar (6 oz)
4 Tablespoon Golden syrup
1 Egg, beaten
Currants, to decorate

Method

Makes 16

Pre-heat oven to 190 °C / 375 °F / Gas 5.

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ginger into a mixing bowl. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, then stir in the sugar. Beat the syrup into the egg, then stir into the flour mixture. Mix together to make a smooth dough. Knead the dough until smooth, then divide in half. Roll out, half at a time, on a floured surface until about 5 mm ( 1/4 inch) thick.

Using a gingerbread man cutter, cut out gingerbread men until all the dough has been used up, re-rolling and cutting the trimmings. Repeat with the second half of the dough. Place the gingerbread men on greased baking sheets and decorate with currants to represent eyes and buttons. Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Leave on the baking sheets to cool slightly, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container."

Two things I notice:
1) baking at 190C is far too high, which resulted in half of my men (the ones on the inner part of the oven) being totally black and completely unpalatable.
2) the stated amount of sugar is far too sweet for my likings, so next time I would prefer to cut it down by half.

Except for the small incident of cremating half of my men, this little baking job has shown me that with a little bit of patience and COMMON SENSE, I can get back to learning to bake again...

Banana loaf

2007-04-19T13:29:00.000-07:00

The novice cook officially announce that banana loaf is going to be the last baking project for now. Since the novice cook's repeated attempt to make cookies ended disastrously, the novice cook has decided it's now time to call it quits. From now on the novice cook will leave all the baking jobs to the professional chef a.k.a the hubby.
Recipe for banana cake:
10 oz ( 275 g ) self raising flour; 4 oz ( 100 g ) butter or margarine; 6 oz ( 175 g ) soft brown sugar; 3 eggs; 2 large bananas; 1 level teaspoon cinnamon; 3 to 4 tablespoons milk; 4 oz (100 g) chopped apricots or walnuts ( optional )

Cream butter and sugar, add mashed bananas to mixture. Add beaten eggs one by one, add milk. Fold in flour and cinnamon. Bake for one hour at 350F degrees/ 180C degrees/gas mark 4, in a 2 lb loaf tin.
Enjoy.
P.S: I always put tinfoil over the loaf tin after 35-40 mins to prevent the loaf being burnt on top

Korean fusion food - or is it just a crazy idea from the novice cook?

2007-04-18T10:21:00.000-07:00

Teczscape's udon stir-fry gave the novice cook an inspiration to try stir-frying udon for the first time. Thing is, the novice cook also wants to play with her food and in the true style of Ready Steady Cook, the novice cook was determined to make a mouth-watering dinner from random ingredients found in the novice cook's fridge, which include:
a packet of udon noodles, shitake mushrooms, pak choi, coriander, asparagus, chillies and prawns
The novice cook came up with the idea of marinating prawns in a soy sauce + oyster sauce + salt + pepper, then stir-fry the prawns for 3 mins, then set aside. All the other ingredients were stir-fried together, in the order of shitake mushroom-asparagus-pak choi- coriander then the cooked udon noodles were mixed in and the whole thing was seasoned liberally with sweet soy sauce + fish sauce + 1tsp oyster sauce.
Another 30 seconds and voila, the end-result actually tasted much better than what the novice cook had expected.
Mission accomplished. Who says playing with your food is not fun...

Food misconception - some people think they do but they don't know anything about Chinese food

2007-04-16T07:31:00.000-07:00

We went to a Chinese buffet on Sunday night and I had to say I doubt it very much that I would ever come back there again.
As someone who comes from a Chinese/Asian background, I know how lazy restaurants over here are and how much they have compromised in Chinese/Asian cuisine just to suit Westerners' taste. The buffet dishes include:
1> siu mai
2> scotch egg
3> noodles (3 varieties)
4> fried rice (2 varieties)
5> veg stir-fry (4 varieties)
6> sushi
7> ~~crispy~~ roast duck
8> CHIPS (FRENCH FRIES)
9> ice cream
10> mango pudding
Except for siu mai and mango pudding, nothing else is Chinese food in my opinion. The hubby was utterly disappointed with the supposingly crispy roast duck ,which turned out to be so dry and tough that I'd rather eat newspaper sheets than the so-called roast duck. And why on earth do they have to do CHIPS at a Chinese buffet. And what the hell is scotch egg doing in there anyway.
They're not Chinese food and they shouldn't be there. Grrrrrr :frustrating:
The veg stir-fry was also a flop, with most varieties of stir-fry being doused in a generic sauce which makes each dish tastes exactly the same.
I gave up eating after the 3rd plate (only because I had to pay for it so I had to make the most of it - a way of thinking that has been imprinted in my mind thanks to my mum)
I mean, my dear hubby has been to Asia and he knows how different REAL Chinese food is. He wouldn't even sniff at a Chinese takeaway these days. Meanwhile, my sister-in-law wouldn't know that the stuff she normally got from the takeaways are not REAL food. :sigh: I wonder how many Western people actually think Chinese/Asian cuisine only have roast duck, fried rice and stir fry.
I wonder if there is anything I can do to show people that Asian food is much more better than the Westernised ~~junk~~version of Chinese food over here...

BBQ

2007-04-16T07:28:00.000-07:00

It is pretty unusual for the weather to reach the high 20s in Manchester. To make the most of the sunshine, what is better than a BBQ.
The chicken is marinated in a honey+soy sauce+ a pinch of 5 spice powder for at least 30mins. The longer the better actually.
I heart BBQ

Discovery of the year

2007-04-11T13:42:00.000-07:00

Picture is illustrative only
I am totally addicted to dolsot bibimbap. I was pleasantly surprised to find out that making bibimbap at home is not as difficult as I'd thought. The first time I tried Korean food was a few years back and for some reasons I didn't have a very good impression of their cuisine. At the time I thought Korean food is just a passing craze popularised by Korean dramas. Kimchi was the only Korean dish that I loved then.
The second time I tried Korean food was when some Hong Kong friends organised a farewell party at a Korean cafe in Manchester and I had the chance to try cold buckwheat noodles then and I had to say it kind of cemented my serious doubt about Korean food. I just didn't understand how can something so tasteless like that is so much loved by many people. In hindsight, I suppose it wasn't a good idea to eat cold noodles in the middle of the winter so that could explain why cold noodles were so tasteless to me.
The third time I tried Korean food was we went on holiday to Hong Kong last year. We had never tried bulgogi before and it was so good that it made me completely change my mind about Korean food.
Needless to say I've been converted since and have also added udon, Ojingeo sundae (Tofu, egg, sesame, chili and vegetable wrapped with 1cm-wide pieces of steamed squid) onto my favourite food list and of course I am very eager to discover more about Korean cuisine.

Banh mi lover

2007-04-10T07:52:00.000-07:00

(THIS POST IS A COPY-AND-PASTE JOB FROM AN OLD ENTRY ON MY OTHER BLOG)
I have just discovered a useless fact that the 'butter' I had been eaten as a kid in Vietnam wasn't actually butter. The soft, spreadable yellowy stuff that they normally spread on banh mi was actually ghee, an Indian clarified butter.
Apparently ghee was made by simmering butter in a pan until all water has boiled off and protein settled to the bottom. It does taste slightly different from normal butter.
Since I have been in the UK I have never attempted to make a proper banh mi. I have eaten baguettes as a substitute for banh mi but for some reasons ham and cheese baguette still doesn't taste as good as a banh mi cha lua. I suppose it's mostly to do with the fact that it is always more comforting to eat your 'childhood food'.
When I was at junior high school my grandma always made me banh mi for my lunch. The fillings were varied, ranging from the simple cha lua to siu mai in tomato sauce and sometimes spicy beef. Yummy. Just thinking about it made my mouth water again.

seafood pasta

2007-04-09T05:59:00.000-07:00

Easter Weekend - which can only mean one thing -it's the hubby's turn to cook. He whipped up this spicy seafood pasta and it tastes amazing. Nothing fancy, just tagliatelle pasta with seafood saute in a spicy tomato sauce. As a chilli lover, I even put a tsp of chopped chilli in afterwards and it worked a treat.
I love the weekend.
P.S: picture of the novice cook's kitchen:D

Herb Blogging - Easy New-and-Improved Chicken Broth with star anise

2007-04-05T09:18:00.000-07:00

I swear I must have come across this before while I was living in Vietnam. Thing is, I never cooked when I was in Vietnam. Yep, I was a spoilt-rotten kid who never had to lift a finger in the kitchen. I did enjoyed helping out in the kitchen but I didn't pay much attention to my mum's cooking and thus, at the age of 20-something, I still am a novice cook who struggle to do basic food when my mum at the same age was more than competent in doing elaborated food.
Anyway, back to the main story. I discovered these little stars when I was browsing in a Chinese supermarket last week. I picked a bag of star anises up and gave it a sniff. It was definitely familiar, I just couldn't make out what it was or where I had seen it before. I rang my mum and found out that star anise is one of the essential ingredient that made up the gorgeous, fragrant smell of the broth in pho
So a few days ago I decided to make my own chicken broth using star anise and a few more ingredients. I have never attempted to make chicken broth before due to my laziness and my tendency to rely on chicken stock cubes.
It is by no means the best chicken stock but the star anise does enhance the smell and flavour immensely and most importantly, it is incredibly easy to make.
So here is my very own new-and-improved chicken stock recipe:
1 chicken carcass
1 turnip
1 onion
1 carrot
1 bayleaf
1 stalk of lemongrass, bruised with a cleaver
2-3 star anise
5 black peppercorns
fish sauce to taste
Method:
Put all ingredients in a deep pan and pour enough water to cover the chicken carcass. Bring to the boil, skim all the brown bits that float on tops and turn heat down. Leave everything to simmer for at least 2 hours, skim off fat and brown bits occasionally.
I normally pour 2tbsp of fish sauce to taste as well at the end of the cooking process.
This chicken stock is easy enough for me to follow and the star anise definitely makes the broth much more fragrant than normal.
The more I know about herbs, the more I love them :D

Chewy Butter Cookies

2007-04-05T08:45:00.000-07:00

I tested hoangtam's chewy butter cookies recipe today and as can be seen from the picture, I burnt the cookies a little bit. They still taste all right (better than what I'd expected anyway). To be honest I've never been good at baking and it really does help to boost my confidence with an easy-to-follow recipe like this one.
I specially made 2 heart-shaped cookies for the hubby, as an apology for...(ahh, never mind)
I'll definitely do this again...

Confession of a noodle addict

2007-04-03T08:38:00.000-07:00

I am an Oriental so noodles and rice are my staple food. When I was at home my mum had this unspoken rule that we should save noodle dishes till the weekend and just eat rice during the week (Don't ask, I haven't got a clue why she did that). Anyway it may be the reason for my apparent obsession with noodles.
I cannot survive a week without noodles. When I don't eat noodles I feel irritated and short-tempered, basically I have to eat noodles at least twice a week to satisfy my craving.
Yesterday I decided to make banh canh cua. However, I couldn't find the particular type of noodles that I need for the dish. So I asked a friend and she said I could substitute it with udon noodles.
Anyway, long story cut short, the end-result was a bizarre concoction of noodles, crab meat, egg yolk, shitake mushroom and chinese leaves in a spicy curried broth.

It is definitely not what I had in mind but luckily it doesn't taste too bad.
So I've learnt a lesson in cooking: when in doubt, ask for the recipe before starting on a dish that you have absolutely no idea how to make.
I will try again one day.

Cherry Shortbreads

2007-04-02T05:56:00.000-07:00

Ingredients:
25g glace cherries
100g self-raising flour
75g butter
50g caster sugar
*Cut the cherries into small pieces. Sift the flour and mix with the cherries. Cream the butter and sugar until soft(very important), add the flour mixture, work together with your fingers.
*Form into 12-14 balls. Place on lightly greased baking sheets and bake in the centre of a preheated oven (160C/325F/Gas mark 3) for 15 minutes. Don't over do it as it can easily be burnt.
*Take out and leave to cool down. Shortbreads get really hard upon contact with air so they may seem a bit soft when you first take them out. Don't worry that's absolutely fine.

Congee and Grandma's spare ribs

2007-03-29T12:56:00.000-07:00

*The not-so-pretty picture doesn't do the dish any justice. I used to hate congee for the very simple reason that my mum always made me eat it every time I was ill. Strange enough, now that I don't live at home any more, I've learnt to appreciate the healing power of congee. When I'm feeling a little bit under the weather, nothing is more comforting than a bowl of steaming hot congee with lots of chopped coriander and spring onions.

*The marinade using for the spareribs was inspired by grandma's marinade for her 'special variety meat', as she calls it and also by SimCooks.
I only modified it a little bit by adding soysauce to the mixture instead of having just five spice powder and salt. Basically it's a mixture of 1tsp minced garlic +2tbsp soysauce + 1tbsp sugar + pinch salt + 2tsp five spice powder. When D asked me what five spice powder contained, I couldn't give him an answer as I honestly don't know. I only know that it's the magic ingredient that gives certain Chinese food the very distinct smell.
I can't wait till we go on holiday this year. Last time we stuffed ourselves too much in Hong Kong that I gained 2kg by the time we got back. Oh food, glorious food.

Ga kho xa gung(chicken stir-fry with lemongrass and chilli)

2007-03-28T05:45:00.000-07:00

This is the 3rd time I've done this dish. It's the best result so far anyway. I sliced the chicken instead of leaving the whole piece and it seems to make all the flavours incorporate a bit better. I love anything to do with lemongrass and chilli.
Recipe will be posted if someone request it.
UPDATE:
Recipe for SimCooks:
I don't know if this recipe is Vietnamese or Thai actually. My mum has done this dish with eel and it works perfectly as well. The recipe is only a guideline, just try and change it a little bit to suit your taste. Enjoy. :D
Preparation:
Cut the meat off 2 chicken thighs (with skin if you want)- slice thinly
Marinate with sugar, salt, pepper, fish sauce (a pinch of each and 1tsp fish sauce)for half an hour.
Do a mixture of lemongrass and chilli in a food processor with: chopped lemongrass from 2 sticks of fress lemongrass + 2-3 fresh chillies +1tsp minced garlic + 1tbsp fish sauce + 4 tbsp water.
Cooking:
Heat a wok and pour a bit of peanut oil in.
Fry the lemongrass and chilli mixture till fragrant (3-4 mins), then put in the chicken, fry till the chicken has changed color (5 mins) then pour a little bit more water in and turn heat down to medium-low. Put a lid on and cook for a further 15-20 minutes, until the chicken is done and all the flavour has incorporated and water has reduced.
Serve with rice and crushed roasted peanuts if you want.