Friday, April 16
Egg boiling techniques
How to boil and prepare the eggs
Boil the eggs by putting them in cold water and bringing slowly up to a boil. Once the water is boiling, take off the heat, put on a lid and leave for 8 to 10 minutes.
It is pretty important to ensure that the egg yolk ends up in the middle of the egg, rather than leaning to one side. In order to achieve this you should roll the eggs around while the water is coming to a boil. (Note that this hands-on requirement is one reason why I rarely do this in practice for everyday bentos!)
To peel the eggs cleanly, dunk them in cold water, crack the shell over, and peel carefully. Very fresh eggs are hard to peel cleanly, but you rarely get very fresh eggs at regular supermarkets.
Tuesday, April 13
Fragrant Sauce Prawns
Recipe by Amy Beh
Ingredients
400g fresh water prawns
½ cup tapioca flour
50g shredded ginger
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp salted black beans, crushed
3 bird’s eye chillies, chopped
1 red chilli, sliced
1 tbsp chopped spring onion
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp oil
Seasoning (combined)
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ tsp sugar
1/8 tsp pepper
2 tbsp Shao Hsing Hua Tiau wine
Method
Trim the prawns and rinse well. Pat dry with kitchen paper towels. Toss in tapioca flour and set aside.
Heat enough oil in a wok and fry shredded ginger until light golden and fragrant. Remove, drain on absorbent paper. In remaining hot oil, deep-fry the prawns, in batches, until their colour changes. Dish out and drain from oil.
Heat a clean wok with 1 tbsp oil and sesame oil, and fry garlic, salted black beans and bird’s eye chillies until fragrant. Add seasoning.
Return prawns to the wok and add red chilli and spring onion to mix. Stir-fry briskly over high heat until well combined. Dish out and serve.
Photos: www.thestar.com.my/kuali
Friday, March 26
So so busy
love·some [luhv-suhm]
–adjective
1. inspiring love; lovely; lovable.
2. amorous; loving.
www.lovesomecakes.com.my
I pray this passion of mine will one day bring me above the sky.
Here is another cake i baked for a lovely couple for their engagement...
More posting coming in the week. Till then i bit a farewell and enjoy your week folks.
Thursday, March 18
What's so special?
All time favourite...
Here, I would like to share the recipe for both scrumptious menu.
Japanese Sizzling Toufu recipe:
Ingredients
1 packet Japanese tofu, cut into 1.5cm pieces
Tapioca flour for coating
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp chopped ginger
1 tbsp oil
1 tsp sesame oil
100g chicken meat, steamed and shredded
100g small prawns, shelled
2 pieces Chinese black mushrooms, soaked and sliced thinly
25g frozen green peas
25g carrots, diced
Seasoning (combine in a small bowl):
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp Shao Hsing Hua Tiau wine (optional)
1 tsp chicken stock granules
Thickening (combine):
1 tbsp corn flour
2 tbsp water
Method
Coat sliced tofu pieces in tapioca flour. Deep fry in hot oil until golden. Dish out and drain on absorbent kitchen paper towels.Heat oil and sesame oil in a wok; saute ginger and garlic until fragrant. Add prawns, black mushrooms and carrots. Stir-fry well. Add seasoning, green peas and chicken meat. Blend in thickening.Heat hotplate over fire. When it is really hot, remove and place on a wooden platter. Add tofu pieces and pour sauce over. Serve immediately.
Fried Kangkong belacan recipe:
Ingredients
300g sweet potato leaves
3 tbsp oil
1 tbsp dried prawns, soaked, drained and pounded.
Pounded:
3 shallots
2 cloves garlic
4 red chillies, seeded
1 1/2 tsp Maggi belacan granules
Seasoning:
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp sugar or to taste
1/2 tsp chicken stock granules
Method
Pluck the sweet potato leaves from the stalks. Cut the stalks into 7cm lengths, discarding the tough parts. Wash and drain well.Heat wok over high heat until hot, then add in oil. Fry the pounded dried prawns until aromatic. Add the rest of the pounded ingredients and stir-fry well.Put in sweet potato leaves and stalks and stir-fry briskly for one to two minutes. Add seasoning to mix. Dish out and serve immediately.
Both recipes are adapted from Amy Beh.
Wednesday, March 17
What's up with me?
Till then stay tuned!
Thursday, March 11
Workshop: Gum Paste Flowers
The workshops will be held at 211, Jalan Tun Razak, 1st Floor, Dua Residency Annexe (adjacent to the US embassy) from 10am to 5pm on each day. The course fee is RM1,200 per workshop, inclusive of RM300 worth of cutters (tools to cut the dough), lunch and tea.
Tuesday, March 9
Setting the table
Tips:
The key here is to be practical. Don't seat two people who notoriously get into vicious arguments next to each other just to fit a boy-girl, boy-girl seating arrangement.
Steps:
1. Figure out how many guests will be attending. If several children will be in attendance, consider having a children's table. If you would like the children at the main table, consider booster chairs if the children are small.
2. Determine where everyone should sit. For convenience, the cook may want to sit near the kitchen door. Parents should sit next to their children. If there is a male guest, he is traditionally seated on the hostess's right. A female guest is traditionally seated on the host's right. For large parties, determine who would interact best with each other. Some people like to alternate between men and women, but this isn't necessary. You may want to use name cards to avoid everyone rushing for a seat at the last minute.
3. Decide if you will use a tablecloth. If the tablecloth is white damask, you will need a pad under it to prevent it from slipping. Also, the middle crease should be arranged so that it runs in a straight and unwavering line down the center of the table from head to foot. When the tablecloth is on, it should hang down about a foot and a half if it is a seated dinner. If it is a buffet dinner, it should hang down to the floor.
4. Set the table once you've adjusted the tablecloth. Begin by folding napkins and placing them in the center of each diner's place.
5. Place the large dinner fork to the left of the napkin and the smaller salad fork to the left of the dinner fork.
6. Place a salad plate to the left of the forks. The dinner plate should not be on the table when guests sit down.
7. Place a knife to the right of the napkin, with the cutting edge toward the plate. For chicken or a game bird, you might want to use a steak knife.
8. Put out two spoons if you're serving both soup and dessert. The small dessert spoon should be placed to the right of the knife. Place the soup spoon to the right of the dessert spoon. (You can also wait and bring the dessert spoons out just before dessert.)
9. Place a bread plate with a butter knife (if you have them) about 2 inches above the forks.
10. Place a water goblet about 2 inches above the knife. To the right of the goblet and slightly closer to the dinner guest, place a wine glass.
11. Place a cup and saucer, if you're serving coffee or tea, to the right of the setting, with a coffee spoon on the right side of the saucer.
Sunday, March 7
Hot oil splashed...
Insane or not my man?
Photo credits: http://www.wildfiregames.com/0ad/pages/pictures/legionarymain3.jpg