Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Pineapple Jam

Ingredients
(makes about 4 - 5 medium-sized bottles of jam)
4 pineapples (cook in 2 batches)
12 cloves (6 cloves in one batch)
1 tsp cinnamon powder (1/2 tsp in 1 batch)
5 cups sugar (divide into 2 batches....adjust as necessary)
Pineapples from Hawaii...deliciously sweet and the cheapest we have bought....1 for 1 buck!
 First, cut off the crown and base of the pineapple.  Remove the outer layer as well.
 Pineapple skin removed
 Using a sharp knife, remove the 'eyes' by cutting diagonally
Then, cut the pineapple into 4 pieces and remove the core of each piece.
 Do not waste the core, cut the, into small pieces.
 Use the chop and blend function of the blender to blend the core.
 Cut the rest of the pineapples into small pieces as well and place in a large bowl
 Add the blended stuff and 1 cup sugar to the bowl to bring out the sweetness of the pineapple.  This is to reduce the amount of sugar used later.
Stir to mix well and let it sit for 1 hour or more before cooking.
Cook in batches of 2 pineapples at one time or more if your pot is bigger.
Add cinnamon powder, cloves and sugar and cook the jam on medium heat, stirring occasionally to prevent it from getting burnt at the bottom.
While cooking the jam, sterilize the glass bottles and metal caps using boiling water.  I used recycled bottles.
When jam texture has almost reached desired consistency, remove the cloves and ladle into sterilized bottles and store in fridge.  The jam will evaporate further and firm up to a drier texture, so do not overcook.
The rich and aromatic pineapple jam ready for spread anytime!

Friday, June 22, 2012

Grilled Cinnamon Sweet Potato

Ingredients
2 sweet potatoes
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder 

Hazelnut Butter

Chop up the nuts using a food processor.
Continue to pulse till the nuts become fine.
The nuts starting to turn sandy and lumpy.  Scrape down the sides as necessary.
Add cocoa powder, sugar and salt.
Continue to process till you get a creamy mixture.
Check for sweetness and add more sugar as necessary.
Store chocolate hazeulnut butter in a sterilized jar.
Enjoy your nutty spread.
Ingredients
2 cups hazelnuts
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3 tbsp sugar or more
pinch of salt

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Portobello Mushroom Fettuccine



Ingredients
8 oz fettuccine pasta
1 large portobello mushroom
2 tbsp frozen green peas
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp chopped shallot
1 tsp chopped garlic
dash of dried crushed red pepper
dash of dried italian seasonings
dash of dried parsley flakes (chopped fresh parsley preferred)
salt and pepper to taste
oil for blanching fettuccine
3/4 cup milk
1 tbsp grated cheese
flour mixture - 1 tsp flour + 2 tbsp water
dash of crushed red pepper flakes

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Grilled Portobello Mushroom

  

Ingredients
2 large portobello mushrooms
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp soy sauce
juice of 1/2 lemon or lime
1 shallot - sliced
2 cloves garlic - chopped 
1 tbsp chopped parsley

Monday, June 18, 2012

Stir Fried Sweet Potato Leaves with Salted Beans

Ingredients
1 small bunch sweet potato leaves
1 tsp dried prawns
1 tsp small silver fish
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 red chilli - cut
1 tsp salted soy beans
pinch of sugar
1 to 2 tbsp water
oil for frying

Steamed Red Snapper

Ingredients
1 red snapper (abt 1 1/2 lb)  - cleaned and patted dry
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp rice wine
salt to taste
few slices of ginger
1 stalk green onion (white part) - cut into 5 cm length 
1 tomato - sliced
1 sour plum - lightly mashed
1 pc ginger - julienned
1 red chilli - cut
some julienned green onion (green part)
1 tsp fried shallot and oil
1 tsp soy sauce

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Steamed Herbal Emperor Chicken (药材皇帝鸡)



recipe adapted from here
Ingredients
1 free range chicken - use half of it
300ml water
salt to taste

Assorted Herbs in approximate weight:
  • 12g Huai Shan 淮山 (Radix Dioscoreae Oppositae)
  • 9g Dang Shen 党参 (Codonopsis Pilosulae)
  • 8g Yu Zhu 玉竹 (Solomon's Seal Rhizome)
  • 11g Long Yan Gan 龙眼干 (Dried Longan)
  • 5g Gou Qi Zi 枸杞子 (Wolfberries)
  • 6 Hong Zao 红枣 (Red Dates)
  • 2g Chuan Gong 川芎 (Szechwan Lovage Rhizome)
  • 2g Dang Gui 当归 (Angelica Sinensis)
  • 7g Bei Qi 北芪 (Astragalus Membranaceus)

Bittergourd in Miso Soup

Ingredients
1 bittergourd 
1 tomato - quartered 
1 tbsp miso paste

Meatball ingredients
150g ground meat
1 small piece minced carrot 
1 stalk green onion - minced
1 tsp huatiao wine
1 tsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
salt and pepper to taste 

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Muah Chee


recipe adapted from here
Ingredients (serves 4)
200g glutinous rice flour
280 ml water
1 tsp granulated sugar 
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp shallot oil
1/2 tsp shallot oil for brushing
 
Toppings
handful of roasted peanut powder
handful of roasted sesame seed
granulated sugar to taste

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Steamed Snapper with Salted Vegetables & Dried Soybean

Ingredients
1 snapper - washed, cleaned and patted dry
2 stalk of green onions - cut into 5 cm
1 tsp sesame oil
dash of pepper
1 tbsp rice wine
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 small pc ginger - peeled and julienned 
2 slices of ginger
1 red chilli - cut into pcs
1 small bunch of salted vegetables - soaked for 20 mins and drained
1 small pc dried soybean ball - pound with mortar and pestle
1 clove garlic - minced
1 tbsp oil


For garnishing
parsley
dried soybean with garlic

BBQ Pork Spare Ribs with Spices









Ingredients
Spices and Seasonings
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dry sage
juice of 1 lemon
dash of garlic salt
dash of pepper
dash of onion powder
dash of chilli flakes


Sauce for basting
1/2 cup Kraft original barbecue sauce
1 tbsp worcestershire sauce
1 tsp tobasco sauce