HK Kailan in oyster sauce

With just few simple steps, this sweet and crunchy Hongkong Kailan becomes a healthy vegetable dish waiting to be served!

1. Wash, cut off the tip of the stems, leave the kailan whole and drain in a colander.
2. Heat a wok with enough water and drizzle with some cooking oil.
3. In a deep plate mix 2 tbsp of oyster sauce with  1 1/2 tbsp of fried shallots and garlic together with 1 tbsp of the oil and a drizzle of sesame oil.
4. Once the water is boiling put in the kailan, stir and blanch for about 1/2 minute, dish out and add into the oyster sauce mixture and mix well to combine.
5. Arrange the kailan into a serving dish and it's ready to serve!

It's "Simple Yet Yummylicious!"

Stir-fried vegetables

Vegetables are a must have dish to include in all meals of any Chinese family to ensure a balance diet. Most leafy green vegetables are cooked using the simple 'stir-fried' method which doesn't need varieties of seasonings.  It can either be stir-fried with other ingredients such as meat slices, minced, prawns, mushrooms or with another type of root vegetable such as red carrot or otherwise just stir-fried as it is with chopped garlic and chicken stock.

Here's something to share from my home kitchen......

(1)  Stir-fried Baby Pak Choy with red carrot and dried scallops

Few simple steps:

1. Wash the baby pak choy, to prepare just pluck out the outer layer of the vege and leave it whole, for the remaining inside portion cut into half.
2. Peel about 1 1/2 inch of red carrot and sliced into long strips.
3. Wash and soak 2 to 3 dried scallops until soft, drain and break into smaller pieces.
4. Slice 1 red shallot and chop 3 pip garlic.
5. To stir-fry, add 2 tbsp cooking oil in a heated wok and saute shallot and garlic till fragrant.
6. Add in scallops, give it a quick stir, then add in both the red carrot and pak choy.
7. After a few stir, sprinkle about 1 tsp of chicken stock granules, continue to fry and add about 3 tbsp of water.
8. Pak Choy have thicker and harder stems, thus additional cooking time is needed to stir-fry this vege as compared to the other types of green leafy vegetables.
9. When the vegetables are cooked, off the heat and serve hot with rice.

(2)  Stir-fried Baby Kailan

This delicious light green vege is not only a popular home-cooked dish but it's also popularly served in restaurants, not to mention, it's a well known dish served in almost all 'Fast Food Stalls.'  The first dish I stir-fried with red carrot slices, button mushrooms, chopped garlic and chicken stock granules.  For the second one, I added some slices of pork belly stir-fried with chopped garlic and chicken stock granules.  

(3)  Stir-fried Ti Wan Cai

Another easy to stir-fry green leafy vege is Ti Wan Cai which just needs quick frying with more chopped garlic and chicken stock granules.  

(4)  Stir-fried gingery Chinese Kale or locally known as big kailan

Few simple steps:

1.  Wash the kale, cut the leaves, peel the stem and cut into preferred length and put in separate colander.
2. Slice some red carrot and ginger, put aside for later use.
3. Prepare some slices of chicken or pork, marinate with some light soy sauce and just before cooking add some cornflour and mix.
4. In a heated wok, add in 1 tbsp of cooking oil and 1 tbsp of sesame oil, saute ginger slices till fragrant.
5. Add in the meat slices, give it a quick stir, then add in the stem of the kale and red carrot slices and fry for about 1 minute, then add in the leaves and mix well.
6. Drizzle 1 tbsp of light soy sauce and dash of msg, add about 3 tbsp of water and let it simmer for another minute while stirring often to let it cook evenly.
7. Drizzle 1 tbsp of Shao Hsing wine, stir to mix, off the heat and serve.

Stir-fried savoury pork belly and tripe

With the leftover pork tripe after our family's Steamboat, I've decided to cook this savoury dish which I've missed for quite a while.  This time round I've decided to stir-fry it with slices of pork belly.  For those who likes ginger, more can be added to boost up the dish.

Ingredients:

Pork tripe (cooked, cut into bite-size slices)

Pork belly (cut into thin slices)

1 red chilli (sliced)

1/2 onion (sliced)

2 shallots (chopped)

3 pip garlic (chopped)

1 thumb-size ginger (sliced thinly)

Water

2 tbsp cooking oil

Seasoning:

3 tbsp light soya sauce

1 tbsp dark soya sauce

Dash of grounded pepper

Salt (to taste)

Methods:

1. In a heated wok, add oil, saute shallots and garlic till fragrant.
2. Add in onion and chilli, quick stir then add in the pork belly and fry until the colour turns to pale.
3. Put in the pork tripe, stir to mix, then add in light and dark soya sauce, stir till well combined.
4. Add enough water and continue to cook while stirring constantly to let the pork belly and tripe to cook evenly.
5. Add more water if needed during cooking. Taste for correct seasoning and add salt if necessary.
6. Once the dish is done sprinkle a dash of pepper, stir to mix, off the heat and serve with a plate of hot rice.

Lamb Curry

Ingredients:
600g lamb foreshank
2 potatoes (peel and cut into desired pieces)
Meat curry paste (1 pkt of RM1.00)
1 cup of thick coconut milk
1 bowl of thin coconut milk
Water
3 tbsp cooking oil

Grounded/pounded ingredients:
4 shallots
3 pip garlic
3 red chillies (if you prefer it spicy)

Seasoning:
Salt (to taste)
Msg (to taste)

Methods:

1. Clean the lamb meat, cut off excess fat, blanch in boiling water, drain and put aside for later use.
2. Pre-fried the potatoes in oil, drain and put aside.
3. Fry the grounded/pounded ingredients in oil using medium heat until fragrant, add in the curry paste and stir well to mix.
4. Add in the lamb and stir well, adding a bit of water to ease the stirring as well as prevent the curry paste from sticking to the bottom of the wok and getting burnt.
5. When all are well mixed, add enough water to cover the lamb and let it come to a boil.  I will then transfer the dish into a deep claypot to continue cooking using medium low heat with lid on and stirring from time to time as well as checking on the water.
6. I will add the thin coconut milk half way through when the lamb is nearly tender and continue with the cooking.
7. Just as the meat is tender add in the potatoes and seasonings, taste and let it boil for another 2 minutes.
8. Add in the thick coconut milk, stir to mix well and once it comes to a boil, off the heat.  Ready to serve!

Note:  This Lamb Curry is my son Aaron's favourite.  This recipe is very simple and yet yummylicious.  It can be eaten with hot fluffy rice, but most of the time we prefer to eat with either white bread or french bread. 

Danish Butter Cookies

The Denmark Danish Butter Cookies, has been my family's favourite for a long time. Stored in a nicely packed tin, it comes in different shapes and flavors.....

To share my family's secret, though there are five different types which are all equally tasty and delicious, BUT there seem to be one which will finish in no time, the others comes slightly later!!  

Today, I am most happy to share this simple recipe of our favourite Danish Butter Cookies and I trust that many are also sharing the same taste as us.  My special thanks goes to Sifu Kenneth Goh for this recipe which he shared in 'Food Bloggers and Foodies United.'

Ingredients:

1 egg (lightly beaten)

200g, soft butter

320g plain flour (sifted)

130g Icing Sugar (sifted)

2 tbsp vanilla extract (I omit this)

Methods:

• Place everything in a mixing bowl and in a cake mixture, mix evenly using a paddle atachment on the lowest speed.
• Pipe the mixture onto baking tray.  I use the SAWA 2000 Cookie Press with the plastic nozzle fix with a star cap.

• Bake in preheated oven at 200 degree Celsius until slightly golden, roughly 7 to 9 minutes (depending on the type of oven that we use).
• Leave to cool slightly before removing them from the baking tray.
• Store the cookies in airtight container when they have totally cooled down at room temperature.

Note:  My first bake of this yummylicious cookies was for Christmas.  My grandson Brendan loves it so much.  This recipe sure comes in handy whenever I crave for Danish Butter Cookies ~ smile ~

Fruit Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 packet mixed fruit (I use Ee Syn brand)
• 1/4 cup Brandy

• 230g unsalted butter
• 200g brown sugar
• 4 eggs

• 230g plain flour        
• 60g self raising flour 
• pinch of salt             
• 1 tsp mixed spice     

• 1 tbsp milk (not in the picture)

Methods:

1. Soak the fruits with 1/4 cup Brandy, store in an airtight container and leave in the fridge overnight.
2. Sift together the two types of flour, salt and mixed spice and put aside for later use.
3. Cream butter and brown sugar until soft and fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. Fold in the fruit alternately with flour and milk and mix well with a cake spatula.
5. Pour the mixture into a greased 8" round tin and bake in a moderate oven of 160 degree Celsius until golden brown and when a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

My grandson Brendan enjoys munching this fruit cake very much.  Home-baked fruit cake is not as sweet as those ready made ones, as we have the power to control the sweetness.