Aroi-mai ?

Recommended: Red Fermented Beancurd Chicken Wings

2012-06-19T07:42:00.002-07:00

HCP lends itself well for this recipe. Easy to control cooking time and cooking temperature, important factors to get chicken that is tender and palatable.

Ingredients
4 chicken wings
1 cube fermented beancurd, with 2 Tbl RBC liquid from the jar

Seasoning:
Light soya sauce 1/2 tsp
Kecap Manis 1/2 tsp
1 tsp honey
1/4 tsp salt to taste

1 Tbl Mirin
Water to cover wings. If too salty add honey.

Method:
Marinate the wings in the mashed RBC for at least 1 hr, preferably over night in the fridge. Let wings reach room temp (30 min) when taken out of the fridge.

Boil the water and seasoning in the HCP. Let the water cool for 5 min. Add the marinated wings and simmer under low heat - ideal temperature to cook wings is 70°C for non-stringy tender meat. Wings should reach tenderness in 10 min, test with a skewer. Once done remove the wings and reduce the remaining stock on the pan to a syrupy state. Add mirin and let the syrup cool down a bit, then pour it over the wings.

If you follow my method and do it right you'll have wings that are tender with a taste that is simply sensational!

Recommended: Easy Miso Soup

2012-06-17T03:16:00.002-07:00

I have always been intrigued by the rave of miso soup. Thus I decided to find out what the hoo-ha is all about: I bought 1 box of Korean miso paste, 1 box of Korean anchovy powder stock, and Mirin.

Ingredients
CJ Miso Paste 1 Tbl
CJ Anchovy Powder 1 tsp
Takara Hon-Mirin Mirin 1 Tbl
Brinjal, 1, cut into 3/4" rings
Silken Tofu, 1 pack, 1" cubes

You may add other veg, 1/4 sheet of dried seaweed, but avoid over-fill (e.g. a 7-8" round brinjal would fill the entire HCP).

Method:
Fill two-thirds of HCP with clean water. Boil, then add the miso paste, anchovy powder. Add the vegetables and tofu. When the veg are cooked - pierce with a fork - add the mirin and boil for another min. Done!

..hhmm.. Really satisfying! I will certainly use this miso recipe for an easy, ready-to-go soup in future.

HCP: Kecap Manis Grilled Pork

2012-06-13T03:25:00.002-07:00

Remember the Indonesian-style ayam panggang sold at S'pore Plaza 5th floor food court? When an order was made, the bbq'ed meat was steeped liberally in a thick dark sauce. Which I suspected to be kecap manis, plus possibly other unknown spices. Then placed onto a hot grill rack to crisp up the meat to a flavorful finish. Then it is served to the waiting, lip-smacking customer! Oool-la-la, what a dish!

Well, I've been attempting to recreate the disk, googling for recipes. Thought I'll try out this one, scaled down for 1 person. I left out the fresh pineapple pieces as my pantry did not have it.:

Credit: Kecap Manis Grilled Pork

Seasoning:
1 Tbl ABC Kecap Manis
1/4 tsp orange marmalade
1 small lime
1 Calamansi Lime plus 1/3 tsp cracked black pepper

Marinate 20 min all together in:
100g pork slices - about 1/3 of pack
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1 small lime
1/4 tsp EVOO

Method:
Saute meat in HCP under low-med heat.
When nearly cooked, add seasoning and continue to cook until done.

Thoughts:
Nice and flavorful, but not the Indonesian-style ayam panggang taste - yet.

Recommended: Silken Tofu and Minced Pork in Oyster Sauce

2012-06-12T22:26:00.002-07:00

I love it that silken tofu has the extra-smooth texture that tingles my palate. With minced pork it is a marriage made in food heaven! It is easy to prepare, even easier to eat, hahah!

Ingredients
1 pk of Fortune silken tofu
1 quarter portion, about 80-100g, of a minced pork pack
minced cabbage in an amount equal to minced pork ( use spring onion and parsley if cabbage is not available )
2 tsp honey
1.5 ts oyster sauce
1/4 tsp sesame oil

Method
Mix minced pork with oyster sauce, sesame oil, honey, cabbage, and leave to marinade for 10 min.

Meanwhile, place tofu (sliced horizontally into two halves) in HCP and just cover with enough water. Heat under med-low flame. When the water has reduced to 1/2, add the minced pork mixture onto each half and adjust the heat to a very low simmer. I don't like my minced pork to be overcooked, that will make it gritty, but gently barely cooked. Overcooked minced pork has a different color to one that is barely cooked, there's no way to tell except by experience and trial-and-error - my spouse takes the D40 wherever she goes, hahaha, so I'm always without one. No worries, I'll soon have my D800!

mmMMMm.... Texture is sublime! Recommended!

Food for Confinement Mums

2012-06-06T21:33:00.000-07:00

Mamabliss Blog Recipes
Yummy Herbal-Confinement Mom

Traditional Claypot Chicken Rice

2012-06-05T02:58:00.002-07:00

Foodcanon using unglazed claypot

Interim: SV Hainanese Chicken

2012-06-05T01:57:00.000-07:00

I. Make Gordon Ramsay Chicken stock
1 carcass chicken (used 2 thigh pieces and fat from thigh instead)
1 red onion, 1 leek (out of stock), 1 carrot, 1 garlic bulb, cut in 2 halves
2 bay leaves, 2 celery stalks, 2 parsley sprigs, 1 fresh thyme sprig
1 ts black pepper - lightly crushed under pan
Boil fast, simmer 30-45 min max. Let cool for 5 min Done!

II. Sous Vide Cooking 05-06-12
2. Put cleaned chicken thighs for 15 sec in stock.
3. Cool in ice water.
4. Put in rice cooker and fill with stock. Set SV Temperature controller to 60°C and 90 min.
5. Remove thigh pieces after 80 min and carve.

III Thoughts:
Taste-wise, seems the juices are missing, so no trace of blood around bone area. So the sweetness and succulence factor is absent.
Texture, tender and easy to eat, not stringy at all - excellent! Take into consideration these are medium-sized thigh pieces, not whole chicken. So timing will be different! Though the SV chart didn't indicate times were for whole birds or parts, I can infer parts were used because the SV recipe following the article has a recipe for 4 skin-on chicken breasts.

NEXT Test: 25-30 min at 145°F i.e. 63°C. Test with a skewer! The SV chart indicates safe consumption after about 13-14 min cooking time as 145°F. Note also western palates is different (they probably have never tasted Hainanese Chicken)from Asian palates, hence though 90 min maybe just right for their taste, it is too long and missing the unami for me!°

Test Metrics
a. Set up SV Controller and Rice Cooker at 70°C and test with skewer at 10 min timing. Test every 5 min i.e. 15 min, 20 min, 25 min, 30 min. The idea is to see which timing the meat - cooked according to time chart 70%C (158°F), LESS THAN 5 MIN! - but hopefully still tastes juicy. Wow, the temp dropped from 95°C to 80° in like 15 sec! After that the drop was gradual.

b. Remove the chicken piece, set the temperature to 63.0°C (145.4°F) and put in a new thigh meat. Tested with a skewer after 15 min - seemed cooked but decided to wait and test in another 5 min, as the thigh is cooked at 145°F. According to the chart, the meat should be cooked at approx 16-17 min@145°F. Final: 145F@ 30 min - texture was teeny bit chewy, but not stringy and can go down my throat without problem - given my impaired throat which has been narrowed due to a recent illness. Decided to add another 10 min@145°F, for a total of 40 min.

Add'l Info: Served AJ cold meat pieces cut into bite-sized pieces slathered skin-side with sesame oil-light soya sauce condiment. Asked for his verdict, he said he preferred this SV-chicken over the Hainanese Chicken style! Maybe due to the dipping sauce - ABC Kecap Manis mixed with FP Chilli Sauce?

Third thigh piece 07-06-2012 : Cooked at 63°C for 60 min. Skewer still met a bit resistance, but decided enough cooking time. Maybe left in fridge 3 days made the raw meat tougher? Will taste test tomorrow, it's time for bed!

From boiling, flame off->allow 11 min to cool down->reached 85°C min. Put thigh into WMF No:2 pot filled 1-inch from the brim->set timer 15-min->temp was 69°c->test for texture->easily poke through, cut meat, showed no bloody color -> probably over-cooked!

SV Chicken: Cooking Temperature & Time

2012-06-04T22:25:00.001-07:00

SV Cooking Temperature and Time
Also filed in PDF-Food as pdf file.

Easy Breakfast Bun

2012-06-03T18:06:00.000-07:00

VideoJug: Easy Breakfast Bun

All Recipes Version

Easy Japanese Cheesecake

2012-05-22T00:23:00.000-07:00

Must Try! Easy Japanese Cheesecake

No-bake version of Cheesecake

By Linda Larsen, About.com Guide
Easy No-Bake Cheesecake

This cheesecake can be topped with any flavor of canned pie filling for a finishing touch. From start to serving time, it takes a little over an hour. For a chocolate version, see Fastest Chocolate Cheesecake. This is a soft-set cheesecake; it does not have the texture of a baked cheesecake. If, in spite of everything, it doesn't set, freeze it! Thanks to Joann for this tip.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:
8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
3 ounce package cream cheese, softened
14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk (NOT evaporated)
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 9" graham cracker or chocolate cookie pie crust

Preparation:
In medium bowl beat cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Gradually add the sweetened condensed milk, beating constantly. When half of the milk has been added, add the lemon juice and beat until smooth. Add remaining sweetened condensed milk until mixture is smooth. Pour into graham cracker crust and chill at least one hour. 8 servings
Note: Please make sure you are using sweetened condensed milk, NOT evaporated milk, in this recipe. I have made this cheesecake many times and it has always set up perfectly. The mixture should already be thick when you pour it into the crust; if it is thin at this point, you used the wrong kind of milk.

And do NOT use low fat or nonfat cream cheese or low fat or nonfat sweetened condensed milk; the recipe will not work. And of course the recipe works - how do you think I took the picture?

Ingredients-Making the Crust
Serves: 8
75g (3 oz) digestive biscuits, finely crushed
75g (3 oz) shortbread, finely crushed
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3 1/2 tablespoons caster sugar
1 (200g) tub cream cheese
5 tablespoons caster sugar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
120ml (4 fl oz) cream, whipped
sliced fresh strawberries or other fruit (optional)

Preparation method
Prep: 15 mins | Extra time: 1 hour 45 mins
1. In a bowl, mix together digestive biscuit crumbs, shortbread crumbs, melted butter and 3 1/2 tablespoons sugar.
2. Press biscuit mixture into an 18cm loose bottomed cake tin and place in refrigerator until ready for use.
3. In another bowl, beat cream cheese, remaining sugar and lemon juice.
4. Fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture and spread over the biscuit base.
5. Freeze cheesecake for 1 hour, covered with aluminium foil. Place in refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving. If desired, top with sliced strawberries or any kind of fruit topping when serving.

Provided by:Allrecipes Last updated: 30 Sep 2011

Scrumptious Palmiers

2012-05-22T00:00:00.001-07:00

Little Teochew

Buttery Crispy Palmiers

Suhartino Crispy Battered Chicken

2012-05-18T11:54:00.002-07:00

1 chicken thigh, bone-in, skin on
Marinade:
1/4 tsp Thai Garlic Pepper Spice Mix to both sides of thigh
1 tsp Kecap Manis

Let marinate overnight in fridge

Sit and room tep for 30-45 min
Coat with freshly grated coconut (2 Tbl) mixed into 2 Tbl Thai Garlic Pepper Spice Mix, and I think I added 1/2 tsp sesame oil.
Add 1 Tbl cooking oil to HCP and heat under low-medium heat HCP for 1-2 min, but not smoking hot.
Saute on skin side until nicely browned, about 1 min, depending on fire.
Saute on other side for 2 min

Simply turn and judge degree of sauteing so that each side is browned nicely.

Test done-ness with a fork or knife.

Next time to test cooking technique and timing again.
2 min before fire off.

Finally fire off, and allow to sit in covered pan for 5 min to allow further cooking under transient heat.

Ayam Panggang with Serai & Coconut Milk

2012-05-18T01:15:00.001-07:00

My HappyCall Pan & EZ-Lock Containers

2012-05-16T06:56:00.001-07:00

EZ-Lock Containers
EZ-Lock Containers 520ml USD8.89 Value

David Rocco's Beef Tripe

2012-05-16T04:20:00.000-07:00

TRIPPA ALLA FIORENTINA
1.7 lb tripe (800g), cleaned, boiled and cut into strips
10oz can of peeled plum tomatoes (283g)
1 celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (90ml)
1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano cheese (120ml)
Salt and pepper to season.

To start your Trippa alla Fiorentina:
In a saucepan, heat extra virgin olive oil. Sauté garlic, celery, carrots, and onions until they are soft. Add tripe and cook together on medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add can of peeled plum tomatoes including juices. Break up whole plum tomatoes with the back of a fork. Let cook together for about 15 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened. Remove from heat and add freshly grated parmigiano cheese. Stir well and serve warm. For 4 persons.

+++

Rice-ball stuffed with Mozarella Cheese
David also showed his rice ball with mozzarella cheese stuffed inside the ball. He suggst using sticky rice or left-over risotto.

Basically, he made a rice ball using his bare hands, make a hole in the ball, and tuck in pieces of mozzarella cheese and he then seals the ball, coat it in egg wash, then in bread crumbs liberally. Finally he tossed the balls in hot olive oil to fry until browned and crisp. And left to drain the oil on kitchen tissue. Must try since cheese inside fishballs that I've tried taste glorious!

Beef Lasagna

2012-05-16T04:16:00.000-07:00

Every time I sit down at an Italian restaurant I would always come back to a safe choice - beef lasagna - after purveying the usual pasta dishes, grilled salmon, etc on the menu.

I thought lasagna is difficult to cook and I love the taste of cheese with beef. So I was really surprised and hooked when I saw how easy David Rocco made his lasagna. In the TV program, he used only Parmigiano Reggiano (or parmesan outside of Italy) cheese on top, whereas on his site he mentioned mixing mozzarella pieces with the Bechamel sauce spread on the pasta sheets. What I thought was minced beef in the TV show is Bolognaise sauce in the recipe.

Bechamel Sauce, used in lasagna, is easy to prepare, if you follow David Rocco's method. As his method was so incredibly easy when I saw it, I decided to google for it. Luckily I was able to retrieve the method from his site, davidrocco.com.

LAZY MAN'S LASAGNA

See also: Tyler Florence - The Ultimate Lasagna
All Recipes-Video: World's Best Lasagna
All Recipes-Article: World's Best Lasagna

Recommended: New Taste Sensation - Tilapia Fish Curry

2012-05-14T07:58:00.000-07:00

ADD went to SS and bought a live fresh Tilapia, 582g for $3.30 today. We had never cooked Tilapia fish curry and wanted to see how it compares with our erstwhile favorite - salmon fish head curry. First we prepared the curry broth using our salmon fish head curry recipe, and added okra. Then we put the tilapia - cut into 3 pieces - into the gently simmering broth. Temperature and timing are the secret to cooking fish to perfection. For this experiment I lowered the curry to a very gentle simmer, and set total cooking time for 8 min.

Taste Test
First bite, and I was surprised! The Tilapia was cooked to perfection, and ADD concurred . The taste? Sensational! Excellent texture, very refined, svelte and smooth! The flesh didn't fall apart nor flake! The flesh was very fresh, sweet, with none of the fishy or earthy aftertaste that Tilapia is well-known for. Perhaps this one wasn't farm-raised?

We didn't expect Tilapia to rival salmon, but it did, edging it decisively - perhaps because it exceeded our expectations? We will certainly cook Tilapia curry again. After all, it is 1/3 the cost of salmon!

Preparing the Tilapia:
1. Scale the fish with your sharp knife to remove any remnant scales.
2. Use a kitchen shear to trim the tail and fins.
3. Salt liberally and place in fridge for 10 min.
4. Wash away the salt and cut into 3 pieces with a slant.

Method:
1. Cook your fish curry as detailed here, including the okra, etc.
2. Reduce the curry broth to a simmer.
3. Gently place the tilapia pieces into the simmering curry.
4. Set timer for total cooking time of 8 min.
5. If the curry is not enough to cover the fish entirely, turn the fish over after 2 min.
6. After 6 min, flip over the fish gently, taking care not to flake the flesh.
7. Garnish with coriander leaves, 1 sprig.

Plate up and serve with freshly cooked jasmine rice.