Ping's Passion

Good old fish

2012-04-02T15:15:00.001-07:00

My boyfriend and I decided to cook fish for lunch as we wanted to eat heathily after a long gym session. We bought a whole salmon and rainbow trout from Tesco and took it home to cook. We first had to de-scale the fish and then clean out all the dirt from the inside. After making sure it is nice and clean we then cut slits so that we can stuff some butter, garlic and herbs to give the fish extra flavour. We used fresh parsley,dill and chives mixed with garlic butter. We cut slices of lemon and then drizzled some olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper before placing it in the oven. The rainbow trout was wrapped up in foil so that all the flavour stays inside and makes the fish nice and soft.

Lunch at Raymond Blanc's Brasserie

2012-04-01T14:55:00.000-07:00

I went to eat at Brasserie Blanc with my boyfriend in Milton Keynes to see how special Raymond Blanc's food actually is. He is one of the most famous French chefs known in the UK and I often see him on television presenting his great French recipes which always look sooo appetising and makes my mouth water every time. He was awarded 2 michelin stars and opened about 15 branches of his famous Brasserie Blanc which can be found all over the country. Le Manoir in Oxford is his most well known restaurant which was given 2 michelin stars and it is one of the restaurants that I would love to visit one day. Anyway here is what we ate at Brasserie Blanc in Milton Keynes.

My Starter ~ ham hock and pea rissoto


Mains ~ Slow cooked belly pork, roast green apple sauce, spring cabbage

Mains ~ Mushroom stuffed corn fed chicken, fairy ring mushroom cream sauce


Dessert ~ apple and almond crumble


Dessert ~ Sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream

Overall I would say the meal was definitely very good and better than what I had expected. The taste was spot on and worth the money.

Eating in Tenerife!

2012-03-31T16:05:00.002-07:00

Ok so I just came back from a week's holiday in Tenerife and ate so much food that I have put on almost half a stone no joke. But the food was so good that it had to be eaten and tested out by me. Because we went on a package holiday the hotel provided us with half board which was a buffet breakfast and dinner every day we were there. I wasn't really expecting much from hotel food as I have oftened experienced below standard quality food but this was to my amazement. The food at the Paradise Park Hotel was lush! Not only did it taste home cooked but it was also very authenic Spanish/Mediterranean with alot of flavours. It was also different everyday which was nice. Here are some photos of the food I had.

One of our lunches consisted of tiny baguettes with lots of different fillings that we could choose from. However, the menu was all in Spanish and without understanding any of it we just decided to pick any at random and hope for the best. At first we didn't even know we were going to be served baguettes and so ordered quite alot but nonetheless they were very tasty although abit too much for the two of us.

Another time we had lunch at a tapas bar called El Cine in Los Christianos which was fantastic. It is definitely worth visiting and it's full of locals that you know you won't be dissapointed. They often have a long queue as it's so popular even when the menu only has around ten dishes. Prices are reasonable too with most dishes costing around 5euros.


Chicken wings were very tasty and seasoned well

Most of the food served is fresh from the sea such as grilled cuttlefish, hake, sardines, herring, mackerel, prawns, fish of the day, fried octopus, squid etc. And all the food is cooked to perfection.

Grilled hake fish with tomato and onion salad


Grilled octopus and king prawns

Grilled mackerel

Dim Sum at Home

2012-03-25T17:29:00.004-07:00

Yesterday I went over to a friend's house for some home cooked Chinese breakfast. We had dimsum which means 'touch the heart' when translated into English. Typically in chinese restaurants dimsum would be small bite-sized portions of food served on little plates. In chinese we call it 'yum cha' which means to drink tea, and chinese tea is usually drank together with the meal. Usually chinese families go on a weekly basis to yum cha and this is the time to gather the whole family together and catch up on everyone's lifes.

Table nicely layed out with Chinese bowls and plates. Chinese tea served in beautiful teacups.


Deep fried spring rolls with meat and vegetables


Steamed Chicken Claws with Black Bean Sauce (豉汁蒸鳳爪)

Glutinous Rice wrapped in Lotus Leaves (鮑汁糯米雞)

Glutinous rice with pork, dried scallops, mushroom, chicken, egg yolk and water chestnut


Congee with preserved egg and thin pork slices

Shaomai (燒賣 siu maai): Small steamed dumplings with either pork, prawns or both inside a thin wheat flour wrapper. Char Siu Bau (叉燒包, cha siu baau): Steamed barbeque pork buns

A selection of sweet buns and egg tart

The Spot Soul Food Kitchen

2012-03-22T16:55:00.001-07:00

Big Mamas Kitchen

Today me and my friend Charlotte went to try out some soul food which is traditional African American food. Soul food became popular in the 1960s and is commonly known as slave food that was left over from the plantation. The African American slaves cooked with 'greens' such as collards, kale, cress, mustard and pokeweed. Discarded cuts of meat is also used in their cooking such as pig's feet, oxtail, ham hocks, pigs ears, pigs intestines, tripe and skin.

We went to "The Spot" in Kilburn. Visit website: www.thespotfood.com

The place is rather like a fast food takeaway with about four tables and the food is served in polystyrene boxes with plastic knives and forks, (this is probably why the food was so cheap as they can save on washing up costs). Nonetheless, the food was tasty although not presented in the most classiest way. It reminded me of Big Mamas Kitchen and the lady who came out of the kitchen was an African quite chubby woman who I assumed is the main chef hehe.

Spicy Ribs, Macballs and Candid Yams

MacBalls - Macaroni Cheese in a crispy fried ball


Meat Gumbo, Mac Cheese and Mash

Sweet Potato Pie with vanilla ice cream

Malaysian Curry Laksa

2012-03-20T15:00:00.001-07:00

Malaysian curry laksa is one of my favourite Malaysian dishes and it is one of the first things I would eat when I go back to Malaysia. It is a very popular dish that can be found in almost all the hawker stalls in Malaysia although there are many different versions depending on which area you are in. Curry laksa can be described as a curry noodle soup and the noodles are usually yellow egg noodles and rice vermicelli. The dish is often complimented with chicken, prawns, fish balls, fish cake, tofu puffs, beansprouts and long green beans. Other ingredients can also be added such as seafood eg.cockles, lobster, crab.

It is very difficult to make curry laksa taste exactly the same as those served in Malaysia as we can't find all the ingredients in this country and for some reason everything just tastes so much better in Malaysia. However I have found this curry laksa paste made by Tean's Gourmet which is the closest replica. It is a pre-cooked concentrated spicy paste from ground fresh spices.It makes it so much easier to cook without having to get all the right spices.

Ingredients :

1 packet of Tean's Gourmet Malaysian Traditional Curry Laksa Paste
1lb of chicken breast
12-16 pcs of dried tofu (Tofu puff)
1 packet of long green beans
4 hard boiled eggs
1 can of 150ml coconut milk
Half a packet of bean sprouts
600gm of yellow noodles or vermicelli
1 packet of king prawns cooked
1 packet of fishballs
1 packet of fishcakes

Method:

1. Boil your eggs in hot boiling water until fully cooked and leave to cool. Peel and cut into slices.
2. Get a pot of 1500ml of boiling water and cook the chicken breast. Slice the chicken into thin slices andset aside.
3. Mix 1 packet of Tean's Gourmet Curry Laksa Paste in the boiling water that was used to cook the chicken.

4. Add in 150ml of coconut milk and bring to a quick boil then switch to a low fire.

5. Add in the fried tofu.
6. Blanch the fresh yellow noodles and vermicelli in boiling water until cooked, then set aside.

7. Cook the bean sprouts and set aside.
8. Divide into 4 large bowls with the noodles, bean sprouts and green beans. Then add the sliced chicken breast and hard boiled eggs on top. Pour the hot steaming curry laksa into bowl with the fried tofu.

7. If you want more taste and spice, you can add some soya sauce or fish sauce and chilli paste. Also lime juice for a slight kick.

Delicious Home Made Scones

2012-03-19T14:54:00.001-07:00

YUMmmmm.....

After having such a yummy afternoon tea with my boyfriend yesterday I decided to make some home made scones today. I used to make them a long time ago and I don't know why I don't make them more often because they are just so good.

Ingredients:

440g plain flour
50g baking powder
80g butter
150g double cream
150g milk
80g sugar
1 egg

Method:

1. Rub butter into flour to create crumbs.

2. Add baking powder and sugar

3.Mix double cream and milk together and add into the flour mixture.

4. Bind all together by hand, add sultanas if prefered, until a dough is formed.

5. Roll flat to about 2cm in height and cut into round shapes using a circle cutter.
6. Glaze the top of each one with beaten egg.

7. Cook at 180°c for about 15mins until golden brown.

Spread some strawberry jam and a dollop of clotted cream and it is just heavenly!!!!

A Lovely Afternoon Tea

2012-03-18T16:50:00.000-07:00

I went for a lovely afternoon tea with my boyfriend at The Leonard Hotel near Oxford Street. It is a small beautiful hotel with pretty boutique decorations and many art paintings on the walls. After a long walk along the busy and crowded Oxford Street, it was so nice to sit down and relax in this peaceful and tranquil hotel.

The dining room is quite small but very elegant and the soft music added its the peacefulness. The tables are wonderfully dressed with beautiful English crockery. The service is also top class and nothing bad can be said about this place. The whole experience was just delightful.

The Afternoon Tea consisted of:

YOUR CHOICE OF TEAS, EARL GREY, PURE GREEN TEA, PEPPERMINT, DARJEELING, MINTY GREEN TEA, WHITE JASMINE, WILD BERRY, CAMOMILE TEA

SELECTION OF FRESH HOME MADE SANDWICHES,

TRADITIONAL HOME MADE SCONES WITH FRESH CREAM AND PRESERVES,

SELECTION OF FRESH PASTRIES

£16.50 PER PERSON

It was Sylvester's first time having afternoon tea and you can see that he was so eager to try it out. I think he definately enjoyed it especially the scones with clotted cream.

The scones were delicious! They were made fresh and served hot so that they will just melt in your mouth. It was perfect together with jam and clotted cream. I think I couldn't have asked for more. It was a perfect end to a long day of walking.

The middle plate consisted of vanilla cheesecake and two chocolate muffins with chocolate cream and vanilla buttercream. The lower plate was a selection of sandwiches which were ham and mustard, smoked salmon and cream cheese, cucumber and egg mayonnaise.

Overall I would say this place is definately one of my top choices for high tea. It was so delicious and such a relaxing atmosphere and I highly enjoyed myself. It is also value for money compared to The Ritz which is so overpriced.

Another Korean Meal

2012-03-17T14:53:00.002-07:00

It seems like I can't get enough of Korean food. I love it so much I will never get sick of it because it's just so tasty. Today I went to Sarang in Golders Green with my family. It used to be called Kimchee a while ago and has now changed it's name to Sarang but fortunately everything is exactly the same even the menu. Each table has its own BBQ grill in the centre which is what we went for.

Firstly we had some side dishes which included kimchee (spicy pickled cabbage), pickled vegetables and seasoned beansprouts in sesame oil. We also had a bowl of seaweed soup each which is something similar to the Japanese miso soup.

The Korean tea we drank has a different sort of flavour to other oriental teas and tastes quite nutty. Korean tea can be made from fruits, leaves, roots or grains. The one served to us was roasted rice tea called Hyeonmi cha (현미차).

Fried meat dumplings with sweet vinegar sauce

Spicy rice cakes with seafood


Jap Che - Stir fried glass noodles with vegetables

Now we come to the mains which is my favourite Korean BBQ meat. We ordered three different types of meat; beef, pork and chicken.

This is Bul Go Gi - thin slices of beef marinated in a mixture of soy sauce, garlic, pepper, sesame oil and topped with onions. It is one of the most popular Korean BBQ dishes and the meat is very tender and sweet.

Apart from the BulGoGi we also had Daeji Bulgogi (spicy marinated pork) and Dak Bulgogi (specially marinated cuts of chicken). All three meats were cooked on this hot barbeque plate which was very fun to watch. The waiter cooks it infront of you on the table and the smell is just wonderful.

My father attempting to cook the meat himself

Of course I could not eat Korean food without ordering my favourite Dolsot BiBimBap (assorted rice in a stone pot). As always I went for the beef one with a raw egg that cooks once the rice is all mixed together. The stone bowl is so hot that the rice sizzles and must be constantly turned so that it doesnt go hard at the bottom. Mix it with some chilli paste and it tastes so good.

A Wonderful Turkish Lunch

2012-03-15T16:56:00.005-07:00

Today I went out for lunch with my friend Tess at a Turkish restaurant called Isot in Radlett. The lovely owner kindly offered us the lunch for free as we were discussing business matters and we had the option to choose anything we wanted from the menu. There was too much to choose from so here are photos of what we ate which was all very delicious and I highly recommend this place if you are nearby.

Visit website: http://www.isotrestaurant.com/


Halloumi - Grilled Cyprus Cheese


Kalamar - Fried squid served with rocket and tartar sauce

Borek - filo pastry filled with spinach and feta cheese


Grilled Sirloin Steak served with mushrooms, chips and salad

Kuzu Sis - Grilled lamb cubes served with rice and salad

Trifle Heaven

2012-03-14T16:13:00.004-07:00

I have been having a sweet tooth for the past two days and felt like making some dessert so tonight I made a very quick and simple strawberry trifle. It is good when you have little time as it does not involve any baking or cooking.

This is strawberry flavoured jelly with canned strawberry fruit pieces. I used strawberry jelly cubes which you just add 100ml of boiling water to in a jug and microwave it for 1min. Then fill the jug up with cold water until the 1litre mark and keep stirring until the consistency is even. Pour the jelly mixture into a glass bowl with the strawberry pieces. You can use canned or fresh fruit and a mixture of different fruits according to preference.

For the sponge part I used sponge fingers and soaked them in grape juice to give them a fruity flavour. Alternatively you can soak them in port or sweet sherry which is the traditional trifle recipe. I layered the sponge on top of the jelly and then topped it with custard.

For the cream layer I whipped double cream for about 2 minutes with an electric whisk until nice and thick. To make patterns you can put the cream in a piping bag and pipe it around the dish. I decorated the top of the trifle with a few mini marshmallows and edible confetti. You can top it up with fresh fruits of your choice. And there you have it, a very nice and easy trifle and also very heavenly!

Tiramisu with Baileys

2012-03-13T16:41:00.003-07:00

Nigella's tiramisu

I was inspired by Nigella Lawson's tiramisu recipe and thought I should give it a go. I have made tiramisu in the past before but I didn't know which was the best recipe to follow. Some of them include double cream and eggs but others don't so here I am going to find out how Nigella's version tastes.

Ingredients

350ml espresso coffee, made with 350ml water and 9 teaspoons instant espresso powder, cooled
250ml Baileys cream liqueur
2 x 200g packets sponge finger biscuits
2 eggs
75g caster sugar
500g mascarpone
2 1/2 teaspoons cocoa powder

Method

Mix the coffee with 175ml of the Baileys in a shallow bowl. Dip the sponge into this liquid; let them soak on each side enough to become damp but not soggy. Line the bottom of a 22cm square glass dish with a layer of biscuits.
Separate the eggs, but keep only one of the whites. Whisk the two yolks and the sugar together until thick and a paler yellow, then fold in the remaining 75ml of Baileys, and the mascarpone to make a moussy mixture.
Whisk the single egg white until thick and frothy; you can do this by hand with such a little amount. Fold the egg white into the yolky mascarpone, and then spread half of this mixture on top of the layer of biscuits.
Repeat with another layer of soaked sponge fingers, and then top with the remaining mascarpone mixture.
Cover the dish with clingfilm and leave in the fridge overnight. When you are ready to serve, push the cocoa powder through a small tea strainer to dust the top of the tiramisu.

My lovely tiramisu :)

So delicious I can eat it all!

Simple Monday Dinner

2012-03-12T15:55:00.001-07:00

Today I cooked up a very simple Italian meal. I made baked pasta shells with mince beef and spinach topped with melted cheese followed by a side salad.

Ingredients:

Half a packet of large pasta shells
One packet of mince beef
One packet of spinach
One bottle of Pasta sauce
Grated cheddar cheese

Method:

1. Boil pasta shells until soft

2. Fry the mince beef in a little oil until browned and add pasta sauce. Put in the spinach and stir until cooked.

3. Pour the mince and sauce over the pasta and mix well.

4. Put in a baking dish and top it with cheese.

5. Bake in oven at 200°c for 15mins.


Side salad - Crispy lettuce leaves, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, avocado, coleslaw, crabsticks, peppers, cheese and slices of fried chorizo

Salad tossed together

Korean Lunch on a Sunday

2012-03-11T15:26:00.004-07:00

Today I thought I would go for some Korean food as bimbimbap has been on my mind lately. I decided to try out Kimchee in High Holborn after hearing many friends talk about how good it is and with the plenty of posts on facebook, I wanted to see what all the hype was about. As we arrived, there was a long queue outside the restaurant which made me think 'wow this place must be good!'

Visit website: http://www.kimchee.uk.com/

The interior decoration of Kimchee is very modern and sort of a fast-food style which looks abit like Wagamama. It is quite a classy place suitable for those office workers in the area who are in a rush during their one hour break.

On the menu is a variety of classic Korean dishes such as Dolsot Bimbimbap (stone pot rice), Bibim Naengmyeon (cold buckwheat noodles in spicy sauce), Spicy Yuk Hwae (raw beef with egg), Pa Jeon (Korean pancake with seafood), and Dduk Bok Gi (spicy rice cake).

Unfortunately, with the fast-food style that Kimchee has given itself, they do not have the traditional Gogigiu which is the Korean BBQ with the charcoal grills in the middle of the table. Instead, they offer BBQ meat on the menu which is already cooked in the kitchen and nicely presented to you on a stone plate. This makes it safer for the restauranteurs and also less of a hassle of the waiters.

For starters I went for the Dduk Bok Gi. It is rice cakes with fish cakes served with vegetables in a hot spicy sauce. I thought the flavour was just right, it had enough spice and also a little sweet taste which worked well. The fish cakes also complimented the dish and gave it an extra thrill.

For mains, I ordered the Raw Beef Dolsot Bimbimbap. It is served sizzling hot in a stone bowl with rice, vegetables, raw beef, raw egg and red chilli paste. Once mixed together, all the ingredients tasted very good and the raw beef and raw egg began to cook in the hot bowl so there wasn't any raw texture in the mouth.

If you don't like the sound of having raw meat and egg in your dish then you can go for the cooked beef bimbimbap which is already stir fried and added to the dish.

For desserts they have a variety of different flavour ice cream such as green tea, almond, black sesame, red bean and chestnut.

Below is Chap Ssal Ddeok. It is a traditional soft chocolate rice cake.

Overall I would give Kimchee a 7/10. The dishes are not much different to any other Korean food you can find at another restaurant and I think I will stick to the ones in my local area which are just as good.

A little bit of Spanish

2012-03-10T14:52:00.004-08:00

Today I was having a crave for Spanish food so I dragged the boyfriend with me to get some tapas and paella for lunch. We ended up going to La Tasca which is a chain in UK but the food isn't too bad.

Succulent Pork Ribs in a tangy sauce

Slow-cooked pork belly, served with rosemary herb-scented beans.

Hand-crumbed with three-month-aged-Manchego cheese and fresh spinach, served with roasted garlic mayonnaise.

Salsa Chicken Wings with a smoky flavour

Paella De Mariscos - A seafood paella with king prawns, squid, white fish and white wine, topped with wild Patagonian tiger prawns. Galacian mussels, lemon wedges, char-grilled aubergine and peppers.

Sylvester waiting to dig right in

Vietnam Kitchen

2012-03-10T13:52:00.001-08:00

After eating at Vy Nam Cafe in Finchley Central several times, it inspired me to cook my own Vietnamese meal. Their food is absolutely splendid. I would recommend the Vietnamese spring rolls, summer rolls, BBQ squid, and spicy minced beef with rice paper for starters. Then go for their pho noodle soups which have so much flavour in them that it definately 'hits the spot'.
Visit the website http://www.vynamcafe.com


Vietnamese Spring Rolls at Vy Nam Cafe

So now it's my turn to give Vietnamese food a go at cooking. I decided to make the most famous pho bo which is a beef noodle soup.

Pho condiments - mint leaves, coriander leaves, beansprouts, chilli and lime

Surprisingly it wasn't as difficult to cook as what I had expected.

Pho Bo Recipe:

1. Buy 1lb of beef bone marrow and 1lb of beef oxtail.

2. Cut 1 onions in half and chargrill them on a gas fire.

3. Slice 2 gingers in half and chargrll them on a gas fire.

4. Wash the beef bones and boil them in hot water for 10mins to get rid of all the scum, then drain and rinse with cold water.

5. Collect together the pho spices (1 cinnamon stick, 1 tbs coriander seeds, 1 tbs fennel seeds, 5 whole star anise, 1 cardamon pod, 6 whole cloves) and wrap them up in a mesh bag then tie it tightly with string.

6. Put the bones in a large pot and add boiling water until 3/4 full. Add the onions, ginger and spice bag.

7. Add 2 lumps of yellow rock sugar, 1/4 cup fish sauce, 2 spoons salt and simmer for 2 hours.

8. Continue simmering and adjust the taste by adding more flavour ie. fish sauce and sugar.

9. Boil for another 2 hours until all the flavour is absorbed into the soup.

10. Cook the flat noodles and place in bowls with any type of meat as compliments (here I used beef balls and beef brisket slices). Pour the boiling hot soup into the bowls and serve with beansprouts, mint leaves, coriander, chilli and lime.

Next I made Vietnamese summer rolls

Ingredients:

Large king prawns cooked and peeled
Vietnamese rice paper
Vietnamese rice vermicelli
Lettuce shredded
Cucumber sliced
Carrots sliced
Mint leaves
Coriander leaves
Beansprouts
Cooked meat eg.bacon, pork slices, mince meat

Dipping sauce:

2 limes squeezed
5 spoons of fish sauce
2 spoons sugar
chopped red chilli
1 clove garlic chopped