ASSAM HAE [FRIED TAMARIND PRAWNS]

Assam Hae, is a very common dish in my mum’s place. She prepares this very often and I have posted her recipe before.

Yesterday, I prepared this dish with some prawns leftover from CNY celebration, according to the recipe from the book ‘Nyonya Flavours’. 

The fried tamarind prawns turned out very tasty and delicious eventhough the prawns which I used aren’t that fresh.

For the photos, you would notice that the head and tail of the prawns have changed colour. I cooked half portion of this recipe.

Recipe adapted from Nyonya Flavours [My selected cookbook of the month for Cookbook Countdown Event #2 – February 2016]

Ingredients - slightly modified

500 gm fairly large whole prawns – trimmed the head

Some oil for frying

Marinade

80 gm tamarind pulp

½ tbsp each of salt, sugar and dark soy sauce

25 ml water

1. Wash and drain prawns in a colander.
2. Combine marinade ingredients well. Marinate the prawns for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.
3. Heat some oil in a non-stick wok over medium low heat. Add prawns and marinade, fry until slightly burnt and aromatic or until prawns are cooked through.
4. Dish out onto a serving plate.  Served with sliced zuchini and sambal belacan.
   
   
   
   

I'm submitting this post to Cookbook Countdown 2 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily's Cooking [Makan2] Foray

EZCR#42 - FRIED STREAKY PORK BELLY SALAD

I cooked this dish on the 6th day of Chinese New Year in my own kitchen. When my hubby saw this dish, he asked why I did not prepare this at his mother’s place. This year like in the past, we spent 6 days at my MIL’s place, preparing for CNY there. Even though we live in the same state, I never have the chance to spend CNY eve or CNY at my own house cos’ I have to do all the cooking for days at my MIL’s place. There isn’t time for me to be back home cos’ there is no other women folk in her house to help. 

My MIL does all the shopping/marketing, while I do all the food preparation and cooking with whatever she bought for many meals.  So my response to my hubby's query is ‘The main ingredient [streaky pork belly] isn’t available at your mum’s place'.

At times, it is rather impossible to cook what you wish to if the shopping/marketing is done by another especially when you can’t even plan a menu. I just need to wait for instructions from my MIL what she wants me to prepare and sometimes the ingredients needed aren’t sufficient too.  So you need to improvise and make use of what you have in hand and also to avoid wastage.  I never like to waste food ingredients.

You may be wondering why I didn’t do the marketing since I’m doing the cooking. This is not allowed, she loves to buy. If both of us does the marketing, then there will be excess and wastage in the end.

Back to this dish, it is very easy to cook yet it is so presentable, tasty and delicious. The sauce is sour, savoury and spicy while the fried pork is crispy, tasty and aromatic.  Both blends very well.  You may increase the sauce portion if you prefer more sauce.

Ingredients

300 gm streaky pork belly – cut into 3 inch length pieces

Some salad leaves

Some sliced tomatoes

Some toasted sesame seeds

Sauce [combined]

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp Apple cider vinegar

1-2 tbsp chilli sauce [more if you like it spicy]

1. Marinate streaky pork belly with some light soy sauce, wine and mirin [can replace with some vinegar and sugar].
2. Heat a non-stick wok without oil, fry pork belly pieces [in single layer] until oil oozes out and crispy on both sides.
3. Line serving platter with salad leaves and tomatoes [ you can add canned peaches and blanched broccoli florets].
4. Place fried crispy pork slices on top of salad, drizzle sauce over meat and sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds.
5. Serve immediately.
   
   
   
   

EZCR#41 - BRAISED CHICKEN WITH FROZEN TOFU

Here is a new way of preserving soft tofu for cooking later that I learned. If you happen to buy tofu [soft beancurd] and not cooking it immediately or afraid that it may turn rancid, not to worry. You can try cutting it into big cubes [bite size or serving size], place the cubes in an air tight container and chuck it into the freezer for days. Just thaw to room temperature when you are ready to cook it. You will see tiny holes [pockets] in these cubes instead of the smooth and soft texture of fresh tofu. These tiny holes will soak up the flavours and seasoning sauce when you braise, stew or steam them with meat or chicken which made them tasty.

Ingredients

1 piece soft tofu [cubed ,freezed and thawed]

1 deboned chicken whole leg with skin – cut bite size pieces

Some chopped ginger and garlic
Garnishing - some chopped red chilli and spring onions

Seasoning

1 tbsp each of light soy sauce, oyster sauce and wine

¼ - ½ tsp sugar

Dash of pepper to taste

1. Marinate chicken pieces with 1 tbsp each of light soy sauce, wine, some beaten egg and cornstarch.
2. Heat a non-stick wok with some oil, pan fry marinated chicken pieces [skin side first] until nicely brown. Flip over to fry the meat side until brown, too.
3. Push aside, add in ginger and garlic, sauté until fragrant. Add in frozen tofu cubes, seasoning and stir fry to mix well for several minutes. Add in enough water to cover ingredients.
4. Bring to boil and cook until gravy is thick. Taste to adjust seasoning.
5. Dish up, sprinkle chopped chillies and spring onions. Serve with rice or porridge.

WHOLEMEAL PAUS WITH SAVOURY SWEET FILLING

I had some savoury sweet chang filling left over from making of Puah Kiam Ti Rice Dumpling and used it as filling [click here for the recipe] for this wholemeal pau.

The pau skin is soft, moist and chewy. I believe this can be a basic wholemeal pau recipe which you can use with any other fillings of your choice.

Ingredients for Pau Skin

[makes 20 small paus]

240 gm pau flour

20 gm wholemeal bread flour

25 gm icing sugar

20 gm shortening

1 ½ tsp instant yeast

160-170 ml water

1. For Pau Skin – combine all the ingredients [except shortening] in a mixing bowl. Knead until soft then add in the shortening. 
2. Continue to knead until soft, smooth and pliable. Shape into round and cover to rest for 10 minutes.
3. Divide dough into 20 equal portions, shape into rounds then flatten each into a circular disc.
4. Wrap filling with dough and pleat into a pau shape. Place on a piece of paper.
5. Repeat process until finish. Leave to proof for 30-40 minutes.
6. Steam over rapid boiling water for 10 minutes or until cooked through.
7. Remove to cool on rack or serve immediately.

NYONYA SAVOURY SWEET RICE DUMPLINGS [PUAH KIAM TI CHANG]

Heard of this rice dumpling? Have you tried eating or making it?  I think most rice dumpling lover know about this Nyonya style 'chang'.

Before browsing through the recipe, I always thought that this kind of chang is more difficult to make than the Kiam Bak Chang. The rice has to be steamed first and moreover the some rice has to be coloured. Anyway, I took the time to slowly run through the ingredients and the steps. Looks easy so long as I can prepare the fillings earlier and the wrapping probably the next day.
So these are the ‘fruits’ of my 'labour'…..They not only looks nice but tasted good.  I'm very happy with the result.  My sis gave a thumbs up after trying one. 

The rice is soft, chewy and taste good with the aromatic savoury sweet filling. Making them small looks dainty but you can always increase the rice portion to make bigger dumplings and also to finish off the fillings.   My hubby says it is not necessary cos’ it is eaten as a snack rather than for a meal.  Perhaps, next time, I will double the rice portion so that there won’t be leftover filling and more rice to cover the filling.   I had leftovers - used up in the next post].

Recipe Source for my selected Cookbook for February 2016 – Nyonya Flavours [modified]

Ingredients
[makes 20]
40 dried bamboo leaves – soaked until soft and wiped dry
Hemp strings
2-3 blades of pandan leaves – washed and cut into 3 cm lengths
Ingredients for Filling
300 gm pork belly – skin removed and chopped coarsely
150 gm candied winter melon [tungkwa] – chopped
100 gm ground roasted peanuts
1 tbsp peppercorns
50 gm [8 cloves] garlic
20 gm [3] cekur ginger roots
4 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp salt to taste
2 tbsp sugar to taste
2 tbsp cooking oil

1. Blend peppercorns, garlic and cekur roots in a processor until fine and mix in the coriander powder.
2. Heat oil in a non-stick pan, sauté ground spice ingredients until aromatic. Add in pork and stir fry until well mixed.
3. Add in sugar and salt and a dash of water. Stir to combine and cook until meat is cook and tender. 
4. Add in the candied winter melon and continue to fry for a few seconds. Off heat and leave fillings to cool before adding in the ground peanuts. Set aside until required or refrigerate.
5. Note – this portion of filling is enough for 750 gm of rice. If using more rice, just increase the other rice ingredients proportionately.
   
   
   
   

Ingredients for Rice
500 gm glutinous rice
2 tbsp indigo blue colouring [extracted from the butterfly pea flower/bunga telang]*
* blend 30 blue pea flowers with some water in a blender, strain to obtain the blue coloured water enough to soak the rice
250 ml thick coconut milk mixed with 1 tsp salt

1. Wash glutinous rice until the water runs clear. Remove 160 gm of the rice to a separate bowl and soak it with the blue pea water enough to cover the rice. Mix well.
2. Soak both rice overnight in the water and drain before use.
3. Bring water to boil and steam the plain and blue glutinous rice separately for 1 hour or until rice is cooked and soft. I steamed them for 1 ½ hours.
4. Stir in 1/3 of the coconut milk to the blue rice and 2/3 of coconut milk to the plain rice. Continue to steam for a further 10 minutes. Fluff up before use.
   
   
   

To Wrap the Rice Dumplings

1. Overlap 2 bamboo leaves together and fold into a cone. 
2. Fill cone with 1 heaped tablespoon of plain glutinous rice and 1 tsp of the blue glutinous rice. 
3. Top rice with 1 tablespoon of the savoury sweet filling and cover with another tablespoon of plain glutinous rice. Top with a piece of pandan leave.
4. Fold the loose end of the bamboo leaves over the rice and wrap dumpling into a pyramid shape. Secure with a hemp string.
5. Repeat the process until you have a dozen dumplings in a bunch or until all the ingredients are used up.
6. Steam dumplings over boiling water for 30 minutes. Remove to cool.

I'm submitting this post to Cookbook Countdown 2 hosted by Kitchen Flavours and Emily's Cooking [Makan2] Foray

I'm submitting this post to Little Thumbs Up event hosted by Sweet Home-Chefs with her February 2016 theme - Chrysanthemum and edible flowers organised by Zoe from Bake for Happy Kids and Mui Mui of my little favourite DIY,