A Full-Timed Housefly

Chinese Braised Herbal Chicken

2011-02-09T08:06:00.009+08:00

This is a chicken dish I cook regularly for my family. It is very easy to prepare , nutritious and very delicious. I used a whole kampong chicken ( free range chicken ) for this recipe. You may use wings , thighs or drumsticks or chicken breast .

I used my new Neoflam ceramic casserole to braise the chicken , usually I'll use my Scan Pan to bake the chicken. The result is equally good and my kids love their rice soak with the fragrant sauce.

You may refer HERE for the baked version , the main ingredients used are the same , just that you have to braised slightly longer than the baked version to achieve tender smooth texture.

GONG XI FATT CHOY

2011-02-02T09:28:00.001+08:00

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Taiwan Trip ( Just The 2 Of Us )

2010-12-08T15:06:00.010+08:00

Hello my dear friends , sincerely apologise for my long absence due to my Hyper-Thyroid problem. It is currently under control and I'm beginning to gain some weight back. These few months have been quite a roller coaster ride....... I was very very unhappy , feeling very very tired 24/7 and my mood swing is fantastic BAD and I sincerely apologise to my kids and especially my hubby for enduring my crazy outburst most of the time.

I'm feeling much better now as I'm on medication twice daily and I'm trying my best not to lose my temper with my family.

Since I'm feeling much better now , my hubby and I decided to travel to Taiwan just the two of us minus the kids. I spent almost S$ 2,100 just for buying stuffs for my kids and stuffs for my family , my girl Racheal was the happinest in the family as she has the most stuffs like dresses , leggings , shorts , headphone , bags , hair accessories , slippers etc and also stuff for her best friend. I also bought a doggie attire for my darling Paddy. I also bought a lot of stuffs for myself and my hubby was like " do you like this , do you like that ??? " He actually encouraged me to shop more......hahahahha

This was a 8 days trip round Taiwan with a local tour guide named Melissa who is a happy and friendly lady , she is very knowledgeable with many things and history of Taiwan. We clicked right away the moment we stepped up the tour coach for the entire trip.

I totally enjoy myself and I really treasure the happy moments I had with my hubby in Taiwan and most of all I missed my kids and my dog so much even we were away from them for just 8 days.

# Does anyone has any problem loading their images/photos ? I have problem uploading my photos , it seems to take ages to upload even just one photo , any advise ?

China Made Products

2010-07-14T15:26:00.009+08:00

Take Note : The images below may make you feel uncomfortable and disgusted

Be cautious of hair bands sold at open markets around the city – they are probably from China since they are purchased in bulk very very cheap !!!! Take a good look before buying hair bands in future – specially like the above kinds …..

These Hair bands were made from used condoms and threads. BEIJING (AFP) - Used condoms are being recycled into hair bands in southern China threatening to spread sexually-transmittable diseases they were originally meant to prevent, state media reported Tuesday In the latest example of potentially harmful Chinese-made products, rubber hair bands have been found in local markets and beauty salons in Dongguan and Guangzhou cities in southern Guangdong province, China Daily newspaper said. 'These cheap and colorful rubber bands and hair ties sell well ....... threatening the health of local people,' it said.. Despite being recycled, the hair bands could still contain bacteria and viruses, it said.

'People could be infected with AIDS, (genital) warts or other diseases if they hold the rubber bands or strings in their mouths while waving their hair into plaits or buns,' the paper quoted a local dermatologist who gave only his surname, Dong, as saying. A bag of ten of the recycled bands sells for just Rs.5, much cheaper than others on the market, accounting for their popularity, the paper said.

A government official was quoted as saying recycling condoms was illegal. China 's manufacturing industry has been repeatedly tarnished this year by a string of scandals involving shoddy or dangerous goods made for both domestic and foreign markets. In response, it launched a public relations blitz this summer aimed at playing up efforts to strengthen monitoring systems. Check your kids hair bands and make sure they do not put them in their mouth while trying to plait or tie their hair . See above for Chinese Slippers now being sold in Walmart in the US .

REMEMBER THE PAINT ON KIDS TOYS?

This is very true as I heard it in news from one of our local radios here that our govt has to be extra careful on these cheap imports from china.. These includes clothes, food, toys, slippers and even glasses because the Chinese are using some strong but cheap chemical in their manufacturing process. Cheap is becoming expensive and at the same time fatal.

PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO PASS THIS MESSAGE TO EVERYONE IN YOUR CONTACT LIST

Bitter Gourd Dried Oyster Soup

2010-05-21T15:28:00.006+08:00

This is a soup I cooked regularly for my family. My kids like most kids dislike bitter gourd , initially they put up strong protest but after several times of tasting and with lots of encouragements from me and my hubby and also I make it a point to cook bitter gourd in many different ways , they gradually learn to enjoy and will gladly help themselves with the serving without my nagging.

Ingredients

1 large bitter gourd ( seeds and rind removed )
300 gram fresh pork spare ribs
100 gram dried oysters ( mine are Korean oysters )
4 garlics ( skin removed and used in whole )
800 ml water

Method

Scald pork ribs with hot boiling water to remove smell and scum , set aside. Rinse dried oysters briefly , wash and remove seeds and rind from bitter gourd , cut into bite size pieces.

In a pot , add in pork ribs , oysters , garlic , bitter gourd and lastly water. Bring to a boil , remove any scum on the surface. Cover and boil for about an hour or slightly more on medium heat . Season with a little salt and serve hot with steamed rice

Hyperthyroidism

2010-05-19T13:05:00.003+08:00

I was diagnosed with Hyperthyroid last week. I was feeling very tired and sleepy all the time , have problem writing properly , my signatures in my credit card bills and in my new passport were all so different from my previous old signatures. Each and every one were so different . There are slight slur in my speech and I have lost a total of 9 kg the past 4 months despite good appetite. My hands and legs tremble all the time and it got worse recently when my hands tremble so bad and have no strength to even lift up my dog who weighs about 8.6 kg. I consulted a doctor last week and did a blood test and the result was no good and very disappointing.

Dear friends if you have any relatives or friends or yourself having this problem , kindly share with me your experience , I greatly appreciate.

Baked Chinese Herbal Chicken

2010-05-17T13:48:00.006+08:00

Red Dates 红枣 - Also known to nourish the blood like Angelica Roots

Angelica Roots 当归 - Renowned for its main function as a blood tonic, Angelica is a potent Chinese medicinal tonic used for enhancing blood circulation. Its most commonly use by women who consume it on a regular basis to maintain regularity in monthly menstruation cycles.

Wolfberry 枸杞 - Very high in antioxidant properties, Chinese Wolfberry is commonly consumed to promote good eyesight. It particularly nourishes liver and kidney functions and is also greatly valued for delaying ageing, boosting energy and improving internal strength.

My family love this dish and I'm more than happy when they requested me to cook this for them the other day. I added Chinese Angelica Roots 当归Wolfberries枸杞 Chinese Red Dates 红枣 the main herbal ingredients to this dish . I used a Scanpan titanium oval roaster for this recipe , you may use casserole with cover

Ingredients

1 Kampong chicken ( free-range chicken )

9 slices angelica roots

A handful wolfberries ( the more the merrier to enhance the overall flavor )

12 pitted red dates

6 garlics ( skin on )

Sauce ingredients

2 tablespoon oyster sauce

3 tablespoon premium red dates dark sauce

2 tablespoon dark soy sauce

Half teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

600 ml water

Method

Wash chicken , drained and stuff some garlics , red dates , and angelica roots into chicken cavity , the remaining into the casserole. Add seasoning into casserole and rub some onto chicken. Add water , cover and bake at 200 Celsius for an hour in a preheated oven. When done , removed chicken and chop into bite size. Serve chicken drizzle with the aromatic sauce with steamed rice immediately.

Char Siew Fried Rice

2010-05-12T23:10:00.005+08:00

I love fried rice , it is easy to prepare and it tastes good too.I bought half kilo of char siew the other day and I've planned to fry rice for dinner and also kept some to do fried rice the next morning for Jermaine to bring to school and share with his classmates.

Ingredients ( serves 4 )

Some cooked rice from previous night
200 gram char siew ( Chinese barbeque pork ) diced
2 large eggs ( lightly beaten and seasoned with salt and pepper )
Some minced garlic
Some fresh spring onion for garnishing ( chopped )

Seasoning

2 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon belacan granules ( optional )
1teaspoon salt
Some white pepper powder

Method

In a heated wok with some oil , saute minced garlic till golden , pushed aside , pour in beaten eggs , scramble and break up the eggs , add in rice follow by char siew. Fry over high heat till well combined , add in seasoning and continue to fry over high heat till fragrant. Garnish with chopped spring onion and serve hot immediately..... enjoy !

Awards From Cool Lassie

2010-05-11T14:31:00.015+08:00

This beautiful award was also given to me by Ann from I So Hungry. Thanks Ann for giving me this award. Ann is a beautiful lady who enjoys being around children and also cooking for her love one.

I received not just one but 14 wonderful awards from Cool Lassie of Pan Gravy Kadai Curry . I wish to thank her from the bottom of my heart for sharing with me these awards..... I'm still lost for words.... dear friends , please visit her beautiful blog with lots and lots of wonderful recipes and you'll be lost for words too !

For receiving these awards , I have to share with everyone my favourite actors and movies , my favourite food post etc.

Dear friends , pls share with me these awards for you deserved them too.

My favourite actor of all times and one and only - Tommy Lee Jones

I like him since I was like 25 yrs old till now. He was never handsome as compared to most famous actors in Hollywood but I like him so much I don't know why.... I feel he is sexy in a way and very unique in his own way. I watched most of his movies like The Fugitive , Volcano , Men In Black etc. and secretly hope to meet him in person someday. My hubby is jealous when I got so excited talking about him in his movies and how I like him...... he is being silly , isn't him ?

My favourite movies are Gladiator , Bodyguard , Movies wrote by Stephen King , The Day After Tomorrow and many many more.

My favourite post and also a very popular dish Chinese Roasted Pork Belly . I was very successful the first time I roast pork belly some years ago achieving very crispy skin and tender fragrant meat which this is supposed to be. It has been a regular pork dish that I love to cook for my family.

Racheal's Self Baked Cupcakes , Seafood Quiche and Stir Fried Broccoli With Cheese

2010-05-10T14:04:00.007+08:00

Three weeks ago , Racheal sat for her home economic exam . She had to prepare three items in just 2 hours and she had to wash , cut and prepare everything herself. She also had to practiced good food preparation hygiene , make sure food are not under cooked or over cooked and also food presentation for judging. I'm so proud of her that she can accomplished the task with little effort. She practiced cooking and baking at home and we were her guinea pigs. She took about 1 hour and 25 mins to complete everything and she was so confident that she'll get good grade for the exam which will be held two days later. We all gave her thumbs up for her seafood quiche and stir fried broccoli and the cupcakes not because she is my daughter but because they tasted really good.

Attached are some photos of the food she prepared at home and also photos of the food she cooked in school. Guess what , she scored 87/100 for this exam !

Anita Mui - 親密愛人(1993尊重生命義演)

2010-05-09T21:37:00.002+08:00

Sharing with you my favourite idol of all time , the late Anita Mui

Sweet Vinegar Trotter 猪脚醋

2010-05-05T22:01:00.004+08:00

This is my favourite dish during my confinements , it is also my son Jermaine's and my hub's favourite. I cook this using premium sweet rice vinegar and old gingers.

Ingredients

3 pork trotters ( hair removed and chopped into bite pieces )
400 gram old ginger ( skin on and dented )
6 hard boiled eggs
2 big pieces of rock sugar
2 tablespoon premium sesame oil
1 bottle premium black sweet rice vinegar
1 big cup of water

Method

Blanch pork trotters in hot boiling water for a few times to remove scum and smell. Drain trotters and set aside.
Saute ginger with sesame oil till fragrant , put trotter , one whole bottle of vinegar , water and ginger into a slow cooker. Cover and braised on HIGH for about 2 hours , add in rock sugar and shelled hard boiled eggs. Cover and braised for another 1 hour on LOW till trotter are tender and aromatic.

Serve piping hot with steamed rice , unfinished portion can be kept in the same slow cooker overnight for next day consumption. The taste of the cooked trotter in fact taste even better if kept overnight. I love my rice soaked with the thick and fragrant vinegar sauce and I can even drink the sauce on its own....heavenly.

Ketchup Squids

2010-05-04T17:12:00.004+08:00

I've been very busy lately and I wish to apologise to all my friends of my absence for so long.

I've in fact accumulated many recipes and photos during these time , just that I'm so tired and lazy to update after all the tedious time spent hunting for our new dream home.

This is my kids favourite squid dish and they can eat at least 2 bowls of rice topped with plenty of sweet and sour sauce each time I cooked this

Ingredients

300 gram medium sized fresh squids
2 large tomatoes
1 large red onion
Some parsley or coriander

For Sauce

4 tablespoon tomato ketchup
3 tablespoon sweet & sour chilli sauce
1 tablespoon plum sauce
1 tablepoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
Dash of white pepper powder
A little water

Method

Wash and discard all unwanted parts of squids including the ink sac. Drain washed squids properly. Cut squids into rings , slice onion and tomatoes and set aside. Mix all seasoning and water in a bowl and set aside for use later.

Heat up some oil in a frying pan , sautee onion till golden and soft , add in the tomatoes and stir fry over high heat for a minute. Add in squids and seasoning and fry till squids are JUST cooked and sauce thicken. Dish up , garnish with parsley or coriander and serve hot with steamed rice.

Baked King Prawn Yoghurt Rice Curry Chicken With Potatoes

2010-02-23T19:00:00.006+08:00

This is the eleventh day of CNY and I decided to go Indian while still celebrating CNY.You must be wondering why the name of this dish is so long ! This is our dinner last night....baked king prawns with minced garlic and chili , seasoned with a little sea salt and butter. I baked the yogurts rice with turmeric , cinnamon , cardamon etc. garnished with coriander , cashew nuts , raisins and also a very good chicken curry to go along. So sorry friends for not updating my blog soon , I have been really busy lately searching for a new house. I promise I will give all of you a good treat once I have the time.

Fried Egg Ramen With Stewed Pork

2010-02-23T13:43:00.002+08:00

This is a easy and delicious fried ramen I cooked the other day and serve it with black pepper beer chicken. This packet of ramen was given to me by my neighbour last year....lol...hopes she don't see this.

Ingredients ( serves 4 )

1 packet of egg ramen
2 medium size eggs ( beaten and seasoned with salt , pepper and light soy sauce )
1 can of stewed pork ( cut into smaller pieces )
3 stalks spring onion ( shredded )
1 fresh red chili ( shredded )
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoon oyster sauce
Half cup chicken broth
4 tablespoon light soy sauce

Method

Boil egg ramen in water till soft and loosen. Drain ramen properly and set aside.
Pan fry beaten eggs into omelet , dish up and shred it , keep aside.
Sautee minced garlic in a hot wok with some oil till fragrant and golden , add in stewed pork follow by ramen. Fry over high heat and take care not to burnt it. Add in seasoning and chicken broth and continue to fry over medium heat till well combined and sauce thicken and almost dries up. Garnish with shredded chili and spring onion and shredded eggs. Serve hot immediately.

Black Pepper Beer Roasted Chicken

2010-02-22T12:57:00.004+08:00

Ingredients

1 whole chicken
1 lime
1/2 can beer
1 tablespoon sea salt
1 cup water
1 tablespoon ground black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C
Season the chicken inside and out with salt and black pepper. Squeeze the juice from the lime over the whole chicken. Set the half full beer can in the center of a roasting pan or baking dish, and place the chicken over it in an upright position with the beer can inserted into the cavity. Pour water into the bottom of the pan and wrap chicken with aluminium foil and place roasting pan into the oven.
Roast the chicken for about 1 1/2 hours in the preheated oven, removing foil during the last 20 minutes. Baste occasionally with the drippings.Let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes before serving.Chop chicken into bite size and serve hot.

Fried Rice With Mixed Chinese Sausages & Waxed Meat

2010-02-17T22:31:00.004+08:00

My kids love Chinese sausages and waxed meat and since I have so many in my fridge , I decided to fry rice with these sausages and waxed meat for our dinner.

Ingredients

1 lean meat sausage
1 pork liver sausage
1 wine sausage
1 medium piece of waxed pork leg or waxed goose drumstick
3 cups rice
2 medium size fresh eggs
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
Some chopped fresh spring onion
Salt , pepper , light soy sauce and sesame oil to taste

Method

Scald waxed pork leg with plenty of hot water to remove excess fat and smell , set aside.
In a rice cooker , place washed rice and chicken broth to cover slightly over the rice. Place whole sausages and waxed meat on top. Cook rice as usual according to your rice cooker setting. Once rice is cooked , remove the sausages and the waxed meat from rice and slice , set aside for later use.

In a heated wok , sautee minced garlic and ginger with some oil till fragrant. Add in the sliced sausages and waxed meat and stir fry till crisp and fragrant. Break the eggs in one by one and cooked till almost formed. Break up egg and add in the rice and seasoning. Fry over HIGH heat till well combined. Throw in the chopped spring onion , mixed well , dish up and serve HOT.

Pork Belly With Arrowhead " Nga Ku "

2010-02-13T13:10:00.005+08:00

This is my hub's favourite ! I always make it a point to cook something which he loves and try to learn more from my Hakka mum-in-law last time. As she is not staying with us so cooking dishes the same way as her has been quite a task initially but after subsequent trying and trying , I finally made it. As for the Nga Ku , I'd just peel thes skin and my hub dent it with a pestle in a mortar , I don't cut or slice them at all. In this way , natural flavor will be released from the Nga Ku and it remain very crunchy. This is one of the CNY dish I want to share with everyone . Nga Ku is not commonly available in Singapore on normals days so it is a special dish for us during CNY.

Butter Penguin Cookies

2010-02-13T10:47:00.003+08:00

I baked these butter cookies last week and hesitated to post it on my blog as I worried my friends will laugh at me.....my daughter encoraged me to post it as she thinks the cookies were yummy and the penguins are cute. Will not post any recipe here just want to show you my creation. Hope you like them as much as my kids.

Banana Walnut Cake

2010-02-12T20:52:00.004+08:00

For those who followed me from the beginning since last May, they know pretty well that my baking skill sucks....lol..... this banana cake is the only cake that I managed to bake quite successfully. It is really moist and fragrant and my family like it a lot.

Carrot & Parsley Omelet

2010-02-11T17:11:00.003+08:00

Simple and yummy shredded carrot and chopped parsley omelette , goes well with plain porridge. Beaten eggs seasoned with light soy sauce , salt and pepper and pan fried till golden on both sides.

Fragrant Pork Belly With Chinese Leek

2010-02-10T12:20:00.003+08:00

This is my hub's favourite pork dish but not my kids.The kids just help themselves with the pork and never touched the leek at all...lol
Chinese Leek are readily available all the time in Singapore and thus this is quite a common dish in our household.

Season pork belly with light soy sauce , a little salt and white pepper for an hour.Wash leek properly to get rid of soil and dirt and cut leek diagonally .Sautee pork belly till browned and fragrant. Add in minced garlic and leek and fry over high heat for a minute or two. Add a little water and light soy sauce and fry over medium heat till leek are soft and sauce thickens.Serve hot immediately with steamed rice.

富贵鱼鳔羹 Fish Maw Soup

2010-02-09T14:51:00.005+08:00

Ingredients ( serves 4 )

6 cups chicken stock / chicken broth
200 gram fish maw ( soaked and diced )
6 water chestnuts ( diced )
Half abalone ( diced )
5 stalks chinese mushroom ( soaked and diced )
1 tube egg toufu ( diced )
1 egg ( lightly beaten )
1 tablespoon cornstarch ( mixed with 3 tablespoon cold water )

Method

Bring stock to a boil. Add fish maw and water chestnuts , mushroom , abalone and egg toufu , cover and simmmer for 30 mins on low heat.
Add cornstarch mixture and stir till soup thickens and is smooth.
Remove pot from heat and stir in beaten egg. Garnish with chopped coriander and add dash of pepper ,light soy sauce or black vinegar if you prefer.

Deep Fried Potato Salad And Chicken Karaage

2010-02-05T15:13:00.007+08:00

I decided to do some deep frying with my " new " toy... a Tefal Pro Fryer. We had delicious chicken karaage and deep fried potato salad....It was so good and a hit with the kids. I deep fried red potatoes and bacon till crispy and mixed well with chopped onion , chopped spring onion and mayo.As for the chicken karaage I seasoned with ginger powder , corn flour , salt , garlic powder , soy sauce and pepper for 4 hours.

Beware !! Fake Birdnest

2010-02-05T00:46:00.010+08:00

See the pictures with step by step explanation.

I received these photos and information from someone last year. I have been hesitating to share or not and so after so much consideration I decided to share this on my blog. I have deleted and shaded some very sensitive information of this company so as to protect myself from being sued. I will of course not disclosed the location of this company and its country of origin. I just want to share with everyone and advise any consumers of birdnest to take extra precaution when purchasing birdnest , to purchase birdnest from reputated and trusted shops.

Birds' nests which are just taken down are very dirty and smelly. Nobody will think of consuming them at all if they see the condition. Now let me show you how the birds' nests are processed so that they are edible. The workers are getting rid of the fine feathers, grass and dirt

After getting rid of the feathers and grass, the birds' nests are cut into smaller pieces for further cleaning

Then they are soaked in water for other smaller particles to float to the top

Then they are soaked in a kind of bleaching agent for them to turn white.

The bleaching agent becomes cloudy after reacting

After bleaching, hot boiling water is used to get rid of the smell of bleaching agent. The parts of the birds' nests which cannot be bleached will be taken out

Now it's the time to mould them into shape

After moulding them into shapes, they are dried

After drying them for one day and one night, the birds' nests are ready for distribution and sale

XXXX and XXXX produce at least 800-2000kg of Cao Yan and Mao Yan. In these birds' nests, only a small amount is edible (the saliva of the bird), but they are very dirty and almost black in colour. No one would want to consume it. So should we just throw it away and waste it? No, there is of course a way of turning them into attractive products, which is bleaching. Some suppliers use H2O2 to get rid of the smell of second class birds nest.H2O2 is a rather poisonous chemical, and it might cause cancer. Only some food contain small amount of SO2 and SO3 (not more than 0.00000002%). In Japan the amount of SO2 and SO3 in all sorts of food must not exceed 0.00000001

Before this, the nutritional value in Cao Yan and Mao Yan is already very low. After processing using chemicals, the nutrient in the birds' nests is totally destroyed. Therefore, the nutritional value can be said to be lower than Pek Bok Nee [white fungus]... have you eaten before ? The birds' nests which are bleached have lost its original shape. So, businessmen turn these birds' nests into different kinds of shape. The most common shapes are leaf-shaped, strips and round shape. There are also those who dye the birds nest into yellow/ red colour, and cheat the unknown consumers by selling these birds' nests to them as Xue Yan/Jin.

The nutritional value of these birds' nest is gone and totally worthless after processing them with lots of chemicals. Do you think that people will still be selling them? Do you still want to buy and consume it?

Steamed Spare Ribs With Black Bean Soya Bean

2010-02-04T13:00:00.005+08:00

Ingredients

600 gram pork spare ribs ( chopped into bite size )

2 tablespoon chopped chilli padi

2 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced ginger

Some chopped spring onion

Seasoning

1 tablespoon fermented black bean ( soaked and chopped )

1 tablespoon fermented soya bean paste

1 tablespoon light soy sauce

1 teaspoon sesame oil

Dash of white pepper

1 teaspoon sugar

Method

Combine all ingredients and seasoning and marinate for 40 minutes.

Steam on HIGH heat for 15 to 18 minutes or until spare ribs are fully cooked. Garnish with chopped spring onion and serve hot with steamed rice or porridge

Stir Fried Cucumber With Dried Shrimps

2010-02-03T22:14:00.003+08:00

I love cucumbers and so are my family. This easy stir fry cucumber is crunchy and tastes good.

This has been my childhood food and is a common dish in many Chinese families

Braised Wings With Potatoes

2010-02-02T23:28:00.003+08:00

Braised wings with potatoes is one of my favourite dish since young and is my kid's favourite dish now. They love chicken wings and potatoes a lot so this was a perfect combination home cooked dish. For this time I used middle wings as it is much easier for the kids to eat.

Chicken Abalone Congee 鲍鱼鸡粥

2010-01-29T23:35:00.004+08:00

I decided to cook this for our dinner yesterday since I still have a few cans of abalone in my pantry. I added fresh chicken thigh , deboned and coarsely chopped and seasoned with sesame oil , a little salt , pepper and light soy sauce. For the congee , I boiled on low heat for 1 hour with chicken broth and the juice I retained from the abalones. When congee is almost ready , add in the sliced abalone and chicken , stir till well combined and cooked. Add a dash of white pepper , a dash of sesame oil and garnish with fresh spring onion.

It's Roast Pork Time !

2010-01-28T19:37:00.005+08:00

This was the second time I roast pork belly since we came back from Bali last Dec. My kids have been pestering me to roast for them even when they were still in Bali . Coming Lunar Chinese New Year , I will be roasting more for my immediate family. Come my friends , share with me this wonderfully aromatic and crispy pork belly.

新年快乐

2010-01-28T16:01:00.004+08:00

Glitter Graphics

Wishing all my Chinese friends a happy and properous new year. I will be seeing you after new year. Hopefully I can come up with more interesting New Year recipes to share with everyone.

Kidneys Care DIY

2010-01-28T14:16:00.002+08:00

CLEAN YOUR KIDNEYS WITH LESS THAN $1.00

Years pass by and our kidneys are filtering the blood by removing salt, inpurities and any unwanted entering our body. With time, the salt accumulates and this needs to undergo cleaning treatments.

How are we going to do this?

It is very easy, first take a bunch of parsley and wash it clean
Then cut it in small pieces and put it in a pot and pour clean water and boil it for ten minutes and let it cool down and then filter it and pour in a clean bottle and keep it inside refrigerator to cool.

Drink one glass daily and you will notice all salt and other accumulated poison coming out of your kidney by urination. Also you will be able to notice the difference which you never felt before.

Parsley is known as best cleaning treatment for kidneys and it is natural!

Please forward to all your friends!

Spaghetti Bolognese

2010-01-22T16:00:00.007+08:00

I'm sure everyone know and are quite good at cooking this so this is just a simple recipe I want to share with everyone. This is my kids favourite but not my hubby's. Anyway he still finished up everything on the plate with no complaint.....lol

Ingredients

400 gram minced beef

1 can whole tomatoes ( Finely chopped )

1 can tomato sauce

2 medium onions ( Finely chopped )

5 garlic cloves ( finely chopped )

6 or 7 mushrooms ( finely chopped )

2 teaspoon ready to use oregano

2 teaspoon ready to use basil

1 bay leaf

1/2 teaspoon dry thyme

Fresh ground pepper to taste

Spaghetti

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Extra virgin olive oil

Method

Peel and chop onions, garlic cloves, mushrooms . In a large frying pan , heat up olive oil on medium heat. Add onions, garlic and mushroom. Fry for 5 minutes or until onions turn soft and garlic fragrant. Pour all ingredients into a bowl and reserve for later.
Return frying pan to heat and add minced beef. Fry until browned and break apart into small clumps. Returned fried vegetables to the skillet. Add whole tomatoes and chop them up. Add tomato sauce, oregano, basil, bay leaf, thyme and ground pepper . Mix ingredients well. Cover skillet and turn heat down to simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes.
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Add spaghetti, a little at a time. Stir and add extra virgin olive oil to avoid sticking. Cook for 10 minutes or until just cooked through (no hard white center). Drain and run cool water through spaghetti. Transfer to a bowl and add a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and a half cup of grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well.
Remove sauce from stove and pour into a bowl. Spaghetti bolognese is now ready to serve.

Tear Noodle 面粉粿

2010-01-20T18:58:00.004+08:00

Tear Noodle is one dish I often cooked for my family whenever we feel like eating something soupy but filling. For this time I did not fry the ikan bilis till crispy as my hubby and myself are having sored throat . This is commonly sold in many places and are quite popular with the locals.

Try this at home and I'm sure your family will love it !

Happy 101 Award

2010-01-19T17:19:00.008+08:00

Thank you Sze Sze of My Little Things Corner for giving me this award. Please visit this humble blogger whose blog is getting better and better each day and her cooking skill is getting better too.

With this award I have to nominate 10 bloggers and to name 10 things which make me happy.

10 things which make me a happy woman

1 ) I would love to cook for my family for as long as I can.

2 ) Seeing my family healthy and happy

3 ) Playing with my handsome Shih Tzu Paddy

4 ) People love and praise my cooking

5 ) Able to donate BIG once a year to the charity

6 ) I 'm the winner each time after I fought with my hubby... lol... no worries...
no physical fist fights....lol

7 ) Won some decent $$$ each time I play Jackpot.... no kidding... I win each time
I played at the club.... be it $ 75.00 or $ 750.00

8 ) Taking my own sweet time enjoying my favourite food and drinks

9 ) Go for a hot date with my hubby minus the kids

10 ) Watching a movie that makes me laugh and laugh non-stop

I would love to pass this award to these following bloggers

1 ) 3 hungry tummies

2 ) Ann of I so hungry

3 ) Reni of cinnamon spice and everything nice

4 ) Sonia of nasi lemak lover

5 ) Anncoo of ancoo's hobby

6 ) Wendy of A table for 2 or more

7 ) Tangled Noodle

8 ) Rita of Rita's Basket

9 ) Angie of Angie's Recipe

10 ) Taste Of Home

Pura Luhur Uluwatu ( Bali Indonesia )

2010-01-18T15:29:00.007+08:00

Pura Luhur Uluwatu is one of Bali's most sacred places of worship and also one of the most beautiful of classical Balinese architecture. And again our new sarongs came in handy as we need to wear it before we step inside to visit. It was a very hot but breezy afternoon and there were loads of Korean , Japanese , Taiwanese tourists visiting this beautiful place.... hardly see any Singaporean tourists...lol... maybe we are the only Singaporean family there

Racheal removed and kept her sunglasses as she was afraid the monkey will grab it from her.

Fierce looking one huh ? Damn it !

The monkey enjoying its treat !

This monkey attacked me from the back and grabbed my sunglasses , as a result I had a slight bruise on my right cheek. A man standing there threw a packet of small bananas to it and it grabbed it using its right paw. The man threw another packet of bananas to it and it threw my sunglasses to the man and grabbed the banana with his left paw. The man later requested me to pay him 30,000 rupiah for the job.... I was amused but anyway I paid him. Not long after , another lady tourist had her sunglasses snatched by the same monkey again and now I believed the monkeys there are trained to snatch things from tourists so that their trainers can make $$$ pretending to help tourists get back their things.

This is really breathtaking ! It reminded me of The Great Ocean Road in Melbourne when we visited some years back.

Beautiful backdrop , so beautiful , isn't it ?

A Balinese girl combing her hair...hahahaha

Cordysep Chicken Soup 冬虫夏草鸡汤

2010-01-13T22:29:00.009+08:00

The last time I cooked this was few months back when I first came across this cordysep fed chicken in NTUC supermarket. The soup was so rich and fragrant and very tasty and you don't need to add any seasoning at all . My family love it alot. Heres again this delicious chicken soup to share with everyone here. Do try it , it is really good !

Another Kreative Award

2010-01-13T14:52:00.005+08:00

Gosh I nearly missed this one ! Thank you so much 3 hungry tummies for giving me this beautiful ward. Please visit this talented blogger who is not selfish in sharing her interesting recipes.

I would like to break the rule abit.... by right I have to forward this award to 7 bloggers but there are just so many talented bloggers who deserves this award so please help yourself fellow bloggers to this ward... you all deserve it ! Thank you

These are 7 things you don't know about me and with this award I'm going to disclose to you more about myself !

1 ) I hate noisy people but I'm one myself.
2 ) I love things that have unique texture and colours.
3 ) I think I'm going to die young
4 ) If you offended me with no good reasons then I'll repay you twice as much
5 ) Why does my baking skill sucks ???
6 ) I'm so glad I found interest in blogging
7 ) Does receiving this award mean I'm so CREATIVE..... hahahaha... I certainly think I am !

Homemade Mutton Satay And Peanut Sauce

2010-01-08T14:36:00.009+08:00

We had satay and ketupat last night. I oven grilled my satay and made the satay , peanut sauce and ketupat myself. This required a lot of preparation work but the effort is worth it as my hubby and my kids enjoyed their satay so much.

Ingredients

1 KG fresh mutton ( meat with fat prefer )

3 tablespoon curry powder

1 tablespoon tumeric powder

1/2 teaspoon ground chillies

2 garlic clove ( minced )

2 large onion ( minced )

4 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon honey
3 dozens bamboo skewers

Ingredients ( Satay sauce )

50 gram toasted and grinded peanut

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup thick coconut milk or cream

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1/4 cup Kechap Manis ( sweet soy sauce )

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon chilli sauce

1/4 teaspoon salt

Method for satay

Slice mutton into thin strips, no more than 1/4" thick and about 1/2" wide .
Combine the curry powder, ground chili, garlic, onions, salt, lemon juice, and honey in a large bowl. Add the mutton strips and toss well to marinate for about 45 mins.
Thread meat strips onto bamboo skewers, 3 or 4 pieces per skewer. Arrange the finished skewers in a glass casserole; cover with the remaining marinade, and refrigerate while making the sauce.
Preheat oven to 180 degree , grill the satay in the oven for about 15 minutes till cooked and golden.

Method for satay sauce

Cook all ingredients in some oil over medium heat till fragrant. Blend all ingredients together well to make a smooth sauce. Add grinded peanut to the sauce and mixed well. Keep warm till ready to serve

I boiled the ketupat rice till fully cooked and firm , drained and let them cooled properly. Cut into cubes and serve together with the satays and peanut sauce.

Pizza And Roasted Red Potatoes

2010-01-07T20:57:00.002+08:00

We had grilled smoked Brat , Pizza and roasted red potatoes for dinner last night. I cooked these using the oven...... very convienient and so delicious.

Steamed Pork With Salted Fish 咸鱼蒸肉饼

2010-01-07T14:22:00.006+08:00

This is one simple yet delicious pork dish I often cook and serve with plain porridge.... I microwaved this time instead of steaming in a steamer which I usually do. The dish is quite dry after microwaved. So if you prefer the moist one , you have to steam it in a steamer in hot boiling water. Pls refer here for the recipe..... this is a dish my mum cooked frequently when I was younger and I can never get sick of it !

Bali Indonesia ( Pat Mase Villa at Jimbaran )

2010-01-06T17:04:00.006+08:00

We stayed at Pat Mase Villa at Jimbaran , it is a beautiful villa with beautiful landscape and a private pool. The chef comes to the villa every morning to prepare delicious breakfast for us in our villa's kitchen. We enjoyed ourselves so much and we will visit again soon.

The lens of my camera was stained with water from the pool...lol... we had a refreshing morning dip in the pool ! We have scrumptious breakfast prepared by the chef in our kitchen everyday....... it is really good and fresh and we can choose from the American breakfast , Continental breakfast , Balinese style and from the menu itself , so you can imagine fresh and delicious breakfast prepared for us everyday at the villa by the chef........... this is what I called a totally relaxing vacation without having to cook for the family

Posing with the Christmas tree at the reception

Simon posing outside our room

Me and my hubby

Posing by the pool

The kids were so thrilled and excited staying at the villa.

Jermaine & Racheal posing outside their room. The room upstair is locked as we booked only 2 rooms.

This is the kids room with an attached bathroom.

The kitchen, the dining and living area separate from our rooms.

The outdoor private jacuzzi which we did not used at all...lol.... we used the pool most of the time.

This is my room I shared with my hubby. It is big , air conditioned , two separate basins in the bathroom and an outdoor Jacuzzi

Stew Pork Front Hock 焖猪手

2010-01-05T14:28:00.003+08:00

Happy 2010 my dear friends...... I cooked this before Christmas after I came back from Bali .... lol.... this is my hubby and my son's favourite pork dish. Please refer here for te recipe.... enjoy !

Bali Indonesia 2009 ( Goa Lawah )

2009-12-30T11:20:00.008+08:00

Relaxing and chilling out at a drink stall outside the bat cave , good view over the ocean towards Nusa Penida and Lombok

It was so hot and humid that day and all of us were perspiring so much especially me.... I was soaking wet and smelly...........lol

I tried taking many photos of the bat cave but somehow I couldn't get it right and clear..... I was later stopped by a local worshipper who spoke to me in English that I have to stop taking photos at once as I have offended the worshippers there when they were praying at that time. I apologised profusely and explained I wasn't aware what was going on and the rules and regulations of the temple , this was the only photo clear enough for viewing......pathetic ! Worshippers and any visitors have to wear the sorong and a sash before entering any temple. I bought sarongs for myself , Racheal and Jermaine in Ubud and it came in handy especially when we are visiting temples. Simon has to rent sarong because he is not keen to buy one.

On our way to Jimbaran , we make a trip to Goa Lawah Bat Cave. Goa Lawah is believed to be 1,000 yeras old and it is important to temple rituals pertaining to the after-life. The main feature of the temple ia a cave inhabited by tens of thousands of fruit bats.

Scenic drive at Menanga where you can see beautiful rice terrace and mountain view.

Bali Indonesia ( Kitamani And Mt Batur Part 2 )

2009-12-29T13:46:00.011+08:00

On our way down from Mt Batur to Jimbaran , we were stopped at the roadside by a woman standing in the middle of the road. My hub wind down the window to find out what's wrong. Before we knew it , she went ahead to pray and place the offerings on the car bonnet and also inside the car. We felt so awkward when she asked our names one by one and pretended to pray for us. In the end she asked to be paid 20,000 Rupiah for each person she prayed for and also 20,000 for the car..... my hub was real mad but he didn't want to offend her so he reluctantly paid her 50,000 Rupiah after a fierce bargaining. I had to comfort my hub and tell him to treat it as a real blessing for our family for a safe trip. I would like to take this opportunity to warn anyone who intend to drive in Bali , to be wary of such conmen .

Inside the restaurant , cosy and warm. We had grilled fish again , mixed vegetable and butter chicken for our dinner........... delicious and cheap.

We dined at an Indonesian restaurant on the hilltop. We were sitting outside while waiting for our food to be served. It got so cold that we have to shift into the restaurant and have our dinner there. Racheal had forgotten to bring her sweater and see what she used to cover herself.....lol
Airconditioned Deluxe chalet at about US $ 45 per night
Beautiful huts that come with a nice dipping pool and a beautiful lake view
The traditional Bali hut at US$ 48 per night

Yellow egg plant I saw outside the restaurant

We had banana fritters , fresh grilled fish from the lake and stir fried mixed vegetable and refreshing fresh orange juice

We had a wonderful lunch at the Floating restaurant on a breezy afternoon.

J & R posing at the Floating restaurant in the village of Kedisan , Lake Batur.

Farms are all over in Lake Batur and we were there at the right time to see the harvest
Simon posing with our rented car Toyota Avanza

Bali Indonesia ( Mount Batur , Kintamani Part 1 )

2009-12-28T13:20:00.009+08:00

Tomatoes growing on volcano ash rich soil

Down at Lake Batur , there are many vegetation and fishery farms here , the locals here are very friendly and I envy their laidback life. I will not rule out coming here for my retirement.
Vegetables grow on rich volcano ash soil

These were taken by Racheal too

This was taken by Racheal , you can see vehicles coming up and going down the mountain.

We have American breakfast outside the restaurant , it was so nice as we get to enjoy our breakfast and enjoying the great views at the same time.

View of Lake Batur , isn't it beautiful ?

This was taken from our balcony on DAY 2 morning.... much clearer view...... PHEW !! This volcano is inactive from what we heard from the locals..... really beautiful !

This was taken from our balcony on DAY 1

We arrived at Lakeside View hotel in Mount Kintamani around 3 pm and it was so foggy and almost impossible to see our way there..... my hubby has to drive real slowly. It was chilly up the mountain and the air up there is really good..... very suitable for me...lol.... I love cold weather and can't stand the heat during hot weather in Singapore. Our rooms were damp , smelly and creepy..... it was so dark in the evening as there were only one single miserable bulb in the ceiling and the bathrooms , the bathrooms were very smelly due to the choked drainage pipes and the toilet bowls were dirty and stinky and I have to clean them myself with lots of good smelling shampoo.....lol... my kids will not use the toilet unless REALLY necessary.... lol....omg ! There were lots of irritating houseflies.... ( did I say " irritating housefly ??....hahaha )in our rooms and it got so bad that my hubby have to " kill " them by shooting at them with rubble bands............lol.... no kidding !

Jermaine outside Ibu Oka after our lunch.

On our way up to Kintamani , we passed by Ubud and decided to stop by for lunch at Ibu Oka , famous for their Babi Guiling....... in fact it was Jermaine who recommended this place , he visited Bali with my brother Max in 2008..... so this was his second time visiting Bali.

The Babi Guiling we tried was a letdown.... nothing special , super greasy , tasteless and the skin was tough when it was suppose to be crispy but the freshly squeezed orange juice compensated it , they were so refreshing and nice and we make it a point to order fresh orange juice whenever we have our meals following that.

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Bali Indonesia 2009 ( Kuta )

2009-12-26T11:07:00.004+08:00

Simon and Jermaine posing outside Mama's German Restaurant , located at Legian Street in the heart of Kuta . Very lively restaurant which was quite packed with German tourist and tourists from other countries.

Jermaine and Racheal decided to play a round of pool at the restaurant , it is free for diners.

They ended up playing 5 rounds.....lol...... guess who is the overall winner ?

Simon's cheese baked marlin , very aromatic and delicious..... why I know...... I ate a big serving of it.....hahahahaaha.....poor Simon !

This is Racheal's cheese sausage served with potato salad and pickled salad...... she hates pickled stuffs so this was left untouched.

This is Jermaine's Jumbo hotdog bun , served with salad with a special sauce
He barely managed to finish it !

This is my chilli garlic sausages served with potato wedges , not bad but not spicy enough !!

Don't be fooled by this photo , these sausages are quite big and very filling......... BLURP !

Bali Indonesia 2009 (Tanah Lot )

2009-12-24T14:55:00.008+08:00

Managed to snap as the wave hit against the rocks behind Jermaine & Racheal.

As its name suggested , the temple is situated at the meeting-point of the land ( tanah ) and the sea ( lot ) .

The scenery is so beautiful and peaceful and Racheal wants to have her photo taken to remember this place forever.

This is Pura Tanah Lot , one of Bali's most heavily promoted landmark. It is a temple set on a small island about 100 m from the coast. The temple on the top is not accessible to the public.
The islet is only accessible on foot during low tide only. The cliffs around the island have been reinforced with concrete and tripods were sunk into the sea as breakwaters.

I took this photo while I was standing below on what appeared to be seabed or something.....lol....no idea what you called that ! You can see the water level mark on the rock when it is low tide.

This bat we saw outside a stall at Tanah Lot is huge , looks frightening but it is very tame. It is a pet belongs to a souvenir stall owner at Tanah Lot.

Bali Indonesia 2009 ( Kuta )

2009-12-23T15:26:00.004+08:00

My hubby ordered smoked marlin served with cinnamon and herbs bagel. Jermaine ordered Indonesian Nasi Goreng.

On the wall are some displayed photos of the building in the earlier days. It was establised in 1969 and quickly became an icon famous to both the locals and the tourists.

Racheal posing on the stair to the second level of the building while waiting for her food.

Lunch at Made's Warung I , Kuta , a historical mix of colonial and Balinese architecture restaurant. This is a picture of the unique alang alang grass thatch roof of the restaurant , you feel cool even in a hot weather.

Jermaine & Racheal posing in front of the Flame Of The Forest , very vibrant bloom that you will not missed even from far.

This is candi bentar ( split gate ) which worshippers often used as a courtyard entrance. It represents the cosmic mountain split into the positive and the negative forces of the universe.

A very hot aftrenoon in Kuta beach..... you can see lots of vendors selling drinks , food , massage services , hair plaiting , surfing lessons etc. The moment we stepped on the beach , we were swarmed by so many vendors following us and harassing us to buy their stuffs even when we repeatedly tell them we are not interested...... very annoying ! I decided not to take any pictures of these vendors and their stalls because I'm pissed !

J & R posing at Changi Airport Terminal 1 , gate to board Jetstar to Bali.

Steamed Golden Promfret With Salted Mustard

2009-12-10T22:50:00.005+08:00

We love promfrets.... white promfrets , black promfrets or golden promfrets... we love them all !

I added crispy pork lard to enhance the flavour , chinese salted mustard , tomatoes and silken tofu and garnished with shredded fresh chilli and parsley. The sauce from the steamed fish is so sweet and appetizing and my kids love their rice soaked with the sauce.

Tumeric Chicken Rice 黄姜鸡饭

2009-12-08T23:40:00.008+08:00

Dear friends , hope you enjoyed this Indian chicken and rice dish. Here is my version of Tumeric Chicken & Tumeric Rice... enjoy !!

This one is for my loving hubby.

This one is specially for 3 hungry tummies who enjoys Indian food so much !

Ingredients ( chicken )

6 drumsticks ( score lengthwise )

Marinate ( chicken )

2 pieces fresh tumeric ( about 2 cm each )
6 shallots ( skin peeled )
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon tumeric powder
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon salt

Ingredients ( Rice )

3 cups fragrant rice
5 cardamon pods
1 cinnamon stick
1 piece fresh tumeric ( skin peeled and bruised )
4 pips garlics ( skin peeled and bruised )
4 shallots ( skin peeled and chopped )
1 tablespoon tumeric powder

400 ml chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoon Ghee
Some raisins
Some parsley for garnishing

Method ( chicken )

Pound or grind tumeric and shallots into coarse form.
Marinate drumsticks for at least 6 hours or overnight
Preheat oven , arrange marinated drumsticks on a tray brushed with ghee. Stuff drumsticks in the slits and all over with the marinates.
Grill drumsticks for about 20 minutes on 200 degree till golden , fragrant and cooked.
Keep grilled drumsticks in the oven till ready to serve with tumeric rice.

Method ( Rice )

Saute cardamon pods , cinnamon , shallots , garlic and tumeric in ghee till fragrant. Add ingredients to rice in a rice cooker ready for cooking. Stir in salt and tumeric powder till well combined. Pour in broth and some water till slightly above rice level. Cook rice like usual.

Serve grilled drumstick with tumeric rice , garnish with raisins and parsley. Serve hot and fragrant immediately.

Fragrant Pork Ball Potato With Preserved Soy Beans

2009-12-08T14:00:00.004+08:00

My hubby and kids rated 10/10 for this dish and cannot get enough of it.They like the aromatic pork balls and the fragrant soft potatoes.

Ingredients

400 gram minced pork
3 potatoes ( skin peeled and sliced lengthwise )
1 tablespoon preserved soy beans
1 fresh red chilli
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Some shredded spring onion
1 tablespoon sugar

Marinate for pork balls

1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon salt
Dash of pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley or coriander
Some corn flour for dusting

Method

Marinate minced pork for an hour with chopped parsley. Shape into balls , dust with corn flour and pan fried in hot boiling oil till golden , fragrant and cooked. Dish up and drain on kitchen paper , set aside.

Deep fried potatoes till 90% cooked and golden , drain on kitchen paper and set aside.

In a heated wok with some oil , saute garlic and chilli till fragrant. Add in preserved beans follow by potatoes and a little water , stir fry over HIGH heat for 5 minutes. Add in pork balls and some sugar and fry over HIGH heat till eveything are well combined and fragrant. Garnish with shredded spring onion , serve hot !

Snow Fungus Pork Stomach Soup

2009-12-07T22:21:00.008+08:00

Ingredients

300 gram pork spare ribs
150 gram pork stomach ( precooked , available in supermarket )
80 gram chinese ham ( used as whole )
50 gram snow fungus ( soaked till soft and drained )
1 tablespoon white pepper corn
1 can button mushrooms
1 litre water
Some chopped spring onion for garnishing
A little salt to taste.

Method

Scald pork ribs and pork stomach with boiling water for 2 to 3 rounds to completely remove scum and smell. Soak fungus till soft and squeeze to remove excess water.
Grind white pepper corns till powdery.

In a pot , add all ingredients and water except the fungus and button mushrooms , bring to a boil uncovered. When soup is boiling , lower heat , cover pot and simmer on low heat for 2 hours. Open cover , add in the fungus and the mushrooms , cover and simmer for another 30 minutes. Dish up chinese ham , sliced and transfer back to the soup. Season soup with a little salt , garnish with chopped spring onion and serve hot immediately.

Dark Sauce Pork Belly With Tou Foo Puff

2009-12-06T22:59:00.005+08:00

This is one of my family's favourite pork dish. I marinated the pork belly for 4 hours and I used premium dark soy sauce to achieve the fragrant and flavourful taste.

Ingredients

350 gram pork belly ( sliced thinly )
2 tou foo puffs ( cut into strips )
5 pips of garlic ( bruised and skin removed , used in whole )
2 star anise
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon red dates dark sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
A little salt and sugar to taste
Dash of white pepper powder
Half teaspoon sesame oil

Marinate for pork

1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
Half teaspoon salt
Half teaspoon five spice powder
Dash of pepper

Method

Marinate pork belly for at least 3 hours. Saute garlic with a little oil till golden and fragrant. Add in marinated pork belly and fry over medium heat. Add in seasoning , a little water , fry till well combined , cover and simmer over medium heat for about 20 minutes till pork are tender and aromatic.Remove cover and add in the tou foo puffs and fry over medium heat till sauce thicken.( You may add a little more water if you want a slightly wet sauce ).Dish up and garnish with parsley and serve hot with rice or porridge.... enjoy !

Spicy African Beans With Tempeh

2009-12-05T16:17:00.006+08:00

Many of my readers have not seen African beans before and attached are 2 photos of this special bean I wish to share with all my readers. It is quite similar in texture and flavour with french beans.... however it is much thinner and shorter than french beans. Tempeh is one of my favourite and I combined these two ingredients and created a wonderful spicy dish.

Main Ingredients

200 gram African beans ( veins removed )
2 pieces of Tempeh
1 fresh red chilli ( shredded )

Ingredients A :

2 stalks lemongrass ( use only the lower white part and chopped )
6 shallots ( chopped )
4 pips garlic ( chopped )
2 chilli padi ( chopped )
100 ml oil

Ingredients B ( mixed in a bowl ) :

1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon tumeric powder
2 tablespoon fish sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
200 ml water

Method

Pan fry tempeh with a little oil till fragrant and golden on both sides. Dish up , sliced and set aside for use later.
In a heated wok with oil , saute ingredients A till fragrant. Add in African beans , chillies and stir fry over high heat till fragrant and soft. Pour in ingredients B and fry over high heat , add in tempeh ( you can choose to add in tempeh later ) and continue to fry over high heat till sauce thickens. Dish up and serve hot !

# It is OK if tempeh are all broken up during stir fry. You may choose to garnish the dish with fried tempeh later. I chose to add in the tempeh earlier so as to let it absorbed the sauce.

Spare Ribs Yam Soup

2009-12-04T18:06:00.004+08:00

This is a very fragrant soup with pork spare ribs , yam slices and shallots. I learnt this recipe from an old auntie I met at the wet market. I was choosing yam and so was she. She was having a little conversation with the stall owner talking about what to cook with yam. So I asked her for recipe and so this was it.... Yam and spare ribs soup.

Ingredients

Half fresh yam ( skin peeled and sliced )
A few shallots ( skin peeled and sliced )
300 gram pork spare ribs ( Scald with hot water )
A little salt to taste
800 ml water

Method

In a pot , sautee shallots with a little oil till fragrant , add in yam pieces and sautee till fragrant. Add in spare ribs , water , cover and simmer for about 25 minutes till yam are soft. Season with a little salt and garnish with spring onions , serve hot immediately.

Pearlyn's Curry Laksa Noodle

2009-12-03T22:11:00.006+08:00

This is my hubby's bowl of laksa with less prawns and less quail eggs but extra bean sprouts....hahahaha...he is a very health conscious man.

My bowl of laksa with extra prawns and quail eggs.....hahahahaha...greedy pig !

See ! The soup is so lemak and delicious and the noodle is so springy.

Yew Mai With Reddish Cheese 南乳油麦

2009-12-03T00:09:00.008+08:00

My hubby loves this alot and I always make sure I cooked generous portion so that he can eat as much as he want.

Ingredients

300 gram Yew Mai
1 piece reddish cheese ( mashed )
1 large fresh red chilli ( shredded )
A little salt
1 tablespoon minced garlic

Method

Wash and drain Yew Mai. In a heated wok , sautee minced garlic with some oil follow by mashed reddish cheese. Add in shredded chilli and a little salt , fry over high heat. Add in Yew Mai and continue to stir fry over high heat for about 2 minutes.
Dish up and serve hot with rice or porridge.

My Simple Lunch 简简单单又一餐!

2009-12-02T14:24:00.005+08:00

We have these for our lunch last 3 days. I'm not a sucker for instant noodles , I bought this A1 chicken herbal noodle when there was a promotion at NTUC. I just break in an egg and garnish with some spring onions and it tasted not bad with a hint of chinese herbal !

I made some beef patties with fresh ground beef ,chopped onion and chopped parsley and season with Maggi Seasoning. We have beef burgers and hot beverage for another simple home-cooked lunch.

These are some simple home-made crepes with tomatoes and butter lettuce fillings and cheese and they tasted great with the freshness and the crunchiness of the lettuces. Healthy and delicious !

Grilled Wings And Baked Mixed Veg With Cheese

2009-12-01T21:10:00.006+08:00

I felt so lazy and tired yesterday but I need to cook dinner for my family..... and these 2 simple baked dishes were more than enough to feed my hungry kids and hubby. I seasoned the wings with tumeric powder , sea salt , oyster sauce and ground black pepper and butter and marinated them for 3 hours. There were corned beef , butter , some salt , potatoes , carrot , shallots , brocolli and cauliflower in my cheese baked. The aroma of the baked corned beef is so fragrant and my kids attacked the corned beef first before anything else.

Nonya Assam Mackerel

2009-11-30T23:44:00.006+08:00

Picture extracted from online resource.
Clockwise from top right hand corner: Daun Kaduk, Daun Kesom, mint, basil, Kaffir Lime leaves

This special Nonya Assam Mackerel recipe and the picture were contributed with courtesy from Lyn , a kind new friend I've just met online.Her recipe does not require any oil thus it is a very healthy and hearty fish dish.I am very excited , very pleased and very honoured to share Lyn's recipe here with everyone.

Ingredients

6 large Mackerel ( Ikan kembong )
Some ripe pineapple ( cut into wedges)
3 tablespoon Tamarind pulp ( soak in hot water to make 4 bowls-about 2 litres )
Wild ginger flower ( thick slices)
10 stalks Duan Kesom
A piece belacan ( dried shrimp paste )
Sugar/salt/MSG to taste

Blend ingredients ( A )

3 Lemongrass
20 shallots
Fresh turmeric 5 cm
Lengkuas/galangal 5 cm
1 to 2 tablespoon Chilli Boh ( Chilli paste from dried chilli )

Method

In deep pot , pour in tamarind juice ,belachan and blended ingredients (A) to boil for 10 mins.
Add in the pineapples ,Duan Kesom and wild gingerflower slices.
Boil till pineapples are soft.
Add in sugar/ salt and a pinch of MSG to taste.
Finally add in the fishes. The curry should cover the fish slightly.
Dish out to a deep plate and garnish with wild gingerslices , serve hot with bee hoon or rice.

Note: add 2 pieces of dried tamarind skin (asam keping) if the curry is not sourish enough to your taste

Peanut Pancake 面煎糕

2009-11-30T15:53:00.014+08:00

I made these pancakes last night for my kids. They love it sweet and filled with lots of fragrant peanut.You may use more batter for a thicker pancake or lesser batter for a thin and crispy pancake.

Ingredients ( batter )

330 gram flour
1 1/2 cup warm water
1 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
1/3 cup sugar
3 medium eggs

Filling:

Some toasted peanuts ( grind coarsely )
Some sugar
Some toasted sesame seeds
Some butter

Spray Butter or normal butter or vegetable oil or magarine

Method

Mix batter ingredients together till smooth and well combined.
Leave it for about 30 mins.
In a heated pan with sprayed butter , pour a ladle or more ( depending on the thickness you desired ) batter and spread evenly out. Cover and fry over medium heat till bubbles appeared on surface and the bottom golden and crisp.
Sprinkle some peanut, sugar , sesame seeds and butter on one side of the pancake.
Fold in half and transfer to a plate. Slice or serve in whole , serve hot immediately

Sambal Belachan Ladyfingers

2009-11-30T00:12:00.005+08:00

I made this as a side dish for Friday's dinner. Instead of the usual stir fry or curried , I blanched these ladyfingers in boiling water with some added salt for 5 minutes , drained properly and place on a serving plate. Drizzle some fragrant garlic oil over and top with very spicy homemade sambal belachan.I freshly made a bottle of sambal belachan and kept it in the fridge , it can last up to 3 days.

Ingredients for Sambal Belachan

100 g fresh red chillies
50 g chilli padi ( bird eye chilli )
50 g belachan ( shrimp paste ) toasted without oil
4 tablespoon calamansi lime juice
1 teaspoon sugar

Method

Pound the chilli , chilli padi and belachan together to your desired consistency. Stir in lime juice and sugar before serving.

Warning : This is an extremely spicy sambal dip.

Fragrant African Beans

2009-11-28T13:40:00.004+08:00

These African beans are quite the same like French beans. African beans are much slimmer , shorter and much firmer and very crunchy.I stir fry it with shredded carrot , dried shrimps and preserved radish 菜埔.This very simple stir fry are very fragrant and very crunchy , very suitable to serve with rice and porridge.Pls refer here for recipe

Stir Fry Pin Noodle With Bacon

2009-11-27T16:16:00.010+08:00

I have some really nice smoked bacon sitting in my fridge , beside using it for making sandwiches for breakfast for my family , I used it for my pin noodle. This simple stir fry is really fragrant and very fulfilling for lunch.

Ingredients

400 gram fresh pin noodles
A bundle Japanese Pak Choy ( cut short section )
3 large eggs ( season with light soy sauce / pepper and beaten )
Few strips of bacon ( the more the merrier )
2 tablespoon minced garlic

Seasoning

3 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoon oyster sauce
3 tablespoon light soy sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

In a heated wok, sautee bacon with some oil till crisp and golden. Dish up and cut bacon into thin strips with scissor , set aside. In the same wok using back the bacon oil ,sautee minced garlic till fragrant , add in the beaten eggs and fry over high heat. Loosen up the eggs and add in the veggies... continue to fry over high heat for a minute then add in the pin noodles and the seasoning.Continue to fry over high heat till well combined , garnish with crispy bacon and serve HOT immediately ! Enjoy.... my friends

Honest Scrap Award

2009-11-26T15:44:00.008+08:00

I received this wonderful award with real appreciation and thanks from the great lawyer to be - Palidor. She is a talented and promising young woman who is very keen and sincere to share all her wonderful recipes with us here. Please visit her blog and give her your full support.

Here are 10 things about Me Me and Me

1 ) I'm getting so fat but have not accept the FACT

2 ) I'm an emotional person who will shed tears easily at anything...watching TV , reading a book , reading news about animals being abused and hearing negative things about myself

3 ) I can be so irritating and can be so loving ( split personalities ??? )

4 ) I love to talk and talk and talk , don't give a damn if you are listening or not !

5 ) My family are my everything , I'm ready to die for them if I have to

6 ) I can be very serious at times but most of the time I'm as crazy as can be !

7 ) Fear to die young

8 ) I'm very much a homely person....ummmmmm well it depends !

9 ) I am having frightening mood swings perhaps an early menopause... maybe ????

10) Damn it , why am I disclosing so much about myself , can I not accept this award ????

hahahaahha.... just kidding !

Ikan Batang Assam Pedas 香辣亚叁巴丹鱼

2009-11-26T14:02:00.006+08:00

I cook this fish dish regularly when I need a fix of something real spicy and sour. For this recipe I toned down the spiciness and thus reduced the amount of chillies I used. I also added egg plants and tomatoes to this dish. This dish is very appetizing with the sourness of the gravy and the tenderness of the fish flesh.Please refer here for the recipe.... do try this recipe and give me a feedback and link me , I appreciate !

Coconut Flavour Prawns

2009-11-25T13:04:00.003+08:00

This is an aromatic prawn dish I would like to share with everyone. Main ingredients are coconut milk and curry leaves..... try this anytime as it is so simple and the ingredients used are commonly available in most countries :)

Ingredients

500 gram fresh prawns ( any types )
5 tablespoon coconut milk ( you may use coconut cream )

Seasoning

100 ml water
2 tablespoon chilli sauce
2 tablespoon tomato ketchup
1 tablespoon sour plum paste
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
Some curry leaves

Method

Blanch prawns in boiling oil till 80% cooked. Dish up , drain on kitchen paper and set aside. In another pan , sautee curry leaves over high heat till fragrant and a bit crisp. Add in seasoning and simmer over high heat till sauce thicken. Add in the prawns and coconut milk and stir fry briefly over high heat for 30 seconds , dish up and serve hot immediately. Hope you enjoy this simple dish with your family.

Friendship Award

2009-11-24T14:01:00.011+08:00

I received this beautiful friendship award from Nat of Girls Are Made Of Sugar and Spice And All Thats Nice. She is my new found friend , a young and talented mother who can cooks and bakes very well. Thank you Nat for being my friend !

I would like to share this award with Anncoo , Palidor , 3 hungry tummies , Sonia and Angie , thank you gals for being my friend

Tumeric Black Promfret

2009-11-23T23:18:00.007+08:00

Fragrant pan fried tumeric promfret is one of my family's favourite. This black promfret I bought yesterday was very fresh and meaty , just so perfect for pan fried.

Ingredients

1 black promfret
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon tumeric powder
1 teaspoon salt
A little dark soy sauce

Method

Wash and pat dry fish , marinate inside and outside with tumeric powder and salt for half an hour. Heat up pan with some oil , sautee minced garlic and ginger till golden and crispy. Dish up minus the oil and set aside. Heat up the same pan with enough oil to fry fish. When oil is smoking , place fish in and fry over medium heat till fragrant and crispy on both sides. Dish up fish and garnish with crispy garlic and ginger , add a dash of dark soy sauce over and serve hot..... very simple , enjoy !

Its Roasted Pork Again And Again And Again !!

2009-11-22T00:02:00.007+08:00

Racheal said " Not again , MaMa ! " She made these remark when she saw me posting...hahahaha.... I can't blame her , I have posted several times before and there were some which I did not post at all , the reason was that I worried my readers will get sick reading them . Anyway heres my post on roasted pork again ! Dear friends please help yourself to these super crispy and fragrant roasted pork again and again and again... Blurp !

This time I roasted 6 kg , 2 kg for ourselves ( 1 kg for my family and 1 kg for Jermaine's classmates in his Poly ) another 4 kg sold to my neighbours.

My Simple Lunch And Afternoon Tea

2009-11-21T23:32:00.007+08:00

Racheal baked these choc chip and banana muffins last Tuesday and we have these for our afternoon tea ..... so blessed !

Old cucumber soup with pork spare ribs

Simple fried eggs with onion and aromatic sauce ( the one with fully cooked yolk was Racheal's and we prefer ours with runny yolks )

Stir fry kailan with crispy silverbaits

Tomatoes omelette

Braised Duck With Fragrant Yam Rice

2009-11-19T23:54:00.008+08:00

I bought a 2.45 kg fresh duck from the market yesterday , it was not so fat and quite suitable for braising. I also bought a very nice and fresh yam for cooking yam rice and braised duck for yesterday dinner. The overall preparation and cooking was quite a breeze and the dinner was delicious and very satisfying.

Ingredients

Half duck approx 1.2 kg
4 hard boiled eggs ( shell removed )
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
8 pips garlic
Some premium dark soy sauce
Some light soy sauce
Some red date dark sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups water

Method

Use half duck. Wash and pat dry duck , immerse duck in a pot with the seasoning and spice and water. Cover and simmer duck over medium heat for 2 hours till duck meat is tender and aromatic.Add in the eggs and braised till eggs have absorbed the sauce. Dish up duck and chop into bite pieces , slice braised eggs. Serve with fragrant yam rice , enjoy !

Appreciation Blogger Award

2009-11-19T12:04:00.004+08:00

Thank you Anncoo for sharing with me this lovely award

FRUITY GAROUPA

2009-11-18T16:07:00.007+08:00

We had sweet & sour fruity garoupa for dinner last night.I anticipated my kids and hub will want extra bowls of rice with this dish so I cooked extra cup of rice and true enough all the rice in the rice cooker were finished in no time ! The sauce was so aromatic sweet & sour and a real appetite booster !

Ingredients

1 medium garoupa
Some chopped mango flesh
Some chopped green apples
Some chopped fragrant pears
Some chopped shallots
Some chopped fresh red chilli
Some chopped spring onion
Some tapioca flour ( for dusting fish )

For Sauce

2 tablespoon mixed fruit jam
1 tablespoon plum sauce
1 tablespoon ketchup
2 tablespoon thai sweet & sour chilli sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
Half teaspoon corn flour
A little water

Method

Wash and pat dry fish with kitchen towel. Rub some salt and pepper all over the fish evenly. Dust with tapioca flour inside and outside.
Prepare all sauce ingredients and mix in a bowl , set aside.
In a heated wok with oil , deep fried the garoupa till fragrant , crispy and golden on both sides , dish up and place on a serving plate.
Scoop up excess oil from the wok , retain a little oil to sautee onions till fragrant. Add in the mixed fruits follow by the sauce seasoning and water. Stir on low heat till sauce thicken. Pour sauce over fish ONLY when ready to serve. Garnish with chopped chilli and spring onion..... enjoy !

Cabbage Soup Chive & Pork Dumplings

2009-11-17T21:29:00.009+08:00

I made some chive & pork dumplings for lunch today. I added some pork lard to the ground pork and chopped chives to enhance the flavor. This dish is light and delicious and super easy to prepare.

Ingredients ( For the skin )

240 gram high protein flour
3 tablespoon cooking oil or pork lard oil
Dash of salt
160 ml hot boiling water

Ingredients ( For filling )

400 gram ground pork
Some crispy pork lard
40 gram chives ( chopped )
Some chopped spring onion

Ingredients ( For soup )

Some chinese cabbage ( cut into big pieces )
A handful of ikan bilis
3 garlics ( skin removed )
Water

Marinate for filling

1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
Dash of sesame oil
Dash of pepper
Half teaspoon tapioca flour

Method

Combine all filling ingredients in a bowl and marinate for 30 minutes , set aside.

In a deep bowl , add high protein flour , salt and cooking oil/pork lard oil and hot water and knead into a dough. Rest for about 15 minutes, cut dough into small portions. Roll dough flat , spoon in the filling and wrap it up in the shape of a purse , press edges with your finger to seal it firmly or you may use a pattern cutter to cut out the shape.

In a pot , boil some water with the ikan bilis for about 30 minutes , add in cabbages and garlic and simmer for another 10 minutes till cabbages are soft.Season soup with salt and dash of sesame oil.

Keep cabbage soup boiling , add in the dumplings one by one , cook over medium heat till dumplings are cooked. Serve hot with chopped red chilli and chopped garlic in light soy sauce.

Bak Kut Teh 肉骨茶

2009-11-16T22:45:00.014+08:00

I cooked Bak Kut Teh for dinner today. I used a combination of about 1.5 kg of spare ribs and prime ribs for this recipe.This was my first time using SINSIN salt reduced dark soy sauce for cooking Bak Kut Teh and surprisingly it is very fragrant and rich in taste.It was also my first time using POPO light soy sauce after good reviews from my friends in Malaysia.... it is really quite nice !

Ingredients

1.5 kg pork spare ribs/ prime ribs
1 whole garlic clove
Handful of " Yuk Zhu "
Handful wolfberries　枸杞子
Handful of Angelica Roots or Dang Gui 当归片
Few pieces " Chuan Xiong " 川芎
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anises
2 tablespoon white pepper corns ( crushed )
1 litre water

Seasoning

2 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoon light soy sauce
A little salt

Method

Blanch pork ribs in 2 rounds of hot boiling water to remove smell and blood scum , set aside. In a deep pot , pour in water , add in pork ribs and all other ingredients and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer on medium heat for another 2 hours till pork ribs are tender ( the meat was so tender that it just fell off the bone for this BKT ) and soup are fragrant and rich. Season with light soy sauce , dark soy sauce and salt. Serve piping hot with rice and fresh red cut chilli in dark soy sauce.

# A note to cooking the Bak Kut Teh soup , confirmed the amount of water you decided to use for the recipe , do not add water midway or after soup is ready , by adding water later will spoilt the overall taste and diluted the flavor ( in my own opinion )....... those sold outside were boiled in large deep pot and constantly top up with lots of water and also dumping in extra herbs from time to time and also soup are simmer for long hours constantly to maintain its rich flavor.... something which I can't possibly follow for home cooking.

Salted Fish Pork Beancurd Mushroom Strips

2009-11-15T22:24:00.006+08:00

This was a dish my mum cooked for us during every Chinese New Year when we were little , it has the fragrant of salted fish , mushroom and the aromatic pork and firm beancurd.I changed the recipe slightly by cutting all ingredients into thin strips. Do try it as it is really aromatic and delicious.

Ingredients

1 piece Mui Heong 梅香 salted fish ( cut strips )
1 piece firm beancurd 豆干
150 gram lean pork ( cut strips )
8 pieces dried mushrooms ( soaked soft and cut strips )
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 fresh red chilli ( diced )
2 stalks spring onion ( chopped )
1 tablespoon spicy soy bean paste
Dash of seasame oil
Dash of pepper
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
Half teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
Half teaspoon corn flour
Method

Sautee salted fish till crispy and fragrant , dish up and set aside. Season pork with light soy sauce , corn flour , pepper and salt for 30 minutes.Pan fried whole piece firm beancurd with a little oil till crispy and golden on both sides , dish up and cut into strips.
In a heated wok , sautee garlic till fragrant , add in pork and mushrooms and stir fry over high heat. Add in salted fish , stir fry till well combined. Add in beancurds and seasoning and continue to fry over high heat till aromatic. Garnish with chopped fresh chilli and spring onion and serve hot immediately.... enjoy !

Crispy Prawn Parcels

2009-11-14T14:43:00.007+08:00

My kids love deep fried crispy food and these prawn parcels were made slightly different from my Ngoh Hiang ( deep fried pork roll ). I pan fried these prawn parcels this time instead of the usual deep frying and they were just as crispy and fragrant , no chance for any leftover.... not in my home !

I used fresh beancurd sheet bought from the wet market and no need to steam it before frying.Ingredients used in these parcels were fresh prawns , fish paste and chopped celery only. Just wrap them up like a parcel and seal the edges with rice paste or corn starch. Make sure not to fill too much ingredients in each parcel , parcel have to be flat like what you see from the pictures.

Dip them in Thai sweet & sour chiili sauce.... so yummy !

Noodle King 炒生面皇

2009-11-13T22:31:00.005+08:00

My neighbour bought me this box of noodle king quite sometime ago and only now that I remember to cook it... hahaha ! The noodle are surprising springy and very tasty.

Ingredients ( 4 servings )

4 pieces of noodle king
Some small prawns ( shell removed and blanch in hot water )
Some chinese mustard ( cut short section )
Some beansprouts ( roots removed )
1 big red onion ( skin removed and shredded )
1 red chilli ( shredded )
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 tablespoon oyster sauce
Half cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoon light soy sauce

Method

Soak noodle in cool water for 25 minutes , loosen up noodle with chopsticks. Drain noodle and set aside for later use.
Remove shell from prawns and blanch with hot water , set aside.
In a heated wok , sautee garlic and onion with oil till fragrant. Add chinese mustard and bean sprouts and stir fry over high heat. Add in noodle and continue to fry over high heat. Add in seasoning follow by the cooked prawns , stir and fry till noodle are well combined. Add in chicken broth and fry on high heat till broth almost dried up. Dish up , garnish with red chilli and serve hot.

Stir Fry Celery Carrot With Prawns

2009-11-13T20:52:00.004+08:00

I stir fried celery/carrot and small prawns with abalone sauce , simple and delicious !

Steam Garlic Red Garoupa 蒜蒸红斑

2009-11-13T00:05:00.004+08:00

I bought a very fresh red garoupa and a few normal garoupas from the wet market yesterday. This red garoupa which I steamed for dinner last night cost me S$ 12 and weighed about 630 gram. Not so cheap but it was very worth it ! I'll usually steam the fish if it is super fresh and here is the recipe to share !

Simple Stir Fry Vegetable

2009-11-12T17:25:00.004+08:00

Simple stir fry Hong Kong Chinese mustard

Stir fry french beans with bacon fat , dried shrimps and garlic

Stir fry baby kai-lan with oyster sauce

Roti Prata With Curry Chicken

2009-11-10T21:25:00.009+08:00

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We had Roti Prata and curry chicken for dinner today. I used frozen roti prata dough and pan fried with ghee till crispy and fragrant. Chicken drumsticks were marinated with curry paste , tumeric powder and salt and grilled in the oven till crispy and and fragrant. They were then cooked together with the deep fried potatoes and curry ingredients till tender and flavourful and the curry gravy thick and aromatic. My whole family love roti prata a lot and this was a very yummy dinner we have together.
I added more water for the curry gravy so that we can dip our prata with the curry gravy.... simply delicious !

Egg Soup With Tung Hoon

2009-11-10T14:23:00.006+08:00

I posted this recipe in September but received no comments... hahaha ! Perhaps not many people like soup cooked in this method. There was this similar recipe featured in the Sunday Times last Sunday so I thought I should re-post it again to share with all of you. My recipe is slightly different from the Sunday Times , I break an egg into the boiling soup instead of pan fried egg omelette and add into the soup seperately which the other newspaper recipe featured. This has been a regular soup dish my mum cooked for us when we were young. Sometimes she fried egg omelette and add to the soup seperately but most of the time she'll just break the eggs into the boiling soup. Do try this method as it is less oily.

Char Siew 叉烧

2009-11-09T22:57:00.011+08:00

Bought 1 KG of very fresh Australian pork collar the other day. I intended to grill Char Siew this week as my girl has been pestering me to do so as she loves Char Siew so much. The Char Siew I grilled this time was more succulent and moist and very fragrant. When my son Jermaine came home from school , the moment he was outside the foyer of the house , he asked excitedly " Mama , are you grilling Char Siew ? " Do try this recipe if your kids love barbecue pork

# Red coloring powder for my Char Siew recipe was omitted as I hate using artificial colouring

Simple Home-Cooked Lunch

2009-11-07T23:54:00.013+08:00

We have these for lunch the last 4 days. Simple to prepare , filling and delicious
Plain porridge with stir fried chinese mustard , omelette with preserved turnip and steam ground pork with salted fish

Grilled salmon with hollandise sauce , pasta and grilled tomato with ham flavor cheese
Fried rice with luncheon meat , lots of garlic and wong bok

Unadon with fried egg and instant miso soup

PADDY is 2 Today !

2009-11-07T15:58:00.009+08:00

This is mine , keep your hands OFF !

I love my frisbee

What are you staring at ?

Can I have some more mummy plsssssss ? It is so yummy... plsssssssss

Watch me blow the candles !

Paddy is 2 today ! I steamed a simple vanilla cake for him and his sis Racheal bought frisbee and a squeaky plush bone for him . He was so excited the moment he saw me holding the cake in my hand. He was quite cautious when he saw the 2 candles on his cake and had tried to go a little closer each time. This boy is a real glutton as you can see he is quite a big boy 9.3 kg to be exact. We blew the candles and before we knew it , he lunged forward and grab a piece and run out to his bed to enjoy.... hahaha ! He finished the whole cake eagerly and look at me pitifully for more... LOL

Mini Cherry Cheese Cakes By Racheal

2009-11-07T01:19:00.005+08:00

Racheal bought this Jell-O No bake Cherry Cheesecake with her own pocket money few days ago. She loves cheesecake and this is a no bake recipe and very easy to follow instructions. She did this on her own without my help at all. The cheese cakes were really yummy after chilled and her brother Jermaine rated it 9/10.... he ate so many of them and had requested Racheal to make more soon.
She has started looking up on recipes for cheese cakes and looking forward to try her hand on one starting from scratch. Lets see what she'll come up with !

It's SteamBoat Again !

2009-11-05T23:12:00.016+08:00

We had Tom Yum seafood steamboat sometime ago. Steamboat has been a regular thing in our household , we don't have to wait till chinese new year and we have it quite often. Pls refer HERE for the tom yam recipe , Enjoy !

We had steamboat again this evening. My hub called from office saying he wants something soupy for dinner and I was too lazy to cook... so I decided to prepare steamboat ( soupy and easy to prepare ) I dug out anything I can find in my fridge suitable for steamboat and prepare the soup base using ikan bilis stock. The ingredients in this pot were wong bok , fresh sliced pork belly , japanese fish cakes , pork ball . beef ball , silken tou foo and " tung hoon " vermicelli. Hearty and simple , can have this anytime we like.

Braised Wong Bok With Dried Shrimps

2009-11-04T20:01:00.009+08:00

I bought half wong bok from the wet market the other day. It was huge and heavy and I used only half of what I bought.

Ingredients

400 gram wong bok
1 tablespoon dried shrimps
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Half teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon abalone sauce
1 teaspoon light soy sauce
Dash of pepper
A little water

Method

Sautee garlic and dried shrimps in a heated wok with a little oil till fragrant. Add in wong bok and fry over high heat. Add in seasoning and a little water and braised on medium heat till wong bok is soft. Serve hot !

梅菜扣肉 Braised Preserved Mustard Pork Belly

2009-11-03T20:53:00.013+08:00

I personally love this dish alot and so is my family. I used two different types of Mui Choy ( sweet and salty ) and I added lots of garlic to enhance the flavour. In fact this dish is more tasty and flavourful if kept overnight. It is so delicious and can be serve with rice or plain porridge.

Ingredients

1 kg pork belly
200 gram sweet Mui Choy
200 gram salty Mui Choy
8 garlics
2 star anise
1 cup water

Seasoning for pork belly

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 small cube Nam Yee ( reddish cheese )
1 tablespoon black bean paste
1 tablespoon sugar
Dash of pepper

Method

Season pork belly with the above seasoning for at least one hour , I marinated mine for 3 hours. Soak both Mui Choy for an hour , rinse and soak again for another hour. Rinse in several rounds of water till water run clear and free of sand and excess salt. Squeeze Mui Choy to remove excess water. Cut Mui Choy into short sections and set aside.

In a wok , sautee garlic till fragrant , add in whole piece of marinated pork belly. Pan fry pork belly till fragrant and golden on both sides. Add in Mui Choy and water , stir till well combined , cover and braised over low heat for 2 hours till pork belly is cooked tender , Mui Choy soft , sauce thicken and aromatic. Season with a little sugar and braised for another 10 minutes.
Dish up pork belly and slice thinly. Arrange pork belly on a plate and top with braised Mui Choy. Serve hot with rice or plain porridge. Enjoy !

Ayam Kuah Masak Merah

2009-11-02T22:16:00.009+08:00

This is a mild spicy and sour chicken dish that my daughter loves alot. I cooked this for her as a reward for good improvement in her year end exam.

Ingredients

1 kampong chicken ( approx 1.3 kg ) chopped into bite pieces
3 large tomatoes ( cut quarter )
Some fresh coriander ( chopped )

Ingredients for Sauce ( to be blended together )

1 large onion ( skin removed and cut half )
200 ml coconut milk
1 thumbsize fresh ginger ( skin removed )
5 garlics ( skin removed )
5 fresh red chillies
1 thumbsize galangal
1 stalk lemongrass ( used the bottom part )
2 tablespoon tamarind paste
5 tablespoon tomato ketchup
5 tablespoon tamarind juice ( extracted from fresh tamarind pulp mixed with water )
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt

Method

Blend all sauce ingredients till wet and fine. Marinate chicken pieces with the sauce for an hour.In a heated wok , fry marinated chicken with a little oil over medium heat. Cover and simmer over medium heat till chicken is tender and fully cooked. Remove cover, add in tomatoes and fry further for another 5 minutes till sauce thicken , tomatoes soft and aromatic.Dish up and garnish with coriander. Serve hot immediately with white rice.

玖芨菜银鱼仔

2009-11-02T21:11:00.007+08:00

Ingredients

300 gram Kou Gee Choy
1 tablespoon fresh silverbait
1 small egg
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon light soy sauce

Method

Fry silverbait with a little oil till crispy and golden , dish up and set aside. In a heated wok , add in some oil and salt, sautee minced garlic till fragrant. Add in Kou Gee Choy and stir fry over high heat for a minute. Break an egg and fry till well combined.Season with light soy sauce and dish up.Garnish with crispy silverbait and serve hot immediately.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN !

2009-11-01T13:17:00.012+08:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN !

We celebrated Halloween at the Singapore Flyer on 31st October. It was raining cats and dogs when we were on our way there and from the Nicoll Highway , we can't even see The Singapore Flyer at all as it was so misty . I prayed in my heart that the sky will soon clear up so that we can enjoy our ride and enjoy clear beautiful view from the flyer. Upon reaching the Singapore Flyer , it was still raining heavily and the wind was so strong.
We parked our car in the covered carpark . We have a hard time trying to get to the main building without getting ourselves wet. The direction signage in the carpark were poor and we and a few other people walked round and round and many times ended up in the uncovered walkways. Finally after about 15 minutes , we found our way up to a link bridge to the main building. As the wind and rain was so strong , we got ourselves quite wet even walking thru a partially covered link bridge. Jermaine and Racheal were very hungry so we went for an early dinner at the Seafood Paradise. We ordered Assam fish head , spinach with 3 different eggs , mayonnaise prawns and herbal chicken. I attempted to take some photos of the dishes but was stopped by the staffs there :(
Anyway the food overall were delicious but price was slightly on the high side.

After dinner ,we were so happy the rain had stopped and the sky clearing up. We went around the podium to try out the Halloween face painting , manicure , cartoon drawing and spray tattoo... all FOC ! There were many Singapore Flyer staffs all dressed up in Halloween costumes walking around trying to scare tourists and visitors and also posing for photographs. Racheal went for the manicure , face painting , manicure , cartoon face drawing and also the tattoo. Jermaine was wearing a mask I bought for him , many people including the staffs working there commented that the mask is really gore , ugly and frightening...LOL. Some tourists even thought Jermaine was one of the staff working there and asked him to pose for their photographs.... hahaha !

Finally after an hour later , we board the Flyer at around 8.30 pm. The kids took so many photographs and were very excited. We managed to take some photos of the scenery around us even it was not so clear due to the rain earlier. We enjoyed ourselves very much. On our way home , Racheal said she was hungry again so we went to Ah Mei Kaya Toast at The Railmall of Upp Bukit Timah. We have roti pratas and kaya toasts and after a fulfilling " supper " it was Home Sweet Home.

The " RICH " Soup

2009-10-29T20:19:00.010+08:00

You should have guessed why I name this soup " RICH " , I've added so many ingredients that are naturally sweet and fragrant like the dried scallops , dried oysters , smoked pork belly etc.I always make sure my fridge are well stocked up with these ingredients so that I can make delicious and wholesome soup for my family anytime.This is a one dish soup I cooked earlier for dinner , I did not cook any other dish.

Ingredients

300 gram pork spare ribs
1 pigs tail ( chopped into pieces )
100 gram smoked chinese pork belly 金璍火腿 ( used as whole piece )
3 dried scallops
8 dried oysters
100 gram groundnuts
1 carrot ( sliced diagonally )
3 pips garlics ( skin intact )
1 teaspoon mixed black/white pepper corn
1 litre water

Method

Blanch spare ribs and pigs tail in hot boiling water to remove scum and smell , set aside.
In a big deep pot , place all ingredients and blanched ribs and tail in , follow by water.
Cover and bring to a boil at high heat then lower heat and boil for another 4 hours. No need to add any seasoning at all , dish up smoked pork belly and sliced thinly. Garnish soup with sliced smoked pork belly and serve hot with rice.

Fried Vermicelli With Canned Stewed Pork 罐头扣肉炒米粉

2009-10-28T15:24:00.006+08:00

This is another dish prepared with a lazy attitute...hahahaha ! Anyway it is really fragrant and the vermicelli well fried to perfection ( comment from my hubby , not self-praised...hehehehe ) I used two different brand and different texture vermicelli ( leftovers ) I bought 3 big bundles of very fresh and green chinese mustard for only $ 2.00 from the wet market this morning.

Ingredients

1 pack of vermicelli ( any brand of your choice )
1 can stewed pork leg (discard oil from can and cut pork into small pieces )
2 tablespoon minced garlic
1 bundle of fresh chinese mustard ( washed and cut into short section )
2 large eggs ( beaten and season with salt , pepper and light soy sauce )
3 tablespoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 tablespoon oyster sauce
Half cup chicken broth
A little salt and pepper

Method

Soak vermicelli till soft and drained. Heat up some oil in a large wok , pour in beaten eggs and fry into omelette , dish up , shredded and set aside.
Using the same wok , add a little oil , sautee garlic till fragrant follow by chinese mustard till half cooked.Add in pork pieces , stir and loosen up. Add in vermicelli , stir over medium heat till loosen up , add in seasoning. Fry over medium heat till seasoning are evenly absorbed. Add the chicken broth and fry over high heat till vermicelli are aromatic and dry. Garnish with shredded egg and serve hot immediately. Fried vermicelli are BEST served HOT.

Mixed Waxed Meat Chicken Rice 腊肉鸡饭

2009-10-28T14:48:00.006+08:00

I'm getting more and more lazy these days but I want to make it an effort to cook my family a wholesome meal and also to plan for something simple and delicious and not so time consuming. This rice dish is extremely simple to prepare and the whole preparation time is only 30 minutes including the rice cooking and chicken cooking. Do try this if you are rushing for time or just plain lazy like me...hahaha !

Ingredients

3 cups Thai fragrant rice ( washed )
Half chicken ( cut into bite pieces )
100 gram waxed pork leg
100 gram waxed sausage aka chinese sausage ( sliced )
3 pips garlic ( skin removed )
Suitable amount chicken broth ( enough to cover rice in rice cooker )
1 stalk of fresh spring onion ( shredded )
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
Dash of pepper
A little salt

Method

Season chicken with oyster sauce , dark soy sauce , pepper and sesame oil for at least 30 minutes.
Wash rice and place in rice cooker. Pour suitable amount chicken broth to slightly above rice level.Add in pips of garlic and a little salt. Mixed well till well combined , place whole piece of waxed pork leg on rice. Switch on power and cook rice as usual. Sautee minced garlic in a heated wok with a little oil , add in chicken pieces and stir fry over high heat , add a little water and simmered over medium heat till cooked. Add in chinese sausages and stir fry abit till aromatic and set aside. When rice is ready , dish up waxed pork leg and sliced thinly. Transfer rice to a plate , arrange chicken , sausages and waxed pork slices onto rice. Garnish with spring onion and serve hot with fresh cut red chilli in fish sauce.

Spicy & Sour Pork Trotter

2009-10-27T16:24:00.005+08:00

My hubby , my son and myself love this spicy and sour pork trotter alot. We love it spicy and sour and the moist and tender pork trotter.This is one of the dish I cook often for them.
I added more chilli padi and dried chilli and black rice vinegar and I used a pair of trotters ( approx 1.9 KG )

Fried Noodle with Luncheon Meat　午餐肉炒面

2009-10-27T16:07:00.006+08:00

I fried noodle for lunch yesterday. Very simple ingredients I used like luncheon meat , bok choy and eggs , lots of minced garlic , chilli sauce and ketchup , dark sauce , salt and pepper.