RECIPE: NYONYA SPICED PORK (SAMBAL BABI NYONYA)

This recipe is from the book “Shiok!” written by Terry Tan and Christopher Tan (I believe they are not related – not that it matters!). Next to my “Singapore Food” book by Wendy Hutton, this is my Malaysian/Singaporean food bible. Every recipe that I have made from this book has turned out perfect. Mind you, I do tend to ‘adjust’ some of the seasonings and spices…..especially when it comes to chillies.


To today’s dish now. The Tans qualify in their book that the dish is very moreish and tastes so much better the next day. I could not agree more. It has to be one of the nicest meat sambals I have tasted.

For those who have religious taboo with pork, I’d suggest you try substituting the meat with either beef or venison.

I have also made this dish using wild boar and I think it is the best meat for this recipe. You can find wild boar, if you are lucky, at the Fyshwick Market in Canberra.


Ingredients

1 ½ kg belly pork – trimmed and cut into big chunks
4 tbsp oil
Salt to taste
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
4 whole lime leaves – shredded (see my GLOSSARY post on KAFFIR LIME)

Spice paste – ground very fine
6 cloves garlic
200g red onions or shallots
8 to 10 candlenuts (see my GLOSSARY post on CANDLENUTS)
2 stalks lemon grass
4 slices galangal
Handful of large dried chillies – deseeded and soaked in hot water until soft
Shrimp paste/belachan – around 1 cm thick and 4 cm square.

Method

Boil about 2 to 3 litres of water in a pot and blanch the meat for 8 mins. Drain well and cut into bite sized cubes. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a pot and fry the ground spices until thickened and aromatic (7 to 8 mins).

Add in the pork, sugar, salt (add only a little here, you can add more later) and soy sauce. Mix well and cook on low heat, stirring constantly for 15 mins. Add in a little water if necessary to prevent scorching.

When done, the meat should be tender and coated with a very thick sauce. Check seasoning, mix in the shredded lime leaves and serve with rice.

PS: Goes really well as a filling/spread for sandwiches too. Top with a few slices of cucumber and some fresh red onion rings.

RECIPE: PRAWNS, SQUID AND BBQ PORK PADPRIK (PADPRIK MASAK UDANG, SOTONG DAN DAGING BAKAR)

I got the original recipe from SIS UMMI’S Blog but have changed the quantities of her recipe to compensate for the amount of seafood and meat that I used. She used prawns and squid in her recipe but as Mr G had made a fresh batch of CHINESE BBQ PORK or CHAR SIEW (click on the link for my recipe), I decided to add some of it to the dish too. You don’t have to add the CHAR SIEW.

Here’s how I made mine.

Ingredients

500 g small squid – cleaned and cut into rings
12 large green prawns
250 g sliced CHAR SIEW (click for my post on CHAR SIEW)
500 g ‘Hard’ vegetables of choice – I used snow peas, baby corn, French beans and carrots
1 large onion – sliced
4 cloves garlic – minced
Thumb size ginger – sliced fine
2 large red chillies – sliced
10 birds eye chillies – smashed slightly (I used 5 cayenne chillies)
3 stalks lemon grass – cut into three and bottom part smashed
Mix together in a measuring cup or bowl – 5 tbsp each of oyster sauce, chilli sauce (I used Yeo’s) and tomato sauce
4 full lime leaves – torn into pieces
1 tsp sugar – Optional
Salt to taste
Cooking oil

Method

Blanch vegetables in boiling water for 1 min. Drain and set aside.

Heat 2 to 3 tbsp oil in a wok and fry the garlic, ginger and onion until fragrant (1 min or so). Add in the chillies and lemon grass and fry for another 2 minutes or so.

Add in the blended sauces, followed by the squid and prawns. Cook for two mins and add in the vegetables and CHAR SIEW. When the seafood and vegetables are nearly done, add seasoning and lime leaves. You may add some water here (1/4 to 1/2 a cup) if you want extra gravy.

Check seasoning, add in sliced chillies, turn off heat and serve immediately with steaming boiled rice. Yum yum!

RECIPE: PORK WITH VEGETABLES (PUD PUK SAI MOO)

A nutritious and easy ‘one pot meal’, especially when you just can’t be bothered cooking a few dishes for the day’s main meal. It has nearly all your daily vegetables and meat needs. You can change the meat to suit your choice or religious requirements.


Ingredients
2 tbsp veg oil
750g pork – sliced thinly
1 red onion – sliced
3 cloves garlic – minced
3 cm ginger – sliced thinly into matchstick size
2 to 3 red bird’s eye chillies – sliced
Large handful of peas
2 large carrots – sliced thinly
½ a small head of cauliflower or broccoli – cut into florets
1 red capsicum – sliced thinly
Large handful bean sprouts
½ tin of straw mushrooms (optional)
3 tbsp black bean sauce
1 tbsp Thai soy sauce


Method
Heat oil in wok and fry the garlic, onions, ginger and pork until the pork is cooked and slightly brown (4 to 5 mins).

Add all the veg (except bean sprouts), cook for 2 mins and then add in the black bean and soy sauce. Cook for another 2 mins or until vegetables are cooked. Just before lifting, add in the bean sprouts, stir well and serve with rice.

RECIPE: VG’S DRY MEAT CURRY

This dry curry works well with pork, lamb and beef. Another one of those ‘spur of the moment’ concoctions. Add more dried chillies or curry powder if you like your dishes ‘warm’. I had to compromise because of the kids.

Ingredients
1 kg meat (I used pork) – diced
3 tbsp meat curry powder
Salt to taste
Water
3 tbsp veg oil
Grind the following to a fine paste with just enough water to turn the blades :
10 large shallots or 4 large red onions
½ head of garlic
Thumb size fresh ginger
2 stalks lemon grass
Handful of long (as opposed to short) dried chillies – deseeded and soaked in hot water to soften

Method
Heat oil and fry ground ingredients until oil seeps through and the paste is relatively dry. Add in the curry powder with 1 cup of water and repeat the process.

Add in your meat, coat well and cook for 2 to 3 mins, stirring constantly until the meat changes colour. Add in a cup of water and cook until the meat is done. You may need to add in more water during this process but make sure that the end result is a very dry curry. Serve with breads such as CHAPATTIS, PURIS or with rice such as CUMIN AND CARROT RICE.


VG's Thali (Platter): Eggplant and Mint Chutney, Pak Choy with Mustard and Egg, Dry Meat Curry with Cumin and Carrot Rice

RECIPE: SESAME PORK

A simple, easy and nutritious meal for all you working wives (in fact anyone) out there. Works well with rice or tossed with some Hokkien or flat rice noodles or even some spaghetti. Give it a try!

Ingredients – serves 5 to 6
750 gm pork – sliced thinly across the grain
2 tsp sesame oil
Peanut oil (or veg oil)
5 spring onions – sliced thinly at an angle
3 cloves garlic – smashed using the back of your knife and chopped coarsely
2 tsp finely grated ginger
3 large carrots – julienned
200 gm snake or French beans – cut into 3 to 4 cm lengths (blanch the beans for 1 min – this shortens the cooking process)
2 tbsp seame seeds – toasted lightly in the oven or using a frying pan

Sauce Ingredients – Mix together in a bowl the following:
3 tbsp hoisin sauce
3 tbsp teriyaki sauce
2 tsp corn flour
3 tbsp water

Method
Heat oil in a wok and fry the pork in batches (in shallow oil) until browned (around 3 mins per batch). Drain on paper towels.

In the same wok (does not matter if the wok has the pork juices in it – it adds to the flavour), add about 2 tbsp peanut oil (if required) and the sesame oil, and stir fry the spring onions, garlic and ginger for 1 min. Add in the carrots, fry until the carrots are half cooked and add in the beans. You may need to add about a few tbsp water to moisten the veg a bit (not too much). When the veg is nearly cooked (make sure the beans are still crunchy), add in the pork, stir well and heat through.

Next add in the sauce mixture, mix well and cook until the sauce thickens. Toss in the sesame seeds, mix well, lift and serve immediately with rice or medium of choice.

RECIPE: HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE WITH CHAR SIEW (THE WORKS)

Imagine my surprise today when I came home from work and saw a poached chicken and homemade CHAR SIEW (Chinese barbeque pork) on the kitchen bench! Mr G decided to make chicken rice all by himself. I don’t know why I am surprised for he does help me when I do make the dish but it is more due to his initiative to make it on his own accord that caught me by surprised. Anyway, I did contribute a tiny little bit to the effort – I made the chilli sauce, cooked the rice and seasoned the soup ;)

The recipe that we use is from a book called ‘Singapore Food’ by Wendy Hutton (1979) and it’s been my bible for all my favourite Malaysian/Singaporean food. The poor book is looking thin from wear and it is one book that I don’t loan out; ever. My eldest daughter has even earmarked it as hers when I die! I hope that is not likely to happen any time soon….touch wood! Like all recipes, it makes a good base. It is up to the individual to alter some of the basics to suit their palate. For example, this household is very partial to garlic and chilli so we may change some recipes to reflect this.

Anyway, below are the recipes for HAINANESE CHICKEN Rice with CHAR SIEW.

PS: I would have loved some stir fried bean sprouts to go with it but Mr G said that the supermarket had not been replenished since the weekend trade. Bummer!

To serve Hainanese Chicken Rice:
On a plate, arrange the HAINANESE CHICKEN, CHAR SIEW (optional), CHICKEN FLAVOURED RICE and sliced cucumber. Serve with CHILLI GINGER SAUCE in individual sauce bowls, accompanied with CHICKEN SOUP. Nice with Chinese tea or a cold beer (during summer).

PS: My fingers are aching from typing today's posts!

RECIPE: CHINESE BARBEQUE PORK (CHAR SIEW)

‘Char siew’ literally means ‘fork burn or fork roast’ after the traditional cooking method for the dish: long strips of seasoned boneless pork are skewered with long forks and placed in a covered oven or over a fire.

The meat, typically a shoulder cut, is seasoned with a mixture of honey, five-spice powder, fermented tofu, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, red food colouring (optional) and rice wine. These seasonings turn the exterior layer of meat dark red. (Source: WIKIPEDIA)

Char siew is typically consumed either in a bun, with noodles, or with rice. The accompaniments served with char siew are strongly influenced by regional variation.

There is a good step by step recipe HERE if you want to make it from scratch or you could use my recipe below. You could also use Lee Kum Kee premade Char Siew sauce to make the char siew. It is passable. Just follow the instructions on the jar.

The recipe I normally use is from my Wendy Hutton book, ‘Singapore Food’ and it is as follows.

Ingredients
1 kg pork fillet or boneless loin - in long piece
4 cloves garlic – crushed
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tbsp chinese rice wine
2 tsp tomato sauce
1 tsp chinese five spice powder
½ tsp powdered ginger
Red food colouring – optional

Method
Cut the pork lengthwise into strips about 4 cm thick. Combine all ingredients and marinade the pork for at least 2 hours, turning from time to time.

Put the pork on a greased rack set over a pan at least 4 cm of water and roast for about 45 mins to an hour at 230˚C, basting with the marinade every 10 to 15 mins. Allow to cool, cut into thin slices and use as a supplement to HAINANESE CHICKEN RICE, noodle dishes or stir fries.

RECIPE: CHILLI PORK WITH CAULIFLOWER OR BROCCOLI

An easy dish to make after coming home from a hard day’s of work. Using broccoli would have made the dish look prettier but I could not be bothered walking to the supermarket so cauli it is instead!

Ingredients (feeds 5 to 6)
750 g pork fillet – sliced thinly
¼ head of cauliflower or broccoli
1 ½ tbsp salted black beans – washed and chopped coarsely
1 tbsp dark soy sauce*
1 tbsp light soy sauce*
1 heaped tbsp chilli bean sauce*
1 tsp sugar*
1 tsp corn flour*
3 to 4 cloves garlic – chopped
3 to 4 bird’s eye or 2 red chillies – sliced thinly
Veg oil

Method
Combine * in a bowl with ¼ cup of water. Blanch the veg in boiling water for a min. Drain and set aside.

Heat a wok with sufficient oil. Fry the pork in batches until brown. Remove and set aside.

Retain about 1 to 2 tbsp of the oil and fry the garlic and the black bean for 15 secs. Stir in the sauce mixture and chillies and cook until the mixture boils and thickens. Return the pork to the wok, mix well to cover and add in the veg. Mix well again and until the veg is heated through. Serve hot with rice and veg such as STIR FRIED CHOY SUM WITH TOFU AND OYSTER SAUCE.

RECIPE: BRAISED SHIZITOU/PORK BALLS

An easy and hearty dish for cold days. If you have a wok burner on your BBQ outside, I’d recommend you fry the cabbage there. I was not impressed with the splatter in my clean kitchen; although I would have froze if I did fry it outside! I served it with rice and FIVE COLOURED OMELETTE.

Ingredients (serves 4 to 6)
½ kg minced pork*
2 tbsp finely minced leek* (or substitute with 1 brown onion – I grated it)
½ tsp ginger juice* (grate thumb size ginger and squeeze for juice)
½ tsp salt*
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine*
1 tsp white pepper*
1 egg
1 scant tsp sesame oil
2 to 3 tbsp corn flour

Oil for frying

8 Chinese cabbage/wombok leaves – cut into 4 cm lengths
1/3 cup Chinese light soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine
1 tsp chicken stock powder

Method
Spread the mince pork on a chopping board and chop the meat until very fine.

Place the pork in a bowl and add * ingredients. Mix together well with hands.

Beat the egg, add to the mince, followed by the sesame oil and half of the corn flour. Mix well and keep on adding corn flour until the mixture is smooth and holds well together. Make sure the mixture is not too hard.

With some oil on your hands, form into rissoles/balls; the size depending on your taste. I prefer them slightly larger than a golf ball.

Heat oil in a wok and fry the rissoles over high heat until the outside of the rissoles is crisp and sealed. Lower the heat and cook until golden brown. Lift, drain on paper towels and set aside.

In the same oil, fry the wombok for 15 secs until sealed. Be careful here as the oil will splatter. Lift and line the bottom of a flame proof earthenware with the wombok. Place the rissoles on the leaves.

Using hot water from the tap, add 4 cups or sufficient amount of water to cover the food in the pot. Add in the soy sauce, Chinese rice wine and chicken stock powder.

Bring to the boil then simmer, covered for up to an hour. Cooking times depends on the size of the rissoles. My pork balls were ready in 40 mins.

RECIPE: CARAMELISED PORK

The G household love eating Vietnamese food, and our favourite restaurant is this tiny place in O’Connor, ACT called TuDo Vietnamese Restaurant. My son’s favourite dish is their Ginger Squid (I’ll post my version soon). I can honestly say that TuDo is Canberra’s best Vietnamese restaurant. They make a really mean Vietnamese caramelised pork…..and if I may say so, I think mine ain’t that bad either. This is how I made it. You may substitute the pork with beef.

Ingredients
1 kg pork – sliced thinly (I used leg pork)
2 large onions – sliced about ½ cm thick
50 g caster sugar*
50 g brown sugar*
175 ml water*
40 ml Nuoc Cham sauce (see recipe HERE)
20 ml lime juice
½ tsp salt
2 red chillies – de-seeded and sliced finely
½ tsp chinese five spice powder
3 cloves garlic – minced
Oil for frying
2 spring onion – sliced finely at an angle
Crushed peanuts – optional

Method
Heat oil in work and fry the pork in batches until brown. Repeat process and set aside. Turn off the heat and set the wok aside (no need to wash, we will be using it again).

In a saucepan, make the caramel sauce by boiling together *, stirring together constantly with a whisk, until the liquid turns golden. On low heat, carefully add the Nuoc Cham sauce and the lime juice. Stir to mix.

Heat the wok again and fry the garlic and onions until the onions are transparent. Add in the pork and mix well.

Add in the chilli, 5 spice powder, salt and the caramel sauce. Mix well and cook for 1 min. Transfer to dish and garnish with spring onion and peanuts. Serve with rice, vegetables and NUOC CHAM sauce.

RECIPE: MR G’S PORK ROAST

Today’s offering is a pork roast from Mr G. To be honest, I don’t cook western style roast in my home because Mr G does such a good job that it does not merit me doing it. Another thing to his credit is that his crackling is always so crunchy! This is how he makes his roast.

Ingredients
2 kg pork shoulder – de-boned and skin left intact. Score the skin, i.e. cut shallow slits on the skin, about 2 cm apart
Oil
Coarse sea salt
Water
4 cloves garlic – cut into thick wedges

Stuffing:
1 cup breadcrumbs
2 cloves garlic – minced
1 onion – minced
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
Salt and coarse ground black pepper – to taste
2 tbsp or more of port or make some garlic water from 1 to 2 cloves grated garlic, mixed in 2 tbsp water

Method
Mix all stuffing ingredients, except port/garlic water in a bowl. Gradually add port/garlic water to the dry ingredients until it holds together.

Fill the pork’s bone cavity evenly with the stuffing mixture. Tie with kitchen twine.

Insert the garlic wedges randomly in the slits, by pushing it in with a small pointy paring knife. Rub the pork skin with some cooking oil and then with the coarse salt (about 1 to2 tbsp). This helps the salt adhere.

Put about 2 cm oil and 1 cup water in a roasting pan, with a roasting rack sitting in the middle of the pan. Place the pork on the roasting rack, and insert it into the middle shelf of the oven. Roast at 180°c for 1 hour.

At the one hour mark, check to see if the skin is crisping. If it is crispy, cover with foil and turn down the oven to 160°c. At this stage, add your ‘hard’ vegetables (carrot, potatoes or pumpkin) to tray. Around the 20 to 30 min mark, turn your vegetables over. Cook for around 20 to 30 mins or until vegetables are brown and meat is cooked. The meat is cooked when the juices (if pricked with a roasting fork) run clear.

Lift meat and leave to rest for 10 mins. Lift vegetables out of the pan into a platter lined with kitchen absorbent paper. Keep warm.

Whilst meat is resting, make the gravy (recipe HERE), and serve the pork with the roasted vegetables or other vegetables such as peas, cauliflower or brussel sprouts along with cheese sauce (recipe HERE).

RECIPE: VG’S MEATBALLS WITH SPICY PLUM SAUCE

This is my take of cooking with meatballs and chinese plum sauce. I use either Lee Kum Kee or Tung Chun brand. An easy meal to prepare during the week (providing you have the meatballs handy). Meatball recipe available HERE or you may buy it ready made from the supermarket. You can substitute the meatballs with meat or seafood or use sliced Chinese BBQ Pork (Char Siu).

Ingredients
500g meatballs – if frozen, defrosted and heated in the microwave
1 large onion – sliced 1 cm thick
3 cloves garlic – minced
½ thumb size young ginger – sliced thinly in strips
1 large red chilli – sliced thinly on an angle
2 spring onions – sliced thinly on an angle
1 tsp Galiko or John West minced chilli
1/3 cup of plum sauce
1 to 1 ½ tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine or water
1 tbsp veg oil

Method
Heat oil in wok and fry garlic and ginger until aromatic. Add in onion and fry for 30 sec.

Add in meatballs stir through ingredients and add in chilli slices and mince. Mix well and add in both the plum and soy sauces. Moisten with the rice wine or water. Mix well and finally add in the spring onion. Serve hot with plain rice.

RECIPE: VG’S FRIED MEATBALLS

Meatballs are handy to have in the freezer. They are good for Spaghetti Bolognese and Meatballs, handy as nibbles when guest turn up unexpectedly or to serve as bites with drinks or to convert into a sweet and sour dish or a plum sauce dish. What I normally do is either make a few batches of the meatballs and freeze them in serve size portions or I buy some ready made flame grilled chicken or beef meatballs (which are available in the frozen food aisle in either Coles or Woolworths).

To make my meatballs I use whatever meat is handy (normally pork or beef) and I usually make about 1 kg worth of mince. The recipe below is for 500g and is enough to serve 5-6 people.

PS: Sorry no picture included as I had actually cooked the meatballs into a dish (MEATBALLS WITH SPICY PLUM SAUCE) before I realised.

Ingredients
500g mince pork/beef
1 leek – white part sliced thickly
½ thumb size ginger – sliced thickly
1/3 cup water
2 eggs – beaten
2 tbsp chinese rice wine or chicken stock
½ tsp salt
1 tsp light soy sauce
½ tsp dark soy sauce – optional (I use this to get a darker colour for the mince)
2 tsp white pepper
2 tbsp corn flour
1 tsp chinese sesame oil
Veg oil for deep frying

Method
Simmer the ginger and leek in water for few minutes. Allow to cool and add to the mince. Mix the mince with hands until it forms a smooth paste.

Add in the beaten eggs and rice wine and mix well. Add in the soy sauce, salt and pepper, stirring the mixture in one direction until well blended.

Add the corn flour, mix well and add in the sesame oil. Mix well again.

Heat oil in wok on moderate heat and shape the mince into balls by taking a small quantity of the mixture in one hand and by forming a fist, squeeze the mince through the opening of the index finger and thumb. Fry the meatballs in batches until all the mixture is done.

Heat oil to smoking point and refry half the meatballs until crisp and crunchy (and avoiding burning the meatballs). Repeat the process with the next batch.

Serve with dipping sauces such as soy, chilli or peanut or convert into a main meal such as Meatballs with Sweet and Sour Sauce or try my MEATBALLS WITH SPICY PLUM SAUCE.

RECIPE: HAM STEAKS WITH GRILLED PINEAPPLE, POACHED EGG AND CHIPS

It is freezing here in Canberra, and according to the BUREAU OF METEOROLOGY, it is currently 10°c outside. Well I can tell you that it is more like minus 10°c! All I want to do is get under the doona and curl up, so it is the ever faithful ham steaks to the rescue. Thank you Mr G. Nothing much to do except to cook your steaks in a frying pan/on the barbie/under the griller with pineapple slices, accompanied by poached or fried sunny side up egg/s, chips, grilled tomatoes or salad. Always handy for CBB days (can’t be bothered)!

Also, the smiley faces of the ham steaks always entice children to eat their meal….not only are ham steaks easy to cook, they also don’t cause fights with fussy eaters.

RECIPE: SWEET AND SOUR (WITH A HINT OF CHILLI) PORK IN BATTER

Today’s dinner rendition is an all time Chinese favourite. There are many variations of this meal, in terms of whether the medium is battered first before cooking or not; and the type of meat or seafood that is used to cook this meal. You can use chicken, prawns, fish or pork (funny but I have not come across sweet and sour beef! Correct me if I am wrong) to make this dish. This is how I made mine.

500 g pork leg – boned
1 large (green, red or a mixture of both colours) capsicum – cubed
1 large onion – sliced thickly
1 large or 2 small carrots – halved lengthways and sliced
1-2 eggs – beaten lightly
Around 1 cup corn flour
3 cloves garlic – minced
Canned pineapple pieces – optional (I had none today so I did not put any in)
2 tbsp chinese wine
Sauce (mixed together in a bowl):
· 1/3 cup vinegar
· 1 tbsp chinese light soy sauce
· 2 tbsp sugar
· 3 tbsp tomato sauce
· 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
· 1 to 2 tsp ‘Galiko’ or ‘John West’ crushed chilli – optional
1 cup veg oil
1 tsp corn flour dissolved in 1 tbsp water – use to thicken sauce if necessary

Method
Cut pork into 1 cm thick, beat lightly to flatten and tenderise the meat, and cut into bite sized pieces.

Dip pork pieces into egg, then coat with corn flour and deep fry in batches until pork and batter is cooked through. Lift and set aside.

Remove oil bar 2 tbsp and fry garlic. When the garlic is fragrant, add in the capsicum and fry for 1 min.

Add in the pork, mix well and moisten with some rice wine. Add in the sauce mixture and pineapple (if using). Mix well. Thicken with cornflour if required. Lift and serve hot with rice.

RECIPE: NYONYA STYLE PORK IN COCONUT MILK (BABI LEMAK)

Apologies to my Muslim friends and readers, today’s meal is taboo for you. But you can substitute the pork with beef. This dish is really nice and even though there are lots of chillies in it, the sweetness of the coconut milk compensates for the heat and it is actually quite mild.

You have to use large red dried chillies when making these dishes. You can get these at any Asian grocer but make sure that you ask for the large variety. Happy trying.

PS: I am away (for work in Melbourne) so I won’t be blogging until the weekend.

Ingredients
10 to 15 small shallots or 3 large red/brown onions*
20 dried large red chillies* – deseeded and soaked in boiling water for at least 15 mins
4 candle nuts (Buah Keras)* – available at Oriental grocers*
½ head of garlic* – pealed
1 cm thick dried shrimp paste* (belacan)
2 tbsp veg oil
500 g lean diced pork
1 cup water
Salt to taste
½ to ¾ can coconut milk
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp fresh lime juice or Berri lime squeeze

Method
Grind together * with some water until fine.

Heat a pot with the oil and gently fry the ground ingredients, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 mins. Add the meat, cover well with the spices and continue frying until the meat changes colour (may take between 5 and 10 mins).

Add the water and salt, cover the pot and simmer gently until the meat is cooked. Make sure that you stir the meat occasionally.

Remove lid and add coconut milk. Simmer uncovered, for 10 mins. Just before lifting, add in sugar and lime. Check and adjust seasonings to taste. Serve with rice or crusty bread.

RECIPE: MA PO TOFU (TOFU WITH MINCE MEAT IN HOT BEAN SAUCE)

Today we had Ma Po Tofu for dinner with stir fried choy sum. My version of this dish is slightly hotter than the versions you get from Chinese restaurants. To make it milder, just omit the dried chillies and lessen the hot bean paste. Here’s my take on the dish.

Ingredients
500g minced pork or chicken
6 large silken tofu – cut into 2 cm cubes and placed in a colander to drain
6 dried shitake mushrooms – soaked in water to soften, drained and sliced thinly
3-4 spring onions – sliced thinly
4 cloves garlic – chopped fine
6-8 dried chillies – torn into two (I left the seeds intact) - optional
1 cup chicken stock* (I diluted 1 heaped tsp Knorr chicken stock in 1 cup hot water)
2-3 tbsp chinese dark soy sauce*
2 tbsp chinese light soy sauce*
2 tsp corn flour diluted in 2 tbsp water
4 tbsp hot bean sauce (I use Yeo’s Brand)
Few drops sesame oil
2 tbsp veg oil

Method
Mix * in bowl and set aside.

Heat oil in wok under medium flame and fry garlic and dried chillies if using. When chillies have turned brown, add in the mushrooms and fry for about 30 secs.

Add in the mince, raise the heat to high and stir fry for about 3 to 4 mins. Ensure that you separate the mince evenly. You don’t want to have clusters of meat.

Add in the bean paste and fry for about 1 min, coating the mince evenly. Add in the stock mixture and cook for about 2 to 3 mins. Add in corn flour.

Stir and add tofu, cook for about 1 to 2 min, to ensure that the tofu is heated through. Be careful as not to break the tofu while stirring. Add spring onions and sesame oil. Remove from heat and serve with rice.

RECIPE: PORK/BEEF IN SOY SAUCE

Firstly, apologies to all Muslim readers….today’s meal is non halal. However, you can still use this recipe if you wish by substituting the pork with beef. This is a runnier version as the kids like to have some juice to moisten their rice. This is how we make this dish.

Ingredients
750g beef or pork – diced
Half a head of garlic – pounded
2 x thumb size ginger – pounded
1 large onion – sliced thickly
4 individual fresh coriander plants – cut into three lengths per plant
3 - 4 whole star anise
5 dried shitake mushrooms – soaked in hot water and then sliced (reserve soaking water for cooking)
6 dried chillies – torn into two
1 tbsp Galiko or John West crushed chilli
1/3 cup Chinese light soy sauce
¼ cup Chinese thick/caramel soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
Water
2 tbsp veg cooking oil
Few drops of Chinese sesame oil

Method
Heat oil in pot and fry pounded ginger and garlic. Add the sugar to caramelise the ginger and garlic. When golden, add the meat and coat with the spices. Fry for about 2 mins.

Add in the dried and crushed chillies. Coat the meat evenly. Add soy sauces, reserved water from the mushrooms and enough water to cover the meat. Add in soy sauces. Bring to boil then turn down heat to simmer. Halfway through this process, add in the mushrooms. Cook until meat is tender.

Before lifting, add in coriander and onions. Stir and add in sesame oil. Lift and serve with rice. Veg tonight is stir fried wombok (Chinese Cabbage or Napa Cabbage as the Americans call it).