Stuffed Bean Curd Puffs
Bean curd puffs, also known as tofu puffs or ‘tau pok’ to many southeast asians are one of my favourite variants of the humble bean curd. The healthier version of the bean curd or tofu is dense and has very high water content. The puff version is deep fried, hollow-ish and dry which is very much like a sponge and when cooked in sauce or soup, it soaks up all the wonderful flavours and is totally delicious. I love them in soups, in laksa, sliced and stir fried or in this case – stuffed!
Stuffed bean curd puffs is considered ‘street food’ and is quite commonly found in Singapore or Malaysia food centres. The puff is split in half, lightly toasted and then filled with healthy goodies like julienned cucumber, bean shoots and slices of boiled egg and served with a creamy satay (peanut) sauce. The freshness of the cucumber and bean shoots, the crisp outer tofu shell and the nutty yumminess of the satay sauce is simply a divine combination.
It’s so easy to prepare, very cost-effective and rather healthy as a meal in itself – unless you’re like me where I am over-generous with the satay sauce and I totally drench the little puffs. Oh yum. Many people enjoy this dish as a starter, but it’s surprisingly satisfying as a main. A great summer dish.
Stuffed Bean Curd Puffs
Recipe for 4 as a starter or 2 as main
1 packet tofu puffs (about 14 – 16 pieces)
100 g beans shoots, blanched
1/2 cucumber, julienned
2 large hard boiled eggs, sliced
2 tbsp roasted peanuts, coarsely chopped
Slice the tofu puffs almost all the way through, lightly toast or grill on both sides. Stuff the toasted puffs with equal amount of cucumber and bean shoots, then top with sliced egg and chopped peanuts. Serve immediately with a side of satay sauce.
I used ready made satay sauce this time, but if you fancy making some yourself, here’s a quick and easy recipe from a previous post.
Spiced Sweet Corn Fritters
I’m currently hooked on an Aussie reality TV show called My Kitchen Rules. Oh. My. Gosh. Real live drama and cooking competition combined makes great after-work entertainment. Watching this programme really shows how much post-editing TV stations do…it’s so obvious how they pick a couple to focus on each week and make them the ones to love or hate. You should see the real-time comments on Twitter about the contestants and the nicknames they are given. Hilarious! It’s double the fun – watching and tweeting that is! Yeah, I’m hooked – big time!
Anyway, this post has nothing to do with the show I’m just a little distracted. And I’m currently craving for frozen yogurt. Again, not the point of this post.
We’re talking about corn. Sweet, succulent corn – in a can. Don’t diss the canned stuff cos they are good! I always try to have a couple of cans stocked in the pantry because these little, golden morsels of goodness are very versatile and handy for when you’re out of fresh food because you haven’t made a trip to the markets. By you, I mean me. Slack much?
I’ve made these spiced corn fritters before and they are so easy and so good. It’s one of the few vegetarian dishes that I make which the hubs has no qualms about – he actually really enjoys it and doesn’t go “where’s the meat?”. It’s usually served as a snack or appetiser, but make enough of them and it’s a complete, yummy and (rather) healthy meal.
Spiced Sweet Corn Fritters with Sweet and Spicy Dipping Sauce
Adapted from Simply Recipes
Makes about 16 – 20 fritters
Dipping Sauce
- 3/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons red chili pepper flakes
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
Fritters
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 cups of corn kernels
- 4 spring onions, finely sliced (about half a cup)
- Canola, or peanut oil (a high smoke point oil) for frying
Make the dipping sauce by combining all of the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan. Cook on medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium high, let boil for 5-10 minutes or so, until the mixture becomes somewhat syrupy. Remove from heat and let cool. The sauce should continue to thicken as it cools. If it becomes too thick, you can add a little water to it to thin it out a bit.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, ground coriander, and ground cumin in a medium bowl. Add egg, lemon juice and water. Stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until smooth. Add the corn and spring onions. Stir until just combined.
Heat a large frying pan on medium high heat. Add enough oil to generously coat the bottom of the pan. When oil is hot (shimmering not smoking), spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons worth of fritter batter into the pan to form one fritter, patting it down with the back of the spoon as soon as it is in the pan. Work in batches. Leave about 1/2 inch between the fritters in the pan. Let cook about 2-3 minutes on each side, flipping the fritters when they are nicely browned on one side. When browned on the other side, remove the fritters to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.
Serve hot with dipping sauce.
Crystal Dumplings
One of my favourite daikon radish dishes is this – Singapore style soon kueh (turnip dumplings). The original dumpling has a savoury filling made from what is known as a chinese turnip or jicama. However using the daikon was stemmed from the fact that I lived in the UK where turnips are mostly swedes which were not suitable and there were no jicamas in sight. The daikon is versatile and its texture is similar and makes for a good substitute.
I bought a ginormous daikon recently and was intending to cook it in a soup but a bout of peckishness and craving made me change my mind and I rolled up my sleeves for some kneading and moulding action.
I’ve made this dumpling before with a different recipe for the pastry and I wanted to try out a different recipe that is known as the ‘crystal’ version. This meant that the skin of the dumpling is translucent when cooked rather than the opague version that I made before.
I’m pretty sure this isn’t the best recipe, because I found the pastry to be a little too tough and chewy. A good crystal dumpling is nice and translucent with a soft skin that has a slight chew. Having said that, the dumplings were still yummy and the hubs and I shared a large plateful for dinner, with loads to spare for breakfast. It’s probably a strange idea for many of you that we have the same kind of food for dinner and breakfast. Probably like having cereal for dinner – which by the way is becoming quite norm for young people in Australia! (Source: some morning show in Australia, can’t remember which one)
The truth is that in Singapore, these dumplings are usually eaten more as a snack (morning or afternoon) and sometimes as breakfast. I don’t follow rules very well and decided I wanted them for dinner. The hubs just eats whatever I cook and so breakfast food for dinner it is! Yay!
In comparison to the two pastries (crystal and opague), the crystal version is a lot easier to work with as it starts off sticky but ends up clean and easy to mould. The other one was much softer and fiddlier (is there such a word?) but it was also softer and less chewy after it’s been cooked.
Might give a different crystal pastry recipe a try next time. For the opague version and filling recipe, go to my soon kueh post.
CRYSTAL DUMPLINGS (Pastry recipe)
Makes about 20-24
375 g Wheat Starch
180 g Tapioca flour
450 ml Boiling water
3 tbsp Vegetable oil
Oil for greasing
Put wheat starch and tapioca flour into a mixing bowl, pour in boiling water and mix quickly with ladle or big spoon. Cover and leave aside for 15 minutes.
Add in oil and knead into a pliable dough. Roll out in a cylinder about 1.5 inches in diameter. Cut with a sharp knife into 3/4 inch slices. Dab a little oil on both sides of the slice and roll out gently into thin round shapes. Cover the rest of the dough with a damp cloth while working to prevent them from drying out
Place 2 teaspoons of filling in the centre of each slice of dough and fold in half. Seal the edges by pressing together.
Steam dumplings for 15-20 minutes and brush with oil after removing from steamer. Serve with crisp fried shallots, sweet caramel soy sauce (kecap manis) and chilli sauce.
365 Challenge: Mozzarella Tart
My last installment for the 365 Challenge. This time, it’s Stephane Reynauld’s recipe for Mozzarella Tart. This is a very easy recipe to follow – and it is similar to many tomato and mozzarella tarts. However Reynauld’s recipe called for rosemary and tarragon, which is unique as many other recipes use basil. I guess this is significantly more ‘french’ as basil, tomato and mozzarella is known to be an italian combination.
The recipe also says that medium grain semolina is used to scatter on the pastry before layering the tomatoes. This is so the semolina will absorb the juice of the tomatoes and thus prevent the pastry from becoming soggy. Unfortunately, I do not have semolina ready in my pantry and wasn’t about to buy a bag just to use two tablespoons of it. So I went onto trusty google to seek out a solution.
Many other recipes recommended baking the pastry for a bit first before adding the tomatoes. This works for me – so I pierced the pastry with a fork (to prevent it from rising too much), brushed it with egg wash, sprinkled some grated parmesan (I just can’t help myself!) and baked the pastry for about 5 minutes. This allowed the pastry to pre-cook for a bit. Once removed from the oven and cooled a little, I layered the tomatoes, cheese and herbs according to the recipe.
Instead of one large tart, I made baby versions of it, using two sheets of ready-rolled puff pastry and splitting into four squares. Very easy, very delicious. It kinda turned out to be posh herby versions of an open faced grilled cheese and tomato croissant. Yum.
MOZZARELLA TART
Original recipe serves 6
6 tomatoes
150g mozzarella cheese
6 garlic cloves
2 tbsp medium-grain semolina
200g butter puff pastry
2 sprigs rosemary, leaves picked
fleur de sel
1 bunch tarragon, leaves picked
olive oil
Preheat oven to 180 deg C.
Slice tomatoes into 5mm slices, do the same with mozzarella. Peel and slice garlic cloves. Roll out pastry and scatter semolina over.
Arrange tomatoes over pastry so they overlap, then add garlic, rosemary and mozzarella. Season, scatter tarragon and drizzle with olive oil.
Bake in oven for 30 minutes.
Roasted Fennel with Parmesan
It’s strange how one’s taste preference changes and develops over the years. There just may be hope yet for my relationship with mint. I’m not holding my breath on that one though. However fennel is a whole different story. I never used to like fennel because I never liked liquorice and anything aniseedy. I have changed. I do not mind raspberry liquorice (okay maybe that doesn’t quite count, but the original black liquorice is a little too hard core for me at this stage), I definitely like using star anise in my cooking. Absinthe I will drink but only if it’s disguised with something else, preferably sweet. But fennel – me likey. And this is one of my favourite fennel dishes.
It’s one of those dishes that is so simple to prepare, doubts will start to loom…and you think it may turn out to be a disaster. Trust me, this one’s a winner.
The fennel’s naturally sweet flavour melds beautifully with the parmesan and you get these tender roasted fennel that is tastily encrusted with melted cheese. So yum. It certainly isn’t a pretty dish, but it’s pretty delish I’d say!
Here’s the full recipe. Enjoy!
ROASTED FENNEL WITH PARMESAN
Adapted from foodnetwork.com
1 tablespoons olive oil
2 fennel bulbs, cut horizontally into 1/3-inch thick slices
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup freshly shredded Parmesan
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
Lightly oil the bottom of an oven safe dish. Arrange the fennel in the dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then with the Parmesan. Drizzle with the oil. Bake until the fennel is fork-tender and the top is golden brown, about 45 minutes.
Et voila!
365 Challenge: Zucchini Gratin
The team at Murdoch Books came up with this excellent idea to cook the entire list of recipes in ’Stephane Reynaud’s 365 Good Reasons to Sit Down to Eat’. I found out about this challenge in April when I packed up the last of my kitchen appliances into the multitude of boxes which were destined for a long, arduous journey back home to Melbourne. I took the risk and went ahead to join the challenge in good faith that I would have found a home and got my kitchen appliances back. That was in April. I’ve found a perfect apartment, but guess what? The boxes with my kitchen treasures have only just arrived last Friday and with the weekend unpacking, I’m so glad I picked a simple sounding recipe to start this challenge off!
Zucchini is a very versatile vegetable – or fruit if you want to go all technical on me. Its mild flavour is great both with full, robust dishes or simple, clean ones. A couple of my favourite zucchini dishes include Japanese style zucchini tempura and mediterranean grilled zucchini salad. Mmmmm….
I have never tried making a zucchini gratin. When I received the recipe, my first reaction was “Yippee!!” because it seemed ultra simple with a tiny list of ingredients. Then I realised there’s no bread crumbs, no cheese, , no cream, no egg, no butter – basically nothing to form a baked crust. I always thought a gratin requires a crusty, rich crust similar to those of a gratin dauphinois. Maybe I just expected a recipe from Stephane Reynaud to come packed full of fat and flavour.
I was dubious. I didn’t think this recipe was going to impress me. Rounds of zucchini and onions, lemon thyme, rosemary, olive oil, salt and pepper. Really? That sounded too healthy. However I gave it a shot and you won’t believe how simple the preparation was and how much easier it was to cook it.
Vertically layer the vegetables tightly, drizzle olive oil, sprinkle the seasoning and herbs (I used dried herbs instead of fresh), chuck in the oven (150 deg c) for 15 minutes. That simple. No kidding.
I left it in the oven for five extra minutes as I wanted the top of the dish to caramelise more and have delicious brown bits. (Maybe I can’t let go of a gratin not having a crust!) The recipe indicated that the veggies should still be al dente.
I served the zucchini gratin with a simple pan-fried chicken maryland with fennel and coriander. The simple, clean flavours of the zucchini gratin complemented the dish and it was surprisingly delicious! The herbs enhanced the natural sweetness of the al dente vegetables. It makes for a fantastic side dish. So simple, so delicious and so, so easy to prepare. I’m sorry I ever doubted the recipe and I will definitely cook this again.
For more information about the 365 challenge and to read about other blogger’s attempts at the recipes, visit the Murdoch Books Blog here.
Rosemary roasted Jerusalem Artichokes
My hubby tells people that I have a ‘thing’ when it comes to ugly vegetables. I don’t. Really. I’m picky about bruised leaves/parts and I always make sure the less aesthetically pleasing bits do not end up on our plates. Nothing wrong with that right? The proof that I do not have a ‘thing’ against ugly vegetables is right here.
Two words.
Jerusalem artichokes.
I mean, these things do not rate very highly on the pretty scale do they? They’re gnarly and pokey and looks very much like an ugly potato or a smooth skinned wannabe ginger. But believe it or not, they’re related to the sunflower! Poor fellas must have quite the complex with a gorgeous cousin in the family.
Despite its name, there’s no connection with Jerusalem, nor to the artichoke – although some say they’re a distant relative to the lettuce, which in turn is a relative to the artichoke. Who knows?
Much like the potato, these guys make a great roasted side dish, or baked in a gratin, or even raw as part of a salad. The jerusalem artichoke is sweet and has a similar after-taste of a water chestnut. I chanced upon a bunch of these recently – make sure they’re firm and not overly knobbly – and I roasted them with rosemary and sea salt.
Simple pleasures from an ugly tuber.
Roasted Jerusalem Artichoke with Rosemary
500g Jerusalem artichoke, ‘ugly’ bits removed, chopped into wedges (skin on or off, up to you)
good olive oil
2 stalks of rosemary, stalks removed and pines chopped up
generous pinch of sea salt
black pepper
Toss the cleaned and chopped jerusalem artichoke in olive oil, rosemary, sea salt and pepper. Roast in a hot oven (about 200C) until tender, about 15-20 minutes, tossing them halfway.
La Potee (French Farmhouse Soup)
La Potee Auvergnate is a rustic and hearty traditional French soup. Mostly cooked with ham hock, sausages and vegetables, it seems more like a stew than a soup really. When it’s cold and blue outdoors, it’s great to be warming up with a bowl of this stuff.
This recipe is heavily (really heavily) adapted from Delia Smith’s soup collection. As usual, I do not have the time to be pre-soaking dried haricot beans or making stock from a smoked gammon joint. So in its place, I used canned cannellini beans, chicken stock and smoked pancetta. Works well and it only took me a third of the time.
One’s got to adapt when real life gets in the way of domestic goddessness!
When you feel like having a soup that is filling, full of different textures and comfortingly tasty, this is the one to cook. Chunky bits of sausage, smokey pancetta and the sweetness of the carrots, leeks and savoy cabbages = pot of yum.
This now has a place in my very own soup collection.
(SIMPLIFIED) LA POTEE AUVERGNATE
2 x 400g canned cannellini beans
4 – 6 pork sausages
1 clove garlic
2 medium leeks, sliced into rings
2 medium carrots, sliced
1 onion, chopped
1 tsp dried wild thyme
1 medium head of savoy cabbage, shredded
200g pancetta cubes
1.5 litres chicken stock (more if you prefer soupier soups)
sea salt & fresh ground pepper
chopped fresh parsley
1. Squeeze the sausage meat out of their skins and brown them in a heavy based pot with just a touch of oil, break them up into smaller ‘balls’ while browning. When nicely browned, remove from pot and set aside. Add in pancetta cubes and fry till nicely coloured and fragrant, add in garlic, thyme and prepared vegetables (except savoy cabbage)
2. Cook veggies for about 10 – 15 minutes until tender, then add in chicken stock and beans. Season well with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Let the soup come back to a boil, then add cabbage and sausages. Simmer the soup for a few more minutes until the cabbage is wilted.
Serve with sprinkling of chopped fresh parsley and a drizzle of olive oil if desired.
Sweetcorn and cheddar pancakes
I made pancakes for lunch the other day. It was one of those I’ve got nothing in the fridge worth cooking days. There was my ever faithful can of sweet corn in the pantry and a third of a bottle of maple syrup. Sweet corn, maple syrup…sweet corn, maple syrup…how shall I get these two to work together to fill my belly!?
A corn pancake recipe to the rescue. Half portion of corn blended with flour, milk and eggs. A handful of grated cheddar mixed through and there was a good lunch in the making. Savoury and sweet, delicious and just that little bit crazy.
I love spontaneous cooking. And I love maple syrup.
SWEETCORN & CHEDDAR PANCAKES
Makes about 12 pancakes
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 4 teaspoons baking powder
* 1 tablespoon sugar
* 1 large can of corn, split into 2 portions, leaving a tbsp aside for garnish
* 3/4 cup whole milk
* 2 eggs
* 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
* large handful of grated mature cheddar
Whisk together flour, baking powder, sugar, and 1 tsp salt in a bowl.
Blend 1/2 cup corn with the milk. Purée until smooth, then strain through a sieve into another medium bowl, discarding solids. Whisk in eggs, oil, and butter.
Add to flour mixture with remaining corn and whisk until just combined. Add in grated cheddar, mix through.
Heat frying pan over medium heat until hot, then lightly oil. Working in batches, pour a ladle of batter per pancake onto griddle and cook until bubbles appear on surface and undersides are golden-brown. Flip and cook until undersides are golden-brown.
Serve with maple syrup and a sprinkle of corn kernels.
Fun food. Enjoy!
Wild about mushrooms
Remember I mentioned those wild mushrooms which I carted all the way from a market in Paris? I do. With much fondness…Wild mushrooms are not easy to find in regular shops here in London and if found, they are usually very pricey. We do get the usual white close-capped, chestnuts and oyster mushrooms and I’m rather bored with them for now.
When I saw a stall selling these amazing wild mushrooms at the Bastille Market, I was absolutely keen. There were golden chanterelles, dark and mysterious horn-of-plenty and fat juicy ceps. I knew that all I wanted was to pan fry these babies simply and just enjoy the natural, earthy flavours. And that I did.
Served with a poached egg and salad
I waited in anticipation for my return to London before I went at them. And the wait was well worth it. I just wish I could have easy access to these wonderful mushroom right here…right now.
WILD MUSHROOMS WITH POACHED EGG
A large bunch of wild mushrooms, torn up
1 clove of garlic
1 pinch of dried chilli flakes (optional)
Juice of half a lemon
Sea Salt Flakes & Fresh Ground Black Pepper for seasoning
Olive oil
Heat a generous splash of olive oil in a hot pan, throw in the mushrooms. Leave for a few seconds without stirring then toss the mushrooms through the olive oil. Add garlic, salt, pepper and chilli flakes.
At the start, the mushrooms will produce some liquids. Cook till the mushroom liquid is reduced and the mushrooms are glossy from being coated in the juices. Squeeze the lemon juice just before serving.
POACHED EGGS – the delia smith way
I found a great method for poaching eggs without creating a stringy mess. Step by step photos are on the delia smith website. Tried and tested! The egg turned out all neat and pretty and the yolk is perfectly runny and creamy…great with mushrooms!
Easy Chicken and Broccoli Pilaf
I’ve just returned from a wonderful weekend in Paris…and my head is still somewhere in French gaga land. I’ve got photos to share, but it also means I have to sort through them and that takes just a little too much effort at this point. I’ll get there I’m sure…there’s a long weekend coming up, I’ll be recovered from post-holiday blues by then. Fingers crossed.
For now, I thought I’d share this simple, comforting meal that is healthy and tasty. And the best part – only one pan for washing! Good deal all round especially for those über lazy days.
Cooking basmati rice in the same pan with flavour-laden pieces of chicken and vegetables cannot go wrong. The grains soak up all the delicious spices and juices and you end up with guaranteed mouthfuls of yum.
Easy Chicken & Broccoli Pilaf
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 4 small boneless, skinless chicken thigh fillets, cut into chunks
- ½ – 1 tbsp of your favourite curry paste (more if you like it punchy!)
- 3/4 cup of basmati rice
- 1 cup of chicken stock (or just enough to barely cover the chicken and rice)
- 1 small head of broccoli, split and cut into bite-size pieces
- ½ cup of frozen peas (optional)
- salt & pepper, to taste
- Heat up some oil in a frying pan, cook the onions for about 5 minutes till they’re soft. Add in chicken pieces and curry paste and fry till they have some colour. Add in basmati rice and mix well.
- Add in chicken stock, till they just cover the chicken and rice, cover the pan and cook for about 10 minutes. Add in broccoli and peas, cover and cook for another 10 minutes till all the stock is absorbed and the rice is cooked through.
- Stir through cooked chicken, rice and vegetables, season to taste and enjoy.
Pasta Peperonata
Slow-cooked peppers are to die for.
When you slow cook a bunch of sliced up peppers and red onions, magic happens. This pasta peperonata has certainly made it to my favourite pasta list. The peppers softened first and joined later by the red onions, were almost syrupy sweet. A generous splash of balsamic vinegar cuts through the sweetness and gives the sauce a full, rounded flavour.
The penne that I used in place of the recommended rigatoni, were well coated in the delicious sauce. All cheesy, gooey and irresistibly good. So good both hubby and I overate…again.
Pasta Peperonata
adapted from ‘Jamie’s Dinners’
• 2 red peppers, deseeded and sliced
• 2 yellow peppers, deseeded and sliced
• extra virgin olive oil
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 red onions, peeled and finely sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and grated
• 2 handfuls of fresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves finely chopped, stalks reserved
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar
• 2 handfuls of grated Parmesan cheese
• 500g rigatoni, penne or spaghetti
Put all the peppers in a large frying pan over a medium heat with a little olive oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Place a lid on, and cook slowly for 15 minutes until softened. (This slow-cooking process is what creates the pepper magic, so be patient – go watch TV or something while you wait.)
Add the onion and cook for a further 20 minutes. Then add the garlic and parsley stalks and toss around, keeping everything moving in the pan.
Have a little taste, and season with a bit more salt and pepper. Add the vinegar – it will sizzle away, so give everything a good toss. Then add one handful of the grated Parmesan.
Stir the cooked pasta through this yummy concoction, drizzle with more olive oil and serve with more of the grated parmesan.
Heaven…on a carb-laden plate.
Spicy Corn Fritters
I don’t know how on earth full-time working mothers manage without help. I only have to feed my hubby and myself and as it is, I often find that I need to prep and plan ahead otherwise we end up eating out, or worse yet eating junk. I have to remember to defrost food before I head off to work, or check that the vegetables are still in good condition. In cases when there’s no food defrosting, or if the salad pack is sitting in its own icky juices (yuk!), a back-up plan is required. This is when canned food comes in very handy.
I saw this recipe for spicy corn fritters awhile back and thought it’d be nice to try it out one day. In anticipation (and planning ahead, thank you), I had three cans of sweet corn sitting in my pantry waiting, waiting, waiting. Finally, last night was corn fritter night. Mainly because I didn’t have food defrosting and my crisper was sad and empty.
Now I highly recommend this fritter recipe. It’s simple to follow and the results were yumtastic! The fritters were crisp (well, some of the suffered because I took a while to take photos) and full of plump sweet corn. The subtle flavours of coriander and cumin came across beautifully and my own added pinch of hot chilli flakes to the batter gave that extra zing.
The dipping sauce was a great side-kick to the dish too! You could possibly use bottled stuff, but I reckon the sauce completed the dish. It was vinegary, sweet and spicy and I couldn’t stop dipping extra french salad leaves in them after I had finished my fritters. It’s like an extra punchy sweet and sour sauce. Very more-ish, very delish. Highly recommended – this recipe’s definitely a keeper!
SPICY CORN FRITTERS
From Simply Recipes
Dipping Sauce
- 3/4 cup rice vinegar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons red chili pepper flakes
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
Fritters
- 1 cup flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 cups of corn kernels, (see steps for cutting corn from a cob) cut from 3 large cobs (or frozen corn, defrost and drain first)
- 4 large scallions or green onions, finely sliced (about half a cup)
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- Grapeseed, canola, or peanut oil (a high smoke point oil) for frying
METHOD
Make the dipping sauce by combining all of the sauce ingredients into a small saucepan. Cook on medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium high, let boil for 5-10 minutes or so, until the mixture becomes somewhat syrupy. Remove from heat and let cool. The sauce should continue to thicken as it cools. If it becomes too thick, you can add a little water to it to thin it out a bit.
Crispy Tofu Salad with Peanut Dressing
Tofu in its true form is one of the most flavourless food substance you can find. (Not quite selling it here am I?) However, it is this lack of flavour that gives it versatility. Numerous cooks and chefs replace meat with tofu as the core protein element in many dishes. Apparently, pound for pound tofu has as much protein as meat. Not a bad deal if you’re trying to cut down on red meat I suppose.
I use quite a bit of tofu in my cooking. Medium organic tofu is a regular item in my weekly grocery list. I love that it is easy to incorporate tofu into most of my dishes, or even use it as the main source of protein. I’ve already written about one of my favourite tofu-based dishes – mapo tofu.
This time, I’ve created a light salad that is perfect for a summery dinner.
Crispy Tofu
- 1 pack of medium tofu cut into thick batons
- ¾ cup cornflour seasoned lightly with salt, pepper and a half a tsp of stock powder
- Vegetable oil for shallow frying
Dry the tofu batons as much as possible with paper towels. As tofu has quite high water content, you’ll never get it totally dry…just ensure it is not sopping wet or it will create an unwanted sticky batter with the cornflour. You want the flour to be relatively dry.
Heat a pan of vegetable oil, when it’s at medium heat, roll the batons in the seasoned cornflour and place in hot oil. Watch the heat, the floured tofu browns rather quickly. Fry on all sides till nice and golden. Drain excess oil on paper towels.
Peanut Dressing
- 1 can of coconut milk
- ½ cup crunchy peanut butter
- 2 tbsp of soy sauce
- 3 shallots, grated
- 1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce OR brown sugar
- ½ tsp vegetable oil
In a saucepan, heat the vegetable oil, then add grated shallots. Saute for 2 mins. Add the rest of the ingredients, blend well and bring to a light boil. Drizzle over crispy tofu and salad. Enjoy!
Back to Basics: Mapo Tofu
The simplest things are sometimes the scrummiest. On days when you’re all out of oomph, a quick, comforting meal is all it takes to make it all better. For me, Mapo Tofu does a pretty good job of that.
According to our dear friend Wiki, the name ‘mapo’ is sometimes translated as ‘pockmarked lady’. What?? I know, how unappetising right? I much prefer the more sanguine description of ‘ma’ – meaning ‘numb’, which is what happens to your mouth when you eat the fiery peppercorns and chilli in the dish. Considering the dish originates from Szechuan China, it’s not surprising that chilli and peppercorns are star ingredients.
I don’t think I’ve ever followed a specific recipe for this dish. It’s pretty basic. Stir fry minced pork with garlic, spicy chilli bean paste / chilli oil, soy or oyster sauce (depending on how salty the chilli bean paste is), add stock, bring to a boil, add cubed medium tofu. Thicken the sauce with cornstarch if necessary, garnish with spring onions (which I forgot this time)…serve with steamed rice. Done!
Warm Mushroom Salad
Mushroomy salad...
I think I’m ready for summer. I’ve been playing with a whole bunch of salad ideas in my head. I should write them down – but writing a post about them will suffice for now.
Since the sunshiny weather in London is but a farce – it’s still blinkingly cold – I thought a warm salad will be just the thing for a sunny spring Sunday lunch.
This salad is simple, nutritious and very tasty. My hubby who often asks ‘where’s the meat’ when a meatless dish is served, thoroughly enjoyed it – and without a squeak about the lack of animal protein. phew.
If I had access to a variety of wild mushroom, it would be even better but those darn things are very expensive and not readily available at the local supermarket. I made do with some closed cup mushrooms, chestnut mushrooms and a tiny bit of dried porcini mushroom for the added earthiness.
In a hot pan, I drizzled some olive oil, lightly browned some thinly sliced shallots before adding all of the mushrooms and some garlic to cook, seasoned with salt and pepper. The salt draws out the water from the mushrooms and I cooked them till the liquid’s reduced. A couple minutes before the mushrooms are ready, I added frozen garden peas to the mix. The sweet juices from the mushroom, peas and shallots produced an added dressing for the salad. Most convenient!
I used French salad leaves tossed in olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper. The mushroom juices did the rest of the tasty work. Topped with shaved parmesan – this warm salad was hearty and satisfying, even for the meat-lover in me.
Shrooms up close
Soon Kueh
This is another one of those ‘crave’ posts. Soon kueh, or bangkwang kueh to some, is a southeast asian morning or afternoon snack – a simple, steamed turnip dumpling. I haven’t sighted any of these in London and I do not remember when was the last time I had one of these babies. And so, in another desperate attempt to savour these childhood faves of mine, I virtually dusted off an old email from a good friend who had given me the recipe a couple of years back.
Another reason for the major two-year delay in making soon kueh, aside from utter laziness, is the fact that the turnip (yambean or jicama) for this recipe does not exist in the UK. I had to google for a suitable substitute for this particular type of turnip and the closest and most available fellow root vege is daikon radish (known as mooli in the UK). I had used mooli in my chinese carrot cake recipe before and was hoping that it’d work just as well. And it did.
The making of the filling was the easy bit. I julienned a large mooli instead of shredding it, as I prefered having more of a bite to the vegetable, and also to prevent it from turning to mush…Now, the skin of the dumpling was a different story. It’s a very sticky dough, which requires partial cooking in a pot before kneading. Kneading steaming hot dough is not quite as fun as you can imagine, plus it gets really sticky and messy, so there was quite a bit of oil and extra tapioca flour on the side to prevent the dough from clinging on to my tabletop and hands too much. It took me about three hours from start to when we devoured the dumplings, but I had fun in what my hubby refers to as my ‘cave-time’ – julienning, cooking, cooling, kneading and forming these dumplings.
Steamed!! The final product
Ironically, you can just pop out to a shop in Singapore to buy these for no more than S$0.70 per piece…I definitely spent way too much, and took way too long to make ‘em. But it was worth it.
The recipe below makes 28 mid-size dumplings. Good thing about soon kueh is that you can eat them slightly cooled. (In fact, I prefer it that way) Serve with a generous drizzle of sticky sweet caramel soy sauce and Lingam’s chilli sauce, garnished with crispy fried shallots. Oh…yum.
With sweet soy and chilli
I do not normally post recipes, but since this wasn’t taken from a website or book, I thought I’d post it…Credit for this recipe goes to my friend, Sue Koh – Susie, you’re amazing and I miss you!
Soon Kueh
Ingredients for filling:
1 turnip – shredded
5 shallots
15 dried shrimps
1-2tsp of light soya sauce
dash of pepper
chicken stock
(**I added some diced chinese mushrooms to it as well)
Ingredients for the dough:
300g rice flour
30g tapioca flour
300ml cold water
300ml boiling water
Method (filling):
1. Fry shallots till they are dark brown in colour.
2. Add the dried shrimps, white pepper and soya sauce to shallots.
3. Add turnip and some chicken stock. Final filling should look slightly moist in texture and light brown in colour. Set aside.
Method (dough):
4. Mix both flour together in a big glass bowl
5. Add cold water & mix till smooth paste/liquid is formed.
6. Heat up 300ml water till it comes to a boil. Pour the dough into the boiling water, stirring at the same time. When dough is almost done, remove from heat.
7. Grease the palm of your hands and knead dough for about 10 to 15 mins until the dough is smooth.
8. To form the wrapper, pinch some dough about the size of a ping pong ball. Sprinkle some tapioca starch on your hand (prevents sticking). Roll the ball into a flat disc.
9. Spoon some filling onto the wrapper and seal the edges
10. Steam Soon Kuehs for 10 mins.
11. Brush some garlic oil over kuehs – prevents sticking.
Nom nom nom...
