Vegetables Gingko In Belachan Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Vegetables Gingko In Belachan

A twist to our traditional and contemporary ways of preparing kai lan (a.k.a Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale). Instead of having kai lan stir-fried with ginger and garlic, or boiled (or steamed) and served with oyster sauce, a little of local flavor and piquancy thrown in by introducing a bit of Malaysian shrimp paste (belachan) and chilli boh (blended chilli paste). This Malaysian Chinese home-cooked dish is speckled with tiny dices of red chilli peppers (cayenne peppers) and dried shrimps whilst Chinese cabbage (a.ka.a Napa cabbage) serves to mellow it all out. Sweet snow peas (or alternatively sugar snap peas) add some deletable crunch, vibrantly delicious flavor, wonderful texture and packed with a wealth of health-promoting nutrients. To round out the dish with more nutrition, fresh ginkgo nuts which is touted and well recognized for its postive effect on brain functioning, are added in.

Below is the how-to recipe for home-cooked vegetables gingko in belachan. This is a healthy vegan dish which is packed with a great nutritional values.

Ingredients :

1 packet of fresh gingko nuts (鲜白果或銀杏)

100g kai lan (a.k.a. Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale) (芥兰)

50g Chinese cabbage (a.k.a. Napa cabbage), cut into pieces (大白菜,黃芽白或津白)

50g sweet snow peas (or alternatively sugar snap peas) (甜豆)

1 red chilli pepper (a.k.a cayenne pepper) (红辣椒), cut into pieces

Some dried shrimps (虾米), soaked, chopped

A bit of shrimp paste (locally known as belachan) (峇拉煎), about 1cm

1/2 tbsp chilli boh (blended chilli paste but not sambal)

2 pips garlic

1 tbsp oil

1 tsp tapioca flour (薯粉), mix with 1 tsp water

Seasoning :

1 tsp light soy sauce

A pinch of sugar

50ml water

Method :

1. Sweet snow peas better to be trimmed off the ends before cooking. Pinch off the stem and then pull the string down the full length of the pod. Repeat the procedure on the other side. If desired, you may leave the strings intact. Some have a calyx and that should be removed for aesthetic as well as practical reasons. A quick snap of the wrist with or without a paring knife will do the trick.

2. Heat up a pot of hot water, blanch all vegetables for a while. Remove for later use. Drain on a sieve to discard excessive water.

3. Heat up a wok (or skillet) with some oil, add in minced dried shrimps, stir fry until fragrant. Add in belachan, chilli boh and all seasonings, stir fry over low heat until fragrant and boiled.

4. Return vegetables, stir quickly over high heat, keep stirring while pouring tapioca flour mixture. Stir till gravy thickens. Serve with steamed white rice.

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Crispy Juicy Chicken Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Crispy Juicy Chicken香脆西汁鸡

Too often, we extol the virtues of the posh restaurant even as we eventually give the thumbs up to our favourite local hawker's stalls or home-cooked meals, when we have to choose. Admittedly, it's less painful on our wallet as sometimes we can whip them right out of our own kitchen without breaking a sweat and savor a simpler but equally exquisite western fare. Dunk this succulent chicken cubes which is wrapped in crispy skin in the savory sauce before shovelling into your mouth, each bite is simply palatable.

This is the how-to home-cooked recipe for you to recreate this easy-to-prepare crispy chicken morsels at your own abode.

Ingredients :
1/2 chicken, deboned and cut into few large chunks
some tapioca flour

Marinade :
1 egg
Dash of sugar
Dash of salt
Some rice wine (白米酒)

Seasoning :
1/2 tbsp sour plum sauce (酸梅酱)
2 tsp light soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
Some sesame oil
1 tbsp Lea & Perrins sauce (李派林酱油)
1/2 tbsp chilli sauce
1/2 tbsp tomato sauce
3 tbsp water

Method :

1. Remove bone from chicken. Mix with marinade and marinate for 15 minutes.

2. To prepare gravy, heat up a wok (or skillet), add in all seasoning, cook till boiled, when the gravy reduced, dish up onto a plate for later use.

3. Heat up wok with oil again, coat chicken with corn flour and deep fry till crispy. Cut chicken into pieces and arrange on prepared gravy.

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How to Make Ikan Assam Pedas (Spicy and Sour Tamarind-Flavored Fish) | Easy Asian Cooking

Yesterday I made this Nyonya dish as a weekday night dinner. Once I sank my teeth into this bowl of ikan assam pedas, I was mesmerised and overwhelmed. Yeah, for those who adore Penang asam laksa (sour fish-based soup with noodles), you will definitely head over heels in love with this. Tastewise, both bears a strong resemblance, which flavor is predominantly perked up by ginger flower and polygonum. My hubby is not much of tamarind-soured soup addict, so he can't vouch for its taste. Well, it's up to you if you are going to believe my verdict or not.

Ikan assam pedas (literally translated as spicy and sour tamarind-flavored fish) is one of the epitome of Malaysian fare. While the saltwater fish (Chubb mackerel, Spanish mackerel, Threadfin or Stingray are commonly used) is the centerpiece of this dish, others secret ingredient are polygonum (daun kesum 加沙叶), ginger flower (bunga kantan 加沙花), lemongrass (香茅), red chillies, shallots and fresh turmeric (黄姜). To make the soup more tangy and savory, shrimp paste (belachan) and tamarind skins (assam gelugor 阿叁皮) are added.

Now here's the how-to recipe for ikan assam pedas (spicy and sour tamarind-flavored fish). Suffice it to say, it's such a appetite-whetting dish that leave you asking for more. Enjoy!

Ingredients :

4 Chubb mackerel or Indian Mackerel (ikan kembong)
or Spanish mackerel (ikan tenggiri)
or Threadfin (ikan senangin)
or Stingray (ikan pari)
2 pcs tamarind skins (assam gelugor or assam keping 阿叁皮)
4 stalks polygonum (a.k.a Vietnamese coriander, daun kesum in Malay or known locally as laksa leaves 加沙叶)
1 phaeomaria (a.k.a ginger flower or bunga kantan in Malay 加沙花)
3 rice bowls of water
1 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp sugar (to taste)

Soup base ingredients, to be blended (or pounded) :
6 shallots
2.5cm fresh turmeric (kunyit 黄姜), skinned
1 stalk lemongrass (serai 香茅), sliced finely
5 fresh red chilli peppers (fresh cayenne peppers) 红辣椒
3cm shrimp paste (belachan) 峇拉煎

Method :

1. Clean fish and discard gills and intestines, set aside.

2. Wash polygonum (daun kesum or laksa leaves), discard stalks, set aside.

3. Cut phaeomaria (ginger flower or bunga kantan) into quarter (lengthwise), set aside.

4. Using a blender or food processor, blend all the soup base ingredients until fine. Alternatively, you can use pestle and mortar to pound them into a fine paste.

5. Now pour in 3 rice bowls of water into a stockpot. Add in all the blended mixture (or pounded paste), tamarind pieces, polygonum and phaeomaria, stir well with a ladle. Bring to boil for a few minutes until the soup is fragrant.

6. Add sugar and salt to taste. Stir well. Then add fish into the soup. When the soup reaches rolling boil again, reduce to low heat and simmer for another 5 minutes. Serve hot. This hot and sour fish soup goes well with steamed white rice.

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How To Make Tom Yum Soup With Shrimp and Fish | Easy Asian Cooking

Remember tangy Thai Tom Yam (Tom Yum) fish, a clear, spicy and sour soup? Well, the lingering aftertaste was haunting me and my big cravings was kicking in early this morning - I still remember how's the creeping chilli hot awaken my lethargic appetite that day. Whilst it's still early to whip up a dish at the crack of dawn, I just scoured the video from YouTube hoping to find a good Tom Yum soup recipe to satiate my gluttonous mind, at least. And voila! I found this Tom Yum soup video with a nice and rejuvenating background song - "Right Here Waiting" by Bryan Adams (Written by : Richard Marx). Enjoy!

Ingredients :

Chicken stock or chicken powder
1 stalk lemongrass
4 kaffir lime leaves (sold fresh or frozen at Asian food stores)
12 medium or large raw shrimp, trim off shrimp head, rest intact
1 white meat fish (any type, e.g. black pomfret et cetera), cut across into 2 or 3 portions
3 tbsp of tom yam paste (or alternatively 1 tsp chilli paste with soy bean oil (辣椒膏))
2 tbsp fish sauce
5 red or green bird's eye chillies (quantity adjusted to your preference), finely sliced
1 tomato
6 fresh shitake mushrooms, sliced thinly
1 lime, squeeze out the juice
Coriander leaves (cilantro), chopped, to be sprinkled on top of the soup
Spring onions (scallions), sliced finely, to be sprinkled on top of the soup
1 red chilli pepper (Cayenne chilli pepper), seeded and sliced (optional)
1 lime, cut into wedges, for serving (optional)

Method :



Source

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Vietnam-style Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken (Har Jiong Gai) Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Vietnam-style Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken ("Har Jiong Gai") 虾酱鸡

Fried chicken goes global. From Korean-style garlic fried chicken, Japan-style toriniku tatsuta-age, Indonesian-style ayam penyet, Thai-style fried chicken to Vietnam-style "har jiong gai 虾酱鸡" (fried shrimp paste chicken), the crispy skin and moist white meat literally make the world go round.

I used to have belachan (stinky but luscious Malaysian shrimp paste) fried chicken in Super Tanker hawker centre situated in Penang Lip Sin garden and the acquired taste resembled this home-cooked Vietnam-style fried shrimp paste chicken, with a very distinctive pungent and briny shrimp paste flavor. The secret of this flavorful fried chicken relies heavily on the shrimp paste marinade, a brownish-grey-colored condiment made from fermented shrimps (scroll down to see shrimp paste photo). You have to let it marinates for minimum 2 hours and long enough to allow the mixture of strong salty taste of the shrimp paste, ginger juice, rose wine and sugar to seep into the chicken, giving it a distinctive aroma and flavor. The flour (tapioca flour and plain flour mixture in the ratio of 1:1) coating adds a light crispy crust to the exterior, providing a delightful crunch while you chomp on it in your mouth. This fried shrimp paste chicken ("har jiong gai") is simply leaving my hubby and daughter went nut for it, it's such a plate-sweeper!

This shrimp paste chicken can commercially be found in many Hong Kong-style restaurants in Singapore and Malaysia. I'm going to lay out Vietnam-style fried shrimp paste chicken ("har jiong gai" or 越南式虾酱炸鸡) recipe here. If the pictures above make you coveting and ravenous with hunger, why not try to lay your hand to make this Vietnam-style fried chicken in your own kitchen? It's an easy home-cooked recipe without require you to break a sweat.

Ingredients :
1/2 chicken, cleaned and chopped into bite-sized pieces
Enough oil for deep-frying
Calamansi limes, sliced tomato or sliced cucumber, for garnish

Chicken Marinade :
5cm length of ginger, grate and squeeze to get 1 1/2 tbsp ginger juice
2 tbsp Chinese rose wine (玫瑰露酒)
1 1/2 tbsp Chinese shrimp paste (Cantonese pronounced as "har jiong", 虾酱)
1 tbsp rice flour
1 tsp sugar

For Coating :
50g tapioca flour (木薯粉)
50g plain flour

Method :

1. Grate ginger and squeeze to get 1 1/2 tbsp ginger juice. In a large bowl, combine ginger juice with rose wine, shrimp paste, rice flour and sugar. Add chicken and mix well. Cover airtight with cling film wrap and let marinate, refrigerated for at least 2 hours and up to 6 hours, preferably overnight.

Vietnam-style Fried Shrimp Paste Chicken (Har Jiong Gai) : Ingredients and How-To Steps

2. Heat oil until it shimmers and a light haze forms. Sift both tapioca flour and plain flour together onto a plate, and dredge chicken pieces in flour mixture to coat lightly but thoroughly. Shake off excess flour.

3. Fry chicken a few pieces at a time until golden brown and cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes per batch. Drain in a metal sieve. Drain briefly on kitchen paper towels and serve immediately, garnished with cucumber, tomato slices and cut limes.

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My Basic Kitchen Seasoning and Spices | Easy Asian Cooking

What is flavor without spices and seasoning? From zesty American to Malaysian cuisine, be wowed by the vast number of seasoning and spices that make our culinary world bursting with flavors. Making all the fundamental seasoning ingredients handy at kitchen, you can add more than an epicurean touches to dishes at any time when you have a sudden whim for cooking. Take a sneak peek at my little Malaysian kitchen with basic seasoning ingredients.

Basic Kitchen Seasoning :

Oyster Sauce 蚝油                Light Soy Sauce 生抽            Dark Soy Sauce 老抽             Hoisin Sauce 海鲜酱
  

Tomato Ketchup 番茄酱        Sesame Oil 麻油                    Rice Vinegar 米醋               Spiced Vinegar 黑醋

    

Chinese Shrimp Paste 虾酱     Beancurd Paste 豆酱        Chicken Stock 浓缩鸡精          Coconut Milk 椰浆   
 

Preserved Beancurd 腐乳   Salted Black Beans 黑豆酱    Abalone Sauce 鲍鱼汁        Plum Sauce 酸梅酱
 

Salted Plum 咸水梅       Thai Tom Yam Paste 泰国冬炎酱     Rose Wine 玫瑰露酒     Chilli Sauce 泰国辣椒酱


Shaoxing Wine 绍兴花雕酒   Glutinous Rice Wine 糯米黄酒       Honey 蜜糖               
Fish Sauce 鱼露


Shrimp Paste (Belachan or Belacan) 峇拉煎 




Herbs and Spices :

   Rosemary Herbs                   Oregano Herbs                       Thyme Herbs               White Pepper Powder  


Black Pepper 黑胡椒粉           White Pepper胡椒粉

Fresh Ingredients :

  Bird's Eye Chillies 指天椒                      Water Chestnuts 马蹄

          Calamansi lime                                  Ginger flower 姜花

Daun kesum or daun laksa (Polygonum)

  Red Chilli Pepper               Fresh Lotus Seed

  (Cayenne Pepper)                    鲜莲子

         红辣椒

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Spare Ribs In Mayonnaise Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-Cooked Spare Ribs In Mayonnaise

Doused with rich mayonnasie, condensed milk, orange juice and lime juice mixture, these butter pan-fried spare ribs is bursting with buttery flavors. The dish is topped with chopped coriander leaves which is perfectly complements the rich flavors of the spare ribs. For those on a tight purse string but wish to satiate your craving for sumptuous meal, why not recreate a fine-dining experience at home and indulge in this no-frills, stripped down, simple home-cooked fare instead? It may not knock your socks off or promise an extravagant dining experience as exactly what you have in a cozy restaurant, but for me, sometimes enjoying culinary adventures at our own abode and serving our love one is more fulfilling and satisfying, at least, the dish is cooked with heart and soul.

Here's the how-to recipe for spare ribs in mayonnaise (鲜果排骨) to step you through.

Ingredients :
1 spare ribs (400g) (排骨)
1 orange (peeled, diced) (鲜橙,去皮,切粒)
1 small stalk coriander, chopped (芫茜)
1/2 tbsp butter (牛油)

Seasoning :
6 tbsp mayonnaise (美乃滋)
1/2 tbsp condensed milk (甜奶)
1 tbsp orange juice (橙汁)
1/2 tbsp lime juice (酸柑汁)

Marinade :
A pinch of salt
1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp flour
1 egg
2 tbsp water
2 pips garlic, minced

Method :

1. Clean well spare ribs, chop into pieces and put into a big bowl. Add in marinade and mix well, let them stand in fridge for 3 hours.

2. Heat up wok, add in butter, cook till melts. Pan fry both sides of spare rib over low heat till cooked. Remove for later use.

3. Mix well all seasoning with orange and pour over cooked spare ribs. Sprinkle with coriander leaves and serve.

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Stir-fried Sweet Potato Leaves with Taucheo (Fermented Yellow Soybean Sauce) Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Stir-fried Sweet Potato Leaves with Taucheo

Just like many affectionate parents who tend to shower us with heaps of goods the moments we are about to bid farewell, my mother-in-laws packed some sweet potato leaves to be brought back with us to Penang sometimes ago when we back to Negeri Sembilan. There're aplenty of homegrown sweet potato leaves by a close relative which just been freshly plucked and partially ended up in our car. Without mulling the next morning, sweet potato leaves were dimidiated, half portion was stir-fried with taucheo (fermented yellow soybean sauce or taucu, 豆酱) and sliced red chilli peppers (cayenne pepper), and the other half stored back into the fridge to be cooked with sambal belachan (stinky but luscious Malaysian shrimp paste) later.

This green veggie, with leaves that wilt as easily as spinach while the stems retain a nice crisp-tender bite, are perfectly paired with salty and savory taucheo, with sliced red chilli peppers impart a hint of spiciness. Though the ingredients may seem too simple, it made a quick satisfying meal and a great companion to go with fluffy steamed rice. Whilst oftentimes I like to imagine myself lavishing in exotic or elaborate dishes, sometimes I just like my dish to be plain, easy-to-prepare and homey.

For health-conscious, nutrition facts of sweet potato leaves may interest you. This simple vegetable is packed with nutrition, low in saturated fat and very low in cholesterol. It is also a good source of vitamin E, niacin and phosphorus and also very rich in dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin K, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, folate, magnesium, potassium and manganese. Sweet potato leaves, according to Chinese belief, replenish blood and as a diabetes diet. It is also suitable to those who embrace the vegetarian lifestyle as potato leaves is the only vegetable with Iodine, a common substance found in seafood.

Here's the easy recipe for stir-fried sweet potato leaves with taucheo. (番薯叶炒豆酱与红辣椒)

Ingredients :
Some sweet potato leaves (番薯叶), washed, trimmed and drained
2 1/2 tbsp of taucheo (fermented yellow soybean sauce or taucu, 豆酱)
1 red chilli pepper (cayenne pepper, 红辣椒), deseeded and sliced thinly
2 pips of garlic, skin removed and minced
2 tbsp of vegetable oil

Method :

1. Heat 1 tbsp of vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet, saute the minced garlic until it turns slightly brown.  Add in potato leaves and turn to high flame, do a quick and brisk stir, then add in sliced red chilli pepper (cayenne pepper) and taucheo (fermented yellow soybean sauce). Stir well to mix. Sprinkle some water to keep it moist. Turn off the flame after 2-3 minutes and serve hot with steamed rice. No need season with salt or soy sauce as the taucheo itself is salty enough to flavor the dish.

Home-cooked Stir-fried Sweet Potato Leaves with Taucheo

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Braised Chicken in Fragrant Sauce Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Braised Chicken in Fragrant Sauce

Remained unrivalled in taste, this dish is reminiscent of "Bak Kut Teh", a nourishing herbal soup that Malaysian proclaim as our national fare. The rich broth is flavorsome with mishmash of aromatic herbs and spices essence, dominated by sweet licorice aroma of the star anise and licorice (or liquorice).  This hodgepodge of sweet-woody fragrance of cinnamon stick, pungent-sweet aroma of cloves, aromatic-astringent aroma of cardamons, bitter taste of dried tangerine peel, citrusy-earthy aroma of the galangal, spicy heat of white peppercorns, unique lemony aroma of Szechuan peppercorns are nicely imbued with sweet touch of rock sugar, are all harmonized into a distinctive taste which is perfectly subtle on the tongue, providing a lingering after-taste. The chicken is falling-off-the-bone tender and has been soaking up all the herbal goodness from the broth. Simply nourishing!

Here's the recipe for braised chicken in fragrant sauce for you to replicate the store-bought "Bak Kut Teh" pre-mixes. The recipe is calling for one whole chicken, but if you don't have such a big appetite or only have limited number of guests or family members to serve, then you should consider to prepare the chicken proportionally.

Ingredients :

1 whole chicken, approximately 1.2kg, cleansed

3 eggs, cleansed thoroughly

A dash of sesame oil

Stock ingredients :

5cm cinnamon stick (桂皮)

2 star anise (八角)

8 cloves

3 cardamons, lightly smashed

2 slices licorice / liquorice (甘草)

2g dried tangerine peel (陈皮)

2.5cm knob galangal (南姜), smashed  [Substitute : 2 times amount of fresh young ginger]

2cm knob old ginger, smashed

4 cloves garlic with skin, lightly smashed

1 tsp white peppercorns, smashed

1 tsp Szechuan peppercorns (四川花椒)

25g rock sugar

150ml light soy sauce

1 tbsp dark soy sauce

2 tbsp oyster sauce

2 litres water

Method :

1. Bring half a wok of water to a rolling boil. Hold the chicken by the legs and head and dip into boiling water. Allow the water to seep into the chicken cavity, then the water being pour back into the wok. Repeat this 4 to 5 times to thoroughly clean the cavity. Discard the water.

2. Combine all stock ingredients in a deep stockpot and bring to a boil. Put in the chicken and 3 eggs. When the stock reach a rolling boil, reduce the heat and simmer over a medium heat for 1 hour or until the chicken is tender. Remove the egg halfway through, crack the egg shells and then return the eggs to the stock.

3. Leave the chicken to soak in the stock for another 20-25 minutes, then turn off the flame. Remove the chicken and leave it to cool before chopping into bite-sized pieces. Then halve the eggs. To serve, pour some stock over the chicken and drizzle a dash of sesame oil over.

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