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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How to Make Sambal Belachan and Sambal Petai | Easy Asian Cooking

Sambal Belachan and Sambal Petai

Whilst my hubby and I found this irresistable famous nyonya cuisine intriguing, some detest petai bean due to its stinky and peculiar smell. Well, petai is like durian, whether you adore it or abhor it, there's no ambivalent or in between. Luckily we both are on the same wavelength on the tastebuds, else one'd have to tolerate with the other's preference when it comes to meal preparation.

The dish highlights the petai in itself by pairing it with this spicy sambal belachan, a stinky but luscious Malaysian condiment made from shrimp paste, red chilli peppers (fresh or/and dried), shallots, garlic, dried shrimp, lemongrass and also some tamarind juice to flare up the sourness. Just a reminder, hours after the petai, your excretions will have a very pungent petai odor - stinky urine, smelly breath or burp, strong-smelling flatulence et cetera. Despite this, it should not serve as a deterrent for not taking petai bean. If you take a look at its medicinal values, perhaps you'd give petai a second look you are musing! This stinky bean regulates blood pressure and reduce the risk of stroke as it's high in potassium yet low in salt, cure depression, treat PMS (premenstrual syndrome), cure anaemia and among others, overcome the problem of constipation and the list goes on.

 

If you fancy, you can add some medium to large shrimps (trimmed and shelled) for a more substantial dish, which is known as sambal petai udang, or mingle it with tempeh (fermented soy bean cake that originates from Indonesia). Well, it's actually up to individual preference, you can just tweak it to suit your tastebuds. One thing good about home-cooked meal is, the approach is never rigid. Sometimes, you'll find that coming up with unusual dishes is akin to creating a piece of modern art, which rejuvenate your artful imagination.

Here's the how-to recipe for home-cooked sambal petai. Let's meld tangy and savory with this easy recipe.

Ingredients :

150g petai bean, skinned and cleaned, split the bean into two with a paring knife (to isolate the bean with worms that burrow their way into the heart of the petai)

Seasoning :

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp sugar

For Sambal Paste :

5 fresh red chilli peppers (fresh cayenne peppers), seeded 红辣椒

5 dried red chillies, seeded 干辣椒

150g dried shrimp, soaked and drained 虾米

2 cm turmeric (kunyit in Malay or 黄姜 in Chinese)

5 shallots 葱头子

5 pips garlic 蒜头

1/2 tsp tamarind paste (asam jawa in Malay)

1cm Asian shrimp paste (known as belachan locally) 峇拉煎

1 stalk lemongrass (serai in Malay or 香茅 in Chinese)

80ml water

Method :

1. Mix tamarind paste with water and squeeze out tamarind juice, set aside.

2. Half-fill a pot of water and boil, blanch all the petai with boiling water. Then dish up and drain on a metal sieve.

3. Peel shallots and garlic. Pound shallots, garlic and dried shrimp using a pestle and mortar. Then add in red chillies and dried chillies, pound again until fine. At this point, add in turmeric, belachan and lemongrass, pound until the mixture becomes a smooth paste. Alternatively, you can use blender or food processor to blend the ingredients instead of pestle and mortar.

4. Heat up 4 tbsp oil and saute the pounded paste until the paste emanates a fragrant smell. Add in petai and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes. Then add in water and tamarind juice, then bring to a simmer. Add in seasoning and serve hot with steamed white rice.

Home-cooked Sambal Petai

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Stir-fried Bean Curd with Minced Meat Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Stir-fried Bean Curd with Minced Meat

A variant of steamed bean curd with minced meat and preserved radish. Instead of steaming the beancurd (tofu) with minced meat and preserved radish toppings, this recipe is calling for beancurd to be deep-fried for delicious crispiness before topped with minced meat and shitake mushroom mixture which is mingled well with seasoning and reduced for a scrumptious sauce.  Texturally different, you'll have a soft, crumbly and squishy bean curd interior and crisp-tender exterior, which is nicely balanced by the richness of the accompanying lumpy sauce and the earthiness of shitake mushroom and minced pork belly. Sprinkling of chopped spring onions add a final green touch to the dish, making the dish a feast for the eye and the palate.

Here's the how-to recipe to help you embark on the realm of bean curd. Here you go! 葱香肉松豆腐食谱

Ingredients :
1 box Chinese-style soft bean curd (soft tofu)
1/2 onion, chopped
1 shitake mushroom, soaked and chopped
100g pork belly, chopped
2 pips garlic, chopped
Some spring onion, sliced

Seasoning :
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp light soy sauce
Dash of sugar (to taste)
A pinch of pepper powder
120ml water

Method :

1. Cut bean curd into 2 pieces. Dip into boiling water for a while, pat dry with kitchen paper towels and set aside. Heat up oil in a non-stick skillet, slowly slide in bean curd, keep a watching eyes while deep-frying, turn to the other side to avoid burning. Dish up when the bean curd turn to golden brown. Arrange the deep-fried bean curds onto a serving plate.

2. Remove oil and leave about 2 tbsp oil in the skillet. Saute onion and garlic until fragrant, then add in pork belly and mushroom, stir well and add in seasoning. Stir-fry quickly till gravy is reduced and become thicken. Dish up and pour over the bean curd, then sprinkle with chopped spring onions to garnish.

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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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Fried Prawn with Ginger Sauce Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Fried Prawn with Ginger Sauce (姜茸虾碌)

What a gingery indulgence! For those who adore pungent, spicy, sweet gingery aroma, you'll find this dish intriguing. As counterpoint to plumpy, opulent sweetness of prawns trapped inside the shell, the outer coating which is concocted from juicy ginger puree and biting bird's eye chillies, is hot enough to make you experience more than a tingling tug at your taste sensation!

Here's some trick to perfect this shrimp treat! Oil must be hot enough during deep-frying to ensure prawns are thoroughly cooked to preserve its juiciness and crispiness. Then under deft fire control, coat the fried prawns with ginger puree and bird's eye chillies mixture briskly and dish up in no time, to prevent them from over-cooked.

Here's the how-to recipe for you to cook fried prawn with ginger sauce (姜茸虾碌) at home.

Ingredients :
500g medium sized prawns
5 cups oil for deep-frying
150g young ginger, skin removed, mix with 50ml water and blend into puree
1 tbsp chopped bird's eye chillies
3 tbsp chopped spring onions (scallions)

Seasoning :
1 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp Shao xing wine

Method :

1. Deep-fry prawns until golden brown. Dish up and drain on kitchen paper towels to discard excess oil.

2. Leave 1 tbsp oil in wok, saute ginger puree and bird's eye chillies until fragrant. Add in seasoning, prawns and stir-fry at high heat until well-mixed. Stir in chopped spring onions (scallions) and stir briskly, dish up and serve with steamed rice.

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Stir-fried Chicken and Beancurd with Crispy Ginger Shreds Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Home-cooked Stir-fried Chicken and Beancurd with Crispy Ginger Shreds

With shreds of crispy gingery goodness spread on top of the dish, this reminiscent of postpartum meal I had two years ago. Resting beneath this mound of deep-fried ginger shreds is heap of tender chicken morsels mingled with deep-fried firm beancurd cubes. With crackly-crunchy deep-fried basil leaves and some sliced red chillies interspersed within, the dish is redolent of heady fragrance of basil and the right amount of piquancy in the sauce which is rounded up together with sweet and salty notes. Homey, dainty and absolutely scrumptious!

This easy to prepare dish is also served as a confinement meal. You can adapt it the way you fancy. Just add an extra amount of ginger for its wind-dispelling goodness, then you are good to go. Here's the how-to recipe for you to cook stir-fried chicken and beancurd with crispy ginger shreds at home.

Ingredients :
200g deboned chicken thighs, cubed

2 pieces firm beancurds / tofu (known as taukua in Hokkien dialect), cubed

140g ginger, shredded

2 sprigs basil leaves, stems discarded

2 red chillies, sliced diagonally

2 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp sesame oil

A pinch of salt

Oil for deep-frying

Chicken Marinade :

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp chicken stock granules (optional)

1/2 tsp pepper

1 egg white

3 tbsp corn flour, for dusting

Seasoning (Sauce) :

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp sesame oil

1 tbsp fish sauce

3/4 tsp sugar (or to taste)

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp chicken stock granules (optional)

1 tsp minced bird's eye chillies

100 ml water

Thickening agent :

1 tsp potato flour mixed with 2 tbsp water

Method :

1. Marinate chicken with marinade for 15 minutes. Sprinkle a pinch of salt on the beancurd and set aside.

2. Heat oil in a deep skillet and deep-fry beancurd until golden. Dish up and drain on several pieces of absorbent kitchen paper towels. With the remaining oil, deep-fry half portion of ginger shreds until golden crispy. Then put in basil leaves and deep-fry for 10-20 seconds. Remove and drain off the excess oil using a fine steel sieve.

3. Reheat the oil and fry the chicken until lightly golden brown. Drain excess oil using an absorbent kitchen paper towels.

4. Then heat up 2 tbsp of oil and 1/2 tsp of sesame oil in a clean skillet. Add the remaining half of the ginger shreds and saute under low heat. Add in chillies, sauce mixture, pre-fried chicken and beancurd. Bring to a quick boil and then simmer for 1-2 minutes. Thicken with potato flour mixture. Dish up and garnish with pre-fried crispy basil leaves and ginger shreds.

Home-cooked Stir-fried Chicken and Beancurd with Crispy Ginger Shreds

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Stir-fried Kam Heong Chinese Long Beans Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Stir-fried Kam Heong Chinese Long Beans

Those who regularly patronize seafood eateries must be very familiar with 'kam heong lala (fragrant clams)' or 'kam heong crabs' which always available in the seafood restaurant menu, be it in the form of dine-in or takeaway.  Pronounced as 'kam heong' in Cantonese, the phrase literally translated as fragrant, flavorful or 甘香 in Mandarin.  'Kam heong' sauce is exceedingly versatile, as you can prepare it in bulk, store properly in the fridge and pair them with any seafood, chicken, pork or vegetables whenever you're hard pressed for time, without compromising on the flavors yet not labor-extensive.

The soul ingredient for kam heong dishes lies heavily in curry leaves which elevate the whole dish into another dimension. Basically all you need is to pour in copious amount of curry leaves in order to pep up your strong tastebuds. If you are big into biting chilli-hot, be lavish of bird's eye chillies addition. My tastebuds tolerance towards chilli-hot (heat scale) is comparatively low to that of my hubby, any addition beyond 5 bird's eye chillies is sure to ruffle my features. Thus, I add in my ceiling amount of bird's eye chillies into this dish.

I incorporated vegetables into 'kam heong' sauce today instead of pairing it with usual seafood ingredients.  Chinese long beans (aka yardlong beans, long-podded cowpeas, asparagus beans or snake beans) retain a nice crisp-tender bite despite being lacquered with lumpy 'kam heong' sauce. When bulked up with the briny taste of dried shrimps, a burst of onion and chilli powder flavors, this savory piquant dish is sublime.

When you opt for this stir-fried 'kam heong' Chinese long beans, be sure to attune your five senses to enjoy every taste. So are you ready? Let's get down to cook!

Ingredients :
250g long beans, cut into 5cm lengths
1 onion, quartered
4 tbsp dried shrimps, soaked and ground coarsely
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp minced shallots
2 sprigs of curry leaves, stem discarded, use leaves only
5 bird's eye chillies, chopped
Sufficient oil for deep-frying

Seasoning  (Sauce mixture) :
1 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp Hoisin sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 dark soy sauce
4 tbsp of water

Method  :

1.  In a skillet, deep-fry long beans in hot oil for 20-30 seconds. Dish up and drain on a wire mesh ladle to drain off excess oil.

2. Leave about 2-3 tbsp oil in the skillet and saute chopped dried prawns, minced garlic and shallots until fragrant. Add in curry leaves and bird's eye chillies. Stir to mix well and until aromatic.

3. Return the Chinese long beans to the skillet and pour in the sauce mixture (seasoning). Stir to mix well all the ingredients. Dish out in a serving plate and serve hot with steamed rice.

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Chicken with Lemongrass and Asparagus Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

I have a few calorie-laden staple dishes for the past few days and to alleviate this gnawing guilt, there's some internal urges from myself to adopt a healthier diet since after. I try to ration and minimize the intake of greasy fat and unhealthy seasonings and opt for low-fat and high-fibre ingredients in my next prepared meals. Hence, below oriental Chinese dish - chicken with lemongrass and asparagus seems gratified my need. A good source of dietary fiber, asparagus is an alkaline food which is rich in protein but low in calories and carbohydrates. It is an excellent source of potassium, folic acid, vitamins A, C and K, traces of vitamin B complex, niacin, phosphorus and very low sodium. Highly dense in healthful nutrients that help various ailments, asparagus is used as a tonic to relieve arthritis and rheumatism, cleanses the tissues and muscles of waste, provides regular bowel movement, provides diuretic effect, prevents the progression of cataracts and other eye problems, treats diabetes and heart disease, prevents the dreaded cancer, prevents or dissolves kidney stones and even treats toothache as believed in folk medicine.

This is a Thai-influenced dish, with a generous concoction of lemongrass, ginger, onion, garlic and basil leaves. The addition of vine-ripened tomatoes moistens the dish and lends a taste of the Mediterranen. Cooked quickly to a crisp-tender texture, the crunch of the asparagus contrasted with the chewy texture of the cooked chicken and is tinged with the mild pungency of black pepper, and more dominated by the refreshing lemony essence of lemongrass.

To prepare chicken with lemongrass and asparagus, you'll need below ingredients :

1 tbsp olive oil or grapeseed oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tbsp finely chopped lemongrass

2 tsp finely chopped fresh root ginger

1 onion, sliced

600g chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces

2 tomatoes, chopped

350g asparagus spears, halved length- and widthways

Chicken marinade :

A pinch of salt

A dash of freshly ground black pepper

Seasoning :

1 tbsp shoyu or tamari sauce (types of Japanese soy sauce, darker in appearance and richer in flavour )

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

A handful of Thai basil leaves, to garnish

Ingredients for Chicken with Lemongrass and Asparagus

Method :

1. Marinate the chicken cubes with a pinch of salt and a dash of freshly ground black pepper for about 30 minutes.

2. Heat up olive oil in a non-stick skillet over high heat until the oil is swirling hot. Toss in minced garlic, lemongrass, ginger and onion. Stir-fry for about 4 minutes.

3. Add in chicken and stir-fry for about 4-6 minutes until the chicken is browned and cooked through.

4. Add in the chopped tomatoes, asparagus, shoyu sauce and freshly ground black pepper. Stir-fry for about 2-3 minutes. Garnish with Thai basil leaves.

Cooking Tips :

Q : Should asparagus be peeled?

A : Peeling asparagus is recommended for the asparagus with thicker stalks to get rid of woody and fibrous strings. Chop off the bottom inch of the stalk and peel downward from the spears. This process however, can be omitted with the properly selected, thin and fresh asparagus. 

(Refer to About.com for more Asparagus Cooking Tips)

Chicken with Lemongrass and Asparagus

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Honey Chicken in Red Gravy (Ayam Masak Merah) Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Honey Chicken in Red Gravy (Ayam Masak Merah)

Locally known as Ayam Masak Merah and literally translated as "Chicken Cooked in Red Gravy", it's a common dish featured on the menu when you dine-out at Malay eateries in Malaysia. Although the chicken is drenched in a full-bodied, red-hued sweetish sauce, Ayam Masak Merah turns out to be a relative healthy option compared to those local curry with rich coconut gravy. At least, you will feel guilt free without having coconut milk in the dish.

Substituting the rich and calorie-laden coconut milk, honey and tomatoes infuse the savory sweet to the dish. The mélange of  of different textures - spices, finely-pounded mixture of garlic, ginger, onion, tomatoes and honey as well as distinct nuances integrate so well until it ends up in a thick, honeyed, red gloppy sauce, hence the name "red gravy" (masak merah). With long hours of marinating, the chicken is inherent with turmeric and briny flavors and deep-fried until crispy golden brown, drained up and then returned to the skillet again to mingle with thick soggy sauce. It was then brought to simmer until all the flavors marry well.

If you are looking for a balanced mix of full-bodied, briny and sweet accents dish to serve your Malay guests, then this recipe is for you. Enjoy!

Ingredients :

1 whole chicken, cut into big chunks
1 cinnamon stick
1 star anise
4 cloves
5 cardamon pods
2 tbsp chilli paste
2 tbsp meat curry powder
4 fresh tomatoes, quartered
1 canned tomato soup or tomato puree (small can is sufficient)
3 tbsp honey
2 sprigs of curry leaves
Salt to taste
Oil for deep-frying

Spices for Honey Chicken in Red Gravy (Ayam Masak Merah)

For chicken marinade :
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1 1/2 tsp salt

For pounded ingredients :
4 cloves of garlic, skin removed
1 inch ginger, skin peeled
1 big onion, skin peeled

Pound garlic, ginger, onion using pestle and mortar

Methods :

 1. Marinate the chicken with turmeric powder and salt, wrap with cling film and let it stands for at least 2 hours or preferably overnight in the fridge.

2. When the chicken are ready to be cooked, heat up the skillet with some oil, deep-fry the marinated chicken until it turns golden brown on both sides, dished up and drained with paper kitchen towel.

3. Remove excess oil in the skillet and leave about 4 tbsp of oil for sautéing the pounded ingredients and spices. Add in pounded ingredients (garlic, ginger, onion mixture) and followed by spices (cinnamon stick, star anise, cloves and cardamon pods). Stir well until all onion caramelized and browned.

5. Add 2 tbsp of meat curry powder, stir well and wait until a layer of oil emerges on the surface. At this point, add in chilli paste and freshly quartered tomatoes. Mix well. When the tomatoes are slightly tender, add in tomato soup (or tomato puree). Cook for another 5 minutes.

6. Add in curry leaves and honey. Season with salt (to taste). Reduce to low flame to simmer for another 5 minutes until all the ingredients are well integrated with the tomatoes. Serve hot with steamed fluffy rice.

Pound garlic, ginger, onion using pestle and mortar, then marinade and deep-fry the chicken

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Chicken Vindaloo Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Chicken Vindaloo

Moved beyond a series of soup recipes, now we are heading towards East Indian trail. So my dearest reader, are you ready to eye-feast with me this fiery hot, sweet and sour style curry?

I am putting this chicken Vindaloo at the centre of stage today with some tweaks to the original online recipe to suit my family's taste buds. With more touch of chilli powder and a bit of local sensation thrown in with lemongrass addition, the dish is sure to ruffle your features. You can adjust the amount of piquancy of your chicken Vindaloo according to your family's spiciness tolerance. Reduce chilli powder to achieve mild spicy curry if you don't like the fiery hot dish 'biting' you.

Contrast in textures and tastes, this Goan-originated, Vindaloo-styled chicken is a rich amalgam of evocative aromas and subtle blends of herbs and spices. The chicken tastes sublime with its inherent richness tempered by an aromatic marinade of herbs and spices such as cinnamon stick, cumin seeds, cardamon pods and cloves, garlic, ginger, black peppercorns and bird's eye chillies leading to a complex flavors that titillates our taste buds.

So has my choice of exerting effort on this slightly labor-extensive dish been rewarding? Definitely! If there's one thing that I can learn from cooking chicken Vindaloo is that preparing Indian dishes is not that intimidating.

Have you been sold on the zesty aromas, textures and tastes of chicken Vindaloo? If so, please help yourself to churn out this Indian-influenced dish with this Vindaloo recipe. Even if you aren't big into chicken, you can substitute with mutton or beef.

Ingredients :
3 skinless chicken breast fillets, cut into cubes or bite-sized pieces
2 tbsp of vegetable oil
7 garlic cloves, chopped
2 large onions, chopped
1 red chilli pepper, de-seeded and chopped
2 tsp of turmeric powder
3 tsp of chilli powder (or to taste)
1 tbsp of tomato puree
1 fresh tomato, chopped
120ml water
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Fresh coriander leaves, chopped and set aside, to be sprinkled on top for garnishing purpose later
(Optional) 2 stalks of fresh lemongrass, cut and retain the lower 1/3 of portion, rest discard. Using a knife, smash the the lower 1/3 portion of lemongrass to expose partial of the flesh

Fresh ingredients : big onions, red chilli pepper, garlic, tomato, coriander leaves

Ingredients for spice paste mixture for chicken marinade :

1 tsp cumin seeds
5 cardamon pods
5 cloves
1 pcs cinnamon stick
6 black peppercorns
3 bird's eye chilli, chopped with seeds in
2.5cm (1 inch) of fresh root ginger, chopped
4 garlic cloves, skin peeled, chopped
3 tbsp of freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tbsp of white wine vinegar

Spices : cinnamon stick, cardamon pods, cloves, cumin seeds, black peppercorns, bird's eye chilli, ginger, garlic

Method :

1. First, prepare spice paste for chicken marinade.

(i) Using a pestle and mortar, pound the cumin seeds, cardamon pods, cloves, cinnamon stick and black peppercorns. At the end, the only bits left are cardamon pod's shells which are rather hard to be thoroughly smashed even after painstaking bashings. Manually remove these cardamon pod shells.

Ingredients for spice paste mixture

Spices : before pounded using pestle and mortar

Spices : after pounded using pestle and mortar

(ii) Now add in the remaining ingredients (bird's eye chillies, ginger and garlic cloves) into the spice powder and pound together to form a fine paste. Take out the paste mixture to a bowl and add in 3 tbsp of freshly squeezed lemon juice and 2 tbsp of white wine vinegar. Stir well.

Note : Alternative of method (ii), you can use food processor or blender to make the paste mixture. Blend the spice powder (already pounded using pestle and mortar as in (i)) with the other paste ingredients (bird's eye chillies, ginger and garlic cloves) in a food processor with lemon juice and white wine vinegar until you obtain a fine paste. It's wise to automate this process instead of using pestle and mortar as I did.

Add in ginger, garlic cloves, bird's eye chillies into pounded spices and pound together

The resulted pounded spice paste mixture

2.  Add the chicken to the bowl containing paste misture and toss well to coat the chicken pieces. Cover the bowl with cling film and let it stands in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, or preferably overnight to ensure the chicken cubes absorb well all the spice marinade.

Marinate chicken cubes with spice paste mixture

3. When you are ready to cook, heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet and saute the garlic for roughly one minute. Add the chopped onions and the de-seeded red chilli pepper, stir well and wait until the onions are throroughly browned. Add the rest of the dried ground spices : 2 tsp turmeric powder, 3 tsp chilli powder, 1 tbsp tomato puree, 3 chopped bird's eye chillies, 1 tsp salt (or to taste) and some freshly ground black peppers. All heaped spoons except the turmeric powder, which should be just cover a flat teaspoon. Stir well for roughly one minute before adding the chopped tomatoes and 2 stalks of smashed lemongrass. Stir fry the mixture for about 5 minutes gently.

5. Add in the marinated chicken and continue to stir fry until the chicken is thoroughly coated in the mixture and cooked. It takes around 10 minutes.

6. Now pour in 120ml of water and bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat, cover with lid and simmer for 25 minutes until the sauce thickened. Check on and off if additional water is required to prevent scorching. 5 minutes before heat off, check the taste of the curry and add additional salt if necessary. Sprinkle a generous topping of coriander leaves for garnishing and serve hot with rice.

Chicken Vindaloo

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Fried Chicken with Spicy Mayonnaise Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Fried chicken with spicy mayonnaise, as its name suggests, is a very typical affair, and you can pretty much figure out what I did by just judging from its name or looking at the plate. Fried chicken is dressed in a mix of savory and sweet sauce from thick, creamy, golden-hued mayonnaise, tomato sauce, chilli sauce, lime juice and sugar. A smear of this garlicky spread transported the ordinary fried chicken into something spectacular and lift the dish to the next level. It's a perfect balance of flavors and an utter delight to the taste buds.

Here's the recipe for fried chicken with spicy mayonnaise. 美奶滋炸鸡食谱

Ingredients :
2 chicken thighs, cut into pieces
5 cups oil for deep-frying

Marinade :
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp corn flour (粟粉)
1 tbsp plain flour

Sauce Mixture :
4 tbsp mayonnaise (美奶滋)
1 tbsp tomato sauce (番茄酱)
2 tbsp chilli sauce (辣椒酱)
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp lime juice (酸柑汁)

Method :

1. Combine chicken with marinade and marinate for 30 minutes. Deep-fry in hot oil until golden brown and cooked. Dish up and drain with paper towels.

2. Heat up 1 tbsp oil in a heavy skillet, sauce mixture and chicken are poured into the skillet, toss and mix well. Dish up and ready to serve.

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Prawn In Spicy Milk Sauce Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Prawns are deep-fried and then coated in a sweet sticky glaze of evaporated milk and given depth of flavor with the addition of butter, curry leaves, curry powder and bird's eye chillies. Mouth-wateringly different, it's a harmonious blends of  'chilli hot' with subtle additions of aromatic curry leaves and sweetness of milk to lessen the 'bite'.

Moving beyond a big dose of fatty pork dishes, we are now shifting the attention to seafood treat, which is also calorie-laden. Sorry for those weight watchers, you have to temporarily endure the temptation that the dish induced.

Aromatic in nature, fresh curry leaves lend an irreplaceable fragrance to this dish and is enhanced by the sting from the bird's eye chillies and the lovely sweetness from the evaporated milk and sugar. Curry powder is thrown in to impart a little bit of local flavor, making this shrimp course bursting with flavors and unique on its own.

If you wish to lay your hands on the dish in your very own kitchen, here's the how-to recipe. 奶香虾食谱

Ingredients :
600g medium to big prawns, slit back and deveined
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp curry leaves
2 tsp chopped bird's eye chillies (cili padi)
100ml evaporated milk

Seasoning :
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp curry powder

Method :
1. Heat up oil in a large non stick skillet, when the oil turns hot, deep-fry prawns until cooked. Dish up and drain in paper towels.

2. Melt butter in a skillet, saute curry leaves and bird's eye chillies until fragrant. Add in evaporated milk, seasoning and bring to boil.

3. Add in pre-fried prawns and stir-fry at high heat, toss to mix well. Dish up and serve immediately while hot.

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Stir-fry French Bean with Minced Meat and Preserved Radish Recipe

The dish, highlights the key ingredient - French beans by itself with delightful crunch. Preserved radish, dried prawns and minced meat make a wonderful accompaniment to French beans, which is rounded up together with salty and spicy touch from the condiments and red chillies. Delectable!

When it comes to home cooking, my philosophy is always the same - simple, comfort, nutritious, unpretentious, humble, homey, possibly with ingredients that could stretch every dollar spent, never rigid in ingredients used or cooking approach whilst maintaining a wholesomeness to the dish. Nothing beats the feelings of preparing the dish ourselves, serving the dish hot the moments it's ready and having a warm dinner with family. To me, good old fashioned home cooking is sufficient to fit the bill.

If you are a frequent hawker's stall patron, you'll notice that French beans (green beans or kacang buncis in Malay) are usually deep-fried in hot oil for a while before cooking. This step can be omitted if you opt for cooking at home. At least, instead of having something unhealthy, unappealing or both in the form of expensive take-out, you now have the choice of having less oily dish by cooking yourself at home and dine in the comfort of your home.

This recipe shows you how to make a zippy meal featuring French beans.

酱爆季豆食谱

Ingredients :
300g French beans, cut into 5cm length
100g minced meat
3 tbsp chopped preserved radish, soaked
3 tbsp dried prawns, soaked and chopped
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tbsp chopped red chillies

Seasoning :
1 tbsp fermented soy bean paste
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
dash of pepper
20ml water

Method :
1. In a skillet, heat up 2 tbsp oil, sauté chopped garlic, preserved radish and dried prawns until fragrant.

2.  Add in minced meat and stir well. Add in French beans, chopped red chillies, seasoning and stir-fry at high heat until it's cooked. Sprinkle some water to keep it moist, but not watery. Dish up and serve hot.

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Stir-Fried Pork Belly Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

This hearty and easy-to-prepare pork belly dish comes in a full-bodied gravy of black soy sauce, complemented by the sting from the bird's eye chilies and onions. You will be taken by the burst of flavours of this redolent stir-fried pork belly homecook meal.

Fresh pork belly (五花肉) has the ideal fat-to-lean-meat ratio to temper the dish intensity. I do not serve pork belly meals often at home, knowing that it's sinful and cholesterol laden, but when we keep getting wafts of these heavenly smells from the neighbours, we just can’t resist making ourselves home cook pork belly dish and indulge occassionally. You know, my hubby is really pork-belly obsessed, and when I mention "obsessed", I mean it!

As for me, flagged by the high cholesterol level during last medical check-up, I just couldn't afford to enjoy those unctuous guilty pleasures by indulging on that gelatinous skin, knowing that it will kill me some day. Scooping off the layers of glorious fat of the white lard, I ended up having only the lean meat which I felt more comfortable with (must be all that dogmatic indoctrination from young while under mum's care). :)

Aroma was divine in the kitchen while I was cooking the dish, and it did add some tang to our dinner with this easy pork belly recipe. This delicious dish is a Chinese homey dish that handed down from generation to generation, besides well-known braised pork belly in soy sauce ("tauyew bak" in Hokkien). If you're too hectic to cook at home, you can always find stir-fried pork belly on the menu of many Malaysian hawker's stalls or Chinese restaurants.

火爆花腩食谱

Ingredients :
200g pork belly (sliced) (五花肉)
1 onion (diced)
2 tbsp garlic, chopped
2 bird's eyes chilli (cili padi in Malay), chopped

Seasoning :
1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp water
Dash of dark soy sauce

Method :
1. In a skillet, heat up some oil until shimmering, add in all the ingredients and stir-fry till fragrant.

2. Pour in all seasoning, stir fry quickly till pork belly is cooked. Serve hot with steamed rice.

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Stir-fry Four-Angled Beans with Sambal Chilli Udang Belacan Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

Pairing with the irresistible fiery hot sambal chilli udang belacan (spicy and pungent prawn paste), the crunchy four-angled beans also tinged with the sourness and sweetness of lime juice and sugar, making it a piquant Malaysian delicacies.

Snapped up some four-angled beans from Jusco store yesterday, thinking that it would be a perfect match for sambal chilli prawn paste (sambal cili udang belacan in Malay) that resided in my fridges for almost a week. The dish is easy to whip up and great to relish, and it naturally paves its way to many Malaysian kitchens and dining tables.

As its name implies, the presence of four frilly edge (fringe-like extension) that run lengthwise along the pod gives the fruit vegetable the name, winged beans or four-angled beans (翼豆或四角豆). Rather vague flavor-wise, four-angled beans are excellent seasoned with bold spices and herbs. Thus it's heavenly when pairing together with sambal chilli prawn paste, which is a premixes (pounded fresh chillis, dried shrimp, toasted shrimp paste (belacan), onions, garlic to which sugar and lime juice are added) that is commercially available in local groceries and wet markets.

Not yet a household word in the kitchens of America, this odd-looking bean has many culinary virtues. Nutritious winged beans offer an abundance of essential nutrients including protein, complex carbohydrates, vitamins B, calcium, iron and fiber.

As winged beans have been experiencing worldwide growth despite its lack of popularity in the United States, you can easily find them especially in countries with nurturing tropical climates. For Malaysians which in favor of spicy and sour dish, you might consider to grab some four-angled beans home when you're browsing in supermarket or floundering around in wet market trying to figure out what to cook next. Make sure you have all the trimmings, especially sambal chilli prawn paste!

三巴虾米马来栈炒四角豆(翼豆)食谱

Ingredients :

400gm four-angled beans (aka winged beans or kacang botol / kacang keceper in Malay), cut straight across or on a slant 四角豆(翼豆)

A handful of medium to big prawns, shelled and deveined

4 tbsp of pounded sambal chilli prawn paste (sambal cili udang belacan in Malay) [available in local wet markets or groceries]

1 onion, peeled and shredded

5 cloves of garlic, chopped finely

Seasoning :

2 limes, squeezed into lime juice

1/2 tsp sugar

Method :

1. Heat up the frying pan (or wok) and drizzle some cooking oil. Sauté the chopped garlic and onions with low flames, then add in sambal chilli prawn paste. Stir-fry till fragrant.

2. Add in prawns and stir-fry briskly before adding four-angled beans. Toss well. Lastly, give it a quick drizzle of lime juice, a dash of sugar and a sprinkle of water to make the dish moist. Stir briefly until heated through but do not overcook the vegetables. With several flipping of spatula, the crispy and crunchy sambal four-angled bean are ready to go with hot, fluffy white rice.

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Kung Pao Chicken Recipe | Easy Asian Cooking

One of the well-known chinese cuisine originating from Szechuan (Sichuan) province, live up to its spicy and pungent reputation, tinged with a hint of sweet and sour flavour. Combined diced chicken breast, dried red chilli pepper and peanuts by stir-frying and made them into in one dish, Kung Pao chicken has found its way to many Asian and United States kitchens.Named after a late chinese Qing Dynasty official Ding Baozhen(丁宝桢), the name "Kung Pao" chicken is derived from this title as palatial guardian (or 宫保 in chinese). 

Don't be intimidated by cooking Asian cuisine. The dish may looks complicated, but it's actually not when you try it out on your own.

Instead of deep-frying the chicken as called by recipe, I stir-fried the chicken in a wok, to cut down oil absorption. Some westernized version of kung pao chicken (more popular in US and Canada) have been customized to suit their tastebuds, by using vegetables (such as zucchini, red bell peppers, green bell peppers, celery, Chinese cabbage, water chestnuts, and carrots), sherry, hoisin sauce or oyster sauce. The tweak with suitable ingredients perhaps will come out with a delicious fusion of East-meet-West cuisine, making Kung Pao chicken a versatile relish.

The tangy aroma of peanuts and the earthy flavor of chicken, rounded up together with sweet, sour and spicy notes. This is the dish to satisfy our spurts of cravings and we gobbled it up!

I love Szechuan dishes (四川菜 or 川菜) for its bold flavour, with pungency and spicyness kick up the dish! Sichuan cooking features hot and numbing flavor (麻辣味), making it pretty alluring to my family's palate. Among other well-known Szechuan dishes are twice cooked pork (回锅肉), mapo tofu (麻婆豆腐), spicy deep-fried chicken (辣子鸡), bon bon chicken (棒棒鸡) and many others which I can't wait to try out!

Here is my endeavor with legendary Kung Bao Chicken.

宫保鸡丁(又称宫爆鸡丁)食谱

Ingredients : 材料

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces (cubed)
1/2 cup peanuts (or cashewsnut)
8 small dried red chillies, soaked, seeds removed, chopped (or alternatively fresh red chilli peppers, quantity as desired)
1 slice peeled fresh ginger, chopped
4 cloves garlic (minced)
3 tbsp of spring onions (scallions), chopped
vegetable oil for stir-frying

Marinade : 腌料
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch, mixed with 1 1/2 tbsp water

Seasoning : 调味料
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp chinese rice wine vinegar (or shaoxing wine, Westernized version call for dry sherry)
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sesame oil

Method : 做法

1. Combine the bite-sized chicken with the marinade ingredients, then adding the cornstarch in a bowl, toss to coat. The chicken left to marinade for 30 minutes.

2. Prepare the seasoning in a small bowl and set aside.

3. Stir-fry 1/2 cup of peanuts in a hot wok with vegetable oil until golden brown and crispy. Drain and set aside.

4. Chinese wok is heated on a high flame, until the wok is quite hot. A swish of the ladle spreads a couple of teaspoons of vegetable oil, then the chicken is flash fried in the hot oil to bring out the flavor (for 2-3 minutes until the chicken cubes no longer in pink color, but not so long that it loses its juices or tenderness). Remove chicken from the wok, drain and set aside.

5. Add 2 tbsp of vegetable oil in the wok. When the oil turn hot, add dried red chillies (or alternatively red chilli peppers) and stir-fry briefly until they turn dark red colour. Then add the chopped ginger, minced garlic and the pre-fried chicken to the wok, stir constantly until aromatic. Then add the prepared seasoning to the wok, then stir until the gravy is thickened. Add in the peanuts and lastly spring onion. Serve hot, the dish goes well with piping hot rice.

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