Sausage Rolls

Sausage Rolls

I love sausage rolls.  I was amazed when my friend Barbara R whipped them up in less than 30 minutes, while chatting with me in the church kitchen, and preparing afternoon tea for "Impact", a kids club.

Ingredients:

4       sheets puff pastry
500   g sausage mince
1       grated onion
1       tablespoon milk for milk wash

Method:

Preheat oven to 200degrees C.

Cut each sheet of puff pastry in half. 8 half sheet all together.

Mix grated onion with sausage mince.

Divide the sausage mince into 8. Roll each 1/8th, to fit the length of the pastry sheet.
Fold the long edges to the center, to cover the mince, with the edges overlapping. You can wet the edge of the sheet to assist the sheets to seal better.

Cut the long roll into 2 (across), then each half into 3.   This gives you 6 small sausage rolls per half sheet, and 12 rolls per sheet. Hence 48 rolls.

Brush with milkwash.

Bake for 30 mins or till golden.

Enjoy!

Glutinous Rice

Glutinous Rice

My sister-in-law, Margaret, cooks the best glutinous rice!  Every Christmas and Chinese New Year, when she asks me what she can contribute to our family feast, the answer is always the same - Mee Siam and Glutinous Rice.  This year, my mum, Kathleen, finally sat Margaret down and took down the recipe.  So here it is. 

This is what I cooked for some International students in Macquarie University when they were having their welcome dinner.

This recipe will cook enough to share, for a party, or for many meals.



Ingredients:

4 cups glutinous rice
2 cup raw peanuts, skin intact.
3 onions, chopped finely
5 pairs of chinese sausages, cut lengthwise and cut widthwise to make small bits
3 teaspoon salt
Oil

Method:

1.  Wash glutinous rice, then soak in water 1/2 cm above the level of washed rice for 2 hours.  Strain and reserve water for later use.
2.  Wash and boil the peanuts for 20 - 30 mins till semi cooked.  Strain.

3.  Heat oil in wok.  Stir fry chopped chinese sausages till lightly brown.  Remove.
4.  Stir fry chopped onions in wok.  Fry till fragrant.
5. Add glutinous rice and stir.  The glutinous rice will take on the flavours of the chinese sausage and onions.
6.  Add peanuts.  Mix well.
7.  Add chinese sausage, and salt.  Mix well.
8.  Put this mixture of glutinous rice into a rice cooker, cover with saved rice water (step 1) and top up till level of water is 0.2 cm above the level of the rice.

9.  Cook rice till ready.

10.  Enjoy!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Red Velvet cupcakes are my daughter, Sophia's favorite.  So when Cathy L wanted to make cupcakes for Rachel C, it had to be red velvet, of course!  The cupcakes were to welcome Sarah to the world!

Ingredients:

310     g flour
45       g cocoa powder
5         g baking soda
3         g salt
225     g softened butter
400     g sugar
4         eggs
230     g sour cream
120     g milk
10       ml vanilla extract
1         bottle red food colouring

Frosting:
225     g cream cheese, softened
55       g butter, softened
30       g sour cream
450     g icing sugar



Method:
Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celcius.

In a small bowl, sift plain flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
In a small bowl, whisk red food colouring and vanilla extract. Then add to the above batter.
Mix sour cream and milk together and add to batter, alternating with flour.  Beat well untill well incorporated, but do not overbeat.

Fill each lined muffin/cupcake tray with 2/3 full with batter.  Bake for 20 mins.  Stand for 1 hr.

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter till smooth.  Then beat in vanilla extract.  Add one cup of icing sugar at a time.  Beat till smooth and creamy.

Ice cakes and decorate as desired.

Enjoy!

Kangkong with Hoisin sauce

Kangkong with Hoisin sauce

A family favourite especially when I am busy, and the family is in need of fibre and taste!

Ingredients:

1 bunch of kangkong or water convolvulus

1 tablespoon hoisin sauce

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 teaspoon garlic oil or sesame oil

fried garlic or fried onions

pepper

Method:

Pick shoots, leaves and tender stems off kangkong.  Place in a big bowl or in the sink and submerge in water. Swish the vegetable around.  Remove from water.  Do this till the water is clear.  Ususally 2 or 3 times.

In a separate bowl, mix hoisin sauce, oyster sauce and oil.

Bring to boil about 2 L of water.  Blanch the kangkong for about 2 minutes or until the leaves are wilted. Pour sauce over it.  Mix.  Sprinkle with fried garlic or fried onions.  Dust with pepper.

You might also like Kangkong with dried prawns.

Bulgogi

Bulgogi

Bulgogi or Koren fire meat is a dish that my son, Peter, has been asking me to cook.  This again is from Lily Wai Sek Hong.

Ingredients:

1      kg thinly sliced rib eye steak (freezer section of Chinese shops or ask the Chinese butcher for thinly sliced meat for steamboat)

1/3   cup soy sauce

3      tablespoon sugar

1      tablespoon sesame oil

3      cloves garlic, chopped

1/2   brown onion, sliced

1/4   tsp freshly gound black pepper

Method:

Whisk all the ingredients toether in a shallow casserole except beef and onions. 

When most of the sugar has dissolved, add beef and onion slices to the bowl and massage the marinade with your hands, into each slice of beef.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

To pan fry, place a few slices of beef in single layers, completely flat on a hot, oiled grill or the special Korean BBQ grill, and fry till each side is cooked or the sides are brown and crispy. I did not have a grill handy, so used a hot wok instead.  The fragrance was beautiful!

Tamarind Curry of Seafood

Tamarind Curry of Seafood

My daughter, Sophia gave me a treat to Urban Graze cooking class, with Alvin Quah, one of the contestants from Masterchef 2010.  This is my favorite recipe from that class.

Tamarind Curry of Seafood
Recipe by Alvin Quah


Ingredients:

15       each bulb shallots, peeled
3         each candlenuts, soaked in hot water for 10 mins
1         each 3cm piece galangal, peeled and roughly chopped
7         each garlic cloves, peeled
3         each stalks lemongrass, white part sliced and reserved
2         teaspoons tumeric powder
10-20 dried chillies (soaked in hot water for 15 minutes and drained)
16 g    shrimp paste (belacan)

1/2      cup vegetable or canola oil
3         tablespoon tamarind pulp
21/2    cups water
250     ml fish stock
1/2      tablespoon palm sugar
2         each truss tomatoes, each cut into 6 equal pieces
           salt to taste

250     g barramundi fillet, cut into 10 pieces
10       each mussels
10       each green prawns, head and shells removed and deveined
10       each okra, cut into thirds

Method:

• In a food processor, process bulb shallots, candlenuts, galangal, garlic, lemongrass, tumeric owder, chillies and shrimp paste to a smooth paste.
• Mix the tamarind pulp with water and strain the water to get the tamarind juice.  Set aside.
• In a wok, heat the oil over low heat and fry the ground spice past until the oil and paste separates and is fragrant.  (About 15 minutes)
• Add the tamarind ulp and sugar into the spice paste and bring it to a boil on low heat.  Add fish stock, half the tomatoes and allow to simmer for about 10-15 minutes.  Add okra and the rest of the tomatoes and alow to simmer for another 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, steam the fish, prawns and mussels in a bamboo steamer until just cooked.  They should all take the same amount of time to cook.  About 4-5 minutes.

To Serve:

• Add a piece of fish, a mussel and a prawn into a bowl.  Repeat with the other 9 bowls.
• Ladle the curry into each bowl and serve with rice or crusty bread.

Kangkong with dried prawns

Kangkong or water convolvulus with dried prawns

1 bunch of kangkong

1/2 cup dried prawns, soaked in hot water

1 clove garlic

1/2 onion

1 teaspoon belacan

1 red chilli, sliced (optional)

salt, pepper

1 tablespoon oil

Pick and wash the leaves and young shoots/stems from kangkong. (If it is too long, it could choke some).

In a food processer, grind dried prawns, garlic, onion and belacan.  (If you do not have a food processer, use a mortar and pestal, or roughly chop.)

Heat up the oil in a wok or frypan.  Fry the dried prawn/onion mixture till fragrant.

Add kangkong, frying till it is all wilted and well mixed.

Add in red chilli, salt and pepper to taste.

Plate up and garnish with fried onions or garlic or red chilli, if desired.

Enjoy!

You might also like Kangkong with Hoisin sauce.

Easy Curry Puff

Easy Curry Puff

Curry puffs - a snack in Malaysia, and oh, so moorish, you have to eat more than one!  My mum makes a mean curry puff, and she is always asked to bring some for dinner parties!  They are great as an entree or a savory morning/afternoon tea.  They can be made bite size as finger food, or giant sized for a giant sized meal (think Cornish pasties).

If you want serious flavour, don't use gourmet mince.  But I am trying to keep the Man Of The House alive, so I feed him LEAN mince.  Make sure you cube the potatoes into 1 cm cubes or there abouts or else you might have sight difficulty in keeping the filling in!

4 tbsp oil

1 kg lean or gourmet mince

5 large potatoes (approx 1 kg), cut into 1 cm cubes

2 onions, chopped finely

2 cloves garlic, chopped finely

1 tbsp curry powder

salt

pepper

6 sheets puff pastry

water

milk wash

Method:

Heat up the oil in a wok or large based pot, and brown garlic and onion, on medium heat. 

Add mince.  Stir to break up up the meat, add in curry powder. Then add potatoes, stir till well mixed. 

Turn the heat to low. Keep stirring every few minutes to make sure that the mix does not stick at the bottom of the wok/pot. When the potatoes are soft (could take about 30 mins), add salt, pepper to taste. 

Leave to cool.

Separate the pastry sheets.  Using a sharp knife, cut each sheet into 3 equal parts horizontally and vertically.  (this gives you 9 squares).

Pick up one square and place in your left palm. Place a teaspoon of cooled curried mince and potato mixture into the square. Put a little water on the edges, and fold the square diagonally so that it forms a triangle.  Press edges together.  Place on an oven tray.  Repeat.

Brush with milk wash.

Bake at 220 degress Centigrate till browned.  (about 20 mins)

Enjoy!

Yee Sang

Yee Sang

Yee Sang is a Chinese New Year dish in Malaysia and Singapore and is considered a symbol of abundance, prosperity and vigor.  It is only a young dish, apparently taken from China to Singapore then Malaysia, in the early 1960's. There are lots of different representations of this dish, with each one suggesting that theirs is the better one!

My yee sang recipe is from my good friend Monique, who shared many of her recipes with me.  Every year, my family has a reunion and this is always the first dish.  The higher we toss, the more prosperous we get!

1 daikon grated
8 celery stalks grated
4 carrots grated
1 telegraph cucumber grated
1 iceberg lettuce, sliced finely
4 spring onions very finely sliced
1 bunch coriander, leaves picked
1/2 bottle pickled ginger, finely sliced
1/2 bottle pickled leek, finely sliced
1 packet ready to eat jelly fish
3 fillets salmon, cut finely (without skin)
2 packets Changs fried noodle (or deep fried noodle)
crushed peanuts
toasted sesame seeds
crushed prawn crackers
crushed deep fried wonton skins

Sauce:
1 large (1 1/3 cup) bottle plum sauce
1/2 cup lemon juice
2 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp five spice powder
Mix the above together.


Place half of the grated daikon on opposite sides of the platter. Place half of the grated celery on the right side of each pile of daikon, so that it looks symmetrical.  Follow with the rest of the ingredients, according to the list above. Pile on the jellyfish and salmon.  Place the crunchy ingredients just before serving, then top with sauce.

Gather friends and family around the platter, each with a pair of chopsticks, ready to toss.

Toss, enjoy!

Kong Hei Fatt Choy!

Auntie Mei's Chinese Heart attack Cookies

Auntie Mei's Heart attack Cookies

My Auntie Mei only makes these cookies, once a year, for Chinese New Year. Thank goodness!  Too many will certainly give you a heart attack!  Absolute melt in the mouth and easy.

500g plain flour

3 level tsp bicarbonate of soda

330g castor sugar

1 egg

400g tin of ghee

Sieve flour and bicarb three times so that the flour is light and airy.  Add castor sugar, mix.  Add egg and ghee and knead till it all comes together. (you can use a mixer, food processor or thermomix).

Shape into teaspoon sized balls.  Top with a chopped cherry.

Bake for 12-15 mins at 180 degrees Celcius.

Yum.....

Gravlax

Gravlax

Thanks to Lily Wai Sek Hong for this recipe. I have been inspired by Lily and her blog for many years.

Ingredients:
For every kilo of salmon fillet, use:
4 tablespoons kosher salt
4 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoon ground black pepper
zest of 1 lemon

Method:
Examine the salmon for bones by visual inspection and by touch. Remove bones with tweezers.

Drape the salmon fillet over an inverted bowl. This will help force the tips of the bones up, making them easier to grasp and to remove.

Place the salmon fillet, skin side down on a large piece of plastic wrap, which is about three to four times the length of the fillet.

Mix the salt, sugar, black pepper and zest into a bowl.

Spoon the mixture onto the exposed salmon flesh, making sure to cover as much of the exposed areas as possible.

Wrap the salmon fillet tightly in the plastic wrap. Take a second sheet of plastic wrap, and wrap again.

Place the package in a baking dish or container to catch the juices that will flow from the package during the curing.

Place this in the refrigerator, and refrigerate the salmon fillet for at least two days. Longer refrigeration will intensify the flavors.

Remove the container from the refrigerator, open the package, and rinse gravlax in water.

If any pieces of salt or pepper are stuck to the flesh, wipe off gently. Dry with a paper towel and sprinkle with more freshly ground pepper.

Use a sharp boning knife to cut the gravlax. Position the gravlax so that you cut from the tail end first. The gravlax should be thinly sliced on the bias (at an angle). Each slice should be detached from the skin.

Use a sharp boning knife to cut the gravlax.  Position the gravlax so that you cut from the tail end first.  The gravlax should be thinly sliced on the bias (at an angle).  Each slice should be detached from the skin.

Steamed pork mince with salted eggs

Steamed pork mince with salted eggs

300g pork mince
2 salted duck eggs
2 eggs
1tsp sesame oil
pepper
2tbsp water

Put all the ingredients in a metal plate. Using your hands, mix well to break up the salted egg yolks.

Steam for 20 mins on high heat.

Chicken satay

Chicken Satay

Everyone loves chicken satay, none more than me!  The trick after marinading is to microwave a slither to check on the taste.  I cut up the cooked slither, and get my children to taste.  They have very civilized and critical tastebuds, and they advise me to add more sugar or salt, etc.  The satay should taste sweet.  You will get more positive feedback with a sweet satay than one that is not.

Preparation: 25 mins

Marinating: 30 mins

Cooking: 20-25 mins

1 kg chicken thigh fillets

Marinade:

2 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground turmeric

½ tsp pepper

1 tbsp light soy sauce

3 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp salt

1 chopped onion (or grate)

Basting liquids:

4 tbsp coconut milk

3 tbsp oil

1.       Soak satay sticks in water so that it does not burn when grilling.

2.       Remove fat if you like. Cut chicken thigh fillets into strips. (The finer the tastier, but if it too fine, then skewering will take a longer time). 

3.       Marinade chicken with the above ingredients.  (I always take slither to cook in the microwave to make sure it is tasty enough.  Adjust salt and sugar to taste.  It should be sweet enough, or else it is tasteless).

4.       Thread meat onto satay sticks.

5.       Brush satay with coconut milk.  Preheat grill to high.  While grilling, brush satay several times with oil.  Grill till chicken is cooked.

Agar Agar

Agar Agar

Pandan, Black Glutinous rice Agar Agar

...for every 1 cup of liquid, add 1/2 tsp of agar powder. Really. That's all. The rest, taste as you go along.

Pandan Layer

·      2 cups water 

·         5 dessertspoon sugar (depending on how you like it)      ·         1 tsp pandan paste

·         1 tablespoon condensed milk

Black glutinous rice layer

·         2 cups water

·         1 tsp agar agar powder

·       5 

·         1 cup (or more depending on preference) cooked black glutinous rice (boil in water for 45 mins)

Plain layer

·         2 cup water

·        5 

·         1 tsp agar agar powder

 dessertspoon sugar

2. Add in the sugar and bring the liquid to boil. Add condensed milk and pandan paste.

3. Once sugar has dissolved, pour the liquid into your preferred container. It should set within 20 minutes.

4. Pour on another layer once the previous layer is about to set. Then refrigerate for 2 hours.

Follow the above methods for the other layers...
Note: with the black glutinous rice layer, before you pour the black rice onto the pandan layer, make sure you pour a small layer of the liquid first then wait for a few minutes before placing the rice and pouring the rest of the liquid over it. This will ensure that the layers stick together better.

1. Pour the water into a saucepan and add the agar agar powder. Let rest for 10 minutes. dessertspoon sugar

·         1 tsp agar agar

Cranberry and Almond Biscotti

Cranberry and Almond Biscotti

I love to make Biscotti.  This recipe is so easy, yet impressive.  Thanks to the Mainly Music cookbook for this recipe.

2/3 cup caster sugar
1 cup plus 2 tabsp flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup almonds
2/3 cup cranberries
2 eggs

1. Heat oven to 190C.
2. Line an oven tray.
3. Whisk eggs together.  Add sugar, beat, then add flour and baking powder together.  Mix well.  Then add almonds and cranberries.
4. Use hands to form into a log.
5. Place on lined oven tray.
6. Bake for 25 mins.  When cool, slice diagonally.
7. Place slices back on oven tray and bake again for 10 mins or until golden.

Kuih Seri Muka

Kuih Seri Muka

I have made lots of seri muka over the years.  Some recipes are better than others.  This is from Nonya Favorites.  It is absolutely no fail, and has the perfect balance.  However, this photo is a poor representation of it.  This piece had been in the fridge for 2 days before I remembered to photograph it.

White base layer
250g glutinous rice, soaked overnight
250g thin coconut milk
3/4tsp salt
2 pandan leaves

Green Top layer
200g sugar
100ml water
6 large eggs
30g custard powder
1tbsp plain flour
1tsp tapioca flour
300ml thick coconut milk
1/2tsp pandan paste

1. Drain the glutionous rice and put it into a 20cm square tray. Mix the thin coconut milk with the salt and add to the rice. Place 2 pandan leaves on top.
2. Steam the rice layer for 20 mins. While steaming the bottom layer, prepare the top layer.
3. Bring the sugar and water to a boil in a pot. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and cool.
4. Break the eggs into a mixing bowl and beat lightly with a fork. Stir in the cooed sugar syrup.
5. Mix the custard powder with the plain flour, tapioca flour and the thick coconut milk and add to the egg mixture. Add in the pandan paste, stir to blend. Strain.
6. Meanwhile, remove steamed rice layer from steamer. Press down on rice to compact it with the bafk of a wet spoon. Return to steamer and cook for another 3 minutes (the bottom layer has to be hot when pouring on the top layer)
7. While warming the bottom layer, cook the top layer. Pour the batter from step 5 into a pan and cook, stirring continously over low heat until mixture starts to become lumpy, about 1-2 mins.
8. Pour the green mixture over the steamed glutinous rice in the steamer slowly. Steam for 15-20 mins over low heat till set.
9. Cool the kuih for at least 2 hours before cutting into diamond shapes.

Adam Liaw's Kaya

 Adam Liaw's Kaya or Coconut Jam

This recipe is from Adam Liaw's TwoAsian Kitchens. It is absolutely perfect! I have been making kaya for 29 years, since I got married.  My mother-in-law's recipe is a bit touch and feel, too haphazard for a scientist, though I have used it all along.  Then came Adam, and it has the best methodology.  Thanks Adam Liaw.  I love all his recipes!

10 free-range eggs
1kg caster sugar
5 pandan leaves, tied up together in a knot
550ml coconut cream
15g unsalted butter
50g caster sugar, extra

1. Combine eggs and sugar in a high bowl and stir with whisk till smooth for about 30 minutes. Stir in one direction only, and be careful not to aerate. Strain through a sieve into the top of a double boiler. Add the pandan leaves.

2. Half fill the base of a double boiler with water and bring to simmer. Place the upper section on tip. Stir over low heat for 10 minutes to ensure all the sugar has dissolved. Strain the coconut cream through a fine sieve into the mixture and cook, stirring constantly in one direction for about 30 mins or until the mixture thickens.

3. Combine the butter and extra sugar in a small saucepan and stir over medium-low heat until a rich, dark caramel forms. Add the caramel to the curd and continue stirring until combined. Wrap the lid of the double boiler in a tea towel and cover the top to prevent water condensation. Cook for 5 mins until thickened further. Discard the pandan leaves and transfer the kaya to sterilised jars to cool. As it cools, it will thicken further. Cover tightly and store in the fridge for up to 1 month.