Merdeka Open House 2013: Ayam Likku

My first entry for 8th Merdeka Open House 2013 Date & Theme: Treasures from Sabah & Sarawak would be this Ayam Likku which is actually Galangal Chicken. I've first discovered this recipe in Her World Cook Book Vol 78 which has the theme Food Journey Across Malaysia.

This was introduced by Amber Chia who says that this Ayam Likku is a very famous dish from Tawau, Sabah. It's a traditional Bugis dish where the main ingredient is galangal (likku).

As I browsed through the ingredients, sounds simple enough to prepare. However, I was a bit concerned when it need to cook coconut milk with the chicken for 45 minutes... won't it split? As I was cooking, then I realised that the coconut milk was merely the liquid to get the chicken cooking and as it cooks, it actually turn into oil which in turns will saute the aromatics as it continues to cook. Brilliant I would say!

Capt'n Hook said this chicken was really delicious which is quite rare lol when it comes to my cooking as my low salt nature really turns him off! He loves how aromatic the gravy was. Anyway, I've reduced the recipe size using 2 chicken legs instead of 4. So the recipe is my take with observations and whatever not.

Ayam Likku (Galangal Chicken)
Serves 2 - 3

(A) Finely minced:
5 cm galangal
1 stalk lemongrass
2 cloves garlic
4 shallots (40 g)

2 chicken legs
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
125 ml thick coconut milk
1/2 Tbsp turmeric powder
Sugar & salt to taste

In a hot pan with lid, heat up the oil and saute (A) on medium high heat until the aromatics are properly fried through and smells fragrant (takes about 15 - 20 mins).

Pour in coconut milk and turmeric powder, mix in well. Season with salt and sugar (remember to taste). Slip in the chicken legs and coat them evenly with the mixture in the pan. Cover the pan and simmer on low heat.

You'll need to stir and scrape the aromatics at the bottom of the pan to prevent burning and sticking every now and then. To add a little colour to the chicken skin, do cook them skin down and turn them around when done.

I've used free range chicken so the cooking time was about 25 minutes. Serve hot with rice. Yums!

Day 13: Stir-Fried Chicken With Zespri® Kiwifruit

I used to have irregular bowel movement many years back to the point that I've to check with my doctor if it's normal. According to her, a majority of women do not have daily bowel movements because their colons did not absorb enough water to produce soft stools. She said it's nothing serious unless one is constantly constipated. She was nice enough to tell me that she had the same issue too and gave me a bottle of Duphalac which is a lactulose syrup. This lactulose is broken down in the colon into products that pull water from the body into the colon to soften the stools. Just one tablespoon a day was the order of the day. I didn't need to take it for long, just a mere couple of weeks before my colon went on a proper working order.

You know, bowel movement is not a regular subject that could be easily brought up but when we did, I realised that I was not alone in my earlier predicament. Say out of 10 of my girl friends, at least 3 of them have similar problem of irregular movement. I introduced them to Duphalac and they were grateful of that.

A lot of people tend to eat banana when they have constipation but did you know that eating banana in bulk will cause further harm than good. You'll need to drink a whole lot more water with the banana in order to have a smooth bowel movement. As far as I know, the other 2 items that will help, papaya and prune (dried or juice).

It was not until last year when I was educated about Zespri® kiwifruits that it contains an enzyme and enough dietary fibres to keep a healthy digestive system. Just 2 kiwifruits a day could do the same job! So forget about synthetic lactulose and head on to some juicy kiwifruits.

Kiwifruits contains actinidin which is a unique protease enzyme known for its ability to break down proteins ie. dairy, meat and legume, which promote increased digestion and digestive comfort. Zespri® Green Kiwifruit contains active actinidin. By eating more kiwifruits you can rely on it for a better digestive comfort and improved laxation as a result which I can attest to that having eaten so much kiwifruits for the past 12 days in Zespri® 14-Day Daily Scoop of Amazing Challenge. If I only knew back then, I would have load myself with kiwifruits and advice my friends the same too!!!

So rather than waiting for disaster to happen (as in being constipated), it's best to keep our digestive system healthy by eating at least 2 kiwifruits a day, just that easy. You can find out more details backed by scientific researches at www.zespri.com.my.

Enough of bowel movement stories as some people might find this being TMI (too much info) :p

Let's see what other savoury dish I have came up with... since the kiwifruits profile are slightly on a sour note, including them in a sweet and sour dish or assam pedas would be nice. However, I did an experiment by just using them in my normal stir-fry chicken dish, who knew it ended up so delicious that my BoiBoi kept telling me "Hmmm this chicken dish is sooo nice" during lunch.

Stir-Fried Chicken With Zespri® Kiwifruit
(Serves 4)

Marinade together:
250 g chicken fillet, cut into 2 cm chunks
1 tsp light soy sauce
A dash of sesame oil
1/2 tsp cornflour
1/8 tsp sugar

1 Zespri® Green Kiwifruit, sliced into chunks
1 Zespri® SunGold Kiwifruit, sliced into chunks
25 g yellow capsicum, sliced into chunks about size of kiwifruits
25 g red capsicum, sliced into chunks about size of kiwifruits
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 Tbsp vegetable oil

Sauce (mix together):
4 Tbsp water
1/2 Tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp light soy sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp cornflour

In a pan or wok, heat up the oil and fry garlic in medium heat until fragrant or until become light brown in colour. Add in chicken fillet and stir. Cook fillet until light golden brown on both sides before adding both the capsicum chunks. Stir the sauce mixture before pouring into the chicken. Let sauce some to a boil before turning off the fire. Stir in the kiwifruit chunks while still hot. Serve hot with steamed rice.

Day 1: Zespri® 14-Day Daily Scoop of Amazing Challenge

Day 2: Sunshine Zespri® Green Kiwifruit Smoothie

Day 2.1: Zespri® SunGold Rockstar Breakfast Smoothie

Day 3: Win A Trip To Auckland & Rotorua, New Zealand

Day 4: Zespri® SunGold Kiwifruit Parfait

Day 5: Zesty Zespri® Sungold

Day 6: Sunrise Zespri® SunGold Ice Lolly

Day 7: Zespri® Green Kiwifruit Chutney With Grill Chicken

Day 8: Lovin' Zespri® SunGold Kiwifruit Steamed Prawns

Day 9: Frangipane Zespri® Golden Drops

Day 10: Zespri® Kiwifruit Sambal Lada with Prawn Lemongrass Skewers

Day 11: Pandan Zespri® Kiwifruits Cooler

Day 11.1: Zespri® Kiwifruits Platter

Day 11.2: Lemony Sponge with Zespri® Kiwifruits

Day 12: Prawn and Zespri® Green Kiwifruit Aglio Olio Pasta

Review: Mission Wraps - Chicken Wraps ala Fajita

A lot of times when it comes to meal times for Capt'n Hook and I, we would usually go simple especially when we're not fans of rice. We would opt for noodles, sandwiches, wraps or just salad.

I've discovered Mission Wraps some time back and seems like it is getting easier to get them these days. I've seen them at most supermarkets and hypermarkets. Retailing around RM7+ and there are promotions now where you'll get a bag of Mission Tortilla Chips with every 2 packets of wraps purchased. So I would look for such promos before I buy them :p and the last I saw such promo again was last week!

These wraps comes in a few flavours and I think I have tried Wholegrain, Potato, Garlic and Onion & Chive. The thing I like most about Mission wraps is it's resealable ziplock packets as we usually can't finish all 8 pieces in one go. So I'll just ziplock the bag and chuck it into the fridge. At times, when it comes out from the fridge, it can be quite dry. What I do is just sprinkle both sides with a little water and warm the wraps gently on a frying pan, a couple of minutes on both sides.

Another great tip I would like to share is... wash, dry and keep the resealable plastic bags! I know, sounds like a hoarder I am but I dislike wastage and being NOT environmental friendly. Since the bag is quite sturdy, I've used it to marinade meat. Other time, I've stored leftover homemade capatis in one, perfect size, I tell you. I can think of many other ways to reuse such bags :p perhaps I shall share that in another post.

Most times I will just sprinkle some salt & black pepper on a piece of chicken breast and grill it on a grill pan or simply fry it on a frying pan. Both work just as fine. Let the meat cool down a little before slicing into strips before using in my wraps or sandwiches.

After a while, I sort of like give a little variety on the marinade. This particular marinade is something like fajita and I've used chicken fillets hehehe yeah the lazy in me, don't even need to slice them up and use them whole in the wraps.



As for the accompaniments, you can use any combinations of fresh lettuce leaves, shredded carrot/jicama/cucumber, avocado slices, tomato or even kiwifruit salsa, etc; sour cream or yoghurt; at times I just squeeze Kewpie mayonnaise over the veggies; you got what I mean now... the combinations are endless, just use your imagination. Actually quite a good way to clear up the fridge.

Chicken Wraps ala Fajita(Enough for 4 wraps)

350 g chicken fillets (about 8 pieces), pat dry with paper towels

Marinade:
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt (I've used Himalayan but you might need to adjust the amount as Himalayan is not as salty)

Mix all the ingredients for the marinade in a mixing bowl. Add in the chicken fillets and mix evenly. Cover and leave in the fridge to marinade, about 1 hour but longer is nicer.

Remove chicken from the fridge and let it get to room temperature. Pan fry fillets in frying pan with a little oil on both sides till cooked. Shouldn't take long... maybe around 6 - 8 minutes on medium heat.

Remove fillets to a plate and cool down a little before assembling the wraps.

One-Pot-Rice-Cooker Chicken Rice

Well this fantastic easy peasy one pot wonder is not discovered by me. I've read it on Celine's blog Live Love and Me on the post 4pm Chicken Rice and I had it on my mind like forever but never got round to make it. One day I decided to give it a try and gosh it was really so easy but yet so delicious. I've made this quite a number of times but never got round to take any pictures of them as ermm they're not exactly photogenic.

I've shared this on my Facebook and I'm glad to know that there are some friends have made use of the simple no recipe to make a complete meal of its own. Best of all, their family members liked it as much as we did, just like Celine's. Happy to know that they in return have shared their discovery with their friends. Hmm sounds like Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food project eh?

This one pot wonder chicken rice is made entirely inside a rice cooker. So simple that there's really no recipe to it. All you need to measure is the amount of rice and water needed. The rest, just go with your feel and liking.

To start off, get ready with some chopped ginger and garlic. Clean and prepare chicken legs (I liked mine without skin), chop into half if you like. Rub in some salt and a dash of grounded white pepper. Wash your rice as usual, drain and set aside together with the required amount of water. I've used brown rice here.

Turn on your rice cooker (I guess this should work with conventional or mechanical jar rice cookers) and push the button down to Cook. Let the pot heat up before pouring a little cooking oil inside. Wait for the oil to heat up before putting in the chopped ginger first. Fry till fragrant before adding the garlic. At this point, my rice cooker button popped up to Keep Warm. No matter how I've tried it remained there. Over time I've learnt that it's ok... just let the ginger and garlic in the pot and they'll brown a little.

 

Next, pour in the drained rice and stir. Pour in the water and add in some salt to taste. Place the chicken pieces on top. Press the rice cooker button to Cook and wait patiently till it's cook. When the button popped up, please remain to be patient and let it keep warm for another say 15 - 20 minutes to let the chicken and rice to continue cooking. Taddaaaa and your chicken rice is done!



To serve the chicken rice, I've made some chilli sauce by blending together some red chillis, young ginger, garlic, lime juice and some salt. I've also made an oyster sauce gravy by diluting some oyster sauce with some warm water and a little deep fried garlic oil till combined (consistency depends on your choice which can be thickish or slightly on the runny side).

Instead of just serving cucumber plain as it is, I've came up with the idea of slicing Japanese cucumber rather thinly and toss them up with some soy sauce and a dash of sesame oil. Sprinkle on some roasted sesame seeds. If you wish to have your cucumber crunchy, then have it straight otherwise let the cucumber macerate a little in the soy sauce. Capt'n Hook loved this so much that he said I can feed him just these as his fibre intake!



BoiBoi loved this Chicken Rice too and kept asking me to make this. When I told my mother of this, she said they have eaten a similar version at a wedding banquet at a Chinese restaurant (which I can't recall) as the obligatory carbo dish. However the chicken were hand shredded into pieces and served separately on a dish. The waiter would then mix the chicken pieces into the rice before serving to the guests. Hmm this is my first time hearing of such dish served in a banquet but she told me the rice was so popular even though they were all stuffed from the earlier dishes. And guess what??? She replicated this using the same method as I did, just that she hand torn the chicken pieces after cooking before tossing back into the rice!

Ok I think my version is really told in a rather long grandma story but do head on to Celine's post for the shorter version :D

Try it this weekend!

Uniquely Malaysia: Bubur Lambuk Ayam

Here's my entry for Merdeka Open House 2012: Uniquely Malaysia... Bubur Lambuk Ayam (Spicy Chicken Rice Congee). As I've mentioned in the Ramadhan recipe - Bubur Lambuk Ayam courtesy of Chef Fazli of Makan Kitchen, Doubletree by Hilton; Bubur Lambuk is a dish that is hard to forget. Once you've tasted it, you'll crave for more. This rice congee dish usually gets very popular during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadhan. The local community will congregate at the nearby mosques and cook up huge pots of this spicy rice congee to be distributed around to be served during breaking fast.

I was lucky to have tasted the famous version distributed by Masjid Jamek Kampung Baru and that was before it was crowned Bubur Lambuk Agong by the late Sultan Salahuddin of Selangor! Whilst I was researching on the net, it seems like different states would have their own version of Bubur Lambuk. Terengganu's version have shredded leafy herbs added, while the northern states like Kedah would have seafood added. Johor's version has dried shrimps and vegetables added.



The recipe is very simple, just like normal way of making rice congee, just that need to fry up the aromatics and spices before adding the rice and water. I've tried to use Chef Fazli's recipe but as I was measuring up the amount of spices, I find that it was wayyy too much for our tastebud. So I've reduced the spices and increased the rice in order to serve up a recipe for 3 - 4 servings. Traditionally beef is used but it's a hard to source ingredient in my area so I've used chicken instead.



So here's my take of Bubur Ayam Lambuk which Capt'n Hook and BoiBoi gave thumbs up. The aromatic and spices taste was just nice and not overpowering. Just like how I've remembered it to be ;-)

Bubur Lambuk Ayam
3 - 4 servings 

220 g rice, washed and drained
300 g minced chicken, mix in a pinch of salt and white pepper
2 Tbsp oil 

(A)
60 g (1 medium sized) onion, sliced into thin half rings
3 cloves (20 g) garlic, chopped
2 cm (20 g) young ginger, shred thinly
2 lemongrass, bruised 

(B)
1/2 Tbsp (20 g) star anise
20 g cinnamon sticks
1/2 Tbsp (20 g) cardamon, pound a little to release the seeds
1/2 Tbsp (20 g) cloves
1/2 Tbsp (20 g) corriander seeds
2 Tbsp oil 

1.5 Litres water
4 x 250 ml hot water (depends on the rate your type of rice absorbs water)
100 ml thick coconut milk
Salt and grounded white pepper, to taste
A pinch of sugar 

Garnish:
40 g fried shallots
30 g Chinese celery (daun sup/ketumbar), sliced finely
30 g spring onion, sliced finely
20 g red chilli, optional 

In a pot, pour in 2 Tbsp oil. Once heat up, add in the minced chicken. Fry till the meat is lightly browned. Loosen the meat when you stir them along. Dish up and set aside. 

In the same pot, add in remaining 2 Tbsp oil. Fry (A) until fragrant and onion a little brown on the edges before adding (B). Stir and fry till the spices are aromatic before adding the rice. Stir to mix well. Pour in the 1.5 litres water. 

Let it come to a boil before turning down the heat to medium low. Stir occasionally to prevent from sticking at the bottom. Now, the tricky part... once you noticed the water is almost dry down, pour in 250 ml of hot water. Continue to do this and add water until the rice is all broken up ala Cantonese style. I have to do this 4 times in total. The family prefer thick congee so that's how I've cooked mine. So you'll have to adjust the water level according to your liking. There's no hard or fast rules for cooking rice congee. In between adding the water, add in the cooked minced chicken. Adjust seasonings accordingly. 

Towards the end, just remember to keep a close watch and stir the congee once in a while. Once done, turn off the heat and serve while it's hot. Topped with garnishes before serving.

Deep Fried Nam Yue Chicken Wings on Venusbuzz.com

My mother is a Hakka descendant, so is my husband. Since young I’ve been fed with all sorts of delicious food cooked by my maternal grandmother ranging from salted chicken, braised pork belly with black fungus, braised duck in soy bean paste sauce, braised pork belly with yam or sometimes preserved mustard cabbage, and deep fried pork belly. I guess now I know why how I got to become a foodie and grew up being a chubby little girl.

At that time I’ve no idea they are Hakka food in particular but as I grew up, I have learnt the various cooking style and dishes from various Chinese clans. My grandmother has long gone and my mother had sort of retired from cooking labourious dishes. It is also not helping that the hubby reminisces and described the dishes his late father conjured for them. Looks like I have no choice but to slowly learn up some Hakka dishes as the craving for such dishes with the authentic taste as how I remember them is getting strong.

The family used to frequent a restaurant that serves this crispy and salty deep fried chicken wings but sadly this restaurant has closed down. So the better bet now is to make them myself! I’ve asked my mother how to make them, sighhhh just like a typical Chinese housewife, all she could contribute was a little this and a pinch of that. I know I cook like that too but somehow there must be a formula to get things right in the kitchen and to pass on the recipes so that the legacy can carry on.

So here I am, sharing my Deep Fried Nam Yue Chicken Wings recipe on Venusbuzz.com, tried and tested, with the feedback from the husband that they are tasty with the right amount of seasonings. On it’s own, red fermented beancurd (nam yue) can smell and taste rather off-putting but with the right combination of ingredients, it can turn dishes out beautifully.

Braised Chicken with Galangal

Dedicated to the person who complained that I have been featuring a lot of stir-fries lately :p here's a braised chicken dish...

I've bought a couple of those bi-lingual books on confinement dishes some years back all cause the recipes looked really good and sounds very simple. They did gave my mother some meal ideas after my miscarriage, 3 years ago. Every now and then I would look up on these books and would cook up items like Steamed Ribs with Tasty Sauce, Black Bean Soup and Stir Fried Eggplants with Minced Fish.

This time while browsing, I chanced upon this dish that surprisingly does not contain the standard ginger in the ingredients :p which in it's place was galangal. I've adapted the recipe into a simple braising as the original recipe was way too sweet for our liking. This pic is my second try on this recipe which yielded a better and tastier version with the addition of spring onions.

Here's my adapted recipe:

Braised Chicken with Galangal

2 chicken thighs, deskinned and chopped
about 10 slices of fresh galangal
1 tbsp sugar (original recipe called for 2.5 tbsp!)
3 tbsp Stone's ginger wine
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce (can cut down if you don't like it dark :D)
500ml water
1 tbsp oil
1 stalk spring onions, cut into 1.5 inches in length

1. Heat oil in wok and add in the sugar. Cook until sugar is dissolved and caramalised into a golden brown colour.

2. Add in the chicken pieces and fry both sides till browned. Next, add in the galangal slices and stir.

3. Pour in water, light and dark soy sauce and bring to boil. Simmer on low heat until gravy thickens. Remember to taste and adjust according to your taste by adding light sauce sauce if not salty enough. If too salty, just add a little water.

4. Pour in the ginger wine and simmer for another 10 minutes before stirring in spring onions. Serve hot with rice.

Chicken and Snow Peas Stir Fry

By now you would have know that I'm really a very lazy person *chuckle* cos most of my dishes are darn easy with little ingredients. However I'm very creative though hehe since I could create dishes with basic concepts but just go round varying the ingredients.

Chicken and Snow Peas Stir Fry is yet another easy peasy stir fry that goes well with rice. I usually don't like to stir fry my vegetables with meat as I prefered them plain but this dish was an all rounder with the chicken added.

Prepare a little water with a few dashes of oyster sauce added into it. Brown some garlic in oil before adding in pieces of chicken fillet marinaded with some soy sauce, white pepper and corn flour. Stir and cook chicken till a little brown. Add in sliced carrots and the sauce mix.

Let the chicken and carrots cook for a short while before adding snow peas and sliced baby corns. Stir for another 2 minutes or so, dish up and serve hot with rice.

Review: Onn Kee's Roast Duck

**Non-Halal**


I've blogged about Restaurant Sun Ming recently about their roast meats. The roast duck was so-so and I still think Restoran BBQ Kong Meng serves better roast duck in Cheras region. Since I grew up in Kepong, we were fed roast ducks from Onn Kee since young on special occasions. Those days, Onn Kee is amongst the first push cart stall that sells roast duck by the road side along Jalan Kepong Baru, where they're situated currently. I should know better when my primary school is just a skip and a hop away tee hee...

Anyway, we dropped by for lunch with my brother recently and I'm glad that the roast meats here are still going strong. Instead of push carts, the stalls have gotten permanent roof over their head now. Since it was around 1 o'clock, there were vast amount of choices available.

We opted for 1/4 roast duck, 1/4 sesame seeds roast duck and a plate of siu yoke (roast pork) and char siu (bbq pork) for 2 person. With 3 plates of rice and 2 cups of chrysanthemum tea, all these cost us RM47 only. Seems reasonable to me.



Price aside, the most important factor is the taste. At least the duck is flavourful, not bland at all. The sesame version have extra crunch on the skin which lend a nutty bite and taste. My favourite!



Whilst the glistening char siu stood out for not being sickly sweet, the siu yoke is just all right. Smooth with crispy skin but lacked the flavour of 5 spice powder and salt.



If you can read Chinese, you can see the prices. Click on the photo to view a larger pic.



Onn Kee's stall is located by the road side, a stone throw away from KTZ Kepong and don't get confused over another roast duck stall which is operating side-by-side. If you sit long enough, you'll be able to see which stall has more customers :p and they are opened for lunch till all roasts are finish around afternoon.


Onn Kee
Lot 209 Jalan Kepong Baru
52100 Kepong
Tel: 03 6258 5227 / 019 311 6616 / 012 619 6202

Map

Review: Roast Duck and Pork at Restaurant Sun Ming, Taman Connaught

**Non-Halal**


If you lived in central Cheras, chances that you would know where to dig for roast duck and surprisingly both errmm I won't say famous but let's say popular shops are located in Taman Connaught. Just that one is at the start of the road, Restoran Yi Kee (near to CIMB, which also sells roast goose) and Sun Ming Restaurant which is located at the end of the road. To get to Sun Ming, at East West Link just turn left at the road where BHP is located and another immediate right. The shop is near Domino's Pizza. If you know where is Restoran Sim Hap Kee or Elegant Inn, Sun Ming is located at the road behind, parallel to them.

Sun Ming has a large varieties of offerings other than roast duck. Let's see if I can list them all down :p. Well they have roast chicken; roast pork (siew yuk); BBQ pork (char siu); siu cheung (a type of sausage); a few options of yong tau foo like bitter gourd, chilli, tofu, brinjal etc;  dark vinegar trotters; assam mustard green (gai choy suen); and at least 5 types of steamed soup like lotus roots, black beans, watercress etc etc

Don't be alarmed when you see long queue from the chopping and serving area up front of the restaurant as there are table service as well. Usually people queue up to take a look of what is available and select from the wide variety of the food on display. This place is always pack so don't be surprised if you need to share table with strangers.

This time round Capt'n Hook and I ordered quartered roast duck, the dark meat portion; a plate of roast pork and a black bean soup plus a glass of hot Chinese tea (which came up to RM31.90).



No doubt the duck meat is juicy but somehow the skin is not crispy, perhaps they have been on the display rack for a while. Taste wise, it was ok but doesn't blow me over like Restoran BBQ Kong Meng (Taman Maju Jaya, Cheras) or Onn Kee (in Kepong). Even the roast pork is just so-so with the exception of having a crispy skin.



I loved the soup though. It's double-boiled with both pork ribs and chicken, hence the flavour is stronger. The texture of the black beans were great too.



Service is quick but the wait for the food to arrive might take a while especially during peak hour. If you come with friends, expect to raise your voice up during your conversations as the place is really noisy hehe typical of a Chinese kopitiam style shop. I was drooling over the glistening char siu that our tablemates have ordered, so next round, we ought to try that and the other items as well like the yong tau foo cos they looked plump with fillings.


Restaurant Sun Ming
137, Jalan Sarjana, 

Taman Connaught
56000 Kuala Lumpur

Tel: +603 9133 2151

Closed on Tuesdays and is opened till around 4.00pm or earlier

Review: Fook Tai Mixed Herbs and Spices

It was Capt'n Hook who stumbled upon this Fook Tai Mixed Herbs and Spices soup mix when he went to a vegetarian supply shop during a period where he observed vegetarian meals. He told me that he just boiled the soup packet and drank it just like that plain. He really liked it saying that it tasted a bit like bak kut teh soup.



I read the packaging and it says that one can add meat into it. There are two packages inside and one is sufficient for a small pot of soup for 2. Use two for stronger flavour and larger portion. So one day I made a chicken herbal soup ala bak kut teh style by adding halved tau fu pok (beancurd puffs), fu chuk (beancurd sticks, the ones for stews and soups), dried shiitake mushrooms (soaked and sliced), a can of button mushrooms I've received during CNY, and fresh enoki mushrooms.

Fairly easy to make, just need to dump in some chicken meat and the soup packages plus the rest of the ingredients except for button and enoki mushrooms which I added towards the end. Since I was using kampung chicken, I boiled it for about 1 hour or so on low heat.



This pot of soup is good as one pot meal to go with rice, easy peasy and less cleaning up for a complete meal. Well, can chuck in some greens at the end to really make it complete :p

I've seen this soup package at vegetarian supply shops and mini markets, not sure if can be found at supermarkets or hypermarkets. Will update if I do.

Roast Herb Chicken

This is another version of roast chicken, well quite similar to Jamie Oliver Inspired Rosemary Roasts but this time I've used another type of fresh herbs which is tarragon. You can now find these fresh herbs in most supermarkets in Malaysia and if you wish to plant herbs like rosemary, basil and thyme in our weather, yes you can do it now, provided you get the plants from local flower nurseries. In Kuala Lumpur, the best bet would be Sungai Buloh area. *Groan* I wish I have a balcony that I can plant them :(

Anyway back to the chicken, since I've used thigh, it's easier to stuff the herbs inside and this time I did not use any butter at all. I just did a dry roast like this method but I did use some black pepper though.

At the same time, I chucked in chunks of potatoes, sweet potatoes and pumpkins in as well. Just need to rub them with extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper.



Serve the chicken with the roasted potatoes, sweet potatoes and pumpkins; and a simple salad on the side.



I roasted the seeds from the pumpkin this time round. Nothing goes to waste here :p



Just need to get rid of the pulps from the seeds and give it a rinse. Then spread out on a tray and let it dry up. The drier they are, the crispier they will be! Before roasting, I just rub in some olive oil and salt. Roast till golden brown. Mine doesn't look nicely brown nor crispy this time cos I forgot to turn the oven setting from grill to roast after I was done with my chicken, duhhh! This is a nice snack and you can pop them whole into your mouth :D

My other roast chicken recipes:
Babe's Roast Chicken With Vegetables
One Chook, Five Ways
Grilled Sesame Chicken

Jamie Oliver's Chicken in Milk

If you're adventurous, you can try duck too!

Herbal Roasted Duck

Steamed Chicken and Black Fungus in Brandy

This is the simplest steamed chicken recipe ever and my mother has been cooking this for us for ages. Just need to marinade 2 chopped up skinless chicken thigh (preferably free range/kampung) with a big dash of oyster sauce, a little sugar, white pepper, about 1 tsp of cornflour and a large dash of brandy :p

Usually Tsao Tsing Chinese Cooking Wine is used but I've ran out. I have lots of brandy sitting at home so why not? My mother had used DOM too! I've even did it with Sake, nice I tell you.

To assemble, soak and clean up a small handful of black fungus. Remove the woody bits and cut into strips. Cut a small knob of old ginger into strips. Mix the black fungus and ginger strips into the chicken and place them on a heat proof container. Steam for 20 - 25 minutes depending on the heat of your steamer. My timing is based on my electric steamer.

Once you have removed the dish from the steamer, you can pour in another shot of brandy for extra flavouring. Serve with rice. Yums yums.




Try my other steamed chicken recipes:
Steamed Chicken with Pickled Mustard Cabbage and Mushroom

Steamed Chicken with Chinese Sausage

I'm submitting this for Muhibbah Malaysian Monday blog event. This event is the brainchild of  Shaz (Test With A Skewer) and Suresh (3 Hungry Tummies). Read more here.

Nasi Kerabu and Ayam Percik

I'm not a very good student I must say at least. So far of all the cooking classes I've ever attended, I hardly cook up those recipes that I've learnt with all sorts of excuses even though my heart had wanted to recreate :p very shameful indeed eh? However, by far, I've done Kuih Talam twice which I've learnt from our Kampung Cuisine at Bayan Indah!!! The first was a disaster as I've used the air kapur (lime water) straight from the container without diluting with water. Since it was quite concentrated it gave the green layer a bitter taste! Then the texture was rather wobbly. The next round, I added water to the air kapur and reduce some water from my green layer. I managed to somehow get a quite decent Kuih Talam but not good enough to be photographed hehe.

The next I have always wanted to make is Nasi Kerabu (herb rice salad)  and Ayam Percik (spiced, grilled chicken) but my excuse would be it's kinda hard to get Malay herbs in my area and it would be too much if I ever buy them even in small bundles :p

Anyway I seized the chance when I was at Bayan Indah on a Saturday. I helped myself to her garden. I had a galore snipping the herbs in small quantities but in quite a number of varieties in there. I have gotten some daun kesum, daun cekur, daun kaduk, ulam raja, mint leaves, daun kunyit, daun limau purut, daun selom and Thai basil. Thank you Rohani for the leaves!



The next day, I cooked up both Nasi Kerabu and Ayam Percik. They turned out pretty well and I'm quite glad that BoiBoi did eat up the rice. Funny he finds the chicken a bit hot even though I've halved the amount of chillies but he asked for some gravy to put on his rice :p


Chicken simmering in the pan before grilling

Oh yeah, I've made my own kerisik too!!! Very unimaginable! If my grandma is a Malay, she would be dang proud of me! Hehe... hard work ok stirring the grated coconut for like 25 minutes in the wok!



For my own record, cook the rice earlier so they would have more time to cool down and firm up.

Sorry I can't provide the recipes here since the class is still on going at Bayan Indah. Sign up for one :D

Oh yeah, if you're interested to join us (food bloggers lah) for private classes at Bayan Indah, email me so that I can keep you in the loop for our next classes. I've organised one for some food bloggers 2 months back and there should be one before the year ends.

I'm submitting this for Muhibbah Malaysian Monday blog event. This event is the brainchild of  Shaz (Test With A Skewer) and Suresh (3 Hungry Tummies). Read more here.

Steamed Chicken with Pickled Mustard Cabbage and Mushroom

Another hearty steamed dish I've done. This is a rather unique dish which was featured in Steamed Cuisine published by Famous Cuisine.

In this one dish, you'll find meat, tofu, harm choy (pickled mustard cabbage), shitake mushroom and chicken essence! Absolutely loved this wholesome dish filled with natural sweetness with some tang, even my BoiBoi surprised me by asking for extra broth!


This is before cooking

Here's my version of the recipe:

Steamed Chicken with Pickled Mustard Cabbage and Mushroom

2 kampung chicken thighs, skinned and chopped into pieces

Marinade chicken with:
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
A dash of sesame oil
Some pepper
Wee bit of sugar to bring out the taste
2 tsp cornflour

About a fistful of pickled mustard cabbage (buy those for soup), soaked and sliced
2 dried shitake mushrooms (soaked and sliced)
1 small packet of Japanese egg tofu (can use white tofu), sliced
Several cherry tomatoes, halved
1 bottle of chicken essence

In a deep heatproof dish, I placed the tofu at the bottom. Next the chicken pieces followed by the rest of the ingredients. Just scatter them all round the chicken. Put the dish in the steamer together with the bottle of chicken essence.

Steam for about 20 minutes or until chicken pieces are cooked through. Remove from steamer and serve by pouring the heated chicken essence over the chicken pieces.

Ready to be served

Another easy peasy steamed dish to be bookmarked ;-)

Review: McDonald's Limited Time Only GCB

By now, you would have been bombarded by the latest blitz of McDonald's advertisement about their just-launched-yesterday GCB which is actually Great-tasting Chicken Burger! I'm not sure about you but when my colleague, A, showed me the advert on their facebook page I was captivated by the thick and fat juicy burger with loads of fresh lettuce and dripping sauce in between the sesame seeds bun. Can't wait so I arranged to try this for lunch today.

Based on the adverts... this burger is supposed to have GRILLED whole chicken thigh, GORGEOUS iceberg lettuce, GLORIOUS char-grilled sauce within GOLDEN sesame seeds bun!





This is how GRILLED, GORGEOUS, GLORIOUS and GOLDEN got interpreted in real...









Here are more... comparison in size and visual.





Looked kinda pathetic isn't it??? Sighhh we always get suckered into their beautiful ads but yet still die die want to try a bite! Despite errrmmm the shortcomings but I have to say GCB is really delicious. Both my colleagues said the same too. The chicken thigh is not really the entire whole thigh, perhaps just a thin piece from a thigh, marinaded battered and grilled. I liked how it's grilled to retain the juiciness. The flavours were great but a tad high on MSG level since we have to keep on downing water to satisfy our thirst when we were back in the office.

It's not cheap either... burger alone on ala-carte is RM8 and the Medium set which includes a pack of fries and aerated drink will cost you RM11.90 excluding the 5% Government tax. Could have cut down the price by just offering the burger in waxed paper without the paper box. Totally NOT environmentally friendly at all!

Sighhh guess what? We're going again for some GCB next week hahaha we're born suckers, aren't we??!!! Hahaha

New Style Chicken Varuval

I've actually posted this recipe before but here it is again with some tips and tweak. I brought this dish to PureGlutton's potluck party last weekend and we have a blast there!

During deep frying the chicken, you will need to use a metal slotted spoon to sieve out the "rempah (garlic and ginger)" remnants from the oil. Keep doing this to clear up the oil from these bits and pieces, otherwise your oil will not be hot enough to fry the chicken until crispy. You may throw the deep fried bits away but if you like them like I do, I kept them and add to the chicken whilst stir frying with the spices. Just make sure don't use the bottom bits as they're extremely oily.

If you have kids who can't take hot food like mine, remove the seeds from the dried chillies. In order to remove them easily, we learnt this tip from Rohani Jelani's class recently. Cut or snip the chillies with scissors diagonally and soak them in hot water for a while until softens. Once done, just shake the chillies and the seeds will come out with ease.

New Style Chicken Varuval

Ingredient
1 chicken, deboned and cut into small chunks (I used 5 pieces of chopped up thighs with bones and all)
4 tbsp ginger and garlic paste
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
10 dried chillies (cut into pieces)
10 shallots (shredded)
2 pc cinnamon stick
4 pc cardamoms
2 pc star anise
A few stalks of curry leaves, just use the leaves only, discard the stems
black pepper and salt
oil for frying

Method
1. Clean the chicken and cut into small cubes. Add ginger-garlic paste, curry powder, turmeric powder and salt. Mix well and marinate for 15 minutes.

2. Fry the chicken in batches till golden brown and set aside.

3. In another wok, add a little oil. Sauté the onion, spices, curry leaves and dried chilli until onion turns light brown.

4. Add the chicken and stir well. Add black pepper and salt to taste. Best served with rice or as snack with beer!

Easy Chicken Wrap

There are many times I have gone bonkers thinking of what to prepare for lunch on weekends. It's so hard to think up of the dishes to cook that are not complicated. I totally understand now why my mother keep repeating "I don't know what to cook today" heh. What more she has to cook everyday for us!

I was pondering one Sunday morning over the same question, I could go the easy way out by going out to eat but in the end we would be in a dilemma too as to where to go and eat!!! Grrrr so the easy way out is to check what I have in the larder and fridge. I have a packet of flat bread which I've bought but still not sure what to do with them hehe. I have butterhead lettuce, sour cream and cheddar cheese. Hmmm so off to the market I went and grabbed a piece of chicken breast, lots of red onions and one avocado... woooo wet market these days darn canggih ok! Yes the fruit stall does sells avocado, strawberries and blueberries!!! Most times they're slightly cheaper than the supermarkets.

I removed the skin from the chicken and clean it up. Sliced into half and marinade them with some oyster sauce, Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce and black pepper in the fridge for a couple of hours. Wash, soak and drain the lettuce leaves. Sliced up the onions into half rounds slices and I'm good to go.

Using a non-stick pan, I fry the chicken breast with some oil. Fried one side for about 7 minutes and flipping over to cook the other side. I poke into the centre of the breast to check the juice. When it run clears means it's cooked. Removed the chicken from pan and set aside.

In the same pan, add some oil if it's not enough, fry up the onions till limp, brown and caramalised. Season with salt and black pepper. Dish up and then slice the chicken. Place them on top of the onions.



For condiments, sliced up avocado and squeezed in some lemon juice to prevent them from browning. Grated the cheddar cheese. I just use the flat bread right off the packet. It's Nature's Bake brand but next time I might just want to either lightly steam or toast them before using.



To assemble, just slather sour cream over the bread and line it with lettuce leaves. Topped with avocado, cheese, onions and chicken. Slowly roll it up and enjoy!



We have one roll each and it's really filling. Capt'n Hook commented that such simple stuff can turned out to be such a treat for lunch. There you go, another lunch idea for you and me...

Review: Tean's Gourmet Chicken Curry Paste

Time for a product review. This time Tean's Gourmet Chicken Curry Paste. I bought a packet of this after hearing my Malaysian friend who resides in Hong Kong raving of Tean's Gourmet ready made pastes. Can't remember how much but it's definitely less than RM5.



I read the instructions twice cos I can't believed it was so simple to cook up a pot of curry chicken. Gone were the days where we need to pound away the herbs and spices, perfect for busy couples who rushes home to cook dinner for the brood. It says there just need to cook the paste with 1.5kg of chicken pieces and potatoes. Add water and simmer till cooked before adding coconut milk!!! Right there on the packet, it mentioned 15 minutes to cook the chicken curry.



So instead of one whole chicken, I bought 3 pieces of chicken thigh, chopped and have the skin removed. I fried the paste first till a bit fragrant before adding the chicken pieces and potatoes. Stir a bit and added around 250ml water. I put on the lid and simmer on low heat for about 20 mins as my chicken pieces are larger in size. Poured in about 200ml fresh coconut milk (I've used this since it's my first time using this paste but next time I'll use yoghurt or evaporated milk). Once it come to a boil, I tasted the curry and it was perfect! No extra seasonings needed so I turned off the stove.

Served with rice or bread.



My verdict of this paste is the curry turned out fantastic. A bit hot according to my colleague when I brought the leftover for lunch. It's so hard to believe such a great pot of curry chicken came out from an instant paste. My only complaint is the curry is pretty oily but all I did was just scoop out the reddish oil from the surface and it was good to go. Highly recommended especially those who resides overseas and now I understand why so many people rave about the paste. I guess it would be good to check out the rest of the range later on.