Perfect match - Blueberry and Yoghurt

This is a really simple one, try it out!

Ingredients:

Half a cup of preferred yoghurt, I used mix fruit yoghurt.

2 tbsp of preferred fruit jam or conserve, I used Blueberry conserve.

10 groundnuts (can swap with pine nuts or other preffered nuts)

1/2 piece of digestive biscuit

1 tbsp cinnamon powder

Method:

1. Prepare 1/2 cup of yoghurt (in a cup), add on the fruit conserve on top, put to freezer for at least 1 1/2 hours ( Could leave it longer to get a firm texture).

2. Remove the groundnuts' skin, give them a short roast in the oven or lightly roast over low gas mark using a pan. Leave to cool and crush the groundnuts.

3. Crush the digestive biscuit as well and mix together with the crushed groundnuts. Add in the cinnamon powder.

4. Bring out the yoghurt when about to serve, add on top the nut and biscuit mixture, and that's it!

Yesterday, Sunday...

I woke up early in the morning and was wondering what I could do, hmm, so I washed my clothes and did some house chores, then after, I made myself a dessert, dunno what to call it really, it's fairly easy, really nothing to brag about...Anyway, just after I pushed my dessert into the freezer, I suddenly remembered that it was Sunday, and there's Sunday Market just across the street! and so there I head to...

Well, it's not that big after all, could have walked through it in say, 15 minutes? But I had time, so spent quite some time, walking around and looking at the stuff that was on display. It's fairly similar to those we have in Malaysia, only this is cleaner, wider and erm...well it's sometimes crowded. Anyway, They've got quite a lot on display, though much of it I was not interested in...lolz

Horticulture and nursery stuff, really beautiful actually, should have taken a better photo...

Wood carvings, electrical goods, second hand cheap stuff, heaps of them! While everyone was walking around and choosing the things that their interested in, a couple of fruit and vegetable hawkers are shouting at the other end, something you would find in Market city as well, only this one shouts in italian as well as english! Haha, Well, if you really pay attention, much of the hawkers, of which whites selling stuff there actually speaks italian or latin, interesting huh? Though I couldn't understand a word at all. Haha

Ont stall that captured my attention is ofcourse, food! Haha, it looked like some greece or Mediterenean bread or pastry of some sort. How I know? The lady behind the stall spoked latin! Haha, anyway, looks good huh? too bad I was quite full from my breakfast, keep it for next time then...

Anyway, I went home after that to get a taste of the dessert that I placed in the freezer earlier, it was really not bad, only too sweet! Have to cut down on the berry conserve next time. Haha, Check it out. I reckon it's not bad for an amateur like me...Haha

Streamed Pork with Sweet Raddish and Tomatoes

Ingredients:

350g Pig's Loin (or other parts of which suitable for stir-frying)
80g Chinese Sweet Raddish (shreded)
2 Tomatoes

Marinade:

4 tbsp Chinese Shao Xing Cooking Wine
2 slices of ginger (finely choped)
1/2 tbsp of sesame oil
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp yellow bean paste
1/2 tbsp chilie paste (or tom yam paste)
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Cut the pork into desired size, marinate for 20-30 minutes
2. Shred the Sweet raddish and place on top of the pork in a bowl (or plate) for steaming.
3. Slice the tomatoes and arrange on top of raddish.
4. Put to steam for at least 10 minutes, at most 15 minutes. Serve hot.

Five Spices Tofu Hotpot

Ingredients A

500g Dry Tofu
150g Brocolli
100g Cauliflower
50g Carrot
75g Black Fungus
2 cloves Garlic
2 slices Ginger
6tbsp Oil

Ingredients B

2tbsp Five Spice Powder
3tbsp Corn Flour
4tbsp Wheat Flour
Salt to taste

Sauce

1 1/2 cup Water
1tbsp Light Soy Sauce
1tbsp Pepper
1/2 tbsp Soy Bean Paste Salt to taste

Method

1. Cut dry tofu into small cubes of about 1.5cm width. Dry excess water with cloth or kitchen towel, lightly coat with mixture of cornflour, wheat flour, salt and five spice powder. Shallow fry the tofu in heated oil using a pot. Set aside to cool down. Keep the remaining mixture of flour.

2. Heat up 2 tbsp oil, put in finely chopped ginger and garlic and fry till fragrant, add in fungus, followed by sugar. Fry till sugar us fully dissolved. Add in the greens and stir fry for about 3 minutes. Dilute the remaining flour mixture with 1 1/2 cup of water and add into the pot. Cover the lid and leave for another 3 minutes.

3. Open lid, add in the tofu and mix everything well, cover lid again and turn to low gas mark, leave to braise for about 10 minutes. Done, serve hot while boiling.

Amateur's Carbonara - Salmon Flakes Penne

I woke up early this morning and couldn't get back to sleep. Hence I went to my kitchen, had my cereals and started to make my own version of carbonara with the available time (not much though)...


















Ingredients:

Penne 200g
Salmond Flakes Salad (refer previous) 125g
Cabbage 25g
Butter 30g
Shreded Cheese 75g
1 cup Milk (to own preference)
1/2 a Brown Onion (chopped)
1 clove of garlic
1 piece of whomeal bread
Olive oil
Dried Thyme
Dried Basil
Pinch of sugar
Pepper and Salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat a small pot of water, put in Penne when boiled, add some saltand a tablespoon of olive oil, leave uncovered for 10-15 minutes, or until desired pasta tenderness.

2. While the Penne is cooking, toast the bread in a toaster or oven till desired cruchiness.

3. Heat up a wok, put in 10g of butter and add in the garlic and brown onions, followed by a pinch of sugar, to caramalized the onions and bring out its flavour.

4. Add in the milk and switch to lower gas mark (so that the milk does not degrade in it's quality and benefits). Slowly stir in the cabbage and let to heat up, remember do not bring to boil.

5. Subsequently add in thyme, basil, pepper and salt to taste. Slowly stir in the shreded cheese till the soup thickens.Drain the Penne, throw in 20g of butter and stir till disolved.

6. Mix the thick soup and the hot penne. Crush the toasted bread, place on top. Serves as garnishing and adds texture to the pasta. Give a good drizzle of olive oil to the pasta. Done. Serve hot or cold to own preference.

Sunshine!

Finally a whole day without a single drip of rain! It really feels good to be dry for one day, as contrary to previous days in which I had to walk back home in rain. Phew, anyway, the day started off well and I woke up about an hour before my class started, so I was pretty rush in a way, but manage to take a qucik cereal breakfast and an apple for breakfast (as usual) and made some qucik salad for my lunch's sandwhich. It's pretty easy and fast! I had the ingredients soaked while I had my cereals, then went into preparing the salad straight after that, speaking of maximizing the use of time, hah! Anyway, the ingredients are:

1 stem of celery about 250g

a portion of carrot 100g

1/2 of tomato 50g

flaked salmon (canned) 250g
a good drizzle of olive oil

pepper and salt to taste

Method:

Too easy huh? Haha anyway. to make it, simply chop the celery and carrots, press the salmon into falkes (if it is a whole). Mix all the ingredients together, add some pepper and salt to taste and finish off with a generous drizzle of olive oil. Done!

Coming up tomorrrow, it's my turn to cook again! Have something good in mind..hehe

Rainy Days

It has been raining since yesterday, and just as much as I want to finish up this post and publish it, the rain just does not seem to want to go away. I guess it's going to be a little problem when I head to the uni later on, just like what I encountered yesterday when I went to return my stack of library books sitting on my floor space. Never the less, while I was on my way back yesterday, I suddenly remembered that I bought some marylands from Eastgardens the other day, so as the rain water was splashing on me (even with the umbrella), I was also thinking how to cook them. Then I came pass one of the grocerries store and I went in to have a look on what suporting herbs or stuff that I can use for the marylands. While I was browsing through the display on the racks and shelfs, my eyes suddenly set on some cute little containers, which labels 'maltose' outside. Ahah! That's it...

Back at home where the rain was pouring at it's might, I was busy trying to finish up a analytical written assignment that really took me some time to finish. As it got darker outsede, and my mates was not back from some meeting outside, I started to marinate the marylands, and prepare the other vegetables. It was only about 6 (I was doing assignment in between) that I started to cook yesterday, but the time to cook the chickens were just nice. The outcome was great! The marylands were so crusted with a thin coat of cruchy malt while the meat inside was sweet and juicy! Check the day's recipe out:

My Malt Chicken Maryland, don't be fooled by the dark spots, the're actually sweet and thin crusts of malt, reminds me of my childhood snacks, yum yum.

Ingredients:

750g Chicken Maryland, about 3 pieces

300g Potato, peeled and cut into wedges

Marinate:

3 tblsp of Maltose, more if you want it sweeter, dissolve with some hot water

2 tblsp dark soy sauce

2 tblsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp sesame oil

1 tblsp salt

1 tblsp sugar

2 tsp pepper

1 tsp mix spice powder

That's it! simple as that! Preheat the oven to 250 degrees, prepare the potatoes, lay them at the bottom of a big bowl (or tray or something if you like) and the marylands on top. Remember to marinate the chicken for at least an hour beforehand. Place the chicken in the oven at 250 degrees for first 10 minutes, reduce to 200 degrees and let aside for 30 minutes, reduce again to 150 for the last 10 minutes. Altogether it's about 50 minutes roasting time.

The best part of this dish is the gravy that comes out later, it is sweet and has a paticular light fragrance in it. The potatoes laid on the bottom would have soaked up a lot the gravy, and imagine when u bite them, the juice just keeps flowing out!

The dinner was backed up by two vegetables (one actually) prepared in different way:

Sitr Fried Kai Lan with Chinese Wine

Ingredients

2 bunch of Kai Lan

3 tbsp vegetable oil

3 cloves of garlics, finely choped

1 inch of ginger, finely choped

1 tbsp oyster sauce

5 tbsp Chinese Shao Xing Cooking Wine

Salt and light soy sauce to taste

Heat up the oil in a wok, throw in the garlic and ginger when the oil is readily hot. Fry till the aroma arises, then put in the vegetables, stir in the salt and sou sauce as well. When the greens are all soaked or cooked, put in the wine. Serve hot.

HongKong style Kai Lan (Yau Choi)

1 bunch Kai Lan

1 tbsp vegetable oil

3 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tbsp light soy sauce

2 tbsp water

Salt to taste

Heat up a pot of water, add some salt to the water, put in the greens when the water is boiled, take out immediately when it looks cook and dip into cold iced water, leave it. Heat up some oil, add light soy sauce, oyster sauce and water, bring to boil, pour over the greens on a plate. Serve hot. There you have it, simple and easy, can you imagine that they sell this dish for at least AUD6 in the Chinese restaurants.

Here we start!

It's been more than two months since I set foot in Sydney, and gosh I don't miss home as much! That sounds bad in a way, but I reckon it's probably so as I've got all my memories of my family and my mom with me in my cooking skills! HAHA. Anyway, Thanks a lot mom for nurturing me with all the cooking skills and tips all the while. Armed with that alone, is more than enough for me to think of my family every time I cook something, which is mostly learned from dear mom.

But put that aside, the best way of not feeling homesick, is thanks to all my mates, Haha, sounding like Australian..lol Thank you all for always being there, accompanying me along the way enduring the hard times. For that, I can only show my gratitude by posting some recipes that I hope you guys will find time to look at, and maybe get your hands on making them!



Anyway, this is just my first post, so I was thinking of not really putting up any recipes first, take it easy. I would however, just like to share some photos of some food that I made some time back, but it's all done after I have arrived in Sydney... I've got to admit, culinary art is really very similar to architecture to certain extent, if you put enough passion into it, simple things can be very beautiful...

Apparently, it is not that difficult at all, I took these pictures after I prepared them. Their basically easily available food, i.e. wedges, sausages, tomatoes, lettuce, pasta, baked bread etc. All basic stuff but with a little touch up at the end of preparation, ah, how good is it if architecture was this straight forward and easy. Haha. Anyway, that would be all for now, just wanted to share some things. Untll the next time...