Twisted Ring Bread

I have been baking a lot of sourdough bread and only once a while have I gone to bake yeasted bread. Twisted Ring Bead is a yeasted bread. It is so pretty but more important it is delicious. This bread may be done plain or added with inclusions such as chocolate chips, chocolate buttons, chocolate rice or any dried fruits like cranberries, raisins and what have you. The way the inclusions are arrange is up to one's imagination. This recipe is a big one, yielding 2 loaves. I baked such a large recipe as I wanted to gift one away to a nephew-in-law who came a calling with his family. However, if you are baking just for a small family, you may half the recipe except the yeast. Use only 7 g instead of 10.

Ingredients:

• 200 ml warm water
• 60 g sugar
• 10 g yeast

• 725 g bread flour
• 25 g milk powder
• 1 tsp salt

• 2 eggs
• 240 ml milk

• 45 g butter

• Inclusions - either chocolate chips, chocolate buttons, chocolate rice or any dried fruits (raisins, cranberries, etc) - as much as you like

• Egg wash - egg yolk and 1 tbsp milk.

Instructions:

• Line a baking tray with greased parchment paper.

• Activate the yeast - add sugar to warm water, stir to dissolve the sugar and sprinkle the yeast on top. Set aside for 5-10 minutes.

• Once the yeast has been activated (there are bubbles in the yeast mixture), pour it into the bowl of the stand mixer.

•  Add the eggs and milk to the bowl.

• Add the bread flour, milk powder and salt into the yeast mixture.

• Start kneading the mixture on a low speed until all the ingredients are incorporated. Then increase the speed to medium high.

• When the dough has formed into a ball, add butter to it.

• Continue to knead the dough till it is smooth and elastic. Then transfer it to an oiled bowl.

• Cover the bowl with cling wrap and put a damp towel over it.

• Let the dough proof in a warm place till it has doubled in size.

• Lightly flour or grease your table top.

• Punch out the air from the dough. Then remove the dough from the bowl onto the floured / oiled surface.

• Roll the dough into a rectangle.

• Spread the inclusions on the rectangular dough.

• Then, roll it up into a ball.

• Use a rolling pin to roll it into a rectangle.

• Cut the dough into 2, lengthwise.

• Take 1 dough. Fold one side onto a third. Then, take the other side and fold it over the 1st third.

• Start to twist the dough from one end and form a ring by letting the 2 ends meet. Overlap the ends and seal them.

• Place the twisted ring onto the prepared baking tray.

• Repeat the same with the other dough. Then place it by the side of the first twisted ring.

• Let the twisted rings proof until they have doubled in size.

• Pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees C.

• Egg wash the rings.

• Bake the dough for 30 minutes until the rings are golden brown.

• Let them cool down on a metal rack.

• Enjoy.

Fish Fillet in Lemon Butter Sauce

 

I usually eat fried fish with chilli padi soy sauce. Today, I try another style, that is, drizzling the fish with lemon butter sauce. The sweetness of the fish coupled with the tangy buttery sauce brings the dish to another level. I have used the grouper. However, other fishes that can be cooked this way include the salmon, snapper or any other white fish that you can get your hands on. This recipe is the simplest one for lemon butter sauce. However, I have seen recipes which use heavy cream and wine to make the sauce.

Ingredients:

• 350 g Grouper fillet
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 2 tbsp rice flour
• 1 tbsp a-purpose flour
• cooking oil for frying

• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 2 tsp minced shallots
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 tsp chopped coriander or parsley

Instructions:

• Marinate fish fillet with salt and pepper for half an hour.

• Mix rice flour and all-purpose flour.

• Heat up cooking oil in wok or pan.

• Coat fish fillet with flour mixture.

• When cooking oil is hot, pan fry the fillet till golden brown.

• Transfer fried fillet to a serving plate.

• Or, some may prefer to just pan fry the fillet without any coating.

• Preparing the lemon sauce:

• Heat up wok or pan.

• Pour in lemon juice.

• Add minced shallots and salt.

• Cook till lemon juice is reduced to half the original amount.

• Add butter and let it melt.

• Add in chopped coriander or parsley.

• Pour lemon butter sauce over the fish fillet.

• Serve.

Soy Sauce Fish

Soy Sauce Fish is a simple but very delicious dish. I usually use golden snapper (jenahak) or grunt (ikan gerut) for this dish. However, I would say that golden snapper provides a sweeter dish than the grunt.  But the golden snapper is more expensive than the grunt. This dish is best eaten with white rice.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 of a jenahak (fillet), about 500 g
• 3 inches ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper

• Batter
• 3 tbsp rice flour
• 1 1/2 tbsp wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• Water, enough to form a thick batter

• Cooking oil
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 50 ml water

Instructions:

• Cut the jenahak into cubes. Marinate them with salt and pepper for at least half an hour.

• Mix the rice flour, wheat flour, salt, pepper and water to form a thick batter.

• Heat the cooking oil in a wok.

• Dip the jenahak cubes into the batter and drop them into the wok or pan when the oil is hot.

• Fry them until they are brown. Ladle them up and set aside.

• Julienne the ginger and add them to the wok. Fry them till they are crispy. Ladle them up and set them aside. 

• Add light and dark soy sauces to the remaining oil (used to fry the ginger) in the wok.

• Add water to the wok. Let the sauce boil.

• Add the fried fish to the wok and stir them till they are coated with the sauce.

• Scoop them up onto a serving dish.

• Sprinkle the crispy ginger on the fish.

• Serve the fish with white rice.

Steamed Egg with Po Choy

Steamed Egg with Po Choy is a simple dish which can be cooked speedily. Preparation takes a short while most of the time is spent on waiting for the egg to be steamed. But more important is that this dish is tasty and will surely appeal to most people. 

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 100 g - 120 g po choy
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 4 cloves garlic
• sesame oil for greasing the glass baking dish
• glass baking dish 18 cm x 12 cm

Instructions:

• Wash the po choy and cut them into 6 cm length.

• Boil a pot of water and blanch them for about 7 minutes.

• Scoop them out with a stainless steel food strainer and let the water runs through the strainer.

• When the po choy has cooled down, use your hands to squeeze out more water from them. Set the po choy aside.

• Beat the eggs and add the seasonings.

• Grease the baking dish with sesame oil.

• Pour the eggs into the baking dish and add the po choy to it.

• Put the baking dish into the steamer and steam the eggs for about 10 minutes over high heat or until they are cooked.

• While waiting, mince the garlic and sauté them till they are golden brown. Set them aside.

• Once the eggs are cooked, remove the baking dish from the steamer. Let the eggs cool down.

• Overturn the steamed eggs onto a flat plate.

• Sprinkle the sautéd garlic onto the steamed eggs. Slice them up or cut them into diamond shape and serve.

Tofu Omelette

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As we know an omelette is a dish made from eggs. The fillings that can be included are up to our imagination - chives, potato long beans, spinach, onion, prawns, etc. One day I ran out of idea of what to cook and finding a piece of tofu in my refrigerator I decided to try making tofu omelette. It turned out to be so delicious that I have cooked it a couple of times, the first time with just chilli padi and the second with coriander and chilli padi. I will try to add other fillings later.

Ingredients:

• 1 piece of tofu
• 1 egg
• 1 piece chilli padi
• 1 small sprig coriander or green onion (only green part)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 3 tbsp cooking oil

Instruction:

• Half the tofu horizontally and slice the tofu into 4 mm thickness or just slice the tofu into 4 mm thickness. Set aside.

• Cut the chilli padi into small pieces and roughly mince them.

• Cut the coriander and mince it. (Or, cut the green onion into small pieces.)

• Crack the egg into a bowl and beat it with the salt, soy sauce and pepper.

• Add the chilli padi and coriander (or green onion).

• Add the tofu to the bowl of egg and coat all pieces with the beaten egg.

• Heat up a frying pan with cooking oil.

• Use a spoon to scoop the tofu, piece by piece, into the pan. Arrange the tofu anyhow you like.

• When the bottom is cooked, turn over the omelette and cook the other side.

• Once the omelette is done, slide it from the pan to a serving plate.

• You may decorate it with some coriander or green onion on top of the omelette.

Kuih Lompang Pandan

 

Kuih lompang pandan is a traditional Malay kuih which is made from rice flour, tapioca flour and pandan juice. It differs from kuih lompang gula Melaka in terms of colour; the latter is brown in colour from the gula Melaka while kuih lompang pandan is green from the pandan juice. The batter is steamed in individual small round moulds. A dimple is formed on top of the kuih and coconut flakes are added on top before it is eaten. 

Ingredients:

• Coconut flakes from half of a coconut (without brown skin)
• 1/4 tsp salt

• 120 g sugar (140 g for a sweeter kuih)
• 360 ml water
• 6 pandan leaves for a pastel green or 8 leaves for a darker kuih

• 120 g rice flour
• 60 g tapioca flour (or 50 g tapioca flour plus 10 g mung bean flour)

Method:

• Steam coconut flakes with salt.
• Leave aside.

• Wash and cut pandan leaves into small pieces.
• Blend pandan leaves with water.
• Sieve to obtain pandan juice.
• Add sugar pandan juice. Stir till all sugar is dissolved.

• Add water to a steamer and turn on the fire.
• Let the water boil.
• Oil 12 porcelain or stainless steel moulds.
• Put them into the steamer to heat them up.

• Mix rice flour and tapioca flour (or tapioca flour and mung bean flour) in a mixing bowl.
• Add the pandan juice to the flours.
• Stir till there are no lumps.
• Transfer the flour mixture to a pot.
• Place the pot over very low fire.
• Keep on stirring the flour mixture until it SLIGHTLY thickens.
• Sieve the mixture into a pouring jug.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared porcelain or stainless steel moulds.
• Steam the batter for 25 minutes or till it is cooked.
• Remove the kuih onto a plate.
• Spoon the coconut flakes onto the top of the kuih.
• Serve.

Prawn Ball Soup

A bowl of piping hot soup on a raining day would certainly warm anyone's day. The base of these soups is derived from either meats (beef, pork, chicken), seafood or vegetable. These hot soups can be divided into thin or thick soups. One such thin soup is prawn ball soup. It is delicious and can be easily prepared. Most households would definitely have stock of prawns. the vegetable that goes into this soup can be varied; I have used yau mak. Other vegetables that can be used are Napa cabbage, spinach, cai xin and so on.

Ingredients:

For the prawn balls:

• 200 prawn meat
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp wheat flour
• 1 tbsp tapioca flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 chili padi (optional)

For the soup:

• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 750 ml water
• 1 tsp salt
• 1tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 6 leaves of yau mak

Method:

• Mince prawn meat with the minced garlic.

• Add wheat flour and tapioca flour to the minced prawn meat. Mix well.

• Add salt, pepper and chili padi. Mix well.

• Roll the batter into balls (6 pieces). Set aside.

• Saute minced garlic in sesame oil in a soup pot.

• Once the garlic is fragrant, add water to the pot.

• Let the water boil.

• Once the water boils, add the prawn balls.

• Add the seasonings once the prawn balls cook, .

• Add the yau mak and let the soup boil for a further 2 minutes.

• Turn off the fire. The soup is ready for serving.

• (Note: You may add noodles, especially glass noodles, to the soup if you like.)