Baked Cheesy Seafood Fried Rice

 

I am sure all of us will fry rice once in a while especially when we have lots of cooked rice in our fridge or when we are short of time to cook a full meal or when we run out of idea on what to cook. Fried Rice is the easiest meal to cook up, a single pot with all the required carbohydrate, protein, fats, minerals and vitamins in it. I usually add a combination of such ingredients as eggs, prawns, char siew, carrots, peas, maize, long beans, cabbage, onion and bird eyes chilies in my fried rice. Another delicious way of frying rice is to add sambal and crispy anchovies to it.

I brought my simple fried rice to another level by adding cheese and baking it. It is simply delicious for the palate.

Ingredients:

• 200 g overnight rice
• 1 egg
• 75 g fish fillet
• 75 g prawns
• 75 g squids
• 1 tbsp butter
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped and divided into 2
• 1 tbsp flour
• 125 g milk
• 1/2 tsp + 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp + 1/2 tsp white pepper powder
• 100 g grated Mozzarella cheese
• 4 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

• Heat up the kuali with cooking oil.

• Fry the fish fillet till cooked. Ladle up and set aside.

• Add prawns to the kuali and fry till cooked. Ladle up and set aside.

• Add squids to the kuali and fry till cooked. Ladle up and set aside.

• Add half of the chopped garlic to the kuali.

• When the garlic is fragrant, add rice to the kuali.

• Break the egg onto the rice. Fry the rice till it is dry.

• Add 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper to the rice. Fry the rice till the seasonings are incorporated.

• Ladle up the rice into a baking dish. Set aside.

• Add butter to a saucepan. Let the butter melt over medium heat.

• Saute the remaining chopped garlic till fragrant.

• Add flour to the butter, stirring continuously till both are fully incorporated to form a roux.

• Add milk to the roux, stirring continuously till a thick sauce is formed.

• Add the fish fillet, prawns and squids to the sauce.

• Add the remaining 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of pepper to the sauce. Stir.

• Pour the sauce with the seafood onto the rice in the baking dish. (You may stir and mix the sauce with the rice or you may just leave the sauce on top of the rice.)

• Sprinkle cheese on top and bake in a pre-heated oven at 200 deg C for 25-30 minutes.

Kam Heong Squids and Prawns

Kam Heong is one of the most delicious ways of cooking crabs, prawns, clams, squids and chicken. The words are in Cantonese and can be literally translated as "golden fragrance". The kam heong spice/sauce is made up of a) blended dried shrimps, shallots, garlic and chilies, b) lemongrass and curry leaves and c) curry powder, oyster sauce, light and dark soy sauce and sugar. Kam heong dishes are best served with white rice.

This is the first time I try cooking this style, with squids and prawns. Later I will cook with my other favourite seafood like crabs and clams. Kam Heong Squids and Prawns turned out very delicious; not only tasty but also very fragrant. 

Ingredients: (A small portion only)

• 100 g squids (the tubes only and sliced in a slanting manner both ways from left to right and right to left)
• 100 g prawns
• 8 pc shallots
• 4 cloves garlic
• 4-5 pc bird's eye chili or chili padi
• 30 g dried prawns, soaked and rinsed, coarsely chopped (Can be more depending on one's liking.)
• 1 pc lemongrass, white part only, sliced slanting into 3 pieces, smashed
• 5 sprigs of curry leaves
• 1 tbsp curry powder (seafood)
• 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce (More, up to 1 tbsp, if you want a darker dish but it can be bitter.)
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
• 4 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

• Blanch the squid flowers and set them aside.

• Blanch the prawns and set them aside.

• Blend the shallots, garlic and chili padi.

• Mix the seasonings - curry powder, dark & light soy sauces, oyster sauce, sugar and salt.

• Heat up oil in a wok.

• Add the dried prawns. Fry them till they are fragrant.

• Add the blended ingredients, lemongrass and curry leaves. Saute till they are dry and fragrant.

• Once the ingredients are dry and fragrant, add the seasonings.

• Stir until all are incorporated.

• Add squid flowers and prawns.

• Stir till the squid flowers and prawns are fully incorporated with the sauteed ingredients.

• Dish up and serve with white rice.

Claypot Tofu

Tofu is high in protein and contains all of the essential amino acids our body needs. It also provides fats, carbs, and a wide variety of vitamins and minerals. (For more information, please visit healthline.com.) Also known as bean curd, tofu is made by coagulating soy milk (which is obtained from blending soaked soy beans with water) by adding gypsum (calcium sulphate) or lemon juice or Epsom salt to the soy milk. The mixture is then heated over low fire until curds are formed. These curds are then transferred to a muslin cloth and pressed into white solid blocks. The resulting softness - either silken, soft, firm or extra firm - depends on how hard and long the blocks are pressed.

Tofu can be eaten as it is with a drizzle of light soy sauce or it can be cooked with seafood, meats, eggs and vegetables. Claypot tofu is traditionally cooked in a claypot. However, if you do not have one, any pot will do. It is a very versatile dish. You may add any seafood, meat or vegetables to make up the dish.

Ingredients:

• 1 tube of cylindrical tofu
• 4 tbsp all-purpose flour
• Cooking oil
• 50 g lean pork/chicken (leave out if it is Seafood Claypot Tofu), slice thinly
• 50 g red snapper/grouper
• 5 leaves of Napa cabbage
• 1/2 of a carrot, slice thickly
• 5 pieces young corn, cut into 2 diagonally
• 3 pieces Shiitake mushroom, slice 
• 1 packet of enoki mushroom, remove the roots and wash
• 5 pieces medium-size prawns, de-shell, de-vein and wash
• 2 pieces squids, remove skin, black ink and slice
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tbsp cooking oil
• Light soy sauce, salt and pepper to taste
• 2 cups of hot water, more if necessary

Method:

• Cut the tofu into 1-cm thickness horizontally.
• Coat them with all-purpose flour.
• Heat wok with cooking oil.
• Deep-fry the tofu till golden brown.
• Remove them from the wok and set aside

• Slice the red snapper/grouper.
• Coat them with all-purpose flour.
• Deep-fry them till golden brown.
• Remove them from wok and set aside.

• Heat up sesame oil and cooking oil in the claypot.

• Add garlic and saute them till fragrant.

• Add the Shiitake mushroom and saute them till fragrant.

• Add the meat and fry them till they are half-cooked.

• Add the hot water. Note: Water must be hot to prevent the claypot from cracking.

• Add the Napa cabbage, carrots, young corns and enoki mushrooms.

• Let the soup boil.

• Add seasonings - light soy sauce, salt and pepper. (To taste.)

• Add the deep-fried tofu, deep-fried fish, prawns and squids.

• Let the soup boil again. Turn off the fire. Cover the claypot. The soup will continue to simmer and cook the prawns and squids.

• Serve with rice.

Breaded Brinjal

Brinjal is found abundantly in our morning markets, night markets and farmers' markets. We can make many excellent dishes out of it. For example, it is one of the main ingredients in vegetable curry. We can also add brinjal to other types of curry like the fish curry and the dhal curry. Brinjal tastes good too when stir-fried with minced meat. We love deep-fried brinjal, drizzled with sauteed garlic and light soy sauce. Steamed brinjal, drizzled with sauteed garlic and light soy sauce is yummy too. Another way of cooking brinjal is to stuff it with minced fish meat or minced fish-pork meat to be made into one of the ingredients for yong tau foo.

I tried creating something new with the brinjal for my family. I cut and stuffed two slices of brinjal with minced fish meat, rolled it in flour, egg and breadcrumbs and deep-fried it. It turned out to be very tasty and I will definitely make it again.

Ingredients:

• 1 pc 1-ft long brinjal, preferably a fat one
• 150 g fish meat (I use Tenggiri.)
• 2 stalks green onion
• 2 pc chili padi
• All-purpose flour, enough to coat all the stuffed brinjal
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 pc white bread, toasted and ground into breadcrumbs
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Cooking oil, for deep-frying

Method:

• Wash and slice the brinjal into 0.5 cm thickness. Soak the slices in water.

• Fillet the Tenggiri and scrap the meat from the skin.

• Grind or mince the fish meat.

• Add salt and pepper to the fish paste according to your taste.

• Cut the green onion into tiny pieces and add to the fish paste.

• Chop up the chili padi and add to the fish paste.

• Stir the fish paste so that all the green onion, chili padi, salt and pepper are mixed with the paste evenly.

• Take 2 slices of brinjal of equal size and stuff them with the fish paste. Repeat this step until all the brinjal and fish paste are used up.

• Heat up the kuali or frying pan with oil.

• Take a piece of stuffed brinjal, roll it in the flour and coat it with the beaten egg. Then, coat it with breadcrumb. Repeat this until all the stuffed brinjal has been coated with flour, egg and breadcrumb.

• Drop the brinjal slowly into the kuali or frying pan when the oil is hot.

• Let the brinjal turn golden brown on one side before turning it.

• Once the other side has also turned golden brown, scoop up the brinjal onto a wire mesh for the oil to run off.

• Note: Do not stir the brinjal or the breadcrumb will drop off.

• The breaded brinjal can be eaten on its own or with chili sauce.

Sambal Sotong and Prawns

I love seafood especially prawns, squids, crabs, lobsters, fish and clams but do not eat meats like beef, lamb, duck and pork. I do eat chicken but once in a blue moon. And out of the many varieties of fishes that can be found locally, I love the mackerel (ikan kembung), the grouper (ikan kerapu), the Spanish mackerel (ikan tenggiri), the threadfin (ikan senangin) and the snapper (ikan jenahak). Although I do eat other types of fishes I have less preference for them.

I have chosen to cook my squids and prawns in sambal sauce. This Sambal Squids and Prawns dish would appeal to those who can eat spicy food. Those who cannot stand food which are too spicy may vary the quantity of chilies used to make the sambal. The sweetness of the squids and prawns when added to the sambal sauce makes the dish very yummy.

Ingredients:

• 10 pieces large prawns
• 10 pieces of medium-sized squids
• 10 red chilies
• 5 dried chilies
• 2 large onions
• 1 piece ginger (1.5 inches)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 5 shallots
• 5 sprigs of curry leaves
• 3 tablespoons of cooking oil
• 1/2 cup of water
• 3 tablespoons of tamarind juice
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce

Method:

• Soak the dried chilies for at least an hour.

• Peel, wash and cut 1 large onion into rings. Set aside.

• Cut off the tip of the head of the prawns and the front legs and de-vein them. Wash them and let them drip dry.

• Remove the skin of the squids, the eyes, the ink sac and whatever that is in the body. Cut the body into rings, wash them and let them drip dry.

• Blend the red chilies, dried chilies, large onion, ginger, garlic and shallots.

• Heat up the oil in the wok.

• When the oil is hot, pour in the blended ingredients.

• Add in the curry leaves.

• Saute them until they are dry and fragrant.

• Add in the water and tamarind juice (add more for a more sour sauce) and let them boil.

• Add in the prawns.

• When the prawns are half-cooked, add in the squids.

• Add in the onion rings.

• Add in salt and soy sauce. (Add more or reduce according to your taste.)

• Dish out when the prawns and squids are cooked.