Deep-fried Minced Chicken on Bread

   

 

Deep-fried Minced Chicken on Bread is a very delicious food that can be served for breakfast or for mid-morning or afternoon tea. You can even serve it as finger food at your parties. What I have here are minced chicken mixed with carrot and green onions. However, you can vary these ingredients and add say, green, yellow or red capsicum. And instead of green onions you can add coriander. The taste would be equally fantastic.

Ingredients:

• 4 slices of bread
• 100 g minced chicken
• 15 g carrot, chopped
• 1 chili padi, chopped
• 1 stalk green onion, chopped
• 1 tsp flour
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• Cooking oil for frying

Method:

• Take 4 slices of bread. Use a round cutter to obtain 2 pieces of round bread from each slice. Set aside.

• Add minced chicken, chopped carrot, chopped chili padi, chopped green onions, flour, egg, salt and pepper to a mixing bowl. Mix these ingredients up to form a paste.

• Divide the paste up into 8 equal portions. Roll each into a meat ball.

• Put one meat ball onto one piece of round bread.

• Pack the meat ball securely onto the bread.

• Heat up a pan with enough oil for deep-frying.

• When the oil is hot, gently place the bread onto the pan.

• Fry till the meat is cooked and the bread is golden brown.

• Dish up the bread onto a kitchen towel to soak up excess oil.

• You can serve them as they are or with some chili sauce or tomato ketchup.

Steamed Chicken in Garlic-Infused Cooking Oil

   

I created this dish for a cooking competition in which I won consolation prize. According to my son, this dish is very delicious and he can eat it day in and day out. And I do not mind making it as often as he likes. It is just a very simple dish with easy cooking method and with very little ingredients. What are needed are just chicken, lots of garlic, green onions, birds eye chilies, light soy sauce and cooking oil.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 of a small chicken (The size of the chicken is according to the number of people who will be eating this dish. Just increase the other ingredients accordingly.)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 stalk green onions
• 2 birds eye chilies
• 4 tbsp light soy sauce
• 6 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

• Boil some water in a steamer.

• Wash and place the chicken on a steaming plate.

• When the water is boiling, place the plate into the steamer.

• Steam the chicken for 20 minutes or till it is cooked.

• In the meantime, chop the garlic, cut the green onions into 1/2 cm long and cut the birds eye chilies into small pieces.

• Heat up the cooking oil in a small pot.

• Add the chopped garlic to the pot. Let it cook slowly over low heat for about 20 minutes until the oil is infused with the garlic.

• Once the garlic-infused oil is ready, add the green onions and birds eye chilies to the oil.

• Remove the chicken from the steamer. Transfer it onto a serving plate without the juice from steaming it.

• Pour the light soy sauce over it.

• Pour the garlic-infused oil with all the ingredients over the chicken.

• Serve.

Crepe Cake with Chocolate Filling

 

Crepe Cake with Chocolate Filling makes a good dessert. It is very rich and will definitely be a hit with chocolate lovers. It is soft and the sweetness can be controlled by us. This recipe makes about 30 pieces of crepe of 24 cm diameter.

Crepe Ingredients:

• Dry Ingredients:
• 250 g all-purpose flour
• 100 g sugar or less
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Wet Ingredients:
• 475 ml milk
• 115 ml melted butter
• 2 eggs

Method:

• Add all the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl.

• Use a whisk to mix them up.

• Add the wet ingredients to the mixing bowl.

• Use the whisk to combine the dry and wet ingredients.

• Mix till a smooth batter is formed.

• Sift the batter to remove any impurities.

• Heat up a non-stick pan with a thin layer of oil. It is advisable to use a piece of kitchen towel, dap it with cooking oil and wipe the surface pan. This is to ensure an even layer of oil on the pan.

• Scoop the batter using a 1/2-cup measuring cup into the pan.

• Swirl the pan so that the batter covers the pan evenly. (If your batter is too thick, add a tablespoon of milk/water at a time till you have a runny batter.)

• Cover the pan.

• Fry the batter over low heat.

• When the lower part is cooked, flip the crepe over to cook the other side.

• Remove crepe from the pan onto a metal rack to cool down.

• Repeat the process till all the batter is used up.

• 
  
• Chocolate Paste Ingredients:

• 180 g dark chocolate, chopped
• 120 g butter
• 40 g cocoa powder
• 100 g powdered sugar
• A pinch of salt if using unsalted butter

Method:

• Melt butter and chocolate in a pot.

• Once they have melted, add cocoa powder, powdered sugar and salt to the pot.

• Whisk them until the paste is smooth. The paste will thicken when cooled down. Heat it up to make it runny for easier spread.

Assembly:

• You may use a bowl almost the same size of the crepe or slightly smaller and knife to cut off the edge of the crepe if you wish to have a smooth edge. Otherwise, use the crepes as they are.

• Put a piece of crepe on a serving plate.

• Spread a thin layer of the chocolate paste evenly on the crepe using a spatula.

• Once done, place another piece of crepe on it and spread the chocolate paste on the crepe.

• Repeat this process till all the crepes have been used up.

• For the top layer, you may decorate it whichever way that you like, for example, you may sprinkle powdered sugar on it or you may pour chocolate ganache onto it or you may simply decorate it with some fresh fruits.

• It would be nice to serve the crepe cake cold. If you intend to do so, cover the crepe cake with a cling wrap securely ensuring that no air will get to it. Otherwise the cake will be hard.

1. 
   

Soy Sauce Chicken

 

Soy Sauce Chicken is one of the most fragrant dishes that we can cook. The fragrance comes from the spices used - cinnamon sticks, gloves, star anise, garlic and ginger. It is easy to cook and is good enough not only for daily meals. It can be served during gatherings and festival celebrations as well.

Ingredients:

• 750 g chicken (1/2 of a small chicken)
• 1 tbsp cooking oil
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 8 pcs cloves
• 2 pcs star anise
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 inch ginger
• 1 tbsp rock sugar
• 1 tbsp + 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
• 500 ml water
• 1 big bunch green onions, wash and cut according to the diameter of the pot to cook the chicken in
• 1 tsp salt or to taste
• 1 tsp pepper

Method:

• Wash chicken and let it dry. Rub it with 1 tbsp dark soy sauce and let it sit for about 1/2 hour.

• Heat up a pot with cooking oil.

• Add cinnamon sticks, cloves, star anise, garlic and ginger. Saute them until they are fragrant.

• Add rock sugar. Fry them with the spices till they dissolve.

• Add dark and light soy sauce and cooking wine.

• Add the water.

• Let the sauce boil.

• In another pot, arrange the green onions on the base. Let the chicken rest on the green onions, skin side down. The green onions are to prevent the skin of the chicken from sticking to the pot.

• Pour the boiled sauce slowly into the pot till it covers the chicken. 

• Let the sauce simmers over medium heat till the chicken is cooked. (Check the pot every now and then to ensure that the sauce does not dry up.)

• Once the chicken is cooked, remove it from the pot.

• Cut up the chicken.

• Drizzle it with some of the sauce. (It would be a waste to pour the remaining sauce away. So, boil a few eggs, peel them and soak them in the sauce. Or, you may add fried taukwa to the sauce.)

• Sprinkle some cut green onion on the chicken and serve.

Jackfruit Cake

   

  

My honey jackfruit tree has been producing a lot of fruits for us. Inside the fruit, the flesh are golden yellow and very sweet. We usually eat the flesh raw. However, recently we harvested a huge fruit weighing 13.1 kg. Despite giving a lot of the flesh to our relatives and neighbours, we were still left with a full container. In order to finish them, I decided to bake a Jackfruit Cake with them. The cake turned out very aromatic and yummy.

Ingredients:

• 225 g butter
• 150 g sugar
• 4 Grade A eggs
• 225 g cake flour/super fine flour/low protein flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt (if using unsalted butter)
• 170 g jackfruit flesh
• 60 g jackfruit flesh - for decoration

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven at 175 degrees Centigrade.

• Line and grease a 7-inch pan.

• Cut the 170g of jackfruit flesh into very small cubes. Set them aside.

• Cut the 60g of jackfruit flesh into long strips. Set them aside.

• Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt twice. Set them aside.

• Add butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer. Cream them till they are light and fluffy.

• Break in the eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition.

• Fold in the sifted dry ingredients, one-third at a time.

• Add the cubed jackfruit flesh to the bowl. Use a spatula to mix them up with the butter-flour mixture.

• Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Level it with a spatula. Decorate the top with the strips of jackfruit flesh.

• Bake in the oven for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.

• Leave the cake in the oven for about 10 minutes with the oven door slightly ajar.

• Remove the pan from the oven.

• Remove the cake from the pan and let it cool down on a metal rack.

• Cut the cake when it has completely cooled down.

No Bake Cheesecake

   

   

No Bake Cheesecake is smooth, light and creamy with a crunchy biscuit base. It is easy to make with no room for error. And best of all you do not need an oven to make one. So you do not have to worry whether your cake will crack or not. Neither do you need a stand mixer; a whisk will do the job as well. It is good as a dessert after meals. It can also be served for tea. I am sure one helping is not enough once one has tasted it.

 

Ingredients:

• 100 g digestive biscuits
• 25 g butter
• 500 g cream cheese
• 300 g whipping cream
• 200 g milk
• 120 g powdered sugar
• 16 g gelatin powder
• 80 g cold boiled water

Method

• Place the digestive biscuits into a zip lock bag and crush them. Place the crushed biscuits into a bowl.

• Melt the butter and add it to the bowl. Mix them up till all the butter has been absorbed by the crushed biscuits.

• Pour the biscuits into an 8-inch diameter and 2-inch tall pan with a removable base. Use the base of a metal cup to press and level the biscuit on the base of the pan. (I use a smaller round baking pan to press down and level the biscuit. In this way I can be assured of an even base.)

• Place the baking pan into the fridge to set the biscuit.

• Cut the cream cheese into smaller pieces and leave it out to soften at room temperature.

• When soft, mix the cream cheese and sugar till smooth. You may use a whisk or a stand mixer to do so.

• When the sugar has melted, add the whipping cream and milk. Mix till the batter is smooth.

• Add cold boiled water to bloom the gelatin in a small bowl. This takes about 5-10 minutes.

• When the batter is ready, put the bowl of bloomed gelatin into a bigger bowl of hot water. Stir the gelatin powder till it dissolves.

• Add the gelatin powder to the batter.

• Mix till it is well incorporated with the batter.

• Pour the mixture into the cake pan.

• Put the pan in the refrigerator for at least 3-4 hours for the cake to set.

• To remove the cake from the pan, put the pan on a tall cup.

• Wet a towel with hot water.

• Wrap the towel around the cake pan. Slowly slide the cake pan down to release it from the cake.

• It is ready to be served.

Spicy Fried Glass Noodles

 

      

 

Spicy Fried Glass Noodles is an easy meal which can be speedily dished up when you are tired of spending lots of time cooking in your kitchen. It is also a versatile dish; you may add seafood or meat in it. Here, I have used prawns to cook it. It is such a yummy dish that my son had asked me to cook it a few times since I first cooked it.

Ingredients:

• 150 g glass noodles (My rough guide is 75 g per person.)
• 4-6 large prawns
• 2 tbsp dried prawns
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 inches ginger
• 1 stalk green onions
• 1 tbsp chili paste or sambal (Sambal will make the noodles more tasty as it has shrimp paste, garlic and onions incorporated into the chili paste.)
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp salt or to taste
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 3 tbsp cooking oil (Add more if you want your glass noodles to be glossy.)
• 1/2 cup water

 

Method:

• Soak glass noodles in warm water for about 8-10 minutes. Glass noodles bought from one shop may turn soft faster than those bought from another. Feel them at the 8th minute to ensure that they are not too soft. Remove and set them aside.

• Wash, cut off the rostrum, antenna, legs and tails and de-vein the prawns.

• Wash and pound/chop the dried prawns.

• Mince the garlic.

• Mince the ginger.

• Wash and cut the green onions to 1/2 inch length.

• Heat up the cooking oil in a wok.

• Saute garlic, ginger, chili paste or sambal and dried prawns till fragrant.

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

• Add water and let it boil.

• Add the seasonings - light and dark soy sauces, salt and pepper.

• Add the glass noodles and fry them till they are cooked. Sprinkle them with green onions. Give them a quick stir and ladle them up onto a serving plate.