Snake Beans Fried Egg

The Only Snake I like...

I'm a very happy person right now, because I got myself a new toy...It's the Lumix LX5 camera. I've been hearing and reading good reviews about this camera...but it's not until I actually use it that I understand what are all the fusses about. My husband asked me why do I need a compact camera when I already have a SLR? OK, my defense was I needed a decent camera that I can carry whenever and wherever I want, without the bulkiness and the heaviness of SLR and LX5 is the answer! It is definitely an affordable and outstanding compact camera.

Anyway, today I want to share with you guys another super easy recipe that I recently got from my friend. When I saw my friend had this for her lunch, it straight away caught my curiosity to find out how to prepare this dish, it looked so yummy and easy to make.

Trust me! you only need 20 minutes to prepare this delicious dish. It's perfect for kids too as the small sizes make it easy for them to eat, even my sister in law was surprised when my niece finished the very last bean in her lunch box at school. The recipe is Snake Beans Fried Egg. ( I used snake beans because they are softer, however you can use any type of your preferred  green beans)

Snake Beans Fried Egg

Ingredients (please adjust your measurement accordingly):

- 3 bunch of snake beans

- 6 eggs (beaten)

- 3 cloves of garlic (minced/chopped)

- Cooking oil

- Salt

- White pepper

Method:

1) Chopped the snake beans to small sizes (approximately 1 cm)

2) Heat up the wok and add cooking oil.

3) Add in the garlic and stir until fragrant

4) Add in the chopped beans, stir occasionally. You can add a little bit of water and leave them simmer until the beans are soft (approximately 3-4 tbsp).

5) Add in the beaten eggs, leave it for one minute before stirring. Season with salt and pepper.

6) Stir evenly and turn off the heat once the egg is dry and cooked.

7) And there you go, the simplest and delicious recipe to cook after a long day at work.

Before I go... Happy Chinese New Year everybody! 

To keep the tradition going, make sure you wear new clothes, eat Chinese food and have lots of Chinese cookies as part of your celebration

Here wishing you guys prosperity and good luck in this year of Rabbit

Salmon Mushroom Rice & Chawan Mushi

Cooking For a Lazy Day

There might be some days when you are tired and all you want to cook is something really simple and quick. These two recipes are perfect when I'm having a lazy day. The ingredients are simple and  it takes no time to prepare them. So, if any day you need something easy but still tasty, try these! It's so good and easy, you won't believe it.

Salmon Mushroom Rice

 

Ingredients (Please measure your ingredients accordingly):
- A handful of Shiitake mushroom (soaked and chopped into small sizes)
- IMPORTANT: keep the water used to soak the mushroom as we need it to cook the rice.
- 2-3 Salmon fillets
- Japanese soy sauce + sake (I actually replace with Teriyaki Sauce)
- Salt 

Method:
1) After soaking the mushroom, use the water to cook the rice.
2) Add in the mushrooms and some Teriyaki Sauce or soy sauce  and sake accordingly. Don't add too much, you can always add more sauce after the rice is cooked.
3) Cook the rice in rice cooker.
4) While the rice is cooking, prepare the salmon by placing it on baking tray.
5) Add the Teriyaki sauce or soy sauce
6) Bake the salmon for 10 mins or until cooked
7) Once salmon is cooked, pick out the bones and add the salmon into the cooked rice and mix well.
8) Add Teriyaki sauce/ soy sauce/ salt according to taste

Chawan Mushi

Ingredients (The measurement is enough for 4)
- 4 large eggs (lightly beaten)
-1 1/2 tsp Mirin
-1 1/2 tsp Japanese soy sauce
- 2 cups of dashi stock
- 4 Shiitake mushrooms (soaked until soft)
- Add any seafood that you like (like prawn, fish cake or scallop). I added prawn and scallop this time.

Method:
1) Mix the beaten eggs with mirin, soy sauce and the dashi stock.

2) Divide the rest of the ingredients into 4 small bowls and pour in the egg mixtures. Cover the bowl with aluminium foil.

3) Steam the egg mixture on a high heat for about 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to low and steam for another 15 minutes or until they are set. Serve immediately.

 

 

Steamed Egg with Seafood

Finally, The Perfect Steamed Egg

I finally found the way to achieve the perfect smooth and silky steamed egg. After trying the steamed egg with seafood in Mas Thai, I've always wanted to try preparing it myself. Of course this is nothing compared to the one I had there, but I was pretty happy with the result. Instead of using only egg white like Mas Thai I used the whole egg (including egg yolk) to prepare this dish. It is the perfect dish to have with plain steamed rice, suitable for kids as the smooth egg is so easy to eat.

The secret behind the smooth and silky steamed egg (without the holes and the bubbles) is to cover the bowl/plate with cling wrap. This is the similar technique used to prepare the Japanese Chawan Mushi, except I usually use aluminium foil when preparing chawan mushi. I believe it shouldn't make much difference.

This dish is so easy to make, I think it only took me 20-25 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients:

- 4 eggs

- A handful of prawns (cut into small pieces)

- 2 fish fillet (cut into smaller pieces)

- 1 carrot (cut into small cubes).

- 1/4-1/2 cup of frozen green peas

- 2-3 cloves of garlic (minced)

- Cooking oil

- Water

For seasoning:

-Salt

-Sugar

-White pepper

-Sesame oil

-Cornstarch water

Method:

1) Beat the eggs and add some water (egg to water ratio 1:1).

2) Add a dash of salt and pepper into the beaten egg. Pour in the egg into a steaming bowl/plate. Cover with cling wrap and steam for 10 minutes. Set aside.

3) While steaming the egg, heat up the wok, add in some cooking oil. Add in garlic, add in the fish, give it a quick stir. Add in the prawns. Add in carrot and green peas. Stir fry until fish and prawns are cooked.

4) Add in some water (around 3/4 cup) and season with salt, sugar and white pepper. Stir well. 

5) Add in cornstarch water to thicken the sauce. Add in a dash of sesame oil and stir well.

6) Pour the seafood and sauce on top of the steamed egg.

7) Serve immediately while still hot with steamed rice and enjoy!

Truffle Potato Souffle

“My idea of heaven is a great big baked potato and someone to share it with.” (Oprah Winfrey)

Still on my truffle fever, I came up with this Truffle Potato Souffle recipe. It's just another affordable way to enjoy truffle. Thanks for my friend (Sydney Indulgence) that gave me the idea of baking potatoes with truffle oil. It's ridiculously easy to make, the truffle oil is a great alternative to add that exceptional earthy flavour to the potatoes.

I found that truffle goes really well with cheese too, the flavours of the two really complement each other.This simple potato and cheese dish is perfect as an entree, breakfast or just as snack/light eat.

Truffle Potato Souffle ( Serves 3)

Ingredients

-  3 desiree potatos (sliced thinly)

-  4 eggs

- 1/2 cup full/light thickened cream

- Melted butter

- Truffle oil

- Parmesan Cheese/grated cheddar

Method:

-  Mix a little truffle oil with the melted butter.

-  Mix egg and thickened cream. Whisk until combined.

- Brush the souffle dish with the truffle butter.

- Pre heat the oven on 160 celcius.

- Layer 2 slices of potatoes and brush with the truffle butter, sprinkle some parmesan/grated cheese on top and add in the egg mixture. Repeat until souffle dish is full. Add more parmesan/grated cheese on top.

- Place the potatoes in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is golden brown and puffy.

Creamy Fettuccine with Truffle Egg

When asked by a social-climbing Paris hostess how he liked his truffles, Curnonsky replied, "In great quantity, madame. In great quantity."Curnonsky (Maurice Edmond Sailland) French writer (1872-1956)

Truffle...world's most famous and most romanticised mushroom. It is the Louis Vuitton of mushrooms, where everyone just wants a piece of it.  Add a small amount in a simple dish will certainly gives an incomparable taste. The intoxicating aroma of mushroom is its signature. 

This dish is inspired by the truffle egg fettuccine that I had in Buon Ricordo few weeks ago, althought this is nothing close to what I had there, but good enough for a homemade meal.

What makes this dish a champion is the Tetsuya's Black Truffle Salsa for butter (80g $26.95) and the Simon Johnson's black truffle oil (250ml $29.95) that I bought from David Jones. The Tetsuya's salsa has a very strong pungent and woody scent of the black truffle. The truffle oil is fairly strong too. Combined together, anyone can create the most pungent truflly dish one can imagine.

The Truffle Egg

To make my homemade truffle egg, I mixed a small amount (approx. 1/2 teaspoon) of the truffle salsa with the egg (3-4 eggs). Leave it for a while (approximately 15 minutes) so the egg will be infused with the scent of the truffle. Then add in approximately 1/4 cup of cream. Mix well.

Creamy Fettuccine with Truffle Egg

Ingredients:

- Sliced mushrooms

- Fettuccine (or pasta of your choice)

- A Handful of chopped onions

- 2 Chicken thigh fillets (cut to desired size)

- 1/2 cup Full or light thickened cream

- Salt and Pepper to taste 

- Chopped chives for garnish.

- Parmesan Cheese

- The truffle egg mixture 

Method:

1) Cook pasta in a large saucepan of boiling, salted water, following packet directions, until al dente. Drain pasta.

2) Heat 2 teaspoons of truffle oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat, add in the chicken, cook until golden. Remove to plate.

3) Add in onion and mushrooms to pan, stir occasionally until mushroom soften. Add in the cream. Add in the chicken. Add salt and pepper to taste. Give it a quick stir.

4) Place the fettuccine on a serving plate. Add the chicken and mushroom mixture to pasta.

5) Quickly heat up pan with oil and add in the egg mixture. Give it a quick stir and dish up. Egg should still be runny. I actually overcooked my egg. 

6) Add the runny scrambled egg on the pasta, add some parmesan cheese and pepper as desired. Garnish with chopped chives.

7) Toss pasta and enjoy your homemade truffle egg fettuccine!

 

On the side: Combine The Tetsuya's Black Truffle Salsa with butter for a flavourful and aromatic spread, serve with warm bread and....It's heaven on top of your bread.

Steamed egg with Cincalok

Spices add an incredible amount of flavour to what you eat. Cultures all over the world have dishes that excite and stimulate your palate with spices and add heat and taste to everyday ingredients. (Ansary, LifeMojo)

INTRODUCING NYONYA CUISINE

I get this everyday recipe from my "Penang Nyonya A-Ma Secret Recipes" cookbook. This book is a great compilation of some popular Nyonya dishes. I grow up eating lots of food without realising they are actually Nyonya food, I started learning more about Nyonya food when I watched a Singaporean drama called 'Little Nyonya". This show introduced me to the rich history of Peranakan. Peranakan is the term used to describe the descendants of the intermarriage between the early Chinese imigrants and the local malays (in Malaysia and Singapore).

The Nyonya cooking is a result of the combination of Chinese and Malay-style of cooking, which then become the most tasty and exotic food to be found in Malaysia and Singapore. It combines a lot of different herbs and spices to come up with a perfect dish. Nyonya cooking are complicated affairs, often require great patience and excellent culinary skills to prepare.

With no surprise, this Steamed egg with Cincalok is the easiest recipe in the cookbook =p

Steamed Egg with Cincalok
Bottom Layer:

-300 gm minced pork ( I actually used chicken this time)

-6 small red onions and finely chopped

-1 tsbp cincalok

Seasoning:

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp white pepper

1/2 tsp sesame oil

2 tsp corn flour

Top Layer:

2 Eggs ( I think I will use more next time, so I can get thicker layer of egg on the top)

10 tbsp water

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp white pper

 1 tbsp fried garlic oil and chopped spring onion ( I added some into my meat mixture)

Note:

Just make sure you don't be too generous on the Cincalok as the smell is very strong, too much of it will spoil your dishes instead of enhancing it. With the right amount of Cincalok this can be a very appetising dish to go with steamed rice.

Method:

1) Mix ingredients for bottom layer with seasoning. Spread onto a steaming tray.

2)Steam at medium heat for about 7 minutes

3)Meanwhile, mix top layer and pour over steamed minced pork

4)Steam for another 5 minutes at low heat. Open the lid occasionally to avoid bubbles forming on the surface of egg.

5) Remove, drizzle fried garlic oil and sprinkle chopped spring onion on top and serve hot with steamed rice.

I found that after cooking, the taste of the meat is quite similar to the pork spare ribs that you find in Chinese Yum Cha (Dim Sum) restaurant.

Egg and Bitter Gourd Recipe

"Love and eggs are best when they are fresh." (Russian proverb)

Today is my healthy cooking day. After finished cooking the steamed fish, I prepare this egg and bitter gourd recipe. I got this recipe from my sister, who has extreme passion in cooking.

Bitter gourd (also known as bitter melon) is well known for its nutritional benefits to the body; it improves blood disorder, diabetes, eye problems and many other benefits. Of course excessive intake is not good too, moderation is always the key.

My recipe is enough to feed 3 people.

Egg and Bitter Gourd

Ingredients:

- 3 bitter gourd (halved and remove seed)

- 4 eggs (the original recipe put lots of eggs, probably around 7, but for health reason I put less and is recommended to use free range eggs for healthier option)

- Cooking oil

Sauce:

The amount of ingredients for the sauce depends on how much sauce you like for your bitter gourd, I suggest prepare more, you can always throw away any excess when you think is enough. As you can see from the photo, I prepared 3/4 of a bowl.

-Rock Sugar

-Sesame oil

-Cooking wine ( I used Shao Xing wine)

-Soya sauce

-Spring onions (optional)

Method:

1) Soak the bitter gourd into salt water (bitterness can be reduced this way, some says boiling it in salt water works better, so is up to you which way you prefer).

2) Prepare the sauce, dissolve the rock sugar in hot water, once sugar dissolved, add in soya sauce, sesame oil and cooking wine until you get your desired taste. You should be able to taste a slight sweetness in the sauce mixture. Add in spring onions.

(I add around 2 tablespoon of cooking wine, you can add more or less according to your preference).

3) Throw away the salt water and wash the bitter gourds under running water. Slice them thinly.

4)  Heat up the wok, add in cooking oil, add in bitter gourd, stir for 5 minutes, add in half of the sauce, stir until bitter gourd is slightly softer, but make sure before it turns dark, add in the eggs, don't stir it, just leave it and cover the wok, open the cover and check the egg, make sure it is not overly cooked.

5) Once you get your preferred egg texture, turn off the fire, scoop to serving plate/bowl, pour in the remaining sauce (as much as you like it to be).

6) Served warm with steamed rice.