How to make Crispy Pork Lard and Pork Oil 猪油渣

Now that the two important days of Lunar New Year are over, everything is beginning to get back to normal. I am also getting myself busy again after two full days of unproductive inactivity. As corny as it might sound, I am actually glad to be back to my normal hectic schedule. I know a lot of you are still in the holiday mood. Therefore, I am just going to post something simple.

Simple Homemade Coleslaw 简单高丽菜沙拉

I had my first taste of coleslaw when I was about six when my father brought me to KFC. Nope. I didn't like it. Then again, how many children like to eat raw pickled cabbage? I acquired the taste of coleslaw a couple of years later. Those were the days when I thought having more veggies would be good for reducing weight, unbeknownst to me, the actual culprit were in the mayonnaise. Needless to say, nothing good came out of it.

Easy Teriyaki Sauce 日式照烧酱

Ah...teriyaki sauce. Vastly popular and many variations. I bet you have tried it at least once in this lifetime of yours. But hey, do you know that teriyaki sauce is one of the simplest sauce to make with only four (and some three) ingredients? And it only takes you 10 - 15 minutes to make.

The core ingredients for this teriyaki sauce are mirin, sake, shoyu (Japanese soy sauce) and sugar. Looks easy right? I have to admit I had trouble finding the ingredients. It took me to a few places before I got my hands on the sake and mirin. And mind you, I am living in an Asian country whereby Asian groceries are easily available. Even now, I am not sure if I got the correct sake and mirin because it is written in Japanese! I only have to trust the assistant who gave me these two precious bottles of condiment.

Healthy Pasta Salad 健康沙拉

Fancy having your pasta cold? Some of you might not like cold pasta but I adore this to bits. This is something I absolutely like to dish up for myself. I normally make a big stash of this to be kept in the fridge. Although normally served as a side, I consume this as a quick meal as well. Why not? It has protein, carbohydrates and loads of vegetables! The tangy sweetness of the dressing suits my palate just fine. If I am not careful, I could easily polish off the whole bowl. This is how good the pasta is.

Asian Chilli Paste/Sambal Tumis 参巴辣椒酱

When it comes to SouthEast Asia, eating chilli pastes or sambal is akin to eating to ketchup in the West. This is how popular chillies are here. There are many varieties and versions to making an Asian chilli paste; the Thais have their namprik pao, the Indonesians their sambal oelek and the Malaysian the humble sambal tumis. These Asian chilli pastes have quite similar ingredients but shine with their own distinctive tastes.

Today, I am introducing a basic sambal tumis recipe that is used in a variety Malaysian cooking. It has a fiery sweet and spicy taste with just a tinge of sourness as a balance. This sambal tumis is strongly fragrant with garlic, shallot and the most pungent of all, shrimp paste or belacan. This sambal tumis is meant to be spicy and I wouldn't (and refuse to) recommend it any other way.

Pineapple and Cucumber Pickle/Jelatah Nenas Dan Timun 啊杂

Yes, this is a very easy recipe to prepare but I can assure you it packs a punch. It is sweet and and sour in taste but at the same time hot and spicy to the palate. Whenever I buy rice from a Malay stall, I will automatically look for this dish. This pineapple and cucumber pickle dish goes really well as a side to heavy and rich mains such as curry or nasi briyani. It complements these dishes and give it that perfect balance. Some also call this pineapple and cucumber pickle acar or pencuk. They are all the same.

Restaurant Style Sweet and Sour Sauce 餐厅风味糖醋酱

Garnishing not included in recipe

Sweet and sour pork is ever popular in Chinese restaurants. Have you that urge to recreate it at home? Have you ever wondered why those in restaurants tasted different? Is it the use of msg (monosodium glutamate)? Well, I have with me here a restaurant-style sweet and sour sauce recipe that is absolutely to-die-for. No msg and extremely easy to make. All in one package!

Before I go further, let me credit this recipe to my hubby. He is a Chinese chef that has been working for a number of years in Chinese restaurants. This recipe is tried and tested. Of course, the ever meddling cook in me adapted this a bit to suit home cooking. I significantly reduced the quantity (in restaurants they do in big big bulk fit for a lorry load). Then I significantly reduced the use of chilli sauce in the recipe as I am feeding young toddlers. I also omitted the use of red colouring. All these makes little changes to the taste but significant improvements for home cooking. The sauce has been tested on young children and adults alike. Tested and approved. Tanpa was-was (without worry).

Cooking a Good Plate of Fried Rice

Many of you think that only tai chows or Chinese restaurants can whip up a good dish of fried rice because of the presence of wok hei or 'breath of wok' using commercial stoves. You are half right. Breath of wok is essential but it is not the whole story. In fact, if you are a home cook and cannot work as fast, you run the risk of burning your rice if you are using a very high heat. Use one that you are comfortable with.

I have a lot to say about this topic. I have been cooking fried rice commercially since I was 13. So just consider me a half professional (half because I later took on a totally different path). Let me just make clear that I don't flip my wok like the tai chows (at 13 you wouldn't have the strength to do so). Then how is it even possible? Are you ready to learn some tricks to cooking a good plate of fried rice? If you are already a fried rice expert, skip this. If you are ready to learn some new tricks, read on....

Easy Pastry Cream/Crème Pâtissière 卡士达奶油

This classic French recipe is so versatile. You could use it in about anything that requires cream such as cream puffs, eclairs, base for tarts and danishes. It is basically just a custard, rather easy to whip up, but tasted heavenly. In fact, if you are venturing into pastry arts, a good pastry cream recipe in hands is essential.

A Piece of Cake - Simple Butter Cake 简单奶油蛋糕

If you are looking for a simple butter cake recipe that is rich, moist and virtually melts in your mouth, go no further. A plain butter cake is what it is - a butter cake. But a good butter cake will give you absolute satisfaction with its rich buttery taste and soft texture complete with that pretty golden brown crust. Yes, that is my type of cake. When you take a bite, it should feel silky soft and dissolves in your mouth like a piece of gelatin.  No syrup is necessary to make the butter cake moist for the cake itself should hold enough moisture (or fats). Ahhh....writing about this already makes me drool.

Creamy Butter Pork Chop 奶油豬扒

It is already the eighth day after Chinese New Year. Everything is moving back to its norm. Those nine to five-ers have started to work again. Vendors who normally take a long break during this time have fully reopened their shops. Most importantly, whatever groceries that I needed is now available again (except for that ripe bananas that I so wanted to make a banana cake).

Greetings to a new year! Today, I am going to introduce this Creamy Butter Pork Chop. Well, pork chop is just to finish off the leftover pork chop from our second day's barbecue. It is the sauce that is the star here. In fact, you can pair this sauce with chicken, prawns or any other meat. This sauce is quite often used in Chinese restaurants. I always marvel at how the Chinese embrace western ingredients (in this case thick creamy milk and butter) and make it their dish.

This dish is totally delish but also totally fattening! Well, somebody told me during Chinese New Year, calories don't count. You are on holiday! So perhaps...just perhaps... you might want to give this a last go before you slog it out.

Smooth Hainanese Kaya (Caramel Coconut Jam) 焦糖椰香咖椰

This is another variation to the famous coconut jam. It has a smooth creamy texture that is rich with coconut flavour and a hint of caramel. Unlike the pandan version, caramel coconut jam is brown in colour due to the caramelised sugar added. Its sweetened taste goes well with any bread or buns. Some other more innovative combinations include puffs, glutinous rice and even chinese cruellers.

Balsamic Dressing

I have been using this recipe for a very long time. It tastes really good when put together with some fresh crunchy salad. It is healthy and less fattening compared to other dressings. This dressing is my saving grace on days when I feel that I needed to cut down on my calories and carbo. You can actually make more and keep in the fridge for later use like what I always do.

Fluffy Pancakes

I admit I was a hungry child. I used to mix up some flour, sugar and egg to make what I call a pancake (now I know it is more a crepe than a pancake). My brother and I would gobble up those carbo-laden cooked flour in no time.

Fast forward to now, my version of pancake has improved much. Sophistication calls for baking powder, buttermilk and a different array of toppings. What used to be a simple flour mixture now has to be soft, fluffy and light. And, it has to be topped with the most appealing topping both to the eyes and taste buds. Simply lavish!

Caramelised Fried Peanut and Anchovy 焦糖炒花生江鱼子

A quick search on the internet and you will find only few information on this dish. Guess this is a hidden gem that not many are aware of. The key ingredient to this dish is actually sugar. Yes, loads of it. As you bite into the crispy peanuts and anchovies, you will be met with a sweet and salty coat of caramel. Thanks to this, the taste is enhanced many fold.

Smooth Creamy Pandan Kaya (Pandan Flavoured Coconut Egg Jam) 香兰咖椰

Kaya basically means coconut egg jam. Its texture is thick and rich, hence, the name kaya which means rich in Malay. I dare not claim this jam to be authentically Malaysian as it is also found in other parts of Southeast Asia....but it is madly popular in Malaysia. I haven't met a Malaysian who doesn't love kaya.

Garlic Spread

The garlic spread is so versatile that it could be used on anything that requires butter. Although butter is not popularly used in Asian cooking, try adding a little when you are cooking your veggies. The result would guarantee a more aromatic dish.

It is so easy to make and so easy to keep. Just chill or freeze it after mixing! Once you have tried making it fresh, I believe you will forget the ready-made ones!


Ingredients

125g butter (or 1/2 butter,1/2 marjerine)
30g garlic (mash or grate until pulp like)

2 tbsp chopped parsley or 3 tsp dried parsley

Cooking Instruction

1. Leave butter at room temperature to soften butter.

2. Use a fine grater to grate garlic into pulp. Garlic has to be grated finely so that it would be cooked easily. Alternatively, you can put the garlic into the microwave oven and soften the garlic before mashing it with a fork. I personally prefer to grate the garlic finely.

3. Mix everything in a bowl and you are ready to go!

Serving suggestions:
1. Garlic bread/toast/rolls/buns
2. Frying vegetables.
3. Pasta sauce
4. BBQ butter