Shanghai Red Bean Pancake ("Wo Paeng")

This is a repost of an old favourite!

This is an old favourite of mine since I was little. Typically served in chinese restaurants in BP, we would often order a plate or two of it at the end of the meal. It is a thin, flaky and crispy rectangular-shaped pancake that is usually filled with a thin layer of red bean or white lotus paste, and then cut into small rectangular bite-sized pieces.

I decided to make this after browsing through a cookbook called "Dim Sum" where I came across a picture of an appetizing looking "Wo Paeng". I could just imagine the taste of it - sweet, crispy and oily. The recipe looked simple enough. However, the proportions and method of pan-frying it just didn't do it for me. I found another recipe on the web which looked like it would yield better results, and it did! Of course, it involved deep-frying the pancake to a golden crisp, just as I remembered it. I sprinkled some toasted pinenuts in the filling to add some texture.

Here is the recipe I used, adapted from Amy Beh:

Ingredients

Batter

50g plain flour
1 tbsp cornflour
1 tbsp custard powder
130ml water
1 egg, lightly beaten

Filling
6 tbsp (approx 120g) red bean paste, divided into 2 equal portions
20 pinenuts, toasted

Method

1. Combine all batter ingredients in a mixing bowl. Mix with a hand whisk until well blended and is a thin runny consistency. Divide the batter into two equal portions.
2. Meanwhile, take one portion of the red bean paste and place it between 2 pieces of clingwrap. Then, with a rolling pin, lightly roll it into a flat square piece and put aside.
3. Lightly grease a large flat non-stick pan with a little cooking oil. Pour in one portion of the batter. Turn and tilt the pan to allow the batter to run evenly to the edge to form a thin layer of pancake. Cook over a gentle low heat for 2 minutes or until the pancake is cooked. Do not allow the pancake to brown.
4. Use a turner/spatula to lift pancake onto a plate. Do the same for the other portion of the batter to make a second pancake.
5. Remove one side of the clingwrap and flip the red bean paste onto the centre of the pancake, and peel off the other side of the clingwrap. Scatter pinenuts over the red bean paste, if used. Fold the near end of the pancake over the filling. Tuck in both the sides. Smear a little beaten egg along the edge and fold the remaining flap over to seal the pancakes.
6. Deep-fry the pancakes in hot oil until golden brown and crispy. Once they puff up, do not move them around to prevent them from bursting. Remove the pancakes with a perforated ladle and drain on several layers of paper towels.
7. Cut the pancakes into slices and serve hot.

Best Ever Korean Fried Chicken (with sweet and sticky spicy sauce)

Best ever Korean Fried Chicken (IMHO). Need I say more? Think of crispy chewy and crunchy batter coated in a candy-like sweet, spicy and sticky glaze. And oh yeah, the chicken. Juicy. Delicious. Yummy. Continue reading to find the recipe.

Korean Fried Chicken with garlic wasabi soy glaze

If there's one thing I can't resist, it's crispy Korean Fried Chicken (see my earlier posts here and here). So far, this is one of my favourites, with a lightly battered yet slightly chewy and crispy skin. The sweet, salty and sticky garlic soy glaze has a hint of wasabi to give it some kick. Chew on that crispy skin smothered with the soy glaze and sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds and you're in heaven. I almost forgot, every bite should be enjoyed with some of those thin ribbons of scallions. It helps to lighten up the dish, adds some freshness and makes the chicken taste more healthy than oily. Like, really. It's not just a garnish, it's a main ingredient. Don't skip it.

Ebi Fry (Fried Shrimp)

 

I honestly think that Australia might have the highest consumption of laksa per capita compared to other countries. There's probably more laksa varieties in Sydney than there is in Singapore, and IMHO, they taste better too. But let's not go there. What fascinates me is that many Australians have come to embrace Asian food as part of their regular dining and grocery options. Take panko crumbs for example. The word panko doesn't sound the least like it's something edible, though it is an ingredient that is commonly available and used here. Why go for regular breadcrumbs when you can have super light and crunchy panko?



Don't these crunchy crumbed deep-fried prawns look lovely? That's the beauty of panko crumbs. Looks good, tastes great and sounds earth-shattering (okay, maybe that's a little too much). They are quite simple and easy to prepare, though I won't lie - I took a while to peel, devein and prep the prawns. But it's all worth it in the end, and I even saved some leftovers and popped them into the air-fryer the next day. My favourite way of serving these are with rice topped with a generous helping of thick Japanese curry. I will show you those in my next post. For now, have a go at making these Japanese fried shrimp (Ebi Fry) and serve them with tartare sauce or mayonnaise if you like. You can also use them as a topping for sushi, or in a sandwich. An Ebi Fry on a hot bread roll sounds good too, perhaps with some coleslaw and tartare sauce? Read on to get the recipe.

Falafel Wrap

 

Never judge a book (or falafel) by its cover. Before this, I never gave much thought to falafels. They are the round brown balls that look like croquettes or arancini, and are commonly displayed in kebab stalls at the food courts here. I love kebabs, but those falafels just never looked appetizing to me. That was then.

Salted Egg Yolk Crispy Squid

 

I had the pleasure of dining at one of Sydney's most popular Roti Canai establishments on Friday. Mamak specialises in Malaysian cuisine, in particular its famed roti canai, which are freshly made on the spot and served on a silver-coloured platter with two curries. I'm a little embarrassed to admit that it was my "inaugural" visit to Mamak, since almost everyone I know has been there at least once. I didn't set any expectations for this place, and was pleasantly surprised by how authentic (both in flavour and heat from the chillies) the food was. One dish I just had to try was the Sambal Sotong - stir-fried brown cuttlefish in fiery (indeed!) sambal sauce. I grew up enjoying nasi lemak, lontong and roti canai served with sambal sotong and it's one of my favourite Malaysian dishes! Typically, it uses dried brown cuttlefish which is soaked in alkaline water to rehydrate, tenderise and give it a springy texture when cooked.

 

In Malaysia, we use the term "sotong" loosely, regardless of whether they are cuttlefish, squid or calamari. In a different context, namely Singlish, "sotong" can also refer to a person who is "blur like sotong". Anyway, I picked up a book from the library today - Sydney Seafood School Cookbook - and learnt a new word: Cephalopods. It comes from the Greek word, meaning "head-feet", which sums up the appearance of squid, cuttlefish and octopuses. Squids have long cylindrical heads and a thin, translucent feather-shaped internal shell, called a quill. Cuttlefish is similar to squid, but have a broader, thicker head, shorter arms and a thick, calcified internal shell. Octopuses are different in that they have round heads instead of cylindrical, and lack the two longer tentacles, side fins and internal shells that the other two species have. Calamari (flashbacks of Kellie Pickler in her Southern drawl) is just the Italian word for squid, though it also refers to another species of squid.

Coffee and Almond Pork Ribs

 

 

Deep-fried pork ribs with coffee sauce is a popular dish in Singapore and Malaysia, and is usually served with steamed white rice. During my recent trip to Singapore, I had the chance to try it at Prosperous Kitchen restaurant and it was really good, especially with the almond flakes on top which helped cut through the richness of the sauce. I attempted to replicate it at home and it was a success (applause from Mr G), though my version was more robust with an intense coffee flavour. These sweet and sticky pork ribs are absolutely delicious and addictive, and are best enjoyed with a generous plate of white rice.

 

Deep-fried Crumbed Oyster Mushrooms

 

A few weeks ago, I posted a recipe for Mutter Paneer on my blog, and if you saw the last photo in the post, you would have noticed a plate of unidentified crumbed stuff next to the mutter paneer. Well, I can now reveal that the foreign object that was the subject of curiosity was really crumbed oyster mushrooms! Deep-fried curry-crumbed oyster mushrooms, to be exact. And the things you learn about oyster mushrooms when you're trying to find some inspiration to write about them. Did you know that oyster mushrooms may be considered a medicinal mushroom since it contains statins which work to reduce bad cholesterol? Wow, that puts eating deep-fried oyster mushrooms into perspective. More for me please! The latin name for oyster mushroom is Pleurotus ostreatus, which literally means "sideways oyster", and refers to the oyster-like shape of the mushroom, plus the fact that the stem grows sideways relative to the cap.

 

Malaysian Deep-fried Curry Puffs

I made these deep-fried curry puffs over the weekend when we had friends over for lunch (I figured just serving chicken rice might not be enough). As usual, I posted photos of these on facebook and a friend commented that it was his favourite. Actually, he thought that these were "gujia", which I later found out through Dr Google that it was a type of sweet Indian (Rajasthani, to be specific) deep-fried pastry filled with nuts, dried fruit or coconut. Mmm...this sounds like something right up my alley (and something for me to experiment with next!). 

Crispy Polenta Chips with Parmesan and Rosemary Salt

Ever since Jamie's Italian opened a branch in Sydney, I've only been there once, with three other friends. I had the Buffalo Ricotta ravioli with lemon and mint, which in all honesty, I thought was a rather confusing dish because as I was eating it, I kept tasting Lemon Curd Tart, and wished it was served as a dessert instead. If it was intended to be a main-and-dessert all in one, it certainly achieved its purpose. I suppose we had higher expectations for the food, as we found that the other mains were either underseasoned or lacking in flavour (we must have caught the chef on a bad day). That explains why I never went back again. Well, not until Ms L told me that the crispy polenta chips at Jamie's Italian were very, very good. I did want to go back just to try them, but the rest of the girls weren't really keen on going back just to have a small bowl of overpriced chips.

Deep-fried Snapper with 3 Flavour Sauce (Thai-style)

 

 

If you've been following my recent posts, you'll know that I've been coming up with "copycat" recipes for some of dishes served at Sailors Thai. This time, I attempted to prepare the deep-fried snapper with three flavour sauce that everyone at our table of ten was raving about. As we ordered only one of each item from the menu, by the time it was passed down to our end of the table, the fish was almost mangled beyond recognition. Okay, perhaps that's an overstatement. Fortunately though, the fish head appeared to be intact, and surprisingly, nobody took the best part - the cheek! If I was having fish with my family (or relatives), the cheek would definitely be the first thing to disappear.

Nagoya Style Deep Fried Chicken Wings

I first saw the recipe for these famous Japanese deep-fried chicken wings on Just One Cookbook, and was immediately drawn to the pictures of crispy  wings coated in sweet and sticky soy sauce. I don't make deep-fried wings very often, but with this one, I had to make! Indeed, these twice-fried wings were crispy and finger-licking good. We polished off the entire 2 pound batch of wings within minutes, and we were left craving for more. They are fantastic when eaten with white rice as it counteracts some of the sweetness from the glaze on the wings.

Potato Korokke (Croquette)

At this point, some of you must be wondering why I am constantly cooking Japanese food. Well, Japanese recipes are often simple and span only half a page of a cookbook, which makes it less daunting especially when they usually come with a list of less than ten ingredients. Compare that to Malaysian cooking which may use spices and sauces from A-Z, with plenty of chopping, pounding, crushing, toasting, frying, simmering and keeping a constant watch while cooking. I hardly have half a day to spend doing all that especially now that I'm back at work, and it's impossible to keep the children out of mischief. Just today, while I was preparing pork chops for dinner, my little toddler managed to empty almost an entire bottle of shampoo all over the floor in the shower.

Chicken Katsu Don (Deep-fried Chicken Cutlet Rice Bowl)

In my previous post, I made Curry Soba topped with chicken katsu (which is essentially buckwheat noodles in Japanese curry, served with deep-fried crumbed chicken cutlet).I thought I'd follow through by posting the recipe for Katsudon, since I also made katsudon on that same night specifically for the kids who have not acquired a taste for curry yet. Katsudon is a Japanese rice bowl dish, comprising a bowl of rice topped with deep-fried chicken or pork cutlet, eggs and onions in a dashi-based sauce. It's so easy to make these Japanese rice bowls at home that I hardly order them at Japanese restaurants anymore.

Tauhu Goreng (Deep-fried Beancurd in Spicy Sauce)

Deep-fried tofu with a sweet and spicy sauce on a bed of shredded cucumber, garnished with plenty of ground peanuts

Today, I am sharing a recipe (that my mum just taught me) for one of my favourite Malaysian childhood dishes - "Tauhu Goreng", which literally means Fried Tofu. It is most delicious when the tofu is served piping hot with a sweet and spicy sauce, and lots of ground peanuts. Try to make your own deep-fried tofu as the texture is much better than commercially prepared ones.

Agedashi Nasu (Deep-fried Aubergine)

Agedashi refers to dishes that have been deep-fried (age) and served with a light clear stock (dashi). Agedashi tofu is a popular dish where firm tofu is lightly coated in cornstarch or potato starch, then deep-fried until lightly golden. This is then served in a clear stock made from dashi, soy and mirin, and usually topped with grated daikon, spring onions and bonito flakes. The coating on the tofu soaks up the sauce and turns into this silky and gooey texture which complements the soft and hot tofu.

Sweet Chilli Fried Chicken with French Beans

It wasn't until I came to Sydney that I was introduced to Thai sweet chilli sauce, which is widely used not only as a dipping sauce but for seasoning and various stir-fries. I hardly recall using or coming across sweet chilli sauce in Singapore or Malaysia, probably because we prefer our chillies to be hot rather than sweet. However, it does make a very delicious coating for deep-fried chicken. Of course, you could just dip the fried chicken in the sauce separately, but tossing everything together allows time for the sauce to absorb into the crunchy batter on the chicken. The french beans in the dish are also lovely with that sweet chilli sauce and adds a bit of texture to the dish.

Kakiage Don (Mixed Tempura on Rice)

Kakiage Don (drizzled with kabayaki sauce)

 

Kakiage is a type of tempura where a mixture of vegetables (often onions, carrot and burdock) are cut into thin strips and tossed together in a light tempura batter, then deep-fried to form a loose cluster of vegetable fritters. I haven't had kakiage in a long time and was thrilled when I saw that my friend Nami had posted a recipe for it on her website, Just One Cookbook.

Crispy Eggplant with Black Beans and XO Sauce

I'm really excited to share this fantastic eggplant recipe with you today! This was inspired by my sister's favourite eggplant dish from one of the Hongkong-style restaurants in Sydney, and is absolutely delicious. One bite into that golden shell of crisp tempura-style batter reveals a soft and silky eggplant filling that is so light it simply melts in your mouth. Then, you get these bits of savoury black beans and the spiciness of the XO sauce that melds together in your mouth with the creamy eggplant. These are so addictive (and deceptively filling on the tummy as well, as I discovered many eggplants later).

Sweet and Salty Beet Chips

I remember the first time my husband bought me a birthday present, and it was a cookbook! Even though we had only known each other for less than a year at the time, he knew I was only interested in cookbooks filled with pages and pages of beautiful photos. No flowers, no perfume, none of that girly stuff. That book was one on Spanish tapas, which is where I found a recipe for theses sweet and salty beet chips. Beetroot (or red beet) is thinly sliced on a mandolin, and then deep fried until it loses all its moisture and crisp up into these delicate and crinkly chips. They look a little like rose petals, don't they? Now, there's an idea for edible wedding confetti!