Ginger Chicken

Whenever I ask Z what his favourite food is, he will say "Rice with black chicken and broccoli and carrot", and even if I offer other suggestions (in case he might have forgotten about the rest of the yummy food mummy has cooked for him in the past), he will still insist on the black chicken. I am glad he likes it because it is one of the easiest things for me to prepare with only 5 ingredients: Chicken drumsticks, ginger, sesame oil, dark soy and light soy (seasoned with sugar, salt and pepper). Today I tried a different version of ginger chicken, one that substitutes the soy sauce and sugar with fish sauce and brown sugar. I also decided to put in a little effort to debone the chicken drumsticks which I usually don't (okay, actually it was so that I could try out using my new Scanpan Santoku Knife that I purchased last weekend). For those who love eating ginger chicken, you will love this version too. The succulent pieces of chicken covered in a salty, sweet and sticky sauce with aromatic ginger will definitely go down well with a big bowl of rice! I will be cooking this more often from now, and perhaps Z will soon say "brown chicken" instead of "black chicken" as his favourite!

Recipe adapted from "The Songs of Sapa" by Luke Nguyen:

Ingredients

500g chicken drumstick/thigh fillets, skin on, cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces

2 tsp oyster sauce

1/2 tsp dark soy sauce

4 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 tsp cornflour

4 tbsp water

2 inch piece of ginger, julienned

4 cloves of garlic, chopped

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp sesame oil

Coriander leaves, for garnish

Method

1. Marinade chicken with soy sauce, oyster sauce, 2 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp brown sugar and the cornflour for half an hour.
2. Combine the remaining fish sauce and brown sugar with the water and put aside.
3. In a wok, heat up vegetable oil and sesame oil and fry ginger until fragrant.
4. Add chicken and fry on high heat until browned all over. Add garlic and stir-fry briefly.
5. Add the fish sauce and sugar mixture and stir into the chicken until it comes to a boil. Cover and simmer on low-medium heat for 5 minutes until chicken is cooked. Remove the lid and simmer until sauce is thickened. Dish out, garnish with coriander and serve with jasmine rice.

Nastar Pineapple Tarts

Here's my favourite recipe for pineapple rolls, which includes baking powder to create a lighter texture, and ghee for something a little extra!

Nastar Pineapple Tarts / Rolls

Ingredients

Pastry:

300g butter

80g icing sugar

3 egg yolks
3 tbsp ghee

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp fine salt

Sift together:

420g plain flour

50g corn flour / custard powder
1 tsp baking powder

Lightly beat together for egg wash:

1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp condensed milk (optional)

2 tsp fresh milk/water
Pinch of salt
A drop of yellow food colouring (optional)

Filling:

2 medium-sized pineapples (about 1.4kg after peeled and cored), cut into chunks (or 2 cans (about 800g each) pineapple chunks in natural juice, or you can mix both)

300g - 400g sugar, or to taste

2 tsp lemon juice (or depending on how sour/sweet the pineapples are)

1 inch cinnamon stick

4 cloves

1/2 star anise

Method

Blend the pineapple chunks in an electric blender. Pour into a sieve to drain some of the excess juice, but not too dry. Cook pineapple and spices in a wide heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat until it begins to boil. Lower heat to simmer (or use high heat but stir continuously and watch it to make sure it doesn't burn). Add the sugar and stir for about 30-40 minutes or until mixture is dry, thick and amber in colour. Halfway through, check for sweetness and add more sugar if necessary. Add lemon juice to taste. Leave aside to cool, refrigerate for a few hours and roll into small elongated pieces (about half teaspoon of pineapple jam each) to be used as filling.

Line baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Cream butter, ghee and sugar until light. Beat in egg yolks, one at a time. Then add vanilla and salt and beat until fluffy. Fold in sifted ingredients and mix into a firm dough. Put dough into a nastar mould and press out into a strip of about 2-inch lengths. Place a piece of pineapple jam on one end and roll up pastry to enclose the jam.

Put the rolls on prepared trays. Brush with egg wash (optional), and bake in preheated oven at 180°C for 15-18 minutes or until it starts to turn golden. Do not overbake as it may turn out too hard, and probably burnt too! Remove from oven and leave on tray for about 5 minutes. Then transfer to wire racks to cool. Store in airtight containers.

Caramelized Pork with Pineapple

I cooked this dish for dinner last night as I had some pineapple leftover from making pineapple tarts. My sister, who dropped by to collect some curry puffs, tried some and loved it! This is similar to the chicken version that I made a couple of weeks ago, except that it uses pork instead. An utterly delicious alternative to the soy-braised pork belly that I usually cook for the kids. And I can still have my chilli at the same time!

Adapted from a recipe by Luke Nguyen, The Songs of Sapa:

Caramelized Pork with Pineapple

Ingredients:

500g pork belly, skin on, cut into 3 x 3 cm pieces
1 tbsp garlic, chopped finely
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tsp oyster sauce
1/2 tsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
1/2 sweet pineapple, cut into 3cm pieces
2-3 bird's eye chillies, sliced
5 spring onions, white part only, halved crossways
1 tbsp vegetable oil

Method:

1. In a bowl, combine half the garlic, 1 tbsp of the fish sauce, the oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, sugar, 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp black pepper. Mix well, add pork and coat in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat and brown the pork for about 3-5 minutes until golden all over.
3. Add remaining garlic and spring onions and mix well.
4. Add pineapple, remaining 1 tbsp fish sauce and 1/2 cup water. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 1-2 hours or until pork is tender.
5. Dish out into a bowl and garnish with sliced chilli, and serve with jasmine rice.

Mini Penne with Swiss Brown Mushrooms, Bacon and Eggs

I don't usually buy swiss brown mushrooms (well, make that never) as I am quite contented eating regular button mushrooms (which are cheaper by the way). The reason why I bought swiss browns was because there were some available for sampling at the markets the other day, and they were juicy and delicious cooked with garlic and lemon thyme. Apparently, these are the smaller versions of portobello mushrooms. They have a more intense flavour than button mushrooms and have a firmer, meatier texture as well.

I decided to use the mushrooms in my pasta dish along with some bacon, asparagus and mashed egg. I used mini penne rigate for the pasta as I find them tiny enough that I don't need to cut them into bite-sized pieces for the kids to eat. I added vegetable stock and simmered the mushrooms in it to bring out the rich earthy flavour that swiss browns have. For the herbs, I used thyme because I simply love thyme (and I really think everyone should plant some thyme at home...they are really useful!). And the mashed egg (I love eggs too) just makes the dish a little more complete. H loves this, especially when I serve it with teddy-bear shaped pasta, which is her favourite!

H's favourite Teddy pasta!

Mini Penne with Swiss Brown Mushrooms, Bacon and Eggs

Ingredients

250g penne, cooked and drained

2 eggs, hard-boiled and roughly chopped

3-5 asparagus spears, cut into 2-inch lengths and blanched for 3-5 minutes

3 slices bacon rashers, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 tbsp butter

1/2 red/spanish onion, sliced

1 1/2 cup swiss brown mushrooms, sliced

A few sprigs of thyme, leaves removed (about 1 tbsp)

1 cup vegetable stock (chicken stock is fine too)

1-2 tbsp lemon juice

2/3 cup cream

1/4 cup grated parmesan, plus extra for serving

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Heat up oil in pan and fry bacon for 3 minutes, then add garlic and fry for 1 minute.
2. Add butter, then onions, mushrooms and thyme. Fry until mushrooms start to soften. Add stock and simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Add lemon juice and cream. Stir and bring to a simmer. Add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add the asparagus and stir in the parmesan. Turn off the heat and mix in the chopped egg.
5. Toss the pasta with the sauce and serve with addtional grated parmesan.

Spanish Chicken & Corn Croquettes

It has been almost 10 years since G bought me this Spanish Tapas cookbook for my birthday (he figured I'd be happier receiving a cookbook with mouth-watering photos of food rather than flowers, and that still holds true to this day). It's interesting that food that may not have appealed to you (or me) a few years back suddenly appears more interesting and relevant when you revisit the cookbook, especially when you go, "Oh yeah, I know those herbs go really well with that meat" or "I've made something similar before and this sounds pretty easy to make"...etc.

Well, these croquettes are easy to prepare with simple basic ingredients, and as such, you can add in your favourite spices, herbs, vegetables, bacon and so on. I tweaked the recipe a little and added some parsley, corn and peas (peas weren't a good idea because the kids started picking them out one by one! But corn is good, sweet and adds some texture to the creamy chicken filling). When I took a bite of these, it instantly reminded me of the deep-fried Japanese Korokkes, and they are so soft and creamy on the inside. This Spanish version of the croquette uses a roux in lieu of potatoes to bind the meat together, and I like the idea of cooking the chicken first before blending it finely, as this gives it a smooth velvety texture. There are many variations you can make to the recipe, and I think next time I might try making a curry croquette, and use mashed potatoes and onions instead. These ones I've made, however, are totally delicious and addictive. Serve them with a drizzle of lemon juice, and perhaps dipped in some barbecue sauce or mayonnaise. Yum!

Here is the recipe below:



Chicken Croquettes

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter

1/4 cup plain flour

2/3 cup milk

1 tbsp olive oil

1 chicken breast fillet, with skin on (approx 250g), diced

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tbsp corn/peas

1 small egg, beaten with 1 tbsp milk

1 cup panko crumbs (or fresh breadcrumbs will do too)

Vegetable oil for deep frying

Salt and black pepper

1 tbsp Italian flat-leaf parsley, plus extra for garnish

Lemon wedges, to serve

Method

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Add flour, stir and cook for 1-2 minutes. Gradually beat in the milk until the sauce is thick and smooth. Cover with a lid and remove from heat.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan and cook chicken with the garlic until chicken is lightly browned and cooked through.
3. Pour contents of the frying pan (remove liquid if any) into a blender and process until finely chopped. Stir into the sauce together with the chopped parsley, corn and peas. Season with plenty of salt and pepper. Let cool completely and refrigerate for at least half an hour to firm up.
4. Wet both hands with water and shape the mixture into small sausages, then dip in egg and then breadcrumbs. Deep fry in hot oil until crisp and lightly golden (about 4 minutes). Drain on paper towels and serve with lemon and garnish with parsley.

Note: You can refrigerate the shaped "sausages" before crumbing them so that they are easier to handle.