Hakka Yong Fuka/Bitterguard & Tau Pok

HAKKA YONG FUKA/BITTERGUARD & TAU POK 
INGREDIENTS

1 large Bitterguard

1pkt puffed beancurd / tau pok

FILLING INGREDIENTS
( BLEND WITH FOOD PROCESSOR )

1000g chicken boneless, minced 

4tbsp Osyter sauce

1tbsp light soya sauce

dash of salt, pepper, chicken granules,

3 tbsp corn flour

handful chopped coriander leafs / spring onion

SAUCE

4 cups water, add more if needed

oyster sauce, salt, sugar to taste

GARNISHED
Chopped Spring Onion
Chopped Cilantro

METHOD

1. To make filling - Clean chicken, minced chicken with food processor.  Transfer minced chicken in a clean bowl, add the rest of the seasoning and ingredients mix well and set aside.

2. Clean and discard bitterguard seeds, Scoop filling and stuff in to the middle as much as you it could fit in. Shape the stuffing with finger tips. Repeat this to the rest of the bitterguard and for the tau pok, just gently poke a hole in the middle, do the same stuffing till finish. 

3. In a soup pan, place tau pok below follow bitterguard, arrange closely next to each other.  In a bowl, add in sauce and mix water, pour over tau fu.  Cook with medium fire slowly until cooked through.

4. Add water, taste and add seasoning as needed.

5.  When it is cooked, dish up, sprinkle with chopped spring onion and cilantro.

Jengkol Rendang

This is kind of a late post, was back in Dec last year cook myself this ultimate dish, my kind of favourite food - Jengkol Rendang!. Yes, taste better than beef as i always say. This is so addictive.  The purpose i used Rendang Paste is to intensify the Rendang flavour. Its so yummy.

JENGKOL RENDANG
INGREDIENTS
1kg Jengkol
1pkt Rendang Paste ( Indofood )
Coconut Milk ( from 1 whole grated coconut )
5tbsp Kerisik/Toasted Coconut ( from 1 whole grated coconut )
1 lemongrass
4 daun salam
1pcs gula merah
Salt to taste
Cooking Oil
Water

SPICIES PASTE
8 big shallots
5 cloves garlic
10 chili keriting / 4pcs big chili
6pcs candlenuts

METHOD
* Boiled Jengkol in hot water over pot for 30 minutes or until a layer of skin removed from Jengkol seeds. Dish up. Discard Jengkol skins, if there are any still attached to the seeds, slowly remove with knife.  Halve the Jengkol and smash each Jengkol lightly and set aside.
* 1 grated coconut, squeeze out coconut milk set aside, Toast grated coconut on wok with low fire until brown / kerisik. keep aside for later use.
* Blend all spicies until fine with food processor, set aside.

* Heat wok, add cooking oil, sauteed spicies paste, lemongrass, daun salam until aromatic, add kerisik lightly mix well and add 1 packet of Rendang Paste stir until all combine.

* Add in coconut milk and little bit of water one at a time, mix well and in Jengkol, cover lid and cook slowly until Jengkol is well cook through and gravy almost dry. 

* Dish up and served hot with warmed rice.

Jengkol Belado

Another favourite cooking of mine " Jengkol Belado " nothing goes better than eating this stinky beans!! hahaa......They are simply delicious!  These were cooked months ago, oh...now its making me really dying for some!!

JENGKOL BELADO

INGREDIENT

1kg Jengkol

( FINELY BLEND WITH FOOD PROCESSOR )

Handful chili keriting

6 large Shallots

3 large Garlic Cloves

2-3 Daun Salam

1 Tomato ( blend separately ) 

SEASONING

Salt, Sugar and Chicken Granules to taste 

METHOD

* Boiled Jengkol in hot water over pot for 30 minutes or until a layer of skin removed from Jengkol seeds. Dish up. Discard Jengkol skins, if there are any still attached to the seeds, slowly remove with knife.  Halve the Jengkol and smash each Jengkol lightly and set aside.

* Heat wok, add 5tbsp cooking oil.  Add in blended sambal ingredients except for tomato. Sauteed sambal until aromatic.  Add in daun salam and season to taste and add in blended tomato mix well, cook for few minutes and add in Jengkol stir and mix well to combine.  Let it cook if necessary to add little water at a time, until Jengkol well cook and coated with sambal.  Dish up.   

* Served hot with warm rice.

This is about 1kg Jengkol.  This is how Jengkol looks like from the tree with hard shells.  On the Red bowl, shells has been removed, those are Jengkol seeds, which will be boiled to removed another layer of brown skin attached to the seeds.  

Yee Sang Salad / Prosperity Toss Salad

Chinese tradition toss Yee Sang or Prosperity Toss Salad on the 7th day of CNY.  Now most of us toss Yee Sang from the Eve to the 15th Day of CNY....hahahaa....

Today families are more likely to prepare this at home.  I personally prefers to have homemade Yee Sang instead of eating out, i find that most restaurants served commercial yee sang straight from the packaging instead of everything made fresh.  I always experience too much packaging stuff mix in, preservative, coloring, strong smell, heavy taste and whatever that is, making the whole salad taste weird.  Not to mention the salmon...it suppose to taste fresh or smoked but it taste weird.  The whole dish is about the sauce, if you have a weird kind of sauce taste a little too much of everything, everything will taste weird and so complicated.

Actually Yee Sang Salad is fun and easy to prepare ourself.  No complication and it is healthy, fresh and tasty too.  No colorings, No preservative, everything made fresh and most of all, I teach you how to make your own Yee Sang sauce, perhaps its the most easiest you could ever imagine, after you tasted this sauce, i assure you won't go back to those packaging one.

This recipe has no food coloring will be used.  I used natural colorful vegetables like carrots, cucumbers, pamelo and fish snack, garnish with sesame seeds and ground cashew nuts.  You may add a variety of colorful vegetables of your choice, like pickles ginger, red ginger, onion, cilantro, jicama/bengkuang, lettuce etc.  for my version, all ingredients are easy to get work with and it is hassle free.

Below pic is one of my Yee Sang Salad.  My shred vegetables are little too rough with knife this time...*lol sometimes i use vegetable shredder and sometimes i manually jullienned them, it is best to use vegetable shredder more fine result.  I have been making this for almost 10 years, not only i make for CNY, i make whenever i feel like it as a bowl of prosperity salad. bhahaha.... too yummy.

YEE SANG SALAD / PROSPERITY TOSS SALAD

INGREDIENTS FOR 1 STANDARD SERVING PLATE 

1 carrots ( shred/julienned )

1 seedless cucumbers ( shred/julienned ) 

1cup of pamelo 

handful amount of fish snacks ( cut half )

Other optional ingredients:

Smoked / Fresh sliced Salmon, rice crackers, wanton wrappers, japanese red pickled ginger, sliced ginger, sliced onion, lettuce, jicama, green apple, seaweeds, capsicum etc.

Garnish

2tbsp toasted sesame seeds

1/4cup roasted cashewnuts ( crushed )

Other optional Ingredient:-

Peanuts

SAUCE

3tbsp plum sauce

1tbsp sugar to taste

1tsp soya sauce 

1/2 water

Other optional Sauces/Spice:-

Lime Juice, Kasturi Juice, Lemon Juice, Honey, 5 spice powder

METHOD:

* Heat frying-pan, whisk in sauce, let it simmer and taste, off fire, set aside. 

* In a serving plate, arrange all colorful vegetables according to your liking.

* When ready to serve, pour dressing over salad and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and crushed cashew nuts or peanuts.  

* When all ready, toss salad the higher the better making good wishes for the new year in chinese tradition, 

Happy Cooking!

Steamed Wu Tau / Yam ( From Hakka Style Steamed Wu Tau Kau Yuk )

Hakka Style Steamed Wu Tau Kau Yuk is one of Hakka signature dish.  My late dad was the expert at home. I remember he prepared this like every CNY festival in big amount for our own consumption and give away to relatives and friends.  Those days, Dad liked to cook his Steamed Wu Tau Kau Yuk with wood fire instead of on gas stove.  He said it can cook longer until the meat and yam so tender and soft and every piece of meat and yam perfectly tasty!! I remember every bite, those skin+fat+meat and yam like literally melts in your mouth....aaahh....I think for all i have tried in my childhood years, Dad wu tau kau yuk is the Best!!

Since i can't eat Pork, im going to turn this dish into some sort of vegetarian dish without meat.  I could use vegetarian meat thought which we did before but i do not have one for this time.  So i just cook Yam with exactly dad sauce. It turned out exactly the same taste, so delicious, its just the same dish without meat that's it.   Every bite just bring me back to my childhood years eating dad's kauyuk! Since i made this vegetarian version, i am no longer afraid of eating kau yuk, imaging the fats haha....just can't bare it anymore as we getting older health conscious... *lol Now no problem without meat.

STEAMED WU TAU / YAM
INGREDIENTS
1 whole large Vietnamese Yam/Taro
6 big shallots
10 cloves of garlic
5 cups Cooking Oil ( for deep-frying )

SPICE
3pcs star anise ( blend to powder )

SAUCE
1-2cups water
1tsp 5 spice powder
3 Fermented Red Beancurd
2tsp dark soya sauce
2tbsp oyster sauce
1tps light soya sauce
3tbsp sugar
dash salt

METHOD:
* Peel Taro/Yam slice 1cm thick. Do not wash with water.
* Marinate Taro/Yam with salt 20 minutes.
* Heat wok, 5 cups of oil, deep fried yam until cooked. Dish up, arrange yam on a 8" or 6" round pan depending on the amount of Yam, place fried Yam upside down closely. Sprinkle some star anise powder on top, set aside.
* Chop shallots and garlic until fine, sprinkle 2tbsp on top of yam.
* Prepare steamer, with medium heat.
* In a bowl, add in Sauces mix well set aside.
* Pour half of the sauce into yam. and sprinkle remaining chopped shallots and garlic on top follow with some more star anise powder just dash a little around equally.
* Transfer yam into wok, let it steam and constantly checking on the sauce, taste, do add remaining sauce on yam and keep steaming until yam is soft and fully cooked through. This could steamed up to 40 minute.
* When it is cooked, removed from steamer, turn steamed wu tau / yam on a serving plate and garnish with cilantro.

   

Ikan Goreng Sambal Jengkol Belado

This is some yummy stuff for lunch or dinner!!

Jengkol/Jering is similar to Petai ( stinky beans ),  I personally love Jengkol, it taste and texture is unique and when you fall in love with this stinky but yummy stuff, you'll know what im talking about. *lol   i think i prefers to eat Jengkol Rendang then Beef Rendang, seriously Jengkol taste better than beef!

Its quite hard to find Jengkol out of Indonesia.  If you see them, they might be a little costly.  So at this point of time, i think i'm lucky while staying in Indonesia which i could find Jengkol all year round.

IKAN GORENG SAMBAL JENGKOL BELADO

INGREDIENTS:-

1kg or 1/2kg Ikan Kembung / Small Mackerel 

1kg Jengkol 

Cooking Oil 

Bunch of Kemangi as side dish/garnish

SAMBAL BELADO

INGREDIENTS

( BLEND WITH FOOD PROCESSOR )

Handful cabe keriting / chili keriting

8 Bawang Merah / Shallots

5 Bawang Putih / Garlic Cloves

2-3 Daun Salam

1 Tomat / Tomato ( blend separately ) 

SEASONING

Garam, Gula, Penyedap / Salt, Sugar and Chicken Granules to taste 

METHOD

* Clean Fish and marinate with salt set aside.

* Boiled Jengkol in hot water over pot for 30 minutes or until a layer of skin removed from Jengkol seeds. Dish up. Discard Jengkol skins, if there are any still attached to the seeds, slowly remove with knife.  Cut Jengkol into smaller pieces. set aside.

* To cook Crispy Fish - Heat wok, add 2-3 cups of cooking oil to deepfried fish until crispy set aside.

* To cook Sambal Jengkol Belado - Heat wok, deepfried jengkol for around 10 minutes.  Dish up.

* In a separate wok, add 5tbsp cooking oil.  Add in blended sambal ingredients except for tomato. Into hot oil and sauteed until aromatic, add in daun salam and season to taste.  Let it simmer cook until oil surface, taste and add in blended tomato mix well, cook for few minutes and continue add in Jengkol stir and mix well to combine.  

* Add 1/2 cup - 1cup water to Jengkol, closed lid.  Let it simmer further until Jengkol is well cook and sauce become almost dry, taste and season mix well and dish up.

* Pour Sambal Jengkol Belado on crispy fish.

* Served hot with warm rice.

So deliciousss......AAaaa....

Stir-fried Cangkuk Manis with Eggs

One of my favourite vegetable home dish!

STIRFRIED CANGKUK MANIS WITH EGGS
INGREDIENTS
1 bundle of sayur manis
2 garlic clove
1 egg

SEASONING
1tbsp oyster sauce
dash of salt
3tbsp water

METHOD
* clean cangkuk manis, take only the leaves
* heat wok, add in chopped garlic, add dash of salted, sauteed till aromatic.
* Add in cangkuk manis / sayur manis and stir quickly, because the vegy cook very fast.  Add in oyster sauce mix well and add 3tbsp of water and add in 1 eggs off fire and mix well. dish up immediately, do not let the egg over cook.

Happy cooking!

Stir-fried Papaya Flower with Dry Shrimps

This is yummy stuff!! I love eating papaya flowers, i remember eating this when i was a kid, it was bitter to the top and i hate it so much.  Mom love mix this with cangkuk / sayur manis.  This time i use bok choy basically i do not have sayur manis, both taste more or less the same. love it.  I do not remember how mom cook, but my way, i turn it into a delicious delicacy! it isn't as bitter as it was before anymore! yum

Look at the colors, so beautiful and delicious!

Ingredients:-

2 Pkts Papaya Flowers

Chopped finely with Food Processor-

3 garlic, finely chop or pound

3 shallots, finely chop or pound

10 chili keriting

4tbsp dried shrimps ( soak in water until soft ) 

Seasoning:-

2tbsp Chicken Granules

Sugar and Salt to taste

4tbsp water

Method:-

* Pick and clean and set aside. 

* Heat wok, add in 500ml water and add 1tbsp salt.

* When water start boiling, add in papaya flower let it cook for 5-7 minutes.  This is to reduce the bitterness of the flowers.  Dish up, discard water, set cooked flower aside.

* Heat wok, sauteed chopped ingredients until aromatic, season with salt. 

* Add in cook papay flower mixed well and add the rest of the seasoning, stir, mix well till combine.

* Add water stir fry for a little while and dish up! serve hot with rice.

Simple and Easy, Happy Cooking!

Curry Mackerel with Banana Flower

Ingredients:-
4 pcs Cut Mackerel
200g Banana Flower, has been boiled over
3 tbsp curry powder, add water into paste
4 shallots
3 garlic
4-5 fresh chilis, optional
4 slices of fresh old ginger
2 slices of galanga / Lengkuas
1/4 tbsp Tumeric powder
1 tbsp coriander powder
1/4 tbsp cinnamon powder, optional
pinch of clove powder, optional
2 cardamom, optional
500ml Water, as needed
100ml Concentrate Coconut Milk
Coriander Leaf for garnish
Salt, Sugar & Chicken granules to taste


Method of Cooking Banana Flower :
- Prepare and cook banana flower first.  Heat a soup pan with half water and sprinkle with generous salt, boil away.  Add in the banana flowers cook until it is soft for about 20 to 30 minutes.  Drain water and keep banana flower aside.  Cooking Banana Flower can be done few days ahead of cooking the curry. After cook, can be refrigerate up to few month with a air tight container keep in the freezer.

Method of Cooking Curry Fish & Banana Flower:
- Heat wok/soup pan.  Add cooking oil and sautee garlic, shallots and all spices into one and gently stirring it till aromatic, add in Curry paste, mix well till aromatic.

- Add in coconut milk and 200ml water let it simmer and fish and banana flowers and another half of the water.  Let it cook with lid cover low fire until banana flower and fish are cooked through.  Add salt, sugar and chicken granules to taste.

- Dish up and served with hot rice. and garnish with coriander leaf.

Stir-fried Ceylon Spinach with Crispy Garlic

Ingredients:-

100g Ceylon Spinah
5-6 big Garlic cloves, finely chopped, separate a teaspoon for stir-fried.

Seasoning:-
1tbsp Osyter sauce
Chicken granules & salt to taste
1/2 cup water
Cornstarch water for thickening

Method:-
1. Heat wok with oil, with a small fire, slowly sauteed finely chopped garlic until golden brown, set aside.

2. Heat wok with left over garlic oil, add the remaining tsp of chopped garlic sauteed till aromatic and add in Celyon Spinach stir fried quickly to let them 'shrink' evenly.  Add in seasoning mix well and just little bit about 3tbsp water mix well and add cornstarch water to thicken the sauce.

3. Dish up garnish with crispy golden fried garlic.  Serve with white rice.

Stir-fried Paku Pakis with Belachan

Ingredients:-

1 bundle of Pakis fern leaves

2 garlic, finely chop or pound

2 shallots, finely chop or pound

2 chili, finely chop

1tbsp belachan/ shrimp paste

Seasoning:-

1tbsp Chicken Granules

1tbsp sugar

Dash of Pepper

Salt to taste

2tbsp water

Method:-

* Pick the Pakis fern leaves tip, clean and set aside.

* Heat wok, sautee chopped garlic, shallot, chili and belachan until aromatic. 

* Add in Pakis fern leaves mixed well and put seasoning, stir and mix well till combine.

* Add water stir fry for a while and dish up! serve hot with rice.

Simple and Easy, Happy Cooking!

Stir-fried Pakis Fern Leaves II

Ingredients:-

1 bundle of Pakis fern leaves

2 garlic, finely chop or pound

2 shallots, finely chop or pound

2 chili, finely chop

Seasoning:-

1tbsp Chicken Granules

1tbsp sugar

Dash of Pepper

Salt to taste

2tbsp water

Method:-

* Pick the young pakis fern leaves tip, clean and set aside.

* Heat wok, sautee chopped garlic, shallot and chili until aromatic. 

* Add in Pakis fern leaves mixed well and put seasoning, stir and mix well till combine.

* Add water stir fry for a while and dish up! serve hot with rice.

Simple and Easy, Happy Cooking!

Stir-fried Sayur Manis / Cangkuk with Egg

INGREDIENTS
1 bundle of sayur manis
2 garlic clove
1 egg

SEASONING
1tbsp oyster sauce
salt to taste

METHOD
* clean vegy, only take the leaves
* heat wok, add in garlic stir fry till aromatic add dash of salt.
* Add in sayur manis and stir quickly, because the vegy cook very fast.
* Add in oyster sauce mix well and add 2tbsp of water and add in 1 eggs off fire and mix well. dish up immediately do not let the egg over cook.

Happy cooking!

Stir-fried Beansprout with Toufu Pok

Ingredients:-

250g Beansprout
5 taofu pok, cut into half or 4
2 Garlic cloves, finely chopped
chopped spring onion
Corriander Leaf or Chinese Parsley, finely chopped
2 red chili

Seasoning:-
1tbsp Osyter sauce
Chicken granules
Salt & Pepper
little bit of water


Method:-

1. Heat wok cooking oil, add chopped garlic sauteed till aromatic, add in taofu pok stir for few second.

2. Add in beansprouts stir fried a little while and add in seasoning mix well and add just a little water stir-fry and lastly add in all chopped parsley or corriander leafs mix well and dish up serve with white rice.

Curry Vegetables side dish for Roti Canai

I love curry vegetables!  Cook this as the condiment side dish for my roti canai / roti kosong. I used Eggplants, Potatoes & Lady Fingers for this dish, you can use longbeans, cauliflower or broccoli or any kind of vegetable that you love.

Simply awesome!

  

Ingredients:-

3 medium size potato
1 large Eggplant
7-8 medium young lady fingers
2 red chilies
1 slice Ginger
1 stalk Curry Leaves
1 big onion
2 garlic cloves
1 pkt / box Coconut Milk

Spices & Seasoning :-
4tbsp Red Curry Powder, mix with water into paste
1 Cinnamon stick/ 1 tsp cinnamon powder
1tsp tumeric / kunyit powder
3 cloves / dash of clove powder
1tbsp Corriander, finely pound or 1 tsp Corriander powder
3 pcs cardamom / 1tsp cardamom powder
Chicken granules and salt to taste
water


Method:-
1. Clean and cut potato & egg plants, lady fingers are in whole.

2. Heat wok with oil, add curry paste first, stir for 1-2 minutes.

3. Add in chopped garlic, onion, curry leaves, ginger, and all the spices and mix well let it slowly fry until aromatic and add seasoning.

3. Add in coconut milk cook just right until coconut milk is starting to boil and potatoes, lady fingers, eggplants and chili. Add more water if desire, let it simmer for a while until potatoes soften. More seasoning to taste.

4.  When everything potatoes and other vegetables are soften, dish up served warm with roti canai or white rice.

Stir-fried Broccoli & Cauliflower

This is my 3 years old son's favourite vegetables and the only vegetables he eats. I always cook this dish with extra gravy and to the level that very soft for him.  I wouldn't cook this soft if i ate this.  He can eat the whole plate. Im so proud of him.

Ingredients:-

Broccoli & Cauliflower about a plate
1 clove of Garlic, finely chopped
1 or 2 slice of ginger

Seasoning:-
1tbsp Osyter sauce
Dash of sesame oil
pinch of pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
Chicken granules & salt to taste
1/2 cup water
Cornstarch water for thickening

Method:-
1. Heat wok add water to half wok, water boiling add in broccoli and cauliflower for 5 minutes. Dish up and set aside.

2. Heat wok sauteed garlic and ginger slices, season with salt & pepper, add in boiled broccoli and caulifower stir and mixed well. Add in chicken granules, oyster sauce, sugar, sesame oil mix well and add 1/2 water, keep stirring or if necessary close with lid for a few second and in constarch water for thickening and dish up.

3. Serve with white rice.