Nasik Goreng "Bodo"

This is my go to nasik goreng recipe when I want a good meal but too lazy to cook...

Lets make nasik goreng bodo.

Ingredients

1 cup rice
1/2 onion  (chopped)
4 birds eye chili
1 tbsp fine dried shrimp (udang geragau)
4-5 kailan (Chinese kale/Chinese broccoli) (finely chopped)
1 table spoon thai fish sauce
Salt &  pepper
1 tbsp Oil

Method :

Heat oil. Finely slice birds eye chili and fry till crispy.  Add onion.  Fry till caramelized. Add dried shrimp. Fry till golden brown.

Add rice,  mix well to coat with oil.  Add fish sauce,  salt and pepper. Add kailan.  Cook till kailan turns bright green.

Done!

Chicken Roast with Potatoes and cauliflower and Garlic Bread and Bread Cream Soup

I have been putting this on hold for some time now. 

It's either got craving,  no time or no ingredients got time or got ingredients, got time but no craving...  And then everything falls into place and suddenly...  This happened.  :)

Let make Roast Chicken With Potatoes and Cauliflower and Garlic Bread and Bread Cream Soup.

Roast Chicken.

Ingredients :

1 small chicken
2 table spoon butter
1/2 lemon
1 whole garlic (cut off top and bottom side,  skin on)
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Clean chicken,  pat dry,  inside and outside. Rub butter all over chicken.  Add salt and pepper to chicken, continue rubbing butter in and outside the chicken.  Rub butter in between the skin of chicken.  Stuff 1/2 lemon and garlic into chicken.  Let sit for 30 mins.

Roast for 20 mins (breast side up),  15 mins (breast side down)  and 15 mins (breast side up)  plus 5-10 mins to nicely brown at 200°c.

Fluffed Potatoes

4 medium size potatoes
2 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon left over butter used to rub chicken

Method

Clean and cut potatoes into quarters.  I like to leave the skin on. Boil potatoes for 7-8 mins on high heat in salt water.  Drain,  shake vigorously in a collander to fluff.  Bake in the oven for 10 mins at 200°c. Add another 5 mins under the broiler.

Cauliflower

Heat the pot used to hold the chicken when rubbing with butter...  When all the left over butter is melted,  add cauliflower florets and flash fry until slightly browned.

Bread Soup

Ingredients :
3 cups hot water
2 sliced bread
3 tablespoon powdered cream
1 garlic
Salt and pepper

Method:
Bring water to boil,  add garlic,  salt and pepper.  Add bread.  Let bread soak up the liquid.  Blend till smooth.  Continue boiling until thick.

Garlic Bread

Ingredients :
Bread
Garlic/Roasted garlic
Butter
Roasted sesame seed

Method:
Toast bread,  mix Mashed Roasted garlic and butter,  spread in toast,  sprinkle sesame seed.

Makan!

Simple cravings... For something simple...

Roasted chicken!  Enough said.

Ingredients:

Chicken (whole/pieces,  skin on,  bone in)
Enough butter to coat chicken (if using salted butter,  skip salt)
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder

Method :

Clean chicken and pat dry.

Rub butter,  salt &  pepper all over chicken...  Massage chicken as if it's your lover...  ;) sprinkle Garlic powder,  arrange in a shallow pan and roast for 1 hour at 200°c in top &  bottom heat.

Chicken is good enough to eat on its own,  or with trimmings  (Mashed potatoes,  steamed carrots, cream broccoli),  in chicken salad or upcycled to butter chicken...  Nyum!

Baked Garlic Chicken

I am craving for butter chicken,  but for butter chicken,  we need left-over chicken,  to get left-over chicken,  one must have baked chicken or chicken roast.

Let's make...  Baked Garlic Chicken.

Ingredients :

Chicken (about half a kilo)

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp sweet soya sauce

Salt,  pepper,  garlic powder...

Coconut oil

Method:

Clean chicken,  drain water and wipe with kitchen towel.

Salt &  pepper chicken,  rub in butter,  add garlic powder and add sweet soya sauce.

Grease baking pan with coconut oil.  Arrange chicken in baking pan.  Don't over-crowd.

Let chicken sit while you preheat oven.

Bake for 1 hour at 175°c top and bottom heat.  Then brown for 10 minutes with top heat only...

Add some black magic and poke your knitting needles through the heart of the voodoo doll all the while chanting the name of your enemy in a hateful way...  Opss...  Wrong article...  Just kidding ;)

There you go...  Done.

Beef Stroganoff!

I have this mad craving for meat...  This happened after...  Uhm...  Nevermind...  Anyway... It's been crazy with everything happening all at once... 

So thankfully...  The weekend is here and let the mind slow down and cull some of the idea seedlings....

I had the honor of entertaining Dr.  Satish  Gupta,  a world renowned heart surgeon from India, who is also a big believer in the hygiene of the mind as well as the body and that you can cure chronic heart conditions without surgery...  If properly handled.

Told him about my anxiety attack and how scary it was to see people talking about stuff and not being able to understand and catch up on the conversation.

The good doctor explained that it was my mind exceeding it's speed limits...  I should learn to slow down a little... And enjoy the scenery. 

But then again...  With so much to see and do...  And so little time left...  How can I slow down? 

OK.  Enough said.  Let's make Beef Burger Patty,  Beef Sausage &  Beef Beef Stroganoff.

Ingredients :

500 gms beef (seasoned with salt and flour)
1 beef burger patty
2 beef sausage

2 large onion (chopped)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 inch ginger (chopped)
1 large tomato (chopped/sliced)
1 cup mushroom (soaked dried shitake/button)

1 cup sour cream /yogurt

Pepper powder (for a more masculine kick,  use Black pepper powder) 
Nutmeg powder
Paprika powder
Sugar

3 table spoon olive oil

Method:

Heat oil.  Brown meat. Add onion and ginger.  Cook till onion turns soft and clear.  Add garlic and tomato. Cook until tomato turns to mush. 

Add mushroom.

Add sour cream/yogurt.  Add spices.  Salt and pepper to taste.

Done.

Serve with bread/ as pie filling...  *nangis sebab tak bagi perhatian dalam kelas bakeri dulu...

Savoury Egg Custard

Been wanting to make this...  But like everything else in life...  The various aspects  didn't line up so I had to put off my plan. 

Here's a quick recipe that serves 4...

Savoury Egg Custard

Ingredients :

2 eggs (room temperature, about 1 small cup)

1 tablespoon of Mirin or fish sauce or miso paste  + water to make it 2 and a half ratio to the egg (example- if egg is 1 cup total, the water solution should be 2 and a half cups) 

Optional :1 sliced shitake mushroom,  crabstick, fish meat, chicken slices, shrimp, seaweed

2 garlic finely chopped

A dash of pepper

Method:

Add eggs to fish sauce/mirin solution,  stir gently and  avoid making bubbles.

Prepare sliced mushroom and garlic in 4 containers with cover (I just used the taufu fuah tapau containers...  Fill to 1/3 way each) you can add chicken meat/prawn to the container now.

Gently pour egg mixture (strain twice or more times to get really silky egg custard)  into the containers,  put on cover and steam for 10 minutes with a gap in the steamer cover.

I usually stop the steamer immediately after the eggs turn creamy white and let them sit in the the steamer to continue cooking.

You can either do a- the knife poke test (poke the middle of your custard and if the water comes out clear,  that means it is done)

or b- the wiggle test (I just wiggle the custard and it doesn't look too on the liquid side)

Tips: If you are confident about your egg to liquid ratio ( 1:2.5) you should be OK.

You can also add chicken meat or shrimp into your mushroom container...  Just to be safe...  Season as usual and pre boil till almost cooked!

You can also put chopped chives on top of the mix before steaming...  Just try to avoid making bubbles for a creamy soft silky custard.

This recipe needs to be tried more than once to build up confidence...  We are looking for soft,  silky, smooth egg custard that will ooze clear water when you scoop!

Most of my ladies friends are not so fond of this dish and I dont know why....  Sedap wooo....

Magic in the kitchen: Mashed Potato with Garlic Pepper Gravy

You know the feeling when you crave something as simple as Mashed potato and there's no KFC near you... I believe it is called frustration...

I promised a friend to try and post in both Malay and English so here goes: Let's Make Mashed Potato with Garlic Pepper Gravy /Mari memasak kentang lecek bersama kuah bawang putih lada hitam.

Ingredients / Bahan-bahan

3 medium potatoes / kentang sederhana

1 tbsp creamer powder / sudu besar serbuk krimer

1 tbsp salted butter / sudu besar mentega masin

Gravy/Kuah

1 garlic/ bawang putih (sliced thinly/potong nipis)
1 tbsp flour/ sudu besar tepung
1 tbsp butter/ sudu besar mentega
1/4 chicken cube/ kiub ayam
1/4 tspn black pepper powder/ sudu teh serbuk lada hitam

Method/Cara2nya

Cut potato into 8 chucks and boil till cooked in slightly salted water/ potong 8 kentang dan rebus sehingga empuk dalam air bergaram. Drain/toskan.

Heat creamer powder with 1/4 cup water together with butter/panaskan serbuk Kramer bersama 1/4 cawan air dan masukkan mentega.

Mash potato and slowly fold in the heated creamer / lecek kentang dan masukkan kriteria yang dipanaskan perlahan-lahan.

Melt butter and add flour / cairkan mentega dan masukkan tepung.  Slowly add 4 tbsp water and garlic/ Masukkan air perlahan-lahan bersama bawang putih.

Add chicken cube,  black pepper and a few drops of soy sauce for color,  cook till thick/ masukkan kiub ayam,  serbuk lada hitam dan beberapa titis kicap untuk warna,  masak sehingga pekat.

Magic in the Kitchen : Ayam Masak Cili

I'll keep this post short and simple.  There used to be a restaurant next to my old office and they serve the best Ayam Masak Cili.  It's basically simple fried chicken with sweet oniony sauce.  

Combine that with white rice and Sambal belacan...  Simply heavenly! 

Sadly the restaurant changed owner,  the handsome cook married some rich girl who refused to let him work,  the new restaurant could not match the high standard of the old restaurant and we were deprived of our daily dose of good food.

Then,  yours truly managed to tell down one if the old restaurant staff and asked him for the recipe...  Hehe... Thank you Abang Din for the recipe! 

So let's make Ayam Masak Cili.

Ingredients:
(A)
4 pcs chicken wing (cut at the joints)
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

(B)
6 birds eye chili
1 red chili
5 garlic
1 inch turmeric

(C)
1 large onion (thinly sliced)
1 red chili (sliced)
1 tbsp chili sauce
1 tbsp tomato sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1/2 tbsp sugar

Method:
Marinate chicken with salt and turmeric and fry till almost cooked. Remove from heat.

Blend ingredients (B).  Fry till oil separates. 

Add ingredients  (C)  chili sauce,  tomato sauce, oyster sauce,  onion and chili.  Add fried chicken. 

Salt and pepper to taste. 

Serve with white rice,  sambal belacan and cold cucumber slices. Nyum!

Magic in the Kitchen : Beef Soup Noodle

This was an impromptu move.  Like everything else in my life... 

Let's make Beef Soup Noodle.

Ingredients :

Soup
250 gms Beef
2 potato
1 carrot
Salt and pepper to taste.

1/2 packet yellow egg noodle
1 mustard green (chopped)

Condiment:
Fried garlic
Chili flake
Shallots

Method:

Put whole potato,  carrot and beef in pot,  cover with water and bring to boil. Simmer for 1 hour.  Remove beef,  carrot &  potatoes from soup,  cut into serving size.

Put mustard green in a container,  pour hot soup over and let sit until slightly cooked.

Rinse Noodle with hot water.

To serve,  put Noodle in serving bowl,  put mustard green,  Beef,  carrot and potatoes on top.  Add fried garlic,  chopped shallots and chili flakes.  Add soup. 

Serve hot.

Magic in the Kitchen : Beef Stew

Saya tak lalu makan nasik! 

Which is not something that my doctor wanted to hear cause I lost almost half of my body weight (98kgs-51kgs) in a few months time and gained back some  (20+kgs) in a few months time... Enough about my health complications...

Let's make beef stew.

Ingredients :

500 gms of the cheapest sinewiest beef

1 carrot- cut into chunks
2 potato- cut into chunks
1 tomato- cut into chunks
1 onion- cut into chunks
1/4 cauliflower - cut into chunks

1 cinnamon
1/2 star anise
1/2 tspn black peppercorn

1/4 tspn nutmeg powder
1 tspn sweet paprika powder
1/2 Cube beef stock

2 tbsp chopped almond (for that wonderful  extra crunch)

Method:

Heat oil.  Brown beef.  Add cinnamon,  star anise and black peppercorn. Add tomato &  onion.

Add 1 cup hot water to deglaze pot.

Transfer content to slow cooker.  Add potato,  carrot and cauliflower.  Add in nutmeg powder  &  paprika. Cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove beef from slow cooker.  Pour content into blender,  blend till fine. Add to slow cooker.  Add chopped almond.

Serve hot with bread.

Done.

Note: some people use flour and butter (we call that ruox) to thicken the gravy. 

I prefer to remove the meat and blend everything else.  I just don't like the inedible bits (cinnamon stick, star anise,  black peppercorn)  in my gravy. 

You can adjust the thickness of gravy with stock/water.

Or...  You can leave everything unblended and enjoy...

Magic in the Kitchen : Chicken Liver Pate

I remember the first time I've tried Chicken Liver Pate was almost 10 years back when my friend and I used to go around Langkawi and pretended to be tourists.

It was heaven served in warm toast. I am feeling nostalgic so let's make some sedap Chicken Liver Pate, nyum!

Ingredients :

400 gms  chicken liver (cleaned and trimmed of the tough veins and fat)

1 tbsp salted butter

1 large onion (chopped)

3 cloves garlic (chopped)

Salt and pepper to taste.

2 tbsp salted butter (melted)  to seal the pate.

Method:

Melt butter.  Sauté onion and garlic till soft. 

Add chicken liver.  Sauté lightly until brown on every side but do not over cook (brown all around and slightly pink in the middle is what we aim for). This is about 2-3 minutes.

Remove from heat and cover for 5 minutes. You can either put the liver in a food processor or manually mash them until fine and silky.

Put liver in small containers.  Press with plastic bag and seal with melted butter in top.

This dish tastes wonderful right after preparation but try keeping them for 2-3 days in the fridge.  Serve with warm toast.

Hou leng aaaa!

Magic in the Kitchen : Tomato, Beef, Lentil Soup

Just a lazy Saturday afternoon,  doing my office work at home.  Let's make something hot to slurp.  I am craving for them warm bread at Charlie's Place BBQ and Grill!  They serve the best bread selection ever!

While I crave for good food...  Let's make Tomato Beef Lentil Soup!

Ingredients :
Half palm sized cheap beef
1 onion
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup lentil
1/2 cup tomato
1" Cinnamon
1/2 star anise
1/2 teaspoon black peppercorn
1/2 teaspoon coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon paprika powder
Salt to taste

Method :

Wash and boil lentil till soft.

In a different pot,  melt butter.  Add cinnamon,  star anise,  coriander seed,  black peppercorn.  Add and brown beef. Add tomatoes and cook till mushy. 

Remove beef from pot.  Deglaze pot with boiled lentils and boiling liquid.  Blend to your desired consistency.

I like extra crunch in my soup, so I usually add 1 tablespoon of chopped almond to my soup.  

Add everything to slow cooker with beef.  Cook on auto for 3 hours. Salt to taste and serve with bread.

Magic in the Kitchen : Clear Beef Soup with Baby Potatoes and Winter Melon

I am not hungry though my craving is all over the place.  Been putting off making this clear soup since...  I can't remember but just now I was hit with a pang of craving for something beefy,  soupy and winter-melon-ey... 

So let's bring out the slow cooker and let 'em  simmer!

Ingredients :

3/4 kgs of the cheapest,  toughest beef money can buy

1 small winter melon

1 handful of baby potatoes

1 small onion

1 inch cinnamon

1/2 star anise

1/2 teaspoon black peppercorn

Method:

Brown beef in a pan.  Add cinnamon, star anise and black peppercorn. 

Add onion,  winter melon and potatoes till fragrant.  Add to slow cooker. 

Cover with hot water and cook on high till boiling and switch to low/auto. 

Simmer for 4 hours.

*kitchen tips -  when using a slow cooker,  buy the cheapest,  sinewiest meat cut,  but avoid fat!

Liquid in slow cooker does not evaporate significantly,  keep that in mind when adding fluid.

When using a slow cooker,  anything higher than 3/4 full is considered overfilled!

Do not add salt until everything is almost well cooked as the flavour of the ingredients will leach out.  Taste when done and only then add salt to taste.

The medium sized slow cooker works the best for me!

I'm Wide Awake : This is so stupid... Am going to stop... Let's make perfect Dippy Eggs

You know sometimes the simplest of thing can be pretty hard to achieve,  consistently.  

Like perfectly boiled hardboiled eggs (non-rubbery delicious hard boiled eggs with bright yellow firm yolks) ,  perfectly boiled soft boiled eggs (non-rubbery whites with soft/runny yolk) and my favourite -  Dippy Eggs (hingus/snot consistency!)

So let's make them Dippy Eggs

Ingredient:

Eggs

Method :

Bring enough water to cover eggs about 1 inch. 

Slowly add room temperature eggs to water (I avoid using refrigerated eggs because they have a tendency to Crack in hot water). 

Boil eggs exactly 2 minutes. After 2 minutes,  remove from heat,  cover pot and leave for 2 minutes. 

Once the 2 minutes is up... Remove from water,  Crack open and enjoy with toast and marmite...  Adoyai!

I'm wide awake: Let's Make Pancakes!

I craved for them,  I made them...  Simple as that...  In life...  You can't be too dependant to other people. Relatives,  friends or otherwise...

So let's make Pancakes.

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup milk
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp melted butter / vegetable oil
2 tspn baking powder
1/2 tspn salt

Method:

Mix everything and fry on lightly buttered pan. Makes about 4 pcs.  Serve with Maple syrup,  honey,  strawberry jam,  salted butter.  Done.