Dumplings United...

Spaghetti alle Vongole

2009-12-14T14:13:00.001+08:00

Sir Eat Alot has ordered for pasta again… Miss Cook Alot is there to satisfy all his whims and fancies… I decided to cook a quick and flavourful pasta with live clams for that fresh taste of the sea… Quite brave of me as my first try with ‘la la’ was rather disappointing, probably owing to the prolonged soaking and washing… Or maybe they were just plainly not fresh, I don’t know…

So for the easy meal above, I cooked the clams with lots of garlic and crushed chilli with finely diced tomato and chopped parsley, laced with some white wine… Then I tossed some perfectly cooked spaghetti with the sauce and garnish with more chopped Italian parsley… Eat it as it is SANS parmesan cheese and this dish is joining my list of favourites…!!!

Cost/serving: RM4.50

Claypot Drunken Fish

2009-12-12T01:35:00.001+08:00

Though I love all types of fish, I seldom buy them unless I go to the local market… It is quite hard to get really fresh fish at the supermarket… Furthermore, I am often confused with the large selection out there so I normally stick to a few common ones that I can recognize… The recipe below is a healthy and easy way to cook fish like tilapia…

Claypot Drunken Fish

Ingredients:

1 tilapia fish (approximately 600g)

3 stalks spring onion

5cm knob ginger, sliced

2 tblsp oil, 1 tsp sesame oil

Seasoning:

3 tblsp shao xing wine

1 tblsp oyster sauce

1 tblsp light soya sauce

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

150ml water

shredded spring onion and coriander leaves

Method:

1. Heat up 2 tblsp oil in a claypot. Saute ginger and spring onion until fragrant. Add in fish and fry for 2 min (Do not turn). Add in seasoning, cover with lid and simmer for 15 min or until cooked.

2. Remove claypot from heat and sprinkle spring onion and coriander on top. Serve immediately.

Serves 4.

Cost/serving: RM1.50

Tarragon Chicken with Roast Potatoes and Asparagus

2009-11-25T19:15:00.001+08:00

I am a big fan of Laura Calder, I think she is hot!!!… Her show on AFC channel, French Food at Home is one of my favourites… I admire her style and skills as she is able to make complicated food look so simple to make!!!… I happened to watch her make ‘Tarragon Chicken’ and ‘Squished potatoes’ one day and attempted to recreate the recipe for dinner that night… I tried my best to remember the ingredients and steps… To my surprise, the dishes turned out well… I was ecstatic my memory served me well only to find out that her recipes are available online through Food Network Canada… Silly me, LOL…

This is my first time attempting French-style cooking… I have always thought that chefs specializing in French cooking use butter and cream like they’re free… I have been trying to find substitutes but till then, an occasional meal like this makes life purrrfecttt…

Cost/serving: RM 4.50

Noodles with Fried Meat Sauce (Zha Jiang Mien)

2009-10-28T15:41:00.001+08:00

The westerners have pasta with bolognese sauce, we have ‘Zha Jiang Mein’… Much like its western counterpart, the Chinese version is as tasty and easy to prepare… This dish is also popular in Korea where black bean sauce is used and it’s called ‘Ja Jang Myun’… I have never tasted the Korean version but I was told it’s slightly sweeter… Although the name of this dish suggests that it is fried, it’s actually not oily, just the way it is cooked… With the julienned vegetables served as topping, this dish is actually quite healthy and balanced…

In China, the noodles are made fresh although a variety of noodles go well with the sauce… Personally, I love it with dried wheat / longevity noodles… I don’t have any longevity noodles in my kitchen so I used spaghettini instead…

Noodles with Fried Meat Sauce (Zha Jiang Mien)

Ingredients:

200g noodles (dried wheat noodles or pasta)

200g ground meat (best is slightly fatty pork but I use lean)

1 packet pickled mustard, chopped (char choy)

3 pcs dried shiitake mushroom, soaked and sliced

1 cucumber, 1 carrot and 2 red chillies, julienned

Seasoning:

1 tblsp garlic, chopped

1/2 tblsp ginger, chopped

2 tblsp chili bean paste (tau ban cheong) or soya bean paste

1 tblsp shiao shing wine

1 tblsp hoisin sauce

1/2 tblsp sugar

500 ml chicken stock or water

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp dark soya sauce

Method:

1. Cook noodles in boiling water according to manufacturer’s instruction. Rinse the noodles under cold tap water and set aside.

2. Heat up 2 tblsp oil in a wok. Sauté garlic, ginger and mushroom until fragrant. Add in ground meat and stir-fry, then add in pickled mustard.

3. Add seasoning and stock. Cook until sauce is thick and dish out. Place a bed of noodles on a serving plate, top with enough fried sauce and julienned vegetables. Serve hot.

Serves 3.

Cost/serving: RM 3.50

Fried Rice with Nyonya Fried Chicken

2009-10-28T00:17:00.001+08:00

It’s been a week or two since I last cooked as I was out of town… Being eager to spend some time in the kitchen again, I took out my entire collection of recipe books and browsed through each book… Just love buying and reading ‘em and then drool all over the pages!!!… More often than not, the books will end up in the library rather than the kitchen…

I’ve been dying to try out a fried chicken recipe from a local cookbook but I dread the cleaning up afterwards!!!… Oil splatters on the kitchen tabletop and all over the floor… It’s a nightmare!!!… Never mind about that… I have to satisfy my cravings…

So I made the fried chicken and served with some fried rice… I threw in some stir fried peppers to make a balanced meal… Well, not exactly the best side dish but that will do as peppers are the only vegetable I have in the fridge… Here’s the recipe from the book…

Nyonya Fried Chicken (Inche Kebin)

Ingredients:

3 whole chicken legs, chopped into bite-size pieces

oil for frying

Marinade:

2 tblsp curry powder

1 tblsp worcestershire sauce

1/2 tblsp light soya sauce

2 tblsp ginger juice

1 tsp salt

2 tblsp sugar

2 pieces fermented red bean curd

1 tsp pepper

1 tblsp corn flour

1 tblsp plain flour

50ml thick coconut milk

Method:

1. Combine all marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add in chicken and mix well. Marinate for 4hrs, preferably overnight.

2. Heat up oil in wok and deep-fry chicken pieces until almost cooked. Dish and drain.

3. Reheat oil and deep-fry chicken pieces until golden brown and crispy. Drain and serve.

Serves 4.

Cost/serving: RM 2

Simple Fried Rice

Ingredients:

4 bowls of cooked rice

4 shallots, chopped

100g mixed vegetables

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp salt

1 tblsp light soya sauce

1 tblsp oyster sauce

dash of pepper

1. Heat up 2 tblsp oil in a wok. Saute shallots until fragrant and add in egg. Add a dash of soya sauce and pepper to the eggs and scramble till cook.

2. Add in rice and seasoning and fry until aromatic. Lastly, add in mixed vegetables. Serve hot.

Serves 4.

Cost/serving: RM 1.00

Cost of meal: RM 3.80

Lasagna bolognese

2009-09-28T22:33:00.001+08:00

Lasagna is a popular baked pasta dish that is made of layers of pasta with different types of filling… Some delicious filling include a meat sauce (like the one I’m making), spinach, sausage, pumpkin, eggplant etc… It takes a bit of effort to make lasagna but it’s definitely worthwhile… I am feeling a bit more ‘hardworking’ today so I plan to turn my bolognese sauce to lasagna…

Lasagna is not an everyday food as it is quite rich and filling… I am exploring recipes for a low fat version using cottage cheese and till I find one I like, I’m happy with my usual recipe… The total time required to make this lovely dish from scratch range from 2-3 hours (including baking time)… My lasagna layers were made of no-cook lasagna sheets, meat sauce, béchamel sauce, parmesan cheese and some low fat cheddar on top of the layers…

I baked the lasagna for 45mins until golden brown and the whole kitchen smelled like bakery!!!…

I served the lasagna with some tossed salad in balsamic vinaigrette… Yummy!!!… Now, I better go to the gym tomorrow…

Cost/serving: Between RM4.50-5.50

Italian Classics II: Bolognese Sauce

2009-09-25T23:01:00.001+08:00

Has anyone NOT eaten spaghetti bolognese before???… Arguably the most recognized Italian dish around the world, spaghetti bolognese or ragù alla bolognese in Italian is strangely much less popular in it's country of origin, Italy… This sauce originates from Bologna, Italy where it’s traditionally served with fresh tagliatelle or lasagna…

There’re many bolognese recipes around but a good one always call for long simmering to get a rich red sauce… Some recipes call for an hour of low heat simmering and some recommend 3-4 hours or up to 8 hours for best results… A combination of meat are normally used in the sauce but chicken generally requires less cooking… As I can’t cook beef at home, I normally go for a combination of pork and chicken for this lovely sauce… For convenience, I cook this sauce in big quantity and freeze in portions so that I can make a pasta bake or lasagna anytime… Over the years, I’ve tried many different recipes but I like the following as it is a traditional recipe from an Italian…

Bolognese Sauce

Ingredients:

500g minced beef (I use pork)

300g minced pork shoulder (I use chicken)

50g tomato paste

1 onion, diced small

3 carrot, diced small

5 celery, diced small

3 cloves garlic, chopped

ground nutmeg

50g Italian parsley, finely chopped

125g pancetta, chopped (or bacon)

2 x 400g cans of whole plum tomatoes, chopped

2 cups red wine (can substitute with stock)

125ml olive oil

freshly grated parmesan cheese

salt & black pepper

Method:

1. Heat olive oil in a large saucepan, then add the onion, carrot, celery and garlic and stir over high heat for 5 mins until soft. Add the pancetta and cook for 2 mins.

2. Add in ground meat and a pinch of salt, black pepper and nutmeg, brown for 10 mins and stir occasionally.

3. Add in the red wine and let it cook until the liquid thicken (about 6min). Add the chopped tomatoes and tomato paste and bring to a boil.

4. Reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for 1-3 hours, stirring occasionally. (I simmer for 45mins as I don’t want to cook the chicken for too long. Try to stew for as long as you can with beef, it really makes the difference!!!).

5. Season with salt, pepper and add in parsley. Serve with cooked pasta and parmesan cheese.

Serves 10 or more.

Cost/serving: RM3.50

A Glutton’s Dinner

2009-09-13T23:21:00.001+08:00

As Miss Cook Alot was exhausted from a day out of shopping, we decided to get some comfort food for dinner… And nothing says comfort food like “Bak Kut Teh”!!! So off to Klang we went with CK, SY and JY!!! The Bah Kut Teh at Centro was good as the meat was so juicy and tender it was practically falling from the bone!!! The soup was thick and full of flavour as well… The best thing about the dinner??? The price!!! Only RM 10.00 per head… Now if that isn’t value for such awesome Bak Kut Teh, I dunno what is…

As we finished dinner @ 7.30pm and it was too early to go home, CK suggested that we go over to Kepong for dessert… So what if Kepong is on the other side of town, we are gluttons and we will go to the very ends of the Earth if we had to… As Kepong is Ed’s home turf, he joined in for dessert… As the list of items we had in total are too numerous to list, we will rely on the pictures to do the rest of the talking…

View Full Album

Hmm I wonder where we will go next week??? Hmmm…

Tagliatelle with Pesto and Chicken

2009-09-04T00:05:00.001+08:00

You either love or hate pesto… Some people dislike the smell of basil… Pesto sauce great on it's own with any pasta… Throw in a source of protein and some vegetables and you have a nice meal… Here’s what I did for a quick dinner the other day…

Season cubed chicken breast with some garlic, thyme, salt, black pepper… Then pan-fry in a little olive oil until golden brown and reserve…

Meanwhile, cook some tagliatelle until al dente, drain and add to a heated saucepan… Use 1-2 tblsp pesto per serving and toss well with the pasta… Add some warm water to the pesto to loosen the sauce… Serve on plate with chicken and parmesan shavings… Dinner is served!!!…

Cost/serving: RM3.10

Italian Classics I: Homemade Pesto

2009-09-03T23:09:00.001+08:00

So… what is this greenish vibrant glop that you see above???… Introducing the lovely aromatic sauce originating from Northern Italy – Pesto!!!… The name comes from Italian pestâ, which means ‘to pound’ or ‘to crush’… Pesto is normally made of basil, pine nuts, olive oil, garlic & parmesan/romano cheese… Best thing about pesto – no cooking needed!!!…

You can easily purchase pesto in different variations from the supermarket… They are available in green (with herbs like basil or rocket) or red (with sun-dried tomato or bell pepper)… However I think these sauces are a bit pricey, often costing more than RM 15 for a small jar… Anyways, I seldom give in to bottled sauces when I can make from scratch… Pounding up your own homemade pesto can be expensive too, owing to the type of ingredients (especially basil & pine nuts) that go into into the green glop…

I recently discovered cheap organic basil @ Justlife (Gardens/Ikano)… I was delighted!!!… It’s amazing that these organic ones (50g for RM1.50) are actually cheaper than those in most supermarkets (e.g. Jusco 50g for RM3.99)…

Here’s the recipe for pesto…

Homemade Pesto Sauce

Ingredients:

100g fresh basil, washed and shredded

125ml extra-virgin olive oil

2-3 cloves garlic

100g freshly grated parmesan cheese

30g pine nuts, lightly toasted

Pinch of salt & black pepper

Method:

Pound up basil and garlic with a pinch of salt in a pestle and mortar until basil is bruised (you can use a food processor but I think it tastes better pounding by hand). Add in pine nuts and continue pounding. Drizzle in olive oil. Remove mixture into a bowl and stir in cheese. Adjust seasoning. Use 1-2 tblsp of pesto per person

Note: You can substitute pine nuts with walnuts or cashew nuts. Another version of green pesto is to substitute basil for rocket and hazelnuts for pine nuts. You can refrigerate and freeze the sauce. Just leave out the cheese (cheese don’t freeze well) and add it in only when you eat. If refrigerating, add a layer of olive oil to prevent oxidation.

Serves 6-8

Cost/serving: RM1.20

3-Course Chinese Meal in under 30mins

2009-09-01T18:52:00.001+08:00

So… It’s been a while since I last cooked a Chinese meal… If you think that cooking Chinese is time consuming for a small family, you’re not alone!!! I’d be happy to cook a one-pot meal everyday… However, I’ve found my way to go Chinese without too much hassle… Also saves my day if I reach home late and didn’t defrost any meat from the freezer… Key ingredients??? Eggs & veggie!!! Eggs are essential in a kitchen… They are great source of protein and you can cook eggs in 101 ways… steamed, fried, omelette, ‘dropped’ into soup… they are lazy cooks’ bff!!!

For dinner the other day, I cooked a sze chuan hot and sour pepper soup, silky steamed egg and stir-fry kailan with prawns… and of course I used organic veggie (RM1/serving) and eggs (Zenxin eggs RM0.50/pc)… Cost of meal??? Quick, healthy and cheap for only RM 3.80 per pax… Great alternative to MSG-laden chap fun…

Potato Bake

2009-08-17T21:58:00.001+08:00

A potato bake has to be one of my all time favourite foods… It has all the ingredients which I absolutely love and its very tasty!!!

As my job is only to eat and not to cook, it will not make very much sense for me to explain in detail on how its made, so onto the pics!!!

Lovely ain’t it??? Oh and cheap too… Just RM 2.00 per head!!!

10 Min Healthy Soup Noodles

2009-08-10T21:31:00.001+08:00

10 mins??? Yup, that is all it takes to make a hearty bowl of soup noodles that tastes way better than its instant cousins… Not only that, this is healthier (and 80% organic too)…

All you need are some:

Pork balls (if you don’t wanna shell out for organic pork you can try the cheaper additive free option)
Pork slices (as above)
Organic vege (Any that you have sitting in the fridge)
Chicken stock (home made from free range chicken)
Miso paste (Organic ones cost just about the same as the non organic ones)
Noodles (I like organic mee sua)
Fried shallots
Soy sauce (Organic ones cost just about the same as the non organic ones)

Here is a look at the end product…

And a close up to make you drool…

Now tell me that is not gonna taste better than your packet of instant noodles…

Spaghetti Aglio Olio E Peperoncino with Pan-seared Salmon

2009-08-06T00:35:00.001+08:00

“Alio Olio Pepperoncino” simply means garlic, oil and pepper… I can have this pasta EVERYDAY!!!… It’s sooo easy to make and it saves my day when the cupboard is almost bare… This sauce is so versatile that anything can be added to it… bell peppers, mushrooms, aubergine, sausage, sun-dried tomatoes and the meal is instantly transformed!!!…

A serving normally costs less than a ringgit and a more fancy version just slightly more… I added salmon today since it was on promo @ Jusco supermarket… Besides, I also added some enoki and oyster mushrooms…

Spaghetti Aglio Olio E Peperoncino

Ingredients:

500g spaghetti

4 cloves garlic, sliced

2-3 whole dried chillies or 1 tsp chilli flakes

1/3 cup olive oil

1 tblsp chopped parsley (optional)

Salt and black pepper

Chicken stock (optional)

Method

Cook pasta until al dente according to manufacturer’s instructions. Meanwhile, heat a saucepan and add olive oil, garlic, parsley and dried chillies for 1 min. Do not overcook as the garlic will taste bitter. Remove chilli if using whole and add stock if using.

When pasta is ready, drain water and add to the saucepan. Toss well and season with salt and black pepper.

Serves 4-6

Note: The dish will taste better if you use chicken stock or even better, white wine…

Pan-seared Salmon: As for the salmon, I just season the fish with some salt, black pepper and lemon juice and pan-fry in a non-stick pan in a little oil until 90% done. I prefer to eat it a little under-cooked…

Cost/Serving: RM 5 with salmon and RM 0.90 without. In my family, a packet of 500g pasta can feed 6 so I calculate my cost accordingly…

Hotpot Delight @ Xiao Fei Yang Restaurant

2009-08-03T01:03:00.001+08:00

Miss Cook Alot loves a good hotpot treat and we were lucky to be introduced to a little gem in the heart of Pudu, The Xiao Fei Yang Restaurant…

The restaurant is extremely popular and we were advised to get there early to avoid disappointment… There is a mind boggling choice of combinations for the soup bases and rather than stress over the ordering, we left it to our trusty food guide, Deric…

Based upon the Deric’s recommendations, we got a herbal soup base and a pepper soup base…

According to Deric, almost everything that they have for the hotpot is either made from scratch or cut up upon ordering… Therefore, we just had to get the following items!!!

While waiting for the food to cook in the hotpot, Deric guided us on how to mix the sauces for dipping and it was fabulous!!!

As you can see there are no pictures of any cooked food as it all disappeared too quickly for me to capture… Everything was fresh and seasoned well… Nothing stood out more than the other as everything was as good as the dish that preceded it…

Pricing wise, we paid RM 160.00 for a sumptuous meal for three… It may not be the cheapest hotpot meal around but its definitely one of the best you can get… Miss Cook Alot and I will surely go and visit this wonderful gem in Pudu again!!!

Braised Longevity Noodle with Egg Sauce

2009-07-31T01:07:00.001+08:00

Wat-Tan-Hor (Kuey teow with creamy egg sauce) is a popular local ‘tai chow’ dish… The kuey teow is fried in oil and seasoning before topping it off with a thick egg-based gravy… I made a dish similar to ‘Wat-Tan-Hor’ but with half the fat and made with homemade chicken stock… Since I don’t use MSG or similar seasonings, I always have real chicken stock in my kitchen to give flavour to my dishes… Every time I have extra chicken bones and carcasses, I will boil some stock for 3-4 hours and reduce it to a gelatinous consistency and freeze in ice cube trays…

Good thing about quick meals like the above is that we can throw in whatever we have in the fridge… I have some oyster mushrooms, Chinese cabbage, prawns and meat balls in my fridge… Great… We have a balanced diet!!!…

Cost/serving: RM 2.80

Potato and Leek Soup with Parmesan Garlic Croutons

2009-07-29T00:53:00.001+08:00

What do you want for lunch?… “Something soupy”… That’s my standard answer to Sir Eat Alot every time he asked about my preference… More often than not, I will crave something soupy… Noodle soup, herbal soup, chicken soup, minestrone etc… You name it I’ll eat it… There’s something about the hot spoonfuls of soup that is so appetizing and satisfying…

Potatoes make really good soup… Potato soup is the perfect comfort food and makes a delicious compliment to any gourmet meal or served as the main dish… Sometimes, potatoes are added in a recipe and blended to thicken the soup…

Some people dislike the taste of leek… In this soup however, the leek taste is somewhat subtle… I used starchy Russet potatoes in this recipe… If you like, you can fry some bacon and crumble as topping for the soup instead of croutons…

The following recipe serves 4 hungry people and 6 as starters:

Potato and Leek Soup

Ingredients:

2 leek, cleaned, sliced (use white part only)

1 white onion, chopped

2 large Russet potatoes (about 160g), cubed

2-3 tblsp butter

1 tblsp olive oil (to prevent butter from burning)

1 tsp dried basil leaves

1200ml chicken or vegetable stock or water

salt and black pepper to taste

whipping cream

chopped parsley for garnishing

chicken stock granules ( optional)

Method:

Melt butter and olive oil in a heavy-based pot over medium fire. Sweat onions and leek for 5 mins. Add basil and potato and cook another 5 mins.

Add in stock/water, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer for another 30 mins until potatoes are soft.

Blend the soup in a blender, return to pot and bring to a boil. Season with salt and black pepper. Serve in a bowl and drizzle a tblsp of cream and sprinkle some croutons on top.

Note: For a richer taste, you can add more cream and/or milk into the soup. Chicken granules will make the soup taste better if you’re using water. I'm quite a health freak and I maintain a MSG- and chicken granules-free kitchen…

Parmesan Garlic Croutons

Cut 4 slices of thick French bread (or any bread that you have) into 1/2 inch cubes. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a pan. Remove from heat and stir in 3 tblsp parmesan and 1/8 tsp garlic powder (I used finely minced garlic). Add in bread cubes and stir until cubes are coated with butter mixture.

Spread cubes in a shallow baking pan and bake in the oven at 150 degrees C for 10 mins. Cool before use. Keeps for a week in an airtight container. Makes about 16 servings.

Cost/Serving: RM 1.50 (4-pax recipe), RM 1 (6-pax recipe)

BBQ Delights @ Lemon Garden Shangri-la Kuala Lumpur

2009-07-28T01:00:00.001+08:00

As Miss Cook Alot has been cooking up a storm at home for the past week, I decided to give her a break on Saturday and head over to the Lemon Garden to try their BBQ Buffet!!!

Here are some of the highlights of the dinner…

As you can probably tell from the pictures, we had a lot to eat on Saturday night and we left the restaurant with smiles on our faces even though the price per head was $128.00 ++… It was primarily because everything we sampled was either good or it was fantastic, nothing disappointed… Miss Cook Alot and I are definitely going there again!!!

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Creamy Bolognese Sauce

2009-07-27T00:08:00.001+08:00

Tired of making pastas or risottos?… Why not try some gnocchi… Gnocchi (pronounced as “nyoh-kee” or dumplings) are versatile and goes well with different sauces… Every country has their own version of dumplings… Gnocchi can look intimidating to make… but with a little practice, the results can be really rewarding… The light, chewy texture of gnocchi are so good that they spell glutton in every way you cook it…

Why call the blog dumplings united without some dumplings action going on right?… The most common gnocchi is made of potato… For those of you out there who like a different variation, you can try substituting the popular potato version with baked pumpkin next time… It gives a nice hint of sweetness to the dumplings… I made some pumpkin gnocchi the other day with extra to freeze… I tossed them in a Bolognese sauce (I always have frozen sauces in the freezer), a hint of cream and parmesan cheese… They are filling but addictive!!!…

Next time I make gnocchi, I’ll try a spinach, ricotta or sweet potato version… The ingredients are inexpensive and a plate of gnocchi @ an Italian restaurant would easily cost RM 15-20 or more!!!…

Cost/serving: RM 3.90

Spicy Braised Pork Ribs

2009-07-26T01:19:00.001+08:00

After a few days of having noodles (lunch) and pasta (dinner), the Chinese in me is craving some rice today… Well, since I have a little more time to cook dinner today and I decided to go Chinese-style with some braised saucy spare ribs and stir-fried choy sum with brown rice… I love cooking ribs and there’re 101 ways to cook ‘em… The best ‘Chinese-restaurant-style’ ribs are normally marinated, fried and then coated with some sort of sauce… I prefer to skip the frying step and just braise ‘em until tender as I hate the cleaning up afterwards… Besides, it’s healthier too!!! :)

When I bought my ribs, they were meant for western-style BBQ as I asked the butcher to cut the ribs into ~ 7cm pieces… but who cares… Sir Eat Alot wouldn’t mind the size… I added some brandy to make it more yummy…

Ingredients:

800g spare ribs, cut into 4cm pieces

6 cloves garlic

10 dried chillies, soaked and seeded

1 tblsp fermented soya bean paste

3 tblsp oil

250ml water

Sauce:

1 1/2 tblsp plum sauce

1 tblsp tomato sauce

1 tsp sugar

1 1/2 tblsp soya sauce

1 tblsp brandy (optional)

Grind garlic and dried chillies with a pestle and mortar. Heat oil in wok and fry ground ingredients with soya bean paste under medium fire until fragrant.

Add spare ribs and mix well. Cover wok and cook for 5 mins. Then, add water, cover wok and simmer ribs under very low heat until tender (about 30 mins).

Add sauce and simmer until gravy becomes thick (about 15 mins). Serve immediately.

Serves 6.

Cost/serving: RM 4.30

Penne with Italian Sausage and Spinach in Creamy Sauce

2009-07-23T21:35:00.001+08:00

Sir Eat Alot loves his pasta… So I’m always experimenting new ways of cooking up a wonderful concoction of different ingredients… I still have not replenished my fridge yet, so there’s only one place to look for inspiration… the FREEZER!!! As I was going through my freezer, the Italian sausages I bought from Mr Ho’s fine foods caught my eye… Hmm… I’m sure I can whip up something quick with the leftover cream I have before I left for the short holiday… That’s the thing I hate about dairy products… I never get to finish ‘em up before the expiry date… The cream label says that it can be kept for up to 7 days in the fridge… so it’s still good… at least for today!!!

Now that I’ve got the carbs and meat… I need some veggie to complete the meal… So, I thawed some frozen spinach and blanched them quickly in hot water… Here’s what I did to create the dish above for 2:

Sauté 1/2 a white onion and a chopped chili (for colour) with some butter in a saucepan.
Remove sausage meat from its casing, crumble and add into the pan. Sauté for a few mins, then deglaze with some chicken stock.
Let the sauce evaporate a bit and then add 50ml cream and the blanched spinach.
Add in cooked penne (al dente) and toss with the sauce. Add in 2-3 tblsp parmesan cheese and sauté for 1 min. Serve with extra grated parmesan cheese and cracked black pepper.

Voila!!! Dinner is served…

Cost/Serving: RM4.80

Hearty Shrimp Pasta

2009-07-22T19:05:00.000+08:00

Time to cook dinner!!! I just came back from Taiwan last week and have yet to replenish my kitchen supplies… So I've decided to make something really simple… What shall I make tonight??? Going through the freezer, I found some frozen shrimps that I bought @ Jusco the other day… Just nice for 2 portions… I always have a packet or 2 of dried pasta in my pantry… Well… shrimps, pasta and no other ingredients?…. Sounds like a quick and delicious pasta with garlic, olive oil, parsley, black olives and some crushed pepper… Yummy!!!

Cost/Serving: RM 3.70

Welcome!!! Welcome!!!

2009-07-21T23:28:00.000+08:00

Hello and welcome!!! This is my first foray into a food-blog and its gonna be primarily about the meals prepared and eaten at home (for mostly RM 5 or less per head) as well as the occasional splurge when eating out!!! Hope the posts tickle your tastebuds and you drool all over your keyboard!!! Ta ta for now!!!