Mango Panna Cotta

Ingredients:

For Cream Layer:

1 can Nestle Thick Cream
500 ml Fresh Milk
1 tablespoon Fine Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
2 tablespoon Agar Agar strands

For Mango Layer:

2 large fresh sweet mangoes
3 tablespoons of fine sugar
2 tablespoon of Agar Agar strands

Method:

Soak the Agar Agar strands in cold water for 15 minutes.
Depending on which layer you wish to start, the cream or the mango layer following are the instructions.

I started with the Mango layer because my intention is to fill the glasses with more mango puree.

For the Mango Layer:

Prepare the mango puree by grinding the mango pulp to a smooth puree or you can also use canned mango puree for this recipe.
Add the mango puree in sauce pan and bring it to gentle boil on a low flame.
Add fine sugar according to your taste and simmer till the sugar is completely dissolved.
Switch off the flame.
While the mango puree is cooling, prepare the agar agar mixture.
In another small pot, add the agar agar strands with some water.
Over a low flame boil the agar agar until completely dissolved and becomes transparent without any lumps. Turn off the heat. Set aside.
Pour the mango puree into a tall glasses, serving bowls or jars till they are filled half way or more of your choice.
Cover the top with a cling film.
Leave it to refrigerate for at least an hour to set.

For the Cream Layer:

In a small pot, add milk and cream and bring to a boil on a low fire.
Mix in the fine sugar and let it simmer till the sugar dissolved completely.
Turn off the heat.
Keep it aside to cool.
Now add the agar agar mixture with the vanilla essence and whisk them well.
Take out the set mango layer and now pour in the cream layer.
Put back the cling film and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to set well.

You can add some small slices of fresh mango on top of the Panna Cotta before serving.

Now you can enjoy the creamy goodness of Mango Panna Cotta.

Simplified Toufu Meatball Soup

Ingredients:

Half Kilo fresh prawns

Quarter kilo of minced pork

1 tube of Egg Toufu

1 round Chinese Cabbage

4 bowls of homemade chicken broth

Seasoning:

1 teaspoon of sea salt

2 tablespoons of Superior Light Soy Sauce

Dash of grounded pepper

1 egg white beaten

Method:

Remove the shells and heads from the prawns.

Chopped the prawns to mince.

(I prefer not to use the blender)

In a mixing bowl, add the minced pork and prawns and egg toufu together with the seasoning.

Grease your hands and roll the mixture into walnut sized balls.

Place the meatballs on a plate.

In a pot, add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.

Add the meatballs into the boiling pot of soup.

Cut the round Chinese cabbages into medium sizes, wash and add the vegetable into the pot together with the meatballs.

Cook on a low boil until the meatballs float to the surface. Simmer for about 10 minutes.

Turn off the heat.

Reheat the soup before serving.

Garnish with some cilantro leaves.

Notes:

This is a simplified version of toufu meatball soup.

Another version is to use the prawn shells as the soup base.

Recommendation:

Here’s another soup recipe.

https://flofoodventure.wordpress.com/2014/08/06/prawn-meat-balls-with-winter-melon-soup/

All the goodness in a bowl of “Lychee Boat” Porridge from Imperial Nan Bei Restaurant

Recovering from flu I decided to opt for something light and nothing would make my day better than a bowl of hot “Ting Zai Zhou” also known as “Lychee Boat Congee” from Imperial Nan Bei Restaurant, Tampines.

There are a wide range of Cantonese congee but the most popular congee is the Hongkong Boat Congee.

Imperial Treasure Nan Bei Restaurant Lychee Boat Congee consisted of many fresh ingredients added to make this congee special. Ingredients such as thinly shredded cuttlefish, fried peanuts, shredded pork, pork skin, fish slices, jellyfish, fish maw slices, thinly shredded chicken meat and doughnut stick strips.

The rice is boiled for several hours until the rice grains breaks down into a very smooth watery gruel.

Imperial Nan Bei Ting Zai Zhou still serve the best Lychee Boat Congee. The taste is flavorful with all the sweetness of the various types of ingredients added to this smooth addictive porridge leaving a lingering taste in my mouth.

Priced at S$6.80 for this take-away.

A traditional Cantonese dish from Guangzhou where fishermen used to sell this porridge in their small dedicated boats.

Currently, there is a new itinerary for visitors touring Guangzhou, China which includes “Guangzhou Lychee Boat Tour with Congee”.

Tim Sum Style Chicken Feet for the Soul

Ingredients:

15 pieces of raw chicken feet
4 pieces of Star anise
1 tablespoon of coarse sugar
2 tablespoon of Premium Oyster Sauce
3 fresh red chillies (diced)
2 tablespoon of minced ginger
2 tablespoon of Superior Dark Soy Sauce
1 teaspoon of Chee Seng 100% White Sesame Oil

Method:

Wash the chicken feet and chop off the claws, then deep-fry until golden brown.
Dish out and drain on paper towel.
Then plunged the deep fried chicken feet into iced water for 2 hours or until “puffed up”.

Heat saucepan, add minced ginger till fragrant.
Place the cleaned chicken feet together with the sugar, star anise, oyster sauce and dark soy sauce and thoroughly mixed well.
When the chicken feet are well coated with the sauce, add homemade chicken broth and stir well.
Bring it to a boil again, then reduce the heat and simmer for an hour.
As it cooked, the sauce will thicken, if you wish to dilute the gravy just add more homemade chicken broth.
Once the chicken feet are tender. Turn off the heat and reheat before serving.
Garnish with cilantro leaves and sprinkle more fresh diced red chillies.

Notes:

Chicken feet are enjoyed in some regions of the world as a culinary delicacy.
Gleaming portion of the chicken feet.
Finger licking enticing food.
Thus slimy taste of the skin just melts in your mouth.
The correct way is to firstly eat the skin off and then suck the bone after.

First Attempt on Roti Jala (aka Net Pancake) with Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cups All Purpose Flour
1 ½ cup of full cream milk
Half cup of water
1 beaten egg
Half teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon of unsalted butter to grease the pancake pan

Method:

Sieve flour and set aside.
In a metal mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and strain the batter.
Add half tablespoon of cooking oil and set aside.
Heat the pancake pan with medium heat and grease it with some unsalted butter.
Pour some batter into the mold and transfer the mold to the pancake pan.
As the batter flows through the holes of the mold, make circular rounds around the pancake pan to form netty patterns.
After the top is set and done or when the bottom turns light brown, transfer the Roti Jala or Net Pancake from the pan into a plate and fold it into triangle shape.
Arrange a few pieces of the Roti Jala on a serving plate and compliment with homemade chicken curry.
To be served immediately.

For Curry Chicken Recipe:

Click: https://flofoodventure.wordpress.com/2013/10/16/nyonya-curry-chicken-jpg/

Steamed Garlic Fish Meat Balls

Ingredients:

300gm of fish paste
2 fresh red chillies (diced)
4 tablespoons of minced garlic
Few stalks of spring onion (chopped)
1 tablespoon potato starch

Method:

Prepare the fish paste by adding all the ingredients and condiments above.
The potato starch acts as a filler.
With a wet spoon, spoon about one tablespoon onto your wet palm and mould the fish paste into a loose ball.
Place each ball on the metal plate and steam on high heat until cooked.
Should take approximately ten to fifteen minutes depending on the size of your fish ball.

Serve with plum sauce or sweet chilli sauce.

Nyonya Curry Chicken – Signature Dish

For recipe click:

https://flofoodventure.wordpress.com/2013/10/16/nyonya-curry-chicken-jpg/

Pig Tail and Pork Ribs with Black Beans Soup

Ingredients:

2 pieces of pig tail with some ribs chopped
Six pieces of large seeded red dates
1 tablespoon of dried scallops
Few slices of ginger
1 packet of black beans
4 bowls of water
1 tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine (Hua Tiao Chiew)
Salt to taste

Pig Tail Ingredients

Method:

Wash pork ribs and tail pieces, scald them in a pot of boiling water to remove scum.
Drain, rinse in running water and set aside.
Bring to boil in an earthen pot 4 bowls of water.
Add in the seeded red dates, scallops, slices of ginger together with the chopped pig tails and pork ribs.

Boil the ingredients over medium heat for about 2 hours till all the meat are tender.

Before turning off the heat, add one tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine.
Add salt to taste.
Turn off the heat.
Reheat before serving.

Recommendation:

Here are some recipes for Pig Trotters.

https://flofoodventure.wordpress.com/category/pig-trotters-recipe/

Egg Tofu with Minced Pork

Ingredients:

2 tubes egg tofu sliced
2 rice bowls of fresh minced pork
1 rice bowl of home made chicken stock
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
Few stalks of chopped spring onions
1 tablespoon of wolfberries (soaked for 5 minutes)

Method:

In a porcelain claypot, add oil with one tablespoon of cooking oil.
Under medium heat, fry the minced garlic until fragrant.
Add the minced pork and fry until the pork turns pink.
Add the sliced egg toufu and wolfberries over the pork and include one rice bowl of homemade chicken stock.
When the bubbles appeared in the claypot, turn off the heat.
Serve with chopped spring onions.

Simple to cook and nutritious

Smoked Duck with Lychee Salad

 

Ingredients:

1 piece frozen smoked duck breast

(usual packaging there are two pieces of duck breast in each box)

Half box of Cherry tomatoes

Any type of greens.

One yellow and one red Capsicum (sliced thinly)

Seasonal fresh lychees/longans  or a canned lychee/longans  with syrup

Method:

Defrozed the smoked duck breast.

Panfry over low heat the whole piece of smoked duck breast for 8 to 10 minutes.

Leave it to cool and cut them into slices.

Prepare a big mixing bowl and add in all the ingredients for the salad.

Add the sliced cooked smoked duck meat and toss well.

You can add you own salad dressing including mango puree topping.

Another idea is to add some fresh seasonal lychees or canned lychee together with the syrup for a sweeter flavour.

Note:

There is no hard and fast rules about preparing salad. The choice is up to you.