Fig Jam (无花果果酱)

Ingredients

8 cups figs - washed and stems trimmed

4 cups sugar

juice of 1 lemon - optional

rind of 1 lemon - optional

Steamed Chicken with Squash

Ingredients

300g chicken drumsticks or thigh (cut into bite-sized pcs)
1 bowl squash (cut into bite-sized pcs)
1 chinese sausage  - sliced thinly
2 dried shitake mushrooms -soaked drained and quartered
1 tbsp yellow wine
cornstarch solution

Curry Chicken Drumstick with Basil

Ingredients

5 chicken drumsticks
3 red chillies 
1/2 white onion - diced
1 tsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp minced ginger
1-1/2 tbsp thai red curry paste
2 tbsp diced tomatoes
1 tsp mustard seeds
handful of sweet basil
1 cup coconut milk
2 tbsp cooking oil
salt to taste

Chicken Pot Stickers (锅贴)

Ingredients

1 packet of potsticker skins - defrost at room temperature before use
1 lb ground chicken meat
10 medium-sized shrimp - peeled, deveined and chopped
1 cup chopped napa cabbage
3 stalks green onion - chopped
1/2 tsp grated ginger 
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp rice wine
2 tbsp soy sauce
dash of white pepper
1/2 tsp sugar
pinch of salt
1 tsp cornstarch 

Yam Paste Dessert (Or Nee)

Ingredients

1 medium-sized yam (peeled and sliced)
4-6 tbsp sugar (adjust accordingly to preference)
pinch of salt
2 shallots - sliced 
4 tbsp oil 
1/2 cup water (adjust accordingly)
1 - 2 cups coconut milk
handful of gingko nuts (cooked and lightly sweetened)

Steamed Mui Choy with Pork Belly (梅菜扣肉)

Ingredients

500g pork belly
150g preserved dried vegetables (mei cai gan)
2 slices ginger
3 cloves garlic - smashed
2 stalks green onion 
1 small pc cinnamon stick
1 star anise
1 tbsp soy sauce 
cooking oil

Singapore Fried Hokkien Mee

2 servings

Ingredients

250g fresh yellow noodle (i used spaghetti noodles)
250g fresh thick rice vermicelli (i used packet ones)

10 medium-sized prawns - cleaned and remove shell, leave tail intact

3 pieces of squid - cleaned and cut into rings

1 piece fish cake - sliced
1 piece pork belly - blanched
2 large eggs

3 cloves garlic - chopped

2 stalk green onion or chives - cut into 3cm length

3 -4 cups stock (i used mixture of chicken + prawn stock)

1- 2 tbsp cooking oil

Barbecued Stingray

 

This recipe is adapted from here

Ingredients

1 lb stingray (mine is bought in chopped pieces)

1-1/2 tsp palm sugar or dark brown sugar

salt to taste

juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tbsp tamarind paste

1 cup warm water

large piece of banana leave or aluminium foil - cut into pieces for individual wrapping

toothpicks - soaked in water (depend on how packages you have)

3-4 fresh kalamansi limes - cut into wedges

1 onion - sliced, for garnish - optional

a few sprigs fresh coriander leaves (cilantro), for garnish - optional

Achar

Ingredients

2 cucumbers - unpeeled, cored and cut into strips
1 carrot - peeled and cut into strips
1 cup pineapple chunks (i used canned ones)
1 fresh red chili - remove seeds and cut into strips
1 cup white vinegar
2 - 3 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1-1/2 tbsp sambal belachan

Braised Pork Ribs with Potatoes and Carrots

 

Ingredients

1 lb pork ribs - blanched

2 medium-sized potatoes - peeled and cut into large cubes

1 large carrot - peeled and cut into large cubes

2 slices ginger

2 cloves garlic - smashed

1 small piece cinnamon stick

2 star anise

handful of sweet basil leaves 

1 cup water

1 1/2 tbsp cooking oil

Creamy Leek Potato Soup

 

Ingredients

2 leeks (white and pale green parts) - sliced thinly

3 medium-sized potatoes - peeled and sliced thinly

1 yellow onion - peeled and sliced 

2 cloves garlic - peeled and minced

3 - 4 cups vegetable stock

1 tsp olive oil

1 tbsp butter

2 - 3 tbsp half and half

pinch of red chili flakes

salt and pepper to taste

Barbecued Tandoori Chicken

recipe adapted from Weber 

 Ingredients

7 pieces chicken drumstick
1/8 saffron powder or 1/4 tsp saffron thread (cut thread into tiny pieces)
2 tbsp boiling water
250ml plain yogurt
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp paprika
2 tbsp grated ginger
3 cloves garlic - minced
1 jalepeno chilli - seeded and finely chopped
1 tsp roasted ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp curry powder
1 tsp cayenne
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp chilli powder

Steamed Pumpkin Kueh with Minced Meat

The idea of these pumpkin kueh came from this blog. I adapted the recipe to my own ingredients.  It was such a clever idea to use cloves to act as the stalk.  It added a special taste and aroma to the kueh.  The banana leaves also released an aromatic smell while steaming.

Ingredients

For Dough

280g pumpkin - peeled, sliced thinly, steamed and mashed

1 carrot - peeled, sliced thinly, steamed and mashed - optional

200g to 300g glutinous rice flour

Grilled Chicken Satay Singapore Style

Ingredients

1 lb chicken drumsticks or thigh (deboned) - cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 cup coconut milk
bamboo skewers - soaked in water for 30 minutes or more

Fried Carrot Cake Black Version (菜头粿)

Hubby and I have always wanted to try out this popular hawker delight.  He got the chance finally and made two versions, the white version and the black version.  I followed the Rasa Malaysia method of steaming the radish first before frying and adapted its recipe to my own taste.  The following ingredients are good for 4 servings.  Here is the black version.

Ingredients for steaming
for 4 servings
1 medium-sized radish/daikon (about 550g grated) + 50ml water
220g rice flour
280g ml water
pinch of salt

Fried Carrot Cake White Version (菜头粿)

Hubby and I have wanted to try out this dish.  He got the chance finally and made two versions, the white version and the black version.  I followed the Rasa Malaysia method of steaming the radish first before frying and adapted its recipe to my own taste.  The following ingredients are good for 4 servings.  Here goes the white version.

Ingredients for steaming
for 4 servings
1 medium-sized radish/daikon (about 550g grated) + 50ml water
220g rice flour
280g ml water
pinch of salt

South Indian Vegetable Curry

An adaption of cooking indian style vegetable curry with some chinese style ingredients :)

Ingredients

3 tbsp oil

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 yellow onion - sliced

2 shallots - sliced

1 tsp minced ginger

dash of paprika

2 carrots - cut into cubes

1 potato - cut into cubes

1 wedge of pumpkin - cut into cubes

1 bowl of cabbage - cut into pieces

handful of dried bean curd (tau kee)

1 small green bell pepper - cut into cubes

2 green chilies (i use red chili)

some toasted cashew nuts

2 cups coconut milk

salt to taste

Pan Fried Tofu with Shitake Mushroom

Ingredients
1 block fresh tofu (3/4 portion used) - cut into rectangular pieces and pat dry
8 fresh shitake mushroom - cut into small pieces
2 tbsp minced meat
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp chopped garlic
salt and pepper to taste
dash of sesame oil
1- 2  tbsp cooking oil

Grilled Salmon with Basil

Ingredients
1 piece 8oz salmon fillet
dash of paprika
sprinkle of sea salt
dash of pepper
handful of fresh sweet basil - chopped
1 tsp vegetable oil

Burdock Root Soup (牛蒡汤)

Ingredients
3 pieces of pork rib - blanched
3 pieces of burdock root - peeled and cut into thick long pieces
2 carrots - cut into thick long pieces
15 chinese red dates
2 slices ginger
2 tbsp wolfberries
4 bowls of water
salt to taste

Italian Plum Jam

a basket full of beautiful organic plums

these plums are super sweet and juicy

8 cups of chopped plums can be cooked at one time in my pot

the jam turning into a beautiful magenta colour

cooked jam ready to be ladled into jars

enjoying the luscious spread on my bagel

our supply for the next half year :)

Thanks to our neighours, Jonathan, Deborah and Leo who generously gave us their wonderful crop of sweet juicy plums.  It was quite a bit of work making these home-made jam, but definitely very satisfying and rewarding and we look forward to enjoying our jam every morning.

Ingredients

8 cups italian plums, washed and pitted

4 cups sugar

juice of 1 lemon

rind of 1 lemon

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Grilled Chicken with BBQ sauce

Ingredients

Half chicken

dash of garlic powder

dash  of paprika

dash of pepper

BBQ sauce

Fen Si Gua (粉丝瓜)

Thanks to our friends, Peter and Queenie who gave us this very large organic melon grown in their garden.  It is the first time we have seen this kind of melon known as "fen si gua" aka "vermicelli melon". The inner part looks like a winter melon but when it is cooked, it releases "vermicelli-like" fibre which makes this dish tasty.


Ingredients
1/5 of a large fen si gua
3 dried shitake mushrooms - soaked, drained and cut into strips
2 tbsp dried prawns - washed and drained
1 red chili - cut into strips
2 cloves garlic - chopped
2 slices ginger
salt and pepper to taste
dash of sesame oil
1 tbsp cooking oil
1/4 cup water

Pan Fried Chicken Drumstick with Garlic (脆皮蒜油鸡)

Ingredients

3 boneless chicken drumstick

4 cloves garlic - chopped

2 stalk green onion - cut into small pieces

2 red chillies - cut into small pieces

1 tbsp sesame oil

cooking oil

some flour for coating

salt and pepper to taste

Pan Fried Saba Mackerel

This is an easy dish to cook, yet it is so appetizing!  Moist tender flesh on the inside and golden crispy skin on the outside.

Ingredients
1 whole saba mackerel (already cleaned and cut into halves)
salt and pepper to taste
flour for coating
1 tbsp cooking oil

Claypot Egg Tofu with Minced Meat

Ingredients
1 tube egg tofu - cut into pieces about 2cm thick
150g minced meat
12 fresh shitake mushroom
1 small bunch broccoli - cut into florets
1 carrot - peeled and sliced thinly
1 fresh red chili - cut into small pieces
2 slices ginger
2 shallot - chopped
2 cloves garlic - chopped
1/2 cup water
cooking oil for frying

Black Cod Misozuke (Black cod in miso marinade)

Ingredients
1 lb black cod steak, fillet or collar
Marinade sauce