1st attempt at Sweet & Sour Chicken

Haven't really tried it before I think.... can't really recall. Anyways, this was my improvised version of Sweet & Sour Chicken.

Ingredients:

1/2 Chicken - cut up to bite size pieces

1/2 Red capsicum

1/2 Green capsicum

1 Large Onion

Marinade:

1 Egg

2 Tsp Salt

2 Tsp Xiao Shing Wine

Sprinkle of pepper & sesame oil

Sauce:

5 Tbsp Tomato Ketchup

2 Tbsp Plum Sauce (actually suppose to use Oyster Sauce, salty enough to even out the sourness of tomato ketchup)

1 Tsp Sugar

2 Tsp Salt (since didn't use Oyster Sauce)

Method:

1. Marinade bite sized chicken and keep refridgerated for 2 hours minimum.

2. Heat up 1 cup of oil in frying pan / wok in medium high fire. Fry the marinated chicken till golden brown or just right. Lower the fire if the pan / wok starts to "smoke up" too much. It's an indication your oil/pan is too hot already. Put aside fried chicken

3. Remove access oil and leave about 3 Tbsp of oil behind to stir fry the onions & capsicums. Add water till it just about covers the onions & capsicum. Leave it to boil a bit to cook them. When it's just about right, colour of the onion & capsicum still bright add in the sauce. Taste the sauce to your liking and then add the fried chicken bites. Stir in the sauce to the chicken & it'll be ready to be dished out.

Other dishes to compliment the Sweet & Sour Chicken are as follows:-

Stir Fried Cabbage with Tau Kee (Fried Beancurt skin with fish paste)KIV - name of leafy veggie unknown during press time ;pFried Selar Fish

Dinner for 6

Dinner for 6

That's the preparation bit. There is 1 dish which was cooked last nite by my MIL.. the Tau Fu. It'll be served as a slightly new dish for tonite's dinner. ;)

Menu:

1. Stir Fry Chi Kang Bak Choi

Ingredients:-

600g Chi Kang Bak Choi (literally "Spoon shaped Bak Choi")
3 cloves Garlic - sliced

2 Tbps Kei Zhi - soaked in abit of water

1 Tsp Salt

1 Cup Water

Method:

1. Wash clean & cut off the end bits of the Chi Kang Bak Choi. Throw away any old leaves. After that, keep them soaked in water until ready to be cooked. This will retain it's "freshness"

2. Heat your wok with 2 Tbsp oil. Stir fry the sliced garlic, add in the soaked Kei Zhi with the water it was soaked in (enhances the sweetness), Chi Kang Bak Choi and the 2 cups of water.

3. Leave to boil abit & stir it. It's ready to be served.

2. Stir Fry French Beans

Ingredients:

600g French Beans

2 Tbsp Har Mai (Dried Shrimp)
2 Tbsp Garlic - chopped
4 Tbsp Oil

Salt to taste

2 Tbsp Carrot - shredded

Method:

1. Wash & break the French Beans into 1 or 2 inch in length. Soak the Har Mai to soften them and then chopped finely.

2. Heat your wok with oil. Stir fry the chopped garlic & chopped har mai together. Then add the salt. Lastly throw in the French Beans. Keep stir frying and periodically add water when wok gets too dry & before the beans are cooked. Last add the shredded carrots for colour.

For this dish, you may want to alternate the carrots with fish cake or even prawns for some variety.

3. Fried Fish in Soya Sauce Classic

Ingredients:

1 or 2 slices "Mar Yau" Fish (am not sure what it's called in English - will update)2 Tbsp Ginger - shredded

1 Tbsp Garlic - chopped

3 - 4 Tbsp Light Soya Sauce

1 Cup Oil

Method:

1. Wash & rub salt on the fish and keep it refridgerated until ready to cook.

2. Heat wok with 1 cup oil. Wait till the oil is hot (got slight smoke coming out from the wok). Then add 2 tsp of corn flour into the hot oil ~ this prevents the fish from getting stuck to the wok while frying.

3. Add your fish into the hot oil. Deep fry until golden brown on each side. To check if the fish flesh is cooked, poke it with a knife. If it's not cooked, the flesh would still be tough. Once cooked, keep aside.

4. Remove most of the oil & leave about 1 Tbsp of oil behind. Add the shredded ginger & chopped garlic. Fry till just brown, off the fire & add light soya sauce. Mix it around and dish it unto the Fried Fish.

4. Pork Ribs in Special Sauce

Ingredients:
600g Pork Ribs

Marinade:
1 Egg
1 Tsp Light Soya Sauce
1 Tsp MSG
2 Tsp Meat Curry Powder
1 Tsp Pepper

Sauce:
4 Tbsp Tomato Ketchup
4 Tbsp Chilli Sauce
1 Tbsp Xiao Shing Wine
2 Tbsp Lee Perrins Sauce
2 Tbsp Teriyaki Marinade Sauce
2 Tbsp Oyster Sauce
1 Tsp Dark/Sweet Soya Sauce
1 Tsp Sugar (if like)

Method:
1. Wash pork ribs and add in the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or longer.

2. Heat your frying pan with just enough oil for deep frying. I personally prefer to use a non-stick for this. Keep the flames at medium heat. Once the oil is hot enough, start to deep fry your pork ribs. Put them aside.

3. Remove the access oil from frying pan. Pour in your sauce mix & heat it up. Taste it to your liking ie salty enough or not. Then add the fried pork ribs & just stir it into the sauce.

Ready to be served. ~ this seems to be a favourite base on feedback of Inlaws :p

5. Fried Tau Fu (extra dish from yesterday)
6. White & Red Radish Soup (left overs)

No time is Bee Hoon time

I was out working since the morning overseeing some cleaners hired to clean out the place before passing keys to tenants this weekend. In between I did grocery shopping at the nearby Giant Hypermarket & realised veggies were very cheap there& fresh too! Some green leafy veg where selling at RM0.49 a bunch. Mind you the bunch is small but enough to feed 2 pax I think.

So while everything has gone up in price, at least some bare necessities can still be very cheap.

In between, I also did other errands like fetching my son from Nursery & sending him home, go post office to get my petrol rebate, buy some DIY stuff etc.

By the time the cleaners where done, it was 5.30pm! I hadn't seen much of the kids the whole day. Rushed home and had to prepare dinner for the family too! What to cook? Why Fried Been Hoon (vermicelli) of course!

I forgot to take photo ( too tired ). The success of frying Bee Hoon is the actual Bee Hoon quality. Will share with you another day when I remember what Brand it was.

There are many variations to Fried Bee Hoon. Really depends how you like yours. This is the common standard Fried Bee Hoon in my MIL's hse.

Ingredients :
4 bunch Bee Hoon (soak in water to soften it at least for 2 hours)
1/4 Cabbage (cut to desired size~ some like them in chucks, some in shreds)
1/4 Dried Sotong "Cuttlefish" (soaked & cut to tiny pieces)
2 Tbsp Har Mai "Dried shirmps" (soaked & chopped)
2 Tbsp Garlic minced
8 medium size Prawns (chopped into bite bits)
4 pieces Dried / Fresh Shitake Mushrooms

Seasoning:
1 Tbsp Dark Soya Sauce
2 Tbsp Fish Sauce
1/2 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Salt

3 cups Water
3 Tbsp Oil

Method :
1. Heat oil in wok and fry the garlic, har mai, dried sotong, prawns and then add your cabbage.
2. While frying, add 3 cups of water. Allow it to boil a bit with all the ingredients.
3. Next add the seasoning and keep stirring. Then add your Bee Hoon. Fry it abit and then allow it to boil a bit (cover the wok).
4. Use chopsticks to try to untangle the Bee Hoon and by this time, the water would have already been soaked up by the Bee Hoon.

Garnishing:
Fry plain omelet and slice thinly. Place them at the top of your Fried Been Hoon.

Ready to serve.