Tag Archives: food

Chicken, Vegetable & Vermicelli Stir-fry

When I don’t have enough time to think what to cook, stir-fry will be my first choice. All I need is to put some vegetables and meat and stir fry them.

1. Soak vermicelli in water for 3-5 mins or till it becomes completely soft and transparent. Cut shorter with scissors. And drain.

2. Cut boneless chicken leg into small pieces. You can also use chicken breast. Place chicken pieces in a bowl, add in 2-3 chopped garlic cloves, 1 tsp chopped ginger, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 2 tsp cooking wine and 1-2 tablespoon corn starch. Mix well and marinate for 10-15 mins.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the pan. Fry chicken till brown. Then set aside for later use.

4. Heat pan again. Add in a little extra oil if needed. Stir fry carrot slices first for 2 mins. Then add in cabbage, vermicelli and chicken. Stir fry for another 2-3 mins.

5. Add in 1 tsp light soy sauce, 1 tsp oyster sauce and 1 tablespoon water. Simmer for 1 min.

6. Season with salt and ready to serve.

Clams & Tofu Soup

A very nice and easy soup.

1. Wash clams clean in water.

2. Place clams in a pot. Add in ginger slices and a little salt and water. Boil till all the shells open. Skim the stock. Take all the clams out in a bowl. And set stock aside.

3. Cut bacon into small pieces. Heat a pan. Stir fry bacon till aromatic.

4. Pour the stock in. Bring boil.

5. Add in tofu chunks. Boil for 3-5 mins, depending on the size of tofu.

6. Add the clams in. Bring to boil again. Season with salt.

Serve hot.

Top with chopped spring onion.

Oyster Sauced Tofu

I still remember when I was very little, my family still lived in our first home. We moved several times after that one. At that time, there is a roasted goose shop (if I remember correctly) across the street. My father was very busy and he’s on business trip almost everyday. I could only see him when it’s Chinese New Year or less than 10 days in a year probably. Cos my memory about him was almost blank before I went to primary school (not because I was too little. I still keep the memory about other people, so…..) Later, he didn’t have to travel around to do business. He stayed in my hometown and opened a small factory. My mom became busy too. They worked together to run that factory.

I grew up with my sister. That’s why my sister and I are very close.

According to my vague memory, my father or mother used to cook tofu for us as breakfast when they had time and not rush to work. At that time, tofu sellers rode their bikes and went through the streets to sell their hot and freshly-made tofu. My parents would buy a small piece. Cut it into slices. Fry a bit with green chili. Season with salt. And that’s our very simple breakfast. Well, that’s the story came to my mind when I see tofu.

Back to my dish. Tofu is a very convenient food. It can be steamed, fried, boiled and roasted. This is a very simple dish to cook.

1. Cut tofu into medium slices. Fry them with a little oil in the pan till golden brown on both sides. After frying, tofu will be more hard and not easy to be broken during cook.

2. Heat the pan again. SautΓ© a little chopped garlic and ginger till aromatic.

3. Add in black fungus, stir fry for 2 mins.

4. Add in 1/2 tablespoon light soy sauce, 1/2 tablespoon oyster sauce and 1 tablespoon water. Stir well.

5. Put fried tofu back in the pan. Simmer for 2 mins. Let the flavor in.

6. Reduce the sauce with high heat. Add in a little chopped green chili. Fry a bit.

7. Add in a little corn starch water. Stir fry evenly. Season with salt if you need.

Serve hot.

Kimchi Fried Rice

Ingredients

2 tablespoon chopped kimchi

1 tablespoon kimchi juice

1 cup leftover rice

1 chopped sauce

1 tsp Korean chili paste

Chopped spring onion

1 tablespoon water

Salt

Oil

1. Add 1 tablespoon kimchi juice into leftover rice. Stir a bit with chopsticks to separate rice grains.

2. Heat a little oil in the pan. Add in sausage dice. Stir fry till a bit brownish.

3. Add in chopped kimchi. Stir fry till aromatic.

4. Add in all the leftover rice. Quickly stir with spatula.

5. Dissolve Korean chili paste in 1 tablespoon water. Then sprinkle into rice. Stir fry evenly.

6. Season with salt and garnish with chopped spring onion.

Beef & Spinach Pasta

1. Cook pasta. Drain and set aside for later use.

2. Heat a little oil in the pan. Fry beef slices first till no more pinkish.

3. Add in a little chopped garlic. Stir fry till aromatic.

4. Add in 1 1/2 tsp oyster sauce. Pour in 1/4 cup hot water. Simmer a bit to reduce the sauce.

5. Add in spinach. Stir fry for 2 mins. Sprinkle a little white sesame.

6. Add pasta back into pan. Season with salt and black pepper. Mix well.

Korean Army Stew

It’s really like spicy one-pot dish.

1. Prepare ingredients. Vegetables you like. I chose onion, mushroom, Chinese cabbage, tofu and sausage. Cut them into smaller pieces and place them in the pot.

2. Prepare sauce:

2 tablespoon Korean chili paste, 1 tablespoon light soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 tablespoon chili powder, 1 tablespoon water. Mix them well.

3. Pour sauce into the pot. Pour in stock which can reach half height of the ingredients.

4. Turn on the heat. When all ingredients are almost cooked. Add in instant noodles and 1 piece of cheese along with some kimchi.

Wait till noodles are cooked, ready to serve.

To Make Your Dumplings Lace Skirt

As a native northern Chinese girl, I cannot express how much I love Dumplings in words. My husband is on a trip in China. Everyday he would ask me what I had for each meal. He knows my affection towards dumplings, so he ordered some online. Those dumplings were delivered to me the other day. They taste really good no matter boiled or fried.

One of my hobbies is reading recipes on my phone. There are many cooking apps. I like exploring in different recipes, picking some to try. I just happened to find this interesting recipe to dress dumplings with “lace skirt”. Yes! And I tried it. Just cooking for fun. πŸ™‚

I followed the original recipe:

https://www.xiachufang.com/recipe/102855302/

1. Boil dumplings till cooked. You can also choose to steam them or use the left overs.

2. In a bowl, mix water 40g, flour 5g, and very little salt. Mix well till no lumps.

3. Add 15g oil into the bowl. Mix well.

4. My cooking method is different from the original one: Heat a pan, place dumplings in it. When you hear the sizzling, pour flour water into the pan. Turn to low heat and wait till water dried up. The golden brown “lace skirt” will show up. While original recipe is to cook one by one and the “lace skirt” looks much better.

But mine is really crispy. πŸ™‚

Steamed Pumpkin Snack

When I was little, my parents made me eat pumpkin. But I really disliked pumpkin at that time. When I grow up, I fall in love with pumpkin. Just as what my sister always says, people change. :p

Ingredients

Pumpkin 200g

Glutinous rice flour 1 cup

Corn starch 2 tablespoon

Sugar 1 tablespoon (you can add more if you want them to be sweeter)

Filling you like (red bean paste, chocolate, salted egg, etc)

Goji berries (optional)

1. Remove seed and peel of the pumpkin. Cut it into slices. Steam for 10 mins.

2. Place steamed pumpkin in a bowl. Mash them with a spoon.

3. Add glutinous rice flour, corn starch and sugar in. Make all ingredients into a dough.

4. Divide the dough into smaller ones. Press them and wrap in filling. Make them small dough balls again.

5. Press small dough with toothpick to make the lines and make them look more like real pumpkins.

6. Top with goji berries as garnishment.

7. Steam for 8-10 mins.

After steam, let them cool down a bit. Dip chopsticks into cold water before get them, cos they are really really sticky.

Dried Noodle with Eggplant Sauce

Recently, noodles become the most frequently-seen dish on my table. When I am too busy to cook, I turn to noodles. When I don’t know what to eat, I turn to noodles. Noodles are really my good friends.

Eggplant is always my good friend. So I decide to put both of my good friends in one dish. And ……. eat them. πŸ™‚

1. Chop eggplant into medium strips. Black fungus and green chili into shreds. Also prepare chopped garlic.

2. Heat a little oil in the pan. Fry fish Ngoh Hiang slices a bit. You can also choose minced pork.

3. Add in eggplants. Fry till soft.

4. Add in 2 tsp light soy sauce, 1 tsp dark soy sauce, 1 tsp oyster sauce, and 1 tsp sugar. Mix well.

5. Pour in 1/4 cup water. Also add in black fungus. Simmer a bit.

6. When the water reduces, add in a little starch water.

7. Add in garlic and chili. Quickly stir fry a bit. Season with salt.

Pour eggplant over cooked and drained noodles.

Oven Roasted Fish

1. Cut fish 2 or 3 times on both sides.

2. Put fish into a big bowl, add in 2 tablespoon cooking wine and several ginger slices. Marinate for half an hour.

3. Wipe fish dry with kitchen towel.

4. Sprinkle salt and white pepper over fish.

5. Heat 2-3 tablespoon oil in the pan. Add in 3 tablespoon chopped garlic, 1/2 tablespoon chopped ginger, and 1 tablespoon chopped dried chili. Fry with low heat till aromatic.

6. Add in 1 tablespoon Pixian soy bean sauce. Stir fry till aromatic.

7. Add in 1/2 tablespoon sugar. Stir evenly.

8. Place vegetables you like in the baking pan. I chose enoki mushroom, celery and onion.

9. Place fish over vegetables. Pour the sauce over fish and vegetables.

Into the preheated oven (180 degree C) and bake for 15 mins. Flip the fish over and bake for another 15 mins.