Super Easy Fried Rice

When you have a five years old kid at home is kinda challenging to some cook delicous food yet healthy that your kid will even beg for the second bowl.  This simple and super easy fried rice is the total package.  It has got protein from egg and minced pork.  It has got vitamins from tomatoes.  Also, it has got carbs from rice.  So, protein, vitamin, and carbs all ticked.  Above all, it will take less than 15 minutes from preparation until the final result.

For the seasoning, I only put some salt, pepper and Indonesian sweet dark soy sauce.  Then do like you normally do with your fried rice.  Stir fry and combine them together.  And waa.. lahh.. my kid ultimate dish at all time.  Make sure that you cook some extra, because your kids may ask for the second bowl.

Japanese Chicken Curry

So many countries in Asia have their own signature curry dishes.  Here in Japan, their curry is a lot more subtle and light compared to Indian curry or Thai curry.  Japanese curry has less spices, therefore the taste is pretty sweet and not too strong.  This curry should be easy to devour especially for the curry first-timer.

I bought these packaged curry cubes from Japanese groceries stores ortherwise this product is widely available in many Asian supermarkets as well.  There are different levels of spiciness to choose from.  I picked the least heat one which is suitable for my children.  Japanese curry can be served over rice or udon or even bread.

How to make them is also pretty simple.  On the hot pan, drop some cooking oil and cook slices of chicken meat until they cooked halfway through.  Then add in some carrots, potatoes and onions.  Cook them for another two or three minutes while turning occasionally.  After that, add in chicken stock or simply water just enough up to where some items still slightly emerge on top of the water.  Bring them to boil and turn the heat down and keep the stock simmering uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When the vegetables are ready, add the curry cubes in a laddle and let it slowly dissolved with spoon.  I used 4 cubes for this recipe which served for 6 persons.  Add some seasonings like salt or soy sauce.  Simmer on low heat, until the curry is thickened.  Serve the curry with rice or udon.

Furikake

Normally in Japan, curry is served over pork katsu or deep-fried crumbed pork fillet.  So, what I did here, is to serve my homemade Japanese curry over some karaage or deep-fried chicken for double meat effects.  Then I also topped with furikake (dry rice seasoning).  It was a very very delicious meal indeed.   Good luck trying, guys and Octie Appetie......

Deep Fried Sweet Cheese Sticks

Today, I am going to prepare some light snacks to please both adults and kids.  Most of you may have tried some deep fried mozarella cheese balls.  This recipe would be the sweet version of deep fried cheese.  Instead, what I use is cheddar cheese in here.

So in a pot, combine together cheese, sugar, milk, corn starch and salt.  Give them some stir to blending them together before heating them on the stove.  Turning the stove to medium heat and cook the cheese mixture until it thickened.  Keep stiring, so your mixture will not get lumpy.

Scrap out all the cheese mixture from the pot and transfer it into pre-lined tray or container.  Smooth the top part.  Keep the thickness for approximately one or one and half centimeters.   I like to do it in the square tin for easy cutting.  Oops mine looks terrible because my tray was way too big. 

Then keep the cheese in the fridge for about one to two hours so it will get hardened and made it easy to cut.  I waited only around one hour, then I cut them into a long stick with the size roughly of 1x10 cm.

Mix your flour and water together in one bowl and put your breadcrumbs ready in another plate.  Dip your cheese stick in the flour mixture then into the breadcrumbs.  Do it one at a time and make sure it all covered.  After that, put them back in the fridge just for another half an hour.

Final step is deep frying your cheese sticks.  We need a considerably high heat, so the outer side will turn golden fast before the inner cheese is melted.  Once you remove them from the heat, put them on the plate lined with kitchen towel to absorb the excessive oil.  Then there we have....  Deep fried sweet cheese sticks.

Recipe Shredded cheddar cheese 200 gr Full cream milk 480 ml Caster sugar 80 gr Corn Starch 96 gr Salt ½ tsp Plain flour 90 gr Water 160 ml Breadcrumbs Oil for frying Method 1. In a pot, combine cheese, milk, sugar, corn starch and salt.  2. Put the pot on medium heat stove, cook until thicken. Remove from heat.     Keep stirring the mixture to avoid lumpy batter. 3. Pour all mixture into a pre-lined (using cling wrap) square tray. Spread evenly. 4. Refrigerate it for at least one hour to make it easy to cut. 5. Cut them in your preferred size. Mine is about 1x10cm 6. Mix flour with water in one bowl and breadcrumb in a different bowl. 7. Dip one cheese stick in flour mixture then coated with breadcrumbs     Do this until all cheese sticks are coated. 8. Keep them back in the fridge for about 30 minutes until thoroughly chilled. 9. Heat oil in a frying pan over high heat. Fry cheese sticks until golden brown. 10. Drain on paper towels. Serve while hot.     ** Use medium high heat to brown the sticks quicker otherwise cheese filling         will be melted and oozed out. Made: 23-25 sticks

Pumpkin Pie

Any good pies will start from their base.  An excellent pie crust will enrich the whole texture and taste of any pies we are making.  I have this beloved recipe for pie base that very simple and so crusty.  Also, you don't need to use any pie weights when pre-baked your crust.  And the side will not sagging down.  However, this base is a little softer than any base I used to make before.  Although I did chill it prior rolling.  Therefore, the easiest way is by manually shape them - press the dough using hand - in your pie tin.  

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and butter in a bowl, if you don't have a food processor, your hand is always greatly available to do this job.  Once it is combined, knead the crumbs until smooth.  Work quickly in this stage, otherwise the chilled butter will be completely melted.  Which we don't want it to happen.  Then wrap and chill it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

As I mentioned earlier that this pie crust recipe is quite softer than any recipes.  So, instead of bother rolling out the pastry, I just press it all around the bottom and the sides of my pie tin.  Prick well the shell before baking it.  Pie weights are not needed for this recipe.  The crust sides will still hold upright, once baked.  Bake them in 190 ํC oven for about 10 minutes or until lightly golden.

Now move onto your filling.  Combine sugar and spices in a separate bowl.  Then set aside.  In a large bowl, beat your eggs, and add in the pumpkin and sugar mixture.  Mix them.  Then gradually pour in evaporated milk.  Keep stirring until all well combined. 

Pour all into the pre-baked pie shell.  I did some leaves decoration with the left over pie crust.  Then bake your pie in a preheated oven of 180 ํ C for 50 minutes or until skewer inserted in the center and comes out clean.  (Mine actually takes slightly more than one hour)

Pie Base Recipe Plain flour 1½ cups Caster sugar 2 tbsp Chilled butter, chopped 120 gr Water 2 tsp I like to add a pinch of salt (optional) Method 1. Combine the flour, sugar, salt and butter in a food processor     and process until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.     You can knead the base using hand, if processor is not available 2. Add water and pulse to combine. 3. Gently knead until smooth. 4. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes. 5.  Roll out the pastry between 2 sheets of baking paper to line      a deep 9" pie tin with removable base.  Or just using hand. 6. Prick well with a fork. 7. Bake in preheated 190⁰C oven for 10 minutes.     Pie weights are not necessary

Pumpkin Pie Recipe Pumpkin puree 425 gr Caster sugar ¾ cup Ground cinnamon 1 tsp Salt ½ tsp Ground cloves ¼ tsp Eggs 2 Evaporated milk 1 can / 379 ml Pie crust 1 recipe Method 1. Mix sugar, cinammon, salt and cloves in a small bowl 2. In a large bowl, beat eggs. 3. Stir in pumpkin and sugar-spice mixture 4. Gradually add in evaporated milk and keep whisking until     all well combined. 5. Pour the pumpkin filling into pre-baked pie shell. 6. Bake in preheated 180⁰C oven for 50 minutes or until     toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 7. Cool on wire rack for 30 minutes. Then serve immediately     with some whipped cream or refrigerate it. * If pumpkin can is not available, just steam the fresh pumpkin    and make puree out of it by using blender or strainer.

Scrambled Eggs with Truffle Butter

Anything truffle is so intrend these days, from truffle aglio olio to soup and dippings.  I currently discovered this truffle butter sold in supermarket.  It is quite pricey compared to any flavored butter.  But it is worth trying.  You can use as a spread over some bread or what I made is scrambled eggs using this gorgeous thing.  

My recipe is a pretty simple one (I adapted from Marion Grasby's scrambled eggs with miso butter).  Firstly, crack 2-3 eggs in a bowl.  Normal serving of scrambled egg for one person is three eggs.  Because unlike fried egg or omelette, the egg kinda shrink when it turns into scrambled.  Then season it with some salt and pepper.  Lightly beat the eggs.  Do not  beat the eggs vigorously, as it will result in fluffier curds.  Milk is not needed in this recipe.  Yet you will still get creamy and tasty egg dish.  

Next, you can heat your pan with some butter.  Make sure it is low to medium heat becasue we don't want to overcook the egg.  Wait until the butter has completely melted but not bubbling.  Then pour all you whisked egg into the hot pan.  As the eggs begin to set, using your spatula or ladle scrap or draw them in from outside to inside motion.  Do this for one or two more times, until about 80% of the egg is forming into large soft curds.  After that, drop about one tablespoon of truffle butter and give them some stir.  Keep scambling until the butter is entirely melted.  And you can turn off the heat and remove the egg straight away from the pan otherwise the leftover heat will firm up the eggs.  Because at the end, you will definitely want your scrambled egg to be creamy with slightly gooey.  

It is tasted soooooo delicious.  Once I have this truffle butter scrambled egg, I can't go back to an ordinary scrambled egg nomore.  So beware, guys.  You can pair them with some simple toast or whichever way you normally have your scrambled eggs.  

Simple wholemeal toast with truffle butter scrambled eggs

Kimchi Jjigae (Kimchi Soup)

Most of the time when I visited a Korean restaurant, I didn't forget to order this classic Kimchi soup.  It is a complete flavour combinations in one bowl.  The sour salty taste that comes from kimchi, the star of this dish, is balanced with the sweetness from pork belly and is lifted up with the kick from gochujang or hot pepper paste.

With this pandemic is going on in outside world, it has changed my habit of eating out.  So I have to make my favourite food at home.  This soup is actually very easy and requires very short time in preparing and cooking.  Even beginner will have no problem making this dish.

Firstly, in a pot, cook your sliced pork belly with two cloves of garlic over medium high heat to give them a nice char color.  For the pork belly, I cut them a little bit thicker than normal slice because I like having to chew some chunck of meats.  Then add it in the kimchi and chilli paste and cook them until kimchi is slightly softened.  Kimchi and gochujang (hot pepper paste), these two ingredients are easily found in Asian groceries.  After that, pour water and juice of kimchi in.  Do not throw the kimchi juice away because this where all the flavour come from.  Reduce the heat to medium and bring them to boil.

Once it is boiled, you can season the soup.  I prefer to do it in this stage to avoid messing up the soft tofu and breaking those enoki mushrooms as well.  After I got the right flavour, I then topped with some soft tofu, enoki mushroom and scallions.  And lastly, I cracked one egg right in the middle and turned the heat off.  With this, the egg will come out nice and gooey.  Serve this dish with some steamed rice and it will become one of your top stew dishes.

Making this soup is very very simple yet taste absolutely unbelievable.  You always can use ordinary soup pot to make this soup as what I did.  So not to worry if you don't have that fancy black stew pot that the restaurant normally serves this kimchi soup with.

* For this recipe, I do not put the exact measurement for each ingredient because it was made with love and based on my mood too.
However, for this dish, I used half kilo of pork belly, one soup bowl of kimchi and two tablespoon-full of gochujang or hot pepper paste.  While the amount of soft tofu, enoki mushroom and seasoning is depending on your preference.

Gochujang / Hot pepper sauce

Vietnamese Egg Coffee (Ca Phe Trung)

Egg coffee is one of the national drink in Hanoi.  Although it has been very popular in many cafes in Hanoi, I just had tried it last year when I travelled there.  And I instantly fell in love from the first sip.  Since then, it becomes the only coffee menu I had ordered, day and night, while in Hanoi.  

Back at home, I missed this drink a lot.  So here I am trying to make this drink by my own.  This recipe can be served for two persons.  

First of all, gather two egg yolks in a bowl together with one tablespoon sugar, vanilla and two tablespoons of condensed milk.  You can add one more tablespoon of sugar depends on the sweetness you prefer but for me, I like my coffee to be slightly bitter.  You can use stand mixer but making this little amount of ingredients I just use the hand-mixer.  Whip them for about 10 minutes and egg mixture will look near to creamy than frothy.

Meanwhile brew you black coffee.  Vietnamese coffee drip is preferable but otherwise any instant coffee powder will do.  Sit them in the hot water bath to keep the temperature high.  So you will not end up with cold coffee later.

Gently spoon the egg mixture straight on top of the coffee and give them a stir before you enjoy your coffee.  It tastes somehwere between drink and dessert. 

This method, however, will have some egg-y taste from the raw egg.  If you want to remove the bad smell, you need to do double boiler while whipping the egg mixture.

Have my coffee over the meal will definitely make my dull morning great again.  This morning I had them with my simple tuna sandwich with some greens and topped with my-all-time favorite sriracha mayonnaise.  Deliciousssssss......

Ca Phe Trung Egg yolk 2 eggs Caster sugar 1 tbsp Vanilla extract ½ tsp Condensed milk 2 tbsp Method 1. Brew two cups of black coffee 2. Sit the coffee cup with freshly brewed coffee in a bowl of hot water. 3. Gather your egg mixture ingredients: yolks, sugar, vanilla and     condensed milk.  And beat them until creamy for about 10 minutes. 4. Gently spoon the egg mixture on top of hot coffee. 5. Stir lightly and here you go… Vietnamese egg coffee is ready to be enjoyed Serves: 2