Cobb Salad, my way.

It's not exactly fair to call this a salad. At least to me, salads are supposed to be healthy and light and all. A cobb salad, despite its name, is made using ingredients that are technically, WAY too delicious to be included in a bland and boring healthy salad. Then again, who says all salads are supposed to be bland and healthy anyway? Healthy or not, I for one, don't really care and just adore this sinful and fulfilling recipe of mine. 

Serves 2 

Ingredients:

Salad: 

1 head                       romaine lettuce, chopped roughly 

1                               tomato, diced

2                               hard boiled egg, shelled and chopped 

1                               avocado, diced 

100gm                      blue cheese, diced 

6 strips                     bacon, fried till crisp and cut into smaller pieces 

1                               roasted chicken breast, diced 

Method: Arrange everything on a salad bowl or plate and serve with the dressing below or your favourite dressing. 

Dressing: 

1/2 cup                      extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons            white wine vinegar

1/2 teaspoon              dijon mustard 

1/2 teaspoon              worcestershire sauce 

1/2 tablespoon           lemon juice 

                                   salt & pepper 

Method:

Whisk all the ingredients together and serve with the salad.

Chinese Tea Egg (茶叶蛋）

Tea egg is a Chinese savoury snack commonly found in a Chinese medicine shop or in a local Singaporean pasar malam. It is relatively easy to make although a little patience is needed for the eggs to be infused with the flavours. My favourite part in making this, is the enticing aroma that fills the house when it is simmering away. Can't wait to sink my teeth into these prettily marbled eggs, don't you?

Ingredients:

6                     eggs

1                     cinammon stick

2                     star anise 

1                     tangerine peel

2 tbsp             dark soy sauce

1 tbsp             light soy sauce 

1 tbsp             sugar

2 tbsp             chinese tea leaf 

500ml             water 

Method:

1. Boil the eggs in a pot of water for about 7 minutes. Cool the eggs and tap the egg shell lightly with a teaspoon until the eggs are fully cracked.
2. Heat the rest of the ingredients in a pot until it boils. Add in the eggs and simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Steep the eggs in the marinade for 4 hours and reheat before serving.

Cincalok Omelette

 

My brother has recently returned from a short getaway to Malacca, Malaysia with a bottle of cincalok - fermented small shrimp. Usually served as a condiment, the pungent salty pink little shrimps can also be fried with dishes. One of the easiest way to showcase that unique gorgeous flavour, is to fry it with an omelette. Absolutely delicious, if you ask me.

Ingredients:

2                              eggs
1/2                           white onion or 4 shallots, sliced
1                              red chilli or 2 small chilli padi (if you like it spicier), sliced
1 tablespoon            cincalok or more if you prefer
2 tablespoons          cooking oil

Method:

Heat a frying pan with 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Add in the sliced onion and chilli and fry until it is fragrant.

Beat the eggs with the cincalok and add into the frying pan.

Fry each side of the omelette on high heat for about 30 seconds and serve.

Steamed Three Eggs

I say, never judge an egg by its looks. This simple dish doesn't look much of a deal but if cooked properly, it can be a delicious addition to your dining table. As the name of the dish suggests, this dish makes use of three different kinds of eggs: fresh chicken eggs, salted duck egg and century egg. When steaming the egg mixture, do note to keep the heat low in order not to create any bubbles on the egg surface or worse, oversteamed it. When steamed slowly on an extremely low heat, the result is often a silky and smooth finish.

Ingredients:

2                         chicken eggs
1                         salted duck egg
1                         century egg, diced
1/2 tablespoon    light soy sauce
1/2 cup                water

Method:

Beat the chicken eggs with the egg whites of the salted duck egg, set aside.

Chop the century egg and salted duck egg yolk into small pieces.

In a shallow bowl, mix in all ingredients with 1/2 cup of water and 1/2 tablespoon of light soy sauce.

Bring the water in the steamer to a boil. Switch on the lowest heat available and place in the egg mixture. Cover the steamer with its lid, intentionally leaving a small gap at the side. Steamed for approximately 15 - 20 minutes, or until the egg mixture has set.

Happy Call Pan Recipe - Okonomiyaki (Japanese Pancake)

I have not stepped into the supermarket for more than a week now and had to make do with what's left behind in the fridge. With only potatoes, carrots and some left over cabbage in the kitchen, I couldn't think of a more ideal time to make an okonomiyak for dinner! An okonomiyaki is a typical Japanese pancake made using whatever ingredients you have or would like to include! Seafood, meat, mushroom, vegetables, you name it. What I have here is a super simple vegetarian version but please feel free to experiment, appropriately of course!

Serves 4
Ingredients:

2                             eggs, beaten
2 cups                     flour
1/2 head                  round cabbage, shredded
1 large                    carrot, shredded
1 large                    potato, shredded
1 teaspoon              sea salt
1 to 2 cups              water
                               Japanese mayonnaise to taste
                               Worchestershire sauce to taste

Method:

Mix all ingredients together. Heat the Happy Call Pan on high heat for a minute.

Pour in the mixed batter and close the lid, locking it.

Unlock the lid, leaving the lid partially open. Cook for another 8 minutes.

Close and lock the lid again, flipping the pan over.

Unlock the lid and leave the lid partially open. Pan fry for another 10 minutes.

Cut into pieces and serve with Japanese mayonnaise and Worchestershire sauce to taste.

Steamed Egg with Clams 蛤蜊蒸蛋

As peculiar as this may seem for us Singaporeans, this is apparently a very common dish in Taiwan. 'Infused' with the juices from the clams, the steamed egg is naturally flavoured by the 'seafoody' taste and is definitely not something that you will wanna try if you are not a fan of that sweet, sea clamly taste. Then again, playing a little adventurous at times will bring certain surprises in your kitchen too.

Serves 2
Ingredients:

2                              eggs, beaten
1/2 tablespoon          light soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon             ground white pepper
1 teaspoon                sesame oil
1/2 cup                     water
1 thumb sized            ginger, sliced
1 tablespoon             chinese rice wine
200g                         clams, soaked in water for at least an hour
1 stalk                       spring onion, chopped (optional)

Method:

Bring a pot of water to pot with the sliced ginger and 1 tablespoon of chinese rice wine. Add in the pre-soaked clams and remove them the moment the shells are opened.

Mix in a separate bowl, 2 eggs, 1/2 tablespoon of light soy sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of ground white pepper, 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and 1/2 cup of water. Pour into a plate with depth and place the clams on top of it.

Bring the steamer to boil. Add in the prepared egg mixure with clams and steamed on medium heat for 8 minutes or until the egg is set. Garnish with some chopped spring onion, if desired.

Century Egg and Minced Meat Congee

A common but much-loved porridge, the Century Egg and Minced Meat Congee is not favoured by most for no obvious reason. It is easy to cook with little ingredients, comforting and of course, super yummy. Personally, I love that sharp combination of extra ginger with the century egg and minced meat. Enjoy this recipe.

Serves 2

Ingredients:
1 cup                                         rice, rinsed and soaked for an hour
2                                               century egg, roughly chopped
400g                                         minced meat
1 thumb sized                            old ginger, julienned
2 tablespoons                            light soy sauce
1 teaspoon                                sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon                             ground white pepper
1 stalk                                       spring onion, sliced (optional)

Method:

Season the minced meat with 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of ground white pepper and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil.

Bring the rice to boil with 3 cups of water and lower the heat to a simmer for an hour.

Add in the chopped century egg, sliced ginger and minced meat into the congee, breaking the meat up with a spatula. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

Season with 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce and serve hot. Garnish with spring onion if desired.

Japanese Cheesecake

I often have the weirdest craving at the weirdest hour. This was last night. I desperately wanted some Japanese cheesecake, at 10pm. By the time my tastebuds were finally satiated, it was past midnight. Yes, this is how compulsive I can get and hence my nickname of an OCD queen.

A good Japanese cheesecake is known for its creamy and light texture and I am glad mine worked. Most recipes will recommend adding some lemon zest into the mixture but I am personally not a fan of lemon in my cheescake but please do so if you must. The crucial part of this recipe is to ensure that 1) your egg whites are whisked enough or else your cake will be heavy, 2) your oven must not be too hot as it will cause the cake to crack and finally 3) do not skip the water bath as you would want a moist and fluffy cake on your table. Have fun!

Ingredients:

150g                        cream cheese
60ml                        milk
50g                          unsalted butter
40g                          self raising flour
10g                          cornflour
3 tablespoons           white sugar
3                              eggs, yolk and white separate
1/4 teaspoon            cream of tartar

Method:

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees celsius.

Mix the cream cheese, milk and butter in a bowl, over a pot of simmering water. Stir until the cream cheese and butter have melted and are blended together with the milk. Leave aside to cool.

Add the self raising flour, cornflour and egg yolks into the mixture, mixing in a little at a time. Whisk to ensure that there are no lumps of flour.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites for about a minute. Add the cream of tartar, sugar and continue whisking until the egg whites are able to form a soft peak.

Fold the egg whites into the prepared mixture earlier, mixing in a little at a time. Pour the combined mixture into a greased tin lined with grease paper and place the tin in a water bath (i.e. into a larger pot, and filled half with water).

Place in the oven and bake for 50 minutes. When ready, leave the oven ajar for 10 minutes before removing the cake as too fast a drop in temperature will cause the cake to collapse. Remove from tin and cool on rack before refrigerating it. Serve cold.

Poached Spinach in Chicken Broth

Poached Spinach in Chicken Broth is probably one of the top sellers in most Cantonese restaurants. I clearly remembered how I got hold of this recipe: with a pen in hand and my mobile phone on the other, calling up my Cantonese restaurant chef on a Sunday, asking him for specific instructions. It was a pretty amusing moment, as he was panicking from receiving a call from me on a non-working day. Sorry Chef! The original recipe requires the salted egg white to be stirred into the soup but I prefer to cook and chopped it up instead. Some will prefer to include a beaten egg at the end of the cooking process but that is according to your preference.
Ingredients:

1 packet                      spinach, rinsed, drained and cut into 3 inches long
3 cloves                       garlic, sliced thinly (my chef uses whole garlic instead)
1                                 salted egg, boiled and diced
1                                 century egg, diced
1                                 egg, beaten (optional)
1 tablespoon               cooking oil
1/2 cup                       chicken stock or water with 1/2 bouillion cube
1 tablespoon               chinese wine, preferably hua diao

Method:

Heat a wok or pot with 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Add in the sliced garlic and fry until golden brown.

Pour in the chicken stock and bring to boil.

Add in the spinach, diced century egg and salted egg and cook for another minute.

Add in the beaten egg, if desired and stir continously.

Switch off the heat and add in 1 tablespoon of chinese wine.

Happy Call Pan Recipe - Omelette Galore

If you are a porridge fan just like me, I'm sure you will be pretty familiar with those wonderful variations of omelette that goes divinely with it.  I wanted to experiment cooking omelette using the Happy call pan since no oil are used. It turned out to be surprisingly moist and fluffy as the omelette was in a way 'steamed' when the pan is closed (locked). For those omelette lovers out there, I've listed my favourite combinations here in this post for your reference. Enjoy.

Serves 2
Ingredients:

4                    eggs, beaten
1 tablespoon   light soy sauce
1 dash             white ground pepper

Mix all ingredients together. This is the base for the omelette.

Omelette Combinations:

Chai poh omelette
- 1 clove of minced garlic, 2 tablespoons of chai poh, 1/2 tablespoon of sugar

Prawn & onion omelette
- 1/2 sliced yellow onion, 6 shrimp sliced half lengthwise

Onion omelette
- 1 sliced yellow onion

Long beans omelette
- 1 clove of minced garlic, 1 cup of thinly sliced long beans

Oriental omelette
- 2 chinese mushrooms thinly sliced, 1/2 lup cheong thinly sliced, 1/2 sliced yellow onion

Minced meat omelette
- 100g minced pork

Foo yong omelette
- 1 tablespoon of chopped char siew, 1/4 cup of beansprouts, 1 stalk of sliced scallion, 1/4 sliced yellow onion, 1 tablespoon of chopped shrimp, 1/2 sliced chilli

Method:

Heat the Happy Call Pan on medium-high heat for a minute. Add in the ingredients and lock the pan for two minutes. Lock for 4 minutes if you are cooking the long beans and 6 minutes if you are cooking the minced meat.

Open the pan and pour in the prepared egg mixture. Close and lock for two minutes.

Flip over and cook for another minute. Open and serve.

Classic Spaghetti Carbonara

A good plate of Spaghetti Carbonara is not as easy as it seems. Lest you think that it's simply just adding cream to it, the actual version uses only egg and cheese to create that much-loved creaminess. The important point to note when cooking the sauce is to ALWAYS remove your pan from the heat before you stir in the eggs and cheese. Trust me, you do not want scrambled egg pasta instead! If you are using the heat retaining induction pan, it's always safer to cool it off for at least half a minute. Ciao!
Serves 1
Ingredients:

100gm                   dried spaghetti
2 pieces                 streaky bacon, cut into smaller pieces
1 clove                   garlic, minced
1/2 tablespoon       olive oil
1                           egg, beaten
1/2 cup                  parmesan cheese, grated
1 teaspoon            parsley leaves, chopped
                             ground black pepper
                             salt

Method:

Cook the spaghetti in salted boiling water according to the packet instructions. Reserve 1/3 cup of the cooked pasta water.

Heat a saucepan with 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil and add in the chopped bacon. Fry until the bacon is cripsy and its oil released.

Add in 1 clove of minced garlic and fry till fragrant. Switch off the heat, add in the cooked spaghetti and mix well.

Pour in the beaten egg and grated parmesan cheese and mix rapidly, adding some of the reserved pasta water to create the sauce.

Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and garnish with chopped parsley leaves.

Tea Smoked Egg 茶燻蛋

I can never resist those cold, appetite whetting 唐心蛋 commonly found in Shanghainese restaurants and often wondered how they managed to make the egg yolk so addictively gooey and sticky. This I realised was from soaking the egg in ice water the moment you remove the eggs from the heat. The ice water cools the egg in a much faster rate and hence creating that much desired texture. I used Oolong tea from Taiwan in this recipe but you are welcome to replace it with any other strong flavoured tea such as Tie Guan Ying.

Ingredients:

5                    fresh eggs
1                    star anise
1                    cinnamon
2 tablespoon  soy sauce
1 tablespoon  dark soy sauce
2 tablespoon  dried tea leaves
2 tablespoon  sugar
1/4 cup          rice, uncooked

Method:

Soak the eggs in a pot of cold water and bring to boil. Let the water boil for an additional 5 minutes. Remove eggs immediately and cool them in a pot of ice water. Let it soak for about 10 minutes.

Peel eggs and soak them in a pot with 1 stick of cinnamon, 1 piece of star anise, 2 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce and 1 cup of water. Ensure that the marinade covers the eggs completely. Leave the egg to soak in the marinade for at least 1 hour or overnight in the fridge.

Line a wok with aluminium foil and top it with 2 tablespoons of dried tea leaves, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1/4 cup of uncooked rice. Cover with lid and heat it up. When smoke starts to form, place eggs on a rack into the wok and smoke for 10 to 15 minutes. Serve cold!

SoCal Chorizo Potatoes

I had a great summer at Southern California last year and one of my favourite moments was visiting the Venice Beach at Los Angeles. I remember having their famous 'Venice Potatoes' at the sidewalk cafe. They were crispy on the exterior, soft inside with an intense smoked paprika taste. It wasn't until I visited an American brunch restaurant in Hong Kong that I realised the original name of the dish: Chorizo Potatoes. Needless to say, it was an absolute favourite in SoCal.

Serves 2
Ingredients:

2          medium potatoes, sliced thinly
1          chorizo sausage, sliced thinly
1          small onion, sliced thinly
1 tsp    paprika
            salt and pepper
4          eggs

Method:

Heat a pan and add in the sliced chorizo. Fry the chorizo till it releases its paprika flavoured orange oil. Add in the onions, potatoes and seasonings.

Arrange the chorizo on top of the potatoes and onions and press down hard with the spatula. Cook till all the potatoes have soften and crisp up.

Serve with two fried sunny side-ups per person.

My Favourite Eggs Benedict

I have a long standing crush on Eggs Benedict. After taking my first bite 10 years ago, I have never once stopped searching for places offering this creamy savory dish. Eating the dish itself is divinelicious, making it however, is a real test of your culinary skills.

Sadly, one egg was lost during the process of making this dish. The key is not just about using fresh eggs. As much as you would like to add a touch of your magic hand by stirring the egg or shaping the egg, the best option I find, is simply to let it cook by itself. When it's ready, you just need to gently lift it out of the water with a slotted spoon and let the egg do its job. Tedious process? Yes. But the immense satisfaction of having an almost perfect poached egg? It is worth every trouble. Happy poaching!

Serves 2
Ingredients (Hollandaise sauce):

2                    egg yolk
1/2 tbsp          lemon juice
1/4 cup           butter, melted
pinch              cayenne pepper
pinch              salt

Method:

Whisk egg yolk and lemon juice in a bowl until thickened. Place the bowl above a pot of hot water (barely simmering, not boiling water). The bottom of the bowl should not touch the hot water. Whisk rapidly.

Drizzle in the melted butter while you continue to whisk.  The sauce should be thickened and doubled in size. Season with cayenne pepper and salt. Keep aside at a warm place until ready to use.

Ingredients:

2                 English muffin, sliced into halves
4                 Canadian bacon (you can replace this with ham if you prefer)
4                 fresh eggs
1 tbsp         white vinegar
               
Method:

Brown bacon and toast muffin on heated pan. Set aside.

Bring a pot of water to boil and add in 1 tablespoon of vinegar. Reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Add the eggs into the pot, one at a time and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove gently with slotted spoon.

Place eggs over the cooked bacon and muffin, and top with Hollandaise Sauce.