Air Fryer Recipes - Fried Meat with Fermented Bean Curd

Fried Meat with Fermented Bean Curd

Air Fry 南乳肉

This has got to be one of the man's favourite dishes these days. Relatively easy to cook and yet packed with such good flavours. A little salty on its own if you ask me, this is best served with a bowl of white rice or porridge. Although like the man at home, you may wish to pair this with a mug of cold beer instead. The key to this dish to air fry the pork long enough so as to achieve that crispy texture instead of a piece of mushy fatty meat. 

Ingredients:
2 pieces - Pork belly, sliced thinly
2 cube - Fermented red bean curd
1 teaspoon - Sesame oil
2 tablespoons -  Chinese wine
2 tablespoons - Corn flour
Cooking oil (If you are not using an Air Fryer)

Method:
Mix all ingredients together and marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Air Fry until the pork has turned light brown in colour.
Turn Philip Air Fryer to 160 Degree for another 30min.

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.

Shark's Bone Cartilage Soup

 

I know the environmentalists are gonna frown at me but still, I have to admit that Shark's Bone Soup is one of my all time favourite soups, even more than the expensive shark's fin. Then again, I was never a fan of the ubiquitous shark's fin soup to begin with. Lest the common perception that this is another version of a shark's fin soup, you will be surpised to know that it has absolutely no shark's fin in it. All you get is a thick milky gelatinous soup that is packed with all the collagen extracted from the shark's bone after hours and hours of brewing. Don't ask me why I like this, I just enjoy that sticky aftertaste in my mouth, evidence of a collagen overload.

 

Ingredients:

 

1                        chicken carcasse, blanched

1 packet             pork shank, blanched

10                      chicken feet, blanched

1 thumbsized    Jin Hua ham, diced 

1 piece              dried tangerine peel

1 tablespoon     white peppercorn

5 pieces            large sharks soft bone

3 slices             old ginger 

1 tablespoon     wolfberries, rinsed

 

Method:

 

Place all ingredients except the wolfberries in a large stock pot and place in 4 litres of water. Bring to boil.

 

Lower heat and simmer for a good 4 hours covered, stirring constantly to ensure that the ingredients do not stick to the bottom of the pot. Add in more water if required.

 

After 4 hours, what you should get is a thick milky gelatinous consistency. Add in the wolfberries and cook for another minute or so before serving.

 

 

Steamed Minced Pork with Salted Egg

 

Alright, I guess it's time for some classic homely dishes now. Steamed minced pork is my thing. I've experimented with various ingredients: shrimp paste, preserved olive vegetables, water chestnut, cuttlefish, tofu, you get the picture. Today's dish is probably just another experiment of mine. But it's tasty, nonethless. Enjoy. Oh by the way, it's gorgeous with a bowl of rice.

 

 

Serves 2

Ingredients:

 

 

200g                  minced pork

2                        chinese mushroom, soaked and diced

1                        salted egg (yolk and white separately)

1                        water chestnut, peeled and diced

1 tablespoon      chinese wine

1 dash                white pepper

1/2 teaspoon      sesame oil

1/2 tablespoon   light soy sauce

                          spring onion, chopped (optional)

 

Method:

 

Mix all ingredients (except the salted egg) together. Pour in 1/2 of the egg white and mix well. Place the mixture on a steaming plate and top with the salted egg yolk (flattened by the knife). 

 

Steam on high heat for 9 minutes and garnish with spring onion, if desired.  



Braised Pork Trotters in Vinegar 猪脚醋

My mum has been super zealous about my blog these days. She's been buying home tons of fresh ingredients from the wet market and have been urging me to learn new recipes from her to post them on the blog. At times, she will even comment on how I can improve the presentation of my dishes so that it will look more appealing to the readers! Today's recipe was of course her idea and was done under strict supervision. After all, she does have a reputation of being a good cook in the family.

Serves 5

Ingredients:

2                            whole pork trotters, chopped into smaller pieces
2                            whole old ginger, smashed
1                            whole young ginger, smashed
2 tablespoons        sesame oil
500ml                    sweet dark rice vinegar
2 large                   rock sugar
2 cups                    water
5                            hard boiled eggs (optional)


Method:

Heat a huge stock pot of water to boil. Add in the pork trotters and boil for 5 minutes. Drain away the water and rinse the pork trotters with cold running water for about a minute. Strain and set aside.

In another pot, heat up 2 tablespoons of sesame oil on medium high heat. Add in the smashed ginger and fry till fragrant.

Add in the pork trotters and stir them for about 5 minutes.

Pour in the vinegar and water and bring to boil. Lower heat and add in 2 large pieces of rock sugar. Simmer for about 1 hour or until the pork trotters. Add in some peeled hard boiled eggs, if desired.

Stir Fried Pork with Ginger and Spring Onion

I haven't had this dish for the longest time and thought that it will go perfectly with that pot of porridge that I was simmering over the stove. Although it was my first attempt, it was surprisingly well received by my sister. But then again, what could go wrong with tender juicy meat slices coated in thick flavoursome sauce? For those craving variety, do note that this recipe can also be used with beef slices or pork liver.

Ingredients:

1                          pork fillet, sliced thinly against the grain
2 cloves               garlic, minced
6 slices                 old ginger
4 stalks                 spring onion, cut into 2 inches length
1 tablespoon         cooking oil

Marinade:
1 tablespoon          oyster sauce
1 tablespoon          cornflour
1 teaspoon             sesame oil
1 tablespoon          light soy sauce
dash                      ground white pepper

Sauce:
1 tablespoon          light soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon       dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon             sugar
3 tablespoons         rice wine
1 tablespoon          water

Method:

Marinate the meat slices with oyster sauce, cornflour, light soy sauce, sesame oil and white pepper for at least 30 minutes.

Heat a wok with 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Add in the sliced ginger and fry for about 30 seconds. Add in the minced garlic and fry till fragrant.

Stir in the marinated meat slices and fry for about 2 minutes on high. Add in the prepared sauce and continue frying till the meat slices are cooked, approx. 2 to 3 minutes. Do not overcook the meat as it will become tough, especially for pork liver.

Add in the spring onion, stir and serve.

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.

Mixed Cabbage Rice with Pork Belly, Dried Oyster and Chinese Mushroom

A much-loved family favourite, my mum often served this rice dish together with a pot of bitterguord or radish soup. This, for many years, has been my family's favourite dinner combination. A one pot/wok meal, you don't really need much condiments to this as the ingredients used are super flavoursome. For those who are not confident of cooking rice on a stove top, you can transfer all the ingredients into the rice cooker after frying them, adding the cabbage only when the rice is fully cooked.

Serves 2 - 3
Ingredients:

1 cup                          rice, rinsed and drained
1/2 head                     cabbage, rinsed and tore into bite sizes
1 slab                         pork belly, sliced
6                                dried Chinese mushroom, soaked and sliced thinly
2 tablespoons             dried shrimp, soaked in 1 cup of water
5 large                        dried oyster, soaked and chopped
3 cloves                      garlic, minced
3                                shallot, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon              cooking oil
1 tablespoon              dark soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon              ground white pepper

Method:

Heat a wok with 1 tablespoon of cooking oil on high heat. Drain the dried shrimp and add into the wok, setting aside the water for usage later.

Fry the dried shrimp until fragrant and add in the minced garlic and sliced shallots. Fry for another 2 minutes.

Add in the sliced pork belly, sliced Chinese mushroom and chopped dried oyster. Stir them on high heat until the pork belly is almost fully cooked.

Mix in 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce and 1/2 teaspoon of ground white pepper and fry for another minute or until you can smell the caramelization of the soy sauce. Mix in the rice and fry for another minute.

Add in the water used for soaking the dried shrimp. Lower the heat to the lowest and cover the wok with a lid. Remove the lid after 5 minutes and place the cabbage on top of the rice.

Cover with lid for another 5 minutes or until the rice is fully cooked, adding more water if required.

Mix well and serve.

The Chinese Soup Special

I love a bowl of piping hot soup. Be it a cream based western soup or a clear chinese broth, I am a slurping devotee no less. I am not Cantonese but often felt inadequate without a bowl of soup on my dinner table. If you are a fellow fan, I'm sure you will enjoy today's post of some of my best-loved soups.

When boiling a pot of Chinese soup, do note to blanch the pork ribs in boiling water for about one to two minutes and rinse it thoroughly, before cooking. This is to remove any impurities and to reduce that 'porky' smell from it. Remember, a good pot of soup is achieved through low heat and slow simmering so it is not a chore for the impatient.

Serves 2 -4

Lotus Root & Peanut Soup

Ingredients: 250 grams of spare ribs (blanched), 1 small lotus root (sliced), 1/2 cup peanuts, 1 honeyed date, 1 dried octopus or dried squid

Method: Place all ingredients in 2 litre of boiling water and simmer on low heat, covered for 2 hours. You can season with a little salt if desired but I do without.

Watercress Soup

Ingredients: 250 grams of spare ribs (blanched), 1 bunch of watercress (rinsed with roots removed), 8 small or 5 medium red dates, 1 dried octopus or dried squid

Method: Place all ingredients in 2 litre of boiling water and simmer on low heat, covered for 2 hours. You can serve the soup with or without the cooked watercress. If using without, place some fresh watercress in the soup just prior to serving.

ABC Soup

Ingredients: 250 grams of spare ribs (blanched), 1 tomato (quartered), 1 onion (quartered), 1 corn (cut into 4 pieces), 1 large or 2 medium potatoes (peeled and cut), 1 medium carrot (cut)

Method: Place all ingredients in 2 litre of boiling water and simmrer on low heat, covered for 2 hours. Season with salt.

Black Bean Soup

Ingredients: 250 grams of spare ribs (blanched), 1/2 cup of peanuts, 1/2 cup of black bean, 1 dried octopus or dried squid

Method: Place all ingredients in 2 litre of boiling water and simmrer on low heat, covered for 2 to 3 hours. Season with salt.

Radish Soup

Ingredients: 250 grams of spare ribs (blanched), 1 medium radish (peeled and cut), 1 dried octopus or dried squid

Method: Place all ingredients in 2 litre of boiling water and simmrer on low heat, covered for 2 hours. Season with salt.

Bittergourd Soup

Ingredients: 250 grams of spare ribs (blanched), 1 bittergourd (seeds removed and cut into smaller pieces), 5 large or 8 small dried oysters

Method: Place all ingredients in 2 litre of boiling water and simmrer on low heat, covered for 2 hours. Season with salt.

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.

Kimchi Chigae (Kimchi Stew)

Anyeonghasayo! All thanks to my recent obsession with the Korean culture, I found my kitchen fully stocked with a good variety of Korean ingredients. Packed with piquent, tangy flavours, this appetite-whetting kimchi stew is ideal for one of those cold rainy days or whenever the lazy side gets the better of you. Goes superbly with a bowl of steamed rice.

Ingredients:

100g                        pork belly, thinly sliced (I used the sukiyaki type)

1 packet                   silken tofu, cut into small pieces

1/2 medium              yellow onion, sliced

1 stalk                      scallion, cut into 1-inch long

1 cup                        chopped kimchi

1/2 tablespoon          gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)

1/2 tablespoon          sugar

3 cups                       water

1 teaspoon                sesame oil

Method:

Place all ingredients except the tofu and sesame oil in a pot. Bring to boil for 10 minutes. Lower heat and simmer for another 20 minutes, adding the tofu during the last 5 minutes. Drizzle the sesame oil over and serve.

Taiwan Braised Pork Rice 台式卤肉饭

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. So when in Taiwan, do remember to eat their fatty, cholesterol-packed but super delicious Braised Pork Rice. I had such a craving for it that I couldn't wait till my next trip to that land of fantabulous food. Some recipes I found include ingredients such as Chinese mushroom or dried shrimp but mine is just a basic, simple recipe that serves me pretty well.

Serves 2
Ingredients:

2 pieces                    pork belly, blanched and cut into small cubes
2 medium                  red onion, sliced thinly
3 cloves                    garlic, minced
1 thumbsized             ginger, minced
2                              eggs, boiled and peeled
2 tablespoons           rice wine
2 tablespoons           dark soya sauce
1 tablespoon             light soya sauce
1 tablespoon             rock sugar
1/2 teaspoon            ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon            five-spiced powder
2 tablespoons           cooking oil
2 cups                      water


Method:

Fry the sliced onion in cooking oil in a saucepan till they are golden brown. Strain the onion and set aside, keeping the oil in the pan.

Reheat the saucepan with oil and add in the minced garlic and ginger. Fry till fragrant.

Add in pork belly which has been blanched in boiling water and cubed. Fry until the pork is thoroughly cooked and its oil released.

Add in 2 tablespoons of dark soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of light soy sauce. Fry for a minute and add in the rice wine. Stir in the ground white pepper, five-spiced powder and rock sugar. Mix well and add in 2 cups or more water, ensuring that the water is 2cm above the meat. Bring to boil.

Lower the heat, add in the pre-fried onions, boiled eggs and simmer for 1 to 2 hours.

Serve with steamed rice and poached green vegetables.

红糟肉

After tasting these unforgettable treats in Taiwan last year, I have been dying to try them in my own kitchen. I googled a little, watched a few Taiwanese cooking programs and tweaked the recipes accordingly, based on instinct. LOL. It was surprisingly good although you may prefer to slice the pork before marinating if you prefer stronger flavours.

Ingredients:

2 pieces               pork belly or pork fillet
2 tablespoons      red wine dregs
1 tablespoon        rice wine
1 tablespoon        minced ginger
1 clove                garlic, minced
2 tablespoons      corn or tapioca flour
1 cup                  cooking oil

Method:

Marinate the pork (sliced or unsliced) with all the seasonings and refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Heat the wok with the oil. Before frying, coat the pork with corn or tapioca flour, shaking off the excess.

Depending on the size of the pork, fry them in the hot oil until it turns light brown in colour. Drain them on kitchen towel and serve.

Pig Stomach Vermicelli

The Lunar New Year is a time for family gatherings, red packets and most importantly plenty of sumptuous food. Many Chinese families will be familiar with a common dish served up on the dining table during the festival - Pig Stomach Soup. The key ingredient to this dish is the usage of white peppercorn to give the dish an extra oomph. Often served as a soup by itself, I added vermicelli to make it a complete meal. You may also wish to include some of the abalone slices or sea cucumber that are left over from the reunion dinner.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

300g               pork ribs

1                     pig stomach, whole

1 tablespoon   white peppercorn, crushed (not grind please)

1 teaspoon      salt

1.5 litres          water

1 packet          rice vermicelli

Method:

Blanch the pork ribs and pig stomach in boiling water and set aside. Bring 1.5 litres of water to boil. Add in the pork ribs, pig stomach and 1 tablespoon of crushed white pepper corns. Simmer for 1.5 to 2 hours until the pig stomach is soft.

Remove the pig stomach and slice them into thin slices. Return them to the soup and season with salt.

Bring a pot of water to boil, add in the vermicelli and cook for 30 seconds. Drain and serve with the pig stomach soup.

Easy Peasy Steamed Minced Pork with Shrimp Paste

This super simple recipe is something that was passed down from my mother when I was barely 10 years old. Yes, I started cooking really young and have been doing so since then. My parents were both super busy with their businesses so my mother 'invented' super easy recipes for me to cook for my brother and myself then. The finished dish is a juicy, flavourful meat pie that is so simple that I can't count the number of people I've fed this with.

Ingredients:

300g                 minced pork
2 tablespoons   water
1/2 tablespoon  shrimp paste

Method:

Add 2 tablespoons of water to the minced meat and mix with hand till the water is absorbed by the meat.

Mix in 1/2 tablespoon of shrimp paste (I use the bottled one from Lee Kum Kee. If you are using traditional shrimp paste from Hong Kong, reduce it to 1/4 tablespoon instead.) evenly.

Steam on high heat for 10 to 13 minutes.

扣肉包 (Kong Ba Pau)

My philosophy for food: The higher the cholesterol, the better it tastes. This was until I started gaining that extra few pounds a year ago. Then again, indulgence once in a while is more than reasonable. I have no idea how to make the 馒头(steamed bun) so I've happily bought mine ready-made from the supermarkets. All you need to do is to pop them into the steamer for a quick couple of minutes and they will be (to me at least!)as good as the freshly-made ones. If you find adding the spices a little cumbersome, you can easily replace it with a packet of herbal Bak Kut Teh bag from A1.

Serves 3
Ingredients:

2 pieces         pork belly
5 cloves        garlic, unpeeled
1 piece          cinnamon
1 piece          star anise
2 pieces         cloves
1/2 tsp           5-spice powder
3 tbsp            thick dark soy sauce
2 tbsp            light soy sauce
1 tbsp            vegetable oil
2 cups           water

Method:

Heat a saucepan and add in 1 tablespoon of oil. Add in the garlic cloves and pork belly. Brown the pork belly slightly, about 2 minutes.

Add in 3 tablespoons of dark soy sauce, 2 tablespoons of light soy sauce and 2 cups of water. Add in the spices and 5-spice powder. Bring to boil and lower to simmer for about 50 minutes or until the pork belly soften.

Cut each pork belly into 3 equal sizes and serve with steamed bun.