Spicy Top Shell Salad

The perfect accompaniment to a glass of chilled beer, this top shell salad (I'm not even sure if this can be considered a salad, since no vegetables are being used! Haha) is always on our top list of favourites whenever we feel like drinking at home! I used two chilli padi in my recipe so it is VERY spicy. For those who can't bear with that kind of heat, please do reduce it to one instead. Enjoy! Please also feel free to invite me over for a mug of beer if you want to!  

Ingredients:

1 can                       top shell, cut into smaller bite sizes

3 tablespoons         sauce from the canned top shell

2                             chilli padi, sliced

1 medium               onion, sliced thinly

1/2 tablespoon        sugar

3 to 4                      calamansi lime, juiced

Method:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and set aside in fridge for at least 15 minutes. Serve chilled. 

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.

蛤蜊冬瓜汤 Clam and Winter Melon Soup

I first tried this soup in a small traditional Taiwanese restaurant in Kaohsiung, Taiwan and was instantly bought over by the intense flavour of the clams in the soup. This is something pretty novel to us but it was apparently a very common every day dish in Taiwan, given how simple it is to make and the little ingredients it requires. The key step to this dish is soaking the clams in water for a good amount of time in order to get rid of the sand in the clams. Do take note not to overcook the clams too or it will be chewy like rubber.

Serves 2 to 3

Ingredients:

1 slice                          winter melon, skin removed and cut into small pieces

500ml                          chicken stock or water with boulillon cube

300g                            clams, soaked in water for at least 2 hours

1 thumb sized               old ginger, julienned

2 tablespoon                rice wine

Method:

Bring the chicken stock to boil with the winter melon and ginger. Lower heat to simmer for another 5 minutes.

Add in the clams and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes or until the clams open up.

Switch off the fire and add 2 tablespoons of rice wine just before serving.

Deonbokjuk (Abalone Porridge)

Commonly seen in Korean drama series, Deonbokjuk (abalone porridge) is a famous dish using freshly-shucked abalone from Jeju island. It is highly nourishing and is an ideal nutritional supplement for those recovering from sickness or simply when you are lacking in appetite. Short-grain rice is preferred but the usual Jasmine long-grain will do as well. This recipe calls for fresh abalone but since that's hardly available in Singapore, I've cooked mine using canned ones instead. I was being a little extravagant by using those gigantic Mexican canned abalone but you can easily replace it with half a can of mini abalone, you just got to ensure that you sliced them thinly as chunks of abalone flesh can be quite taxing on your jaw muscles.

Ingredients:

1 cup                  white rice
2 small                fresh abalone, chopped (or half can of abalone)
1 small                carrot, chopped finely
2 cloves              garlic, minced
2 tablespoons      sesame oil
1 stalk                 scallion, chopped
1 sheet                toasted seaweed, shredded
1/2 teaspoon       salt


Method:

Soak the rice in water for 3 hours or a minimum of 30 minutes. The longer you soak the rice, the finer the porridge. Strain and keep aside.

Heat a pot on medium heat with 2 tablespoons of sesame oil. Add in the minced garlic and chopped carrot and stir-fry for a minute. Add in the abalone and stir-fry for another minute.

Mix in the pre-soaked rice and fry for another 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in 5 cups of water and bring to boil.

Lower heat and simmer covered for 30 minutes. Season with salt and serve with the chopped scallion and seaweed.

Nigella's Roasted Seafood

All thanks to Nigella's Kitchen (one of my favourite cookbook), a chockfull of seafood goodness can now be yours. Easily. All you need is a little time, no fuss and no mess. The best part of the recipe: It uses up my leftover onions, potatoes and lemons.

Ingredients:

4            jumbo prawns
1            squid, sliced
200g      clams, soaked in water for at least 30 minutes
2            potatoes, cut into 8 pieces with skin intact
1            onion, cut into 8 pieces
1            lemon, cut into 8 pieces
8            garlic cloves, unpeeled
1/4 cup  white wine
1 tbsp     parsley, chopped
              salt and pepper
1/4 cup  extra virgin olive oil

Method:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees celsius. Place the chopped onion, lemon, garlic cloves and potatoes in a roasting pan. Drizzle with 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil and roast in oven for 60 minutes.

Remove pan from oven and add in the clams, prawns and squid. Drizzle with 1/4 cup of white wine and season with salt and pepper. Return pan to oven and roast for another 15 minutes. When ready, sprinkle the chopped parsley and serve in the pan. Easy, isn't it?