Pan-Fried Salmon with Cucumber Dill Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients:
1                        salmon fillet
1/2                     lemon, juice
1                        Japanese cucumber
1 teaspoon         dried dill or 1 tablespoon fresh dill
2 tablespoons    plain yoghurt
1 pinch              cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon      olive oil
                          salt and black pepper

Method: 

Season salmon fillet with lemon juice, salt and pepper. 

Heat up the olive oil in a frying pan on high heat. When the pan is hot, place the salmon skin side down. Lower heat to medium high and fry for 5 minutes. Turn the salmon over and fry for another 4 minutes. The salmon should be still slightly raw in the middle. 

Peel off the skin of the Japanese cucumber. Chop the cucumber finely and add in 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Leave aside for 10 minutes.  Squeeze off excess water.

Mix the yoghurt, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, dill, cayenne pepper and cucumber together. Serve with the pan-fried salmon. 

Chicken Salad with Grapes and Walnut

I chanced upon this highly raved recipe online and thought that I could give it a try (with some slight modifications to the recipe) since I have all the ingredients available. I was initially skeptical about how good this can taste given its simple ingredients, and was proven so wrong. I'll be straightforward here. This has gotta be one of the best chicken salads I've tasted! The addition of celery made this salad so refreshing despite the huge amount of mayonnaise used. The worchestershire sauce also gave this otherwise heavy taste an extra kick. So good that I'll sure be remaking this very often!


Ingredients:

1 piece - chicken breast, poached and cubed
20 - seedless grapes, halved
2 tablespoons - mayonnaise
1 teaspoon - worchestershire sauce
3 stalks - celery, chopped finely
1 small - red onion, minced
1 handful - walnut, broken into smaller pieces

Method:

Mix the chicken breast, grapes, celery, onion, mayonnaise and worchestershire sauce. Place in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight for the flavours to blend together.

Top with walnuts when ready to serve. Best served with a loaf of nicely toasted baguette.

Sesame Oil Chicken Mee Sua

I am an absolute fan of sesame oil chicken. A popular dish during the confinement period, this dish
contains a lot of ginger which warms the body and drives out wind. As for me, this is pure comfort food, especially with a bowl of plain porridge. I love this so much that I've decided to create a mee sua soup dish out of it. Here's sharing with you that recipe:

Serves 2
Ingredients:

1/2                      chicken, cut into pieces
2 thumbsize       old ginger, julienned
2 tablespoons     sesame oil
1 tablespoon      light soy sauce
1/2 tablespoon   dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons     chinese cooking wine
3 cups                water (add in only 1/2 cup of water if you are making sesame oil chicken)

Method:

Heat a pot on high heat with 2 tablespoons of sesame oil. Add in the julienned ginger and stir fry till the ginger turns golden brown and fragrant.

Add in the chicken pieces and stir fry till the chicken pieces are browned on the outside. Add in 2 tablespoons of Chinese cooking wine and let it sizzle for about 20 seconds.

Add in the dark, light soy sauce and stir to mix well. Add in the water and bring to boil. Lower heat and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Serve with mee sua which has been blanched in boiling water for 30 seconds.

Steamed Chicken with D.O.M and Red Dates

I've been receiving comments recently about my rosy cheeks. I used to look pretty pale, if not for my superb make up skills. These days, I've gained a hint of pink on my face that I actually look ok without having any make up on. This new found glow, I have to credit all the tonic soups and nourishing food that I've been feeding the Hub and myself these recent months. I know that they say that certain food are meant for women only but I guess a little won't harm the man either. I've done extensive research and found out that certain supposedly 'women herbs' are actually beneficial to men too. I am still a little cautious and only fed the man a third of my portion instead. (It is a relatively good excuse to look better than him). Here is one of these recipes which uses D.O.M. benedictine, a herbal liqueur which is known for its nourishing properties. You can also drink this straight up, after mixing with a little warm water.


Ingredients:

1/2                          Chicken, chopped into pieces (I actually used 3 chicken wings instead)
5 large                    Red dates, pitted and cut into pieces
1 tablespoon           Wolfberries, rinsed
3                             Chinese mushroom, soaked and cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon           Salt
1 tablespoon           Sesame oil
3 tablespoons          D.O.M. Benedictine

Method:

Mix chicken with salt and arrange on a steaming plate. Scatter red dates, wolfberries and Chinese mushroom on top. Drizzle a tablespoon of sesame oil and 3 tablespoons of D.O.M over the dish. Steamed over medium heat for 20 minutes.

Braised Duck in Ginger and Dark Soy Sauce

This is one of the many recipes that is passed down from the Wonderwoman mum. This is also the dish that will have my sister and I fighting over the dinner table for the last piece. Super easy to make and yet full of flavours. Good things goes to those who wait. So, be patient and you will be rewarded with a tender and flavoursome duck after an hour or two of braising.

Ingredients:

1 duck                     chopped into pieces
1 whole piece          ginger, julienned
3 tablespoons          thick dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons          light soy sauce
4 cups                     water
1 tablespoon           sugar
1 tablespoon           cooking oil

Method:

Heat cooking oil in big pot or wok. Fry ginger till golden brown.

Add in 4 cups of water, duck, dark and light soy sauce. Bring to boil, lower heat and simmer for about 1.5 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Turn off the heat when the duck is tender, sprinkle a tablespoon of sugar over it and mix well.