Gardening is not really my strong point but even people like me can occasionally find pure joy in cultivating something of a satisfactory level, I might say. For those of you who have been with my blog for quite some time now, would know I love spicy food even more than cakes. Yes, that’s right, more than cakes. I don’t think there are many like me out there but it does not really matter. I believe there is always something for everyone.

It’s hard for me to imagine being born and bred on Penang Island, Malaysia, not being able to enjoy the heat of chilis and the authenticity of the local food of the island. While growing up, my grandmother’s garden was a place of solace where my sister and I run wild doing the things we enjoy most, plucking and eating rambutans from the trees and collecting lizard eggs. Imagine that! Lizard eggs aside, my grandmother was the first person I know who loves gardening. Everything she planted flourished and that includes the exact chili plant I have here today. It has been my favourite chili the day I tasted it. There are many famous one likes the Jalapeno, Thai bird-eye etc… but this one tops it all for me. This specie has a unique fragrant and sharp spiciness about it. Best chopped-up and placed swimming in a bowl of light soy sauce. Excellent as an accompaniment or just to wet your appetite.

It’s not a really big plant, just a little more than 3 feet tall and bushy. When it starts to yield, it looks as if it will never stop but unfortunately, it did for me but that was after almost 7 months of non-stop supply of small white chilies. Just like the saying goes, “All good things must come to an end”. Then to my surprise, my banana tree blossomed after 1 1/2 years thriving outside of my house. Look, not bad for a ‘non-existence’ gardener, I dare not even classify myself as an amateur.

Ah yes, it has been too long since I last sat down and clicked away on my keyboard. Some have asked if I was alright and some insisted on the next dish please. Thank you for all your interesting ways of encouragement so that I continue doing what I enjoy most. I have not stop cooking or experimenting with food altogether but have been carefully looking into some future plans for family and career. I am sure there are quite a number of ladies out there wondering what they can do after spending some time at home raising their young children.

I always believe there is a season for everything. For me, my son is already coming to 2 years of age and my daughter will be going to primary school next year, so I hope to pursue my long time dream and heart desires. I would consider this as the ‘third phase’ of my life since I have lived excitingly during my single days, love the man I married and the children that God has blessed me with and now it’s time to venture into new pastures. My husband and I have been blessed by our group of friends whom we both enjoy and shared our lives with, for only God knows how long. Had the privilege to meet up with them for a great time just last Saturday … and that was totally invigorating.

I made this roast sometime in April and if remember clearly, the recipe goes like this.

Ingredient

6 long ribs (uncut)

5 Tbsp of Beaufor “Moutarde a l Ancienne” whole grain mustard

pinch of sea salt

a dash of black pepper

Method

1. Rub the pork ribs with the whole grain mustard paste evenly. Cling wrap and place it back in the fridge overnight.
2. Take out the ribs from the fridge and leave to room temperature. Grind some sea salt and black pepper evenly over the ribs and pop it into the healsio at Super Roast 220 degree celsius for 40 minutes.
3. Take ribs out and let it rest for 15 minutes before slicing into individual sticks for serving.

Note : Some ribs have less/more meat stuck to it, so roasting time may vary from 30 - 50 minutes. I reckon best served with salad greens and mashed potatoes.

Christmas 2008 has passed and gone by just in a blinking of an eye. Food was not exactly the emphasis of last Christmas table talk, in fact the “goodness of God” was the main topic. God is good all the time even more do during Christmas last year. In fact, He has sustained my extended family through times of anxiety and worry. Yes! worry is not from God but we are still human with human emotions. God have successfully extended His grace in preserving lives of 3 major people in my husband’s side of the family in year 2008. Glory be to God!

For those of you who know that I love curries would probably be wondering why I have not been posting curry recipes. I have certainly cut down on curries and overly spicy food recently cos a friend of mine said if I don’t, my tastebuds might suffer in a long run. I very seldom cook this recipe cos I usually get my dose of ‘Nasi Kandar Fish Curry’ outside. Today, I feel inspired so here it is.

Ingredients
8 - 10 slices of tenggiri (mackerel fish)

1 tsp sea salt

1 Tbsp tamarind paste (soaked in 3 Tbsp hot water)

1 Tbsp turmeric powder

5 Tbsp grapeseed oil for frying fish

5 slices old ginger

Vegetables
10 lady fingers (washed and the top trimmed)
3 large ripe red tomatoes (cut into quarters)
5 small aubergines (cut into 2)

Aromatic herbs
2 Tbsp ‘rempah ratus’ spices

2 dried chili (washed and seeded)

4 sprigs of curry leaves (bruised)

1 Tbsp traditionally handmade coconut oil

Spices
10 shallots (peeled and sliced)
5 cloves garlic (peeled and sliced)
1 inch old ginger (sliced)
5 large dried chili (soaked and seeded)

Blend or pound all the above spices
1 Tbsp chili powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 Tbsp coriander seeds

1 Tbsp fennel (jintan manis)

1 Tbsp cumin (jintan putih)

5 Tbsp Baba’s meat curry powder

100 ml traditionally handmade coconut oil

1 Tbsp castor sugar
800 ml filtered water

1 Tbsp tamarind paste (soaked in 100 ml water and drained, discard the seeds retain the water)

sea salt to taste
100 ml thick coconut milk or santan

Method

1. Marinate the fish slices in the tamarind paste, turmeric powder and salt for about 1 hour. Heat a non-stick pan and drizzle in the grapeseed oil. Pan fry the fish slices till slightly golden brown on the outside.
2. Remove from heat and set aside on some paper towels to absorb oil.
3. Set a large curry pot on the stove. Heat it up and drizzle in the 100ml coconut oil. Add in the blended spices, powdered spices, curry powder and ‘tumis’ or lightly fry until fragrant. Add sugar and keep stirring to avoid the spices from burning. Burnt spices have to be discarded as they will taste bitter.
4. Slowly add filtered water and let the spice paste simmer.  Add the tamarind water and all the vegetables. Pour in the rest of the filtered water and simmer over low heat until vegetables are all tender. Put in the fish slices, coconut milk and sea salt to taste.
5. Fry aromatics in the used non stick pan by adding 1 Tbsp coconut oil to the pan. Fry over low heat until fragrant. Add to simmering curry and simmer for another 3 minutes. Cut off heat, curry ready to be served.

This is a dish from one of my many lazy day meals. Trying to relieve myself from the kitchen to concentrate on some more important issues like my daughter’s desire to re-model her room. It’s a great step for a 5 year old to migrate into her own room without making a fuss. Or could it be my son, giving her sleepless nights when he wakes up for his feed in the middle of the night. Well the truth is still yet to be revealed.

Deciding on the colour of the walls alone is a pretty difficult task for a little girl. Pink or Purple??? Purple or Pink?? Mom! I want both. Anyway before I get carried away … that’s why I have ‘one pot’ meals.

serves 3

Chicken Stock Ingredients

1/2 free range chicken

1 piece of old ginger (2″) - smashed
5 cloves garlic (with skin intact, washed)

2 litres filtered water

Ingredients for the one pot

15 ‘middle range’ sea prawns (deveined, shells removed leaving the tail)

wood fungus (soaked, hard core removed, cut into bite-size pieces)
2 spring onions (cut into 2″ length)

1 carrots (roughly cut)

2 firm tofu (cubed)

2 pac enoki mushrooms (lower ends removed)

9 tofu puffs (cut into 2 and blanche)

200 gm baby spinach (washed and plucked into short sprigs)

200 gm chinese cabbage (torn into bite size pieces)

30 gm glass noodles

sea salt

garlic oil

Method

1. Prepared the chicken stock by boiling in a stock pot over low heat for 1 hour. Strain the stock into a claypot. Place claypot on the heat.
2. Put in the carrots, tofu puffs, wood fungus, tofu, prawns, chinese cabbage, enoki, spring onions, baby spinach and glass noodles. Simmer for 5 minutes. Try to put these ingredients in this order so that the root vegetable cooks for a longer period of time and the prawns does not over cook.
3. Add sea salt to taste and 2 tablespoons of garlic oil to garnish.

This is the time of the year again where dates are in abundance. With the ‘Hari Raya’ just round the corner, what better time to make full use of these lovely fruits. I noticed that there are a lot of variety of dates on the shelves and got myself in a bit of a mess just deciding on what type to choose. I wanted the ‘not so sweet’ ones but ended up getting just that. Could not bring myself to eat them whole, just terribly sweet so I decided to put them in a cake.

A simple buttercake recipe will do just fine.

Ingredients

250 gm unsalted butter (softened)

90 gm castor sugar

1 sachet vanilla sugar (10 gm)

400 gm all-purpose flour (sieved)

1 tsp baking powder (add into the all-purpose flour)

a pinch of salt (add into the all-purpose flour)

5 large eggs (room temperature)

180 ml fresh milk

arabian dates (pitted and cut into small chunks)

Method

1. Preheat healsio super bake 1 at 180 degree celsius, 50 minutes. (Normal oven preheat at 180 degree celsius)
2. Cream butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
3. Add in flour and eggs alternately leaving a small amount of flour to be added after the milk. Add milk slowly and the remaining flour. Batter should be light and runny.
4. Put in the chopped dates and stir evenly. Pour batter into a prepared 9″ x 6″ baking tin and press start to bake for 50 minutes. Cover with an aluminium foil the last 10 minutes if the top starts to brown too quickly.
5. Turn cake out onto a wire rack to cool before slicing to serve with a cup of steaming hot black coffee.

vanilla sugar (optional)

Collar steaks are my absolute favourite part when it comes to making pork chops. I tend to like my chops with a little more bite and slightly chewy. For those of you who prefer other parts, it is perfectly fine. Never think in a box when cooking. Be adventures! I love kitchen adventures. When it turns out well, rejoice! but if it fails ‘there will always be a better next time.’ Hahaha! Even I have my share of kitchen mishaps, yes even I……

Ingredients

(serves 2)

4 collar steaks

2 Tbsp HP sauce

2 Tbsp Lea & Perrin Sauce

sea salt

freshly crushed black pepper

grapeseed oil

butter

4 chicken livers

brandy

sprigs of chinese parsley (garnishing)

Method

1. Bruise the chops with a meat tenderiser. Season them with HP sauce, salt and pepper.
2. Heat up a large ionised non-stick pan, drizzle in some grapeseed oil. Slowly place the chops onto the heated pan. Sear for 2 minutes each side. Splash in some Lea & Perrin sauce.
3. Add a little hot water into the pan and let the chops simmer for a while till slightly tender. Turning to ensure both sides of the chops are properly cooked and not burnt. Chops should always be moist while simmering.
4. Place chops on the serving plates and set aside while you proceed to make the sauce.
5. Put a little butter and some grapeseed oil into a small saucepan. Put in the chicken livers. Sear all sides till completely cooked. Remove from heat and mash them up with a fork.
6. Scrap the mashed livers back into the saucepan and add some brandy, sea salt and black pepper. Stir continuously until it turns into a runny paste texture. Cut off heat and spoon over the chops. Garnish with a sprig of chinese parsley and serve immediately.

I was experimenting with marination when I suddenly got a brillant idea. Why not marinade some meat with a can of anchovies? Thus the ‘Anchovies Lamb Ribs’ was born. The anchovies actually give the roast lamb ribs a lot of depth in taste and also in aroma. I seriously feel that this is going to be one of my signature dishes. You see, I have been secretly rating my own recipes and I am really proud of this one. So, better try it and you shall not regret.

Ingredients

1 kg lamb ribs (approx. 11 - 12 rib bones, 5 - 6 inches in length each)

1 can of crown prince flat anchovies in olive oil

a dash of Lea & Perrin Sauce (or worchestershire sauce) or even both

2 Tbsp smoked hickory sauce

freshly ground pepper

2 sprigs of rosemary

olive oil

sea salt to taste

Method

1. Place anchovies in a bowl including its oil, the 3 sauces and black pepper. Mash them up into a paste.
2. Marinate the ribs with the anchovies paste in a freezer bag. Leave in the fridge overnight.
3. Ribs leave at room temperature before roasting. Crush rosemary leaves onto the ribs, sprinkle a little sea salt and a dash of olive oil.
4. Super Roast at 200 degree celsius for 30 minutes for well done. 20 minutes for medium.
5. Take out ribs and let it rest for 10 minutes before slicing to serve.

Finally, yes …. I am on vacation! so guess what! I have time to romance my blog. It is always a pure joy for me to click away on the keyboard and someone on the receiving end gets to cook something heart-warmingly wholesome for their family. Since my son has been enjoying his pumpkin puree or pumpkin ala rice cereal, there is still a lot of pumpkin left so we have also been eating pumpkin ala this and that. I have a very tasty pumpkin recipe that I want to share with you. I can just indulge in this dish just like some people with mashed potatoes. This recipe calls for very few ingredients.

Ingredients

700 - 800gm Japanese pumpkin or butternut

3 large fresh red chili

3 bird eye chili

50gm dried shrimps (hae bee)

olive oil

dark soya sauce

sea salt

Method

1. Cut pumpkin into 2, remove seeds. Cut into thick slices and remove the hard skin. Cut the pumpkin into 3cm cubes.
2. Remove seeds from the chilis and pound using a mortar and pestle. Scoop out and set aside.
3. Soak the dried shrimps for 10 minutes, drain and pound like the above.
4. Heat up the wok and drizzle in a generous amount of olive oil. Put in all the pounded ingredients and stir till fragrant.
5. Add pumpkin cubes and continue to fry. Add a little water if its too dry. Lower heat and continue to stir till pumpkin in soft and has absorbed all the flavours of this dish.
6. A dash of dark soya sauce for colouring and sea salt to taste.

Deeply inspired by my latest cooking frenzy, my cravings have happily taken me to Eastern North Carolina’s ever popular dark brown shards called pulled pork burger. I wanted to try out this type of recipe but never had the time. Instead of slaving over charcoal and pit smoke, I made this in my super heated steam oven. Verdict : I had a mop of people waiting in queue to dig into this burger and wanting second helpings. Will I make it again? YES … Go figure!

This was tedious cooking but everything you see from the burger bun to the fillings were all made from scratch. This time I had help from my cooking partner Ivy who happens to live just round the bend. Ivy made the burger buns and coleslaw. I made the pulled pork shards and baked beans. This is my first time making baked beans from scratch. I purchased a packet of dried cannellini beans from Bangsar Village Grocer last month in anticipation to today’s burger project. Soak beans in filtered water for 30 minutes. I suggest soaking the beans for a longer period of time to quicken the cooking process. I did not soak them long enough so I took a much longer cooking time. Nevertheless, the results was not compromised.

500 gm cannellini beans (soaked and drained)

1 can of peeled stewed tomatoes

1 bottle Heinz tomato ketchup

1 1/2 Heinz ketchup bottle of filtered water

sea salt to taste

sugar to taste

Method

Pressure cook it for 1 hour 40 minutes. I believe if the beans were soaked longer maybe 10 hours, you’ll only need 30 minutes to pressure cook them.

Pulled Pork Burger

Ingredients

1.7 kg shoulder of pork with bone, layer of fats and top skin intact.

5 Tbsp Hickory smoke sauce

1 Tbsp Lea & Perrin sauce

sea salt

black pepper

Combined in a bowl the ingredients below :-

3 Tbsp olive oil

3 Tbsp Brandy

1 Tbsp butter

Method

1. Clean pork shoulder, pat dry with disposable kitchen towels. Slit the skin with a sharp paring knife. Make line incisions through the skin until the fats only not touching the meat at a 5 mm interval. Score with boiling water and pat dry. Season with sea salt and pepper on skin and rub hickory smoke on the meat all round except the skin.
2. Place pork shoulder on a baking tin and pop into a pre-heated oven at 230 degree celsius for 20 minutes. Then lower heat to 180 degree celsius and roast for 2 hours. Cover with foil if the skin starts to burn. Not to worry.
3. After 2 hours, take pork shoulder out and slice off the skin. Discard the skin, leaving the little fats intact. Pour all the brandy combination over the meat and pop it back into the oven for 15 minutes uncovered.
4. Take out from the oven and let pork shoulder rest on another baking pan for 20 minutes.
5. Use 2 forks and start shredding the meat and what’s left of the fats, resulting in moist strands of pork otherwise known as a mop of pulled pork.
6. Serve pulled pork with coleslaw and baked beans between 2 lovely baked and heavily buttered burger buns. This recipe serves 12 portions with lots of baked beans leftovers.

It has been quite a long while since I last posted. Feels good to start clicking at the keyboard again. The past month has been pretty eventful not to mention the lack of sleep due to 2 under-the-weather children taking turns to have their ‘go’ at mom. Anyway that’s over now and most importantly I have gulai to share.

My mobile market brought me some very fresh baby stingrays. It has been a while since I last cooked this dish. Memory is blurr but slowly coming back as I imagine the sweetness of the spices, the spicy flavour and the sharpness of the curry. I am so glad I am a recipe blogger, if not I would not remember much of my food when I reach my golden years. Now writing down recipes seems to be a total bore. 

Ingredients

4 pcs of 200 gm baby stingrays (chop into 3 portions)

12 dried chilies (soaked in hot water and seeded)

3 medium size lemongrass (cut into 3 inches length and bruised)

1 inch fresh tumeric (skin scraped off and sliced) or 1 Tbsp tumeric powder

15 shallots (skinned)

5 cloves of garlic (skinned)

1 Tbsp toasted fresh belacan

2 medium size ginger flower (one halved, the other sliced thinly)

2 Tbsp assam paste (soaked in 400ml hot water)

3 ripe red tomatoes (halved)

1 large onion (quartered)

6 lady fingers

sea salt

sugar

oil

Method

1. Blend dried chili, fresh tumeric, shallots and garlic together.
2. Add oil in a heated claypot, stir the blended ingredients and toasted belacan until fragrant.
3. Put in 1 Tbsp of sugar and stir till the oil is separated from the ingredients. Take extra care not to burn the blended ingredients.
4. Pour in the strained assam water, stirring constantly. Add the halved ginger flower and lemongrass. Simmer for 10 minutes and add in tomatoes and quartered onion. Simmer another 10 minutes.
5. Put in the stingray pieces and simmer for 10 minutes then add lady fingers, bring to boil for 2 -3 minutes. Stir the gulai and season with salt.
6. Remove the halved ginger flower and garnish with the sliced ginger flower.
7. Serve immediately.

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