Something Old, Something New

Reheating the chicken and eat it with some sautéed potato and it feels like a new dish.

Bean Soup

I left the back of the chicken out of the chicken stew to make a soup. I browned the back pieces before adding water and bay leave to cook for a couple hours. Onion, celery, carrot and garlic are sautéed in the pressure cooker before tomato, the stock and soaked beans are added. It cooked under pressure for half an hour and voilá!

Chicken Stew

This is kind of a franco-italian stew I suppose. Carrot, onion, celery and garlic are sautéed before browned chicken is added. A few tomatoes, white wine, salt, mushrooms, potatoes, bay leaves, thyme and oregano go in and the whole things cooks for 20 or so minutes. There is a nice freshness to this dish and it makes me forget that it is gray and cold outside.

Shrimp and Bittle Melon

This is a recipe from the Hong Kong celebrity chef Chow Chong. The shrimp is dusted with a little cornstarch and oil blanched for couple of minutes; the bitter melon is blanched in water. Pre-soaked dry orange peels, garlic, cured black beans are fried lightly in a little oil before the bitter melon is added. Cooked for a minute or so and add the shrimp with oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, touch of sugar, a little water and cook covered for 3 minutes. Thicken with a little cornstarch in cold water.

Ugly Food

I have this thick big squid in the freezer and I don't know what to do with it. I decide to just go and make some pasta with it. Unfortunately I realized too late that I don't have any dry paste left and it is too late to make fresh ones. I thought, well, why not some rice noodles? I blanched the diced up squid quickly. Garlic and chili pepper are sautéed with anchovy paste, the squid are then added with yellow pepper. The result if good but nothing exciting. I think it would be a lot better by itself, without the noodle. It is, however, a decent enough quick meal.

Fried Tofu

I usually deep fried tofu but this time I tries shallow frying and it works. Ginger, garlic, scallion, salt and chili pepper are quickly fried in just a little oil and toss in the crisp tofu. Good with beer.

Scallops and Tofu, Steamed

This is a simple but elegant dish--scallops are place on top of tofu pieces, cured black beans, ginger, garlic and just a touch of sugar are placed on top, steams for a few minutes until the scallop is just cooked. A few scallions are placed on top, a couple table spoons of hot oil is poured
over to bring out the fragrant. Good soy sauce finish the dish. Simple.

Fridge Special Fried Rice

Most days I decide what to cook and eat, but some days, like today, the fridge decides. Ground beef, celery, carrot, scallion and egg made this fried rice. Seasoned with a little soy sauce and sambol sauce. Simple and help clear the fridge a little.

Roast Chicken Thigh

The kitchen sink approach: ginger, garlic, scallion, salt, sugar, shaoxing liquor, soy sauce, sambol sauce and sesame oil make the marinate. The pieces are roasted hot 400℉ convected. It got a little smoky but the skin is crisp and the meat extra tasty.

More Double Boiling

This is the classic cough tonic: Ya pear, chuanbei and rock sugar. The pear is halved and cored, puts into the double boiling pot with chuanbei, hot water and rock sugar. The whole things is steamed slowly in a larger pot with the double lid of the pot closed. Takes a couple of hours at least but the result is just the most tasty.

Snow Mushroom

I am having a little cough so I bought out the small double boiling pot, into it went snow mushroom, chuanbei, aged tangerine peel, rock sugar and almonds. The snow mushroom is a fungus that grows on trees and comes from the store dry. You have to soak it for a good few hours before cooking it. It is one of the best soothing tonic in the fall. Chuanbei is the bulbs of a small plant that is excellent in calming the lung. It is all very good for you, and it taste great.