我的试验室 My Lab

My mum cooked me sambal petai last week.  Wah, it was so good......

I also learnt a lesson from there - How to clean belacan

Undeniable, there is always lots of sand in belacan.  So, what my mum does is:

1. Slice the required amount of belacan.
2. Put them in a small bowl, then pour some hot water over them. 
3. Soak it until the belacan has melted.  (Note:  It looks rather ..... )
4. Roughly use your finger to press to break down the bigger piece.
5. Pour slowly into the dish during cooking until you see the 'solid'.
6. Throw away the 'solid'. 

I think it won't be 100% sand free, but can probably avoid 80% of the sandy bit?

I love prawn tempura.  I have been dying to try to make it.  Now that my mum is with me, I think we should be able to succeed!!

I come across this website just now. 

http://sushiday.com/archives/2007/01/30/how-to-make-tempura/

I am extremely interested in the tips of making a fried prawn straight.

I hope it will work out.

Let's see.....

Especially when it is charcoal black and rough to touch!!  I found a solution to it.  Try this.

Cleaning steps:

1. Wet that stained area with water.
2. Sprinkle washing soda on the stained area.
3. Pour white vinegar onto the washing soda.  It will bubble + very mild smoke !!
4. When it stop bubbling, the stain can be scrubbed off easily.

Hey, I am surprised I got the building license within 2 weeks.  That is absolutely fast.  Don't you think so?

Have a look at the progress of our Garden Shed to here....

The 1st 6 was the toughest, because there is no reference for the ground level

Next 7 slabs are alright since I found the reference already.

These 7 slabs are killing me as the thickness is about 4mm thicker than previous one.

These 10 are easy as the thickness are fairly consistent

I hope the thickness of the slabs in Bunnings will remain the same.  And, I also hope the weather will continue supporting me.  Don't get too hot too soon!

This can be a good and simple dinner choice for a hot summer night.

Ingredients:

• 2 packets or soba (cook as directed)
• 1 cucumber - cut into strips
• 10 stalks spring onion - slice thinly
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame seed
• 6 slice of Spam - chopped and fried
• Seaweed strips- as much as you like
• 5 tbsp of Katsuo Tsuyu (Add more if required)
• 3 tbsp of light soy sauce (Reduce light soy sauce if you add more Katsuo Tsuyu)

Picture of Katsuo Tsuyu

Procedure:

1. Mix all the above ingredients.
2. Garnish with some more fresh seaweed strips. 

Serve immediately with Wasabi.

When I think of Japanese food, I will think of sushi.  When I think of my home town food, I will think of sambal.  So, last Friday, I created 'Sambal Sushi' for dinner.  Ho Chiak! (Means delicious in Hokkien)

Ingredients:

• 3 cups sushi rice (I used Jasmine rice and cook in a little bit more water, it works for me)
• water for cooking rice
• 1/4 - 1/3 cup rice vinegar
• 2 - 3 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 6 sheets of seaweed
• 12 sticks of cucumber
• 12 slices Spam
• sambal - varies according to your own taste

Procedure:

1. Stir sugar and salt in vinegar until dissolved.
2. Pour it over fluffed cooked sushi rice and mix well.
3. Lay one seaweed on sushi mat. 
4. Add sushi rice, spread 3 tsp sambal at the middle and length wise on the rice, add 2 slices Spam and 2 cucumber stick.  Roll it into sushi log.
5. Repeat the rest.

Cut and serve.

This is what we have been busy with for months.  Yes, we are putting up a garden shed next year!!  Not a big deal actually, but, what if it is a DIY project?  :-p  Lots of preparation job to be carried out.

1.  Weeding
Ever since last Sept holidays, we have been busy weeding.  The grass and the roots were like wires, I just couldn't find a better description for that.

2.  Building Application to council
Just submitted on Monday.  If everything goes well, approval will be in 5 weeks time.  Keeping double fingers crossed for that.

3.  Laying the concrete slab
After weeding, we proceed to the next stage, which is laying the concrete slab.  Before laying it, we have to compact the ground. We don't hire a compactor, instead, I am the compactor!!  Pour the water over, then try to do a ' penguin walk' on the wet sand.  Good idea huh?

Once the ground is compact, we level the ground using a garden shovel and a garden fork, with the aid of an inclinometer (not sure if it is right, the ruler with 3 bubbles).  This is the most tedious job of all and it is our current task!!  When the ground is level, then the concrete slab is laid.

We need to lay 80 concrete slabs, and we are at 12th right now.  Gam ba te ne...

The weather has been good this week.  So, I am stealing my blogging time for this.

4.  Purchase a garden shed
This should be the easiest of all.  As we shall pay the garden shed assembly cost : )

Waiting anxiously for this day to come!!

This is the second Tofu dish that I would like to introduce to you.

Ingredients:

• 300g minced pork
• 3 cloves garlic - minced
• 10 stalks of spring onion - chopped
• 1 tbsp salted black bean for porridge http://shlau06.blogspot.com/2010/10/salted-black-bean-for-porridge.html
• 1 tbsp soy bean paste
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 300g silken tofu - cut into 1.5 cm cube

Procedure:

1. Mix all ingredients except tofu.
2. Lay tofu cube on the plate.
3. Spread mixture on the tofu and press lightly to make a flat surface.
4. Roughly poke the flat surface with a spoon(optional).
5. Steam for 20 minutes or until cook through.

It is nutritious, decicious and most of all, it is easy :-O

Crazy about salad lately.  Simply because it is very easy to prepare and it taste great!

Ingredients:

• 400g macaroni pasta
• 1 can 425g Tuna in brine - drain and flake it
• 2 stalk celery stick - chopped (add more if you like the crunch)
• Dressing is the same as potato salad http://shlau06.blogspot.com/2010/11/potato-salad.html

Procedure:

1. Cook pasta according to packet instruction. Drain it thoroughly.
2. Mix well all ingredients except tuna.
3. Lastly, add tuna.  Mix carefully to avoid tuna become mushy.

Serve hot or cold.

Do you know that you can cook porridge without boiling it for 30 minutes (or even longer) continuously?  Especially when you use a small pot, not to mention the overflow..

Here is how....

Procedure:

1. Cook rice with enough water until it boils.  Do not open the lid, turn off the heat.
2. 1 hour later, it will become 'Teo Chew' moi.  If you want it very mushy, heat up the stove again, wait till it boils.  Turn off the heat.
3. Wait for another hour before serving.

Interesting right?

Finally, I decided to try to put cold salad into their lunch boxes.  Luckily, they didn't reject it, which is a real good news to me, especially during hot weather.

Ingredients:

• 12 potatoes peeled and cubed
• 2 hard boiled egg - mashed
• 10 stalk of spring onion - chopped

Dressing:

• 6 tbsp mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp Homemade Thai sweet chili sauce http://shlau06.blogspot.com/2009/12/thai-sweet-chili-sauce.html
• 2 tbsp tomato sauce
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 2 cloves garlic - minced

Procedure:

1. Boil potato until it is just cooked and drain well.
2. Mix all ingredients with potatoes.

Serve hot or cold.

After having some Chinese friends, then only I realised that Northern Chinese have dumpling during Chinese New Year.

Ingredients:

A.  Dumpling wrapper

• Same as tortilla wrap, but omit the butter  http://shlau06.blogspot.com/2009/11/tortilla-wrap.html

B.  Filling

• Same as Hamburger veggie combo meat patty  http://shlau06.blogspot.com/2010/10/hamburger-veggie-combo-meat-patty.html

Procedure:

Knead dough until smooth

Roll it into a log

Cut the log into pieces



Turn pieces so that they face upwards as above



Take 1 piece and put on chopping board



'Piak!' Good idea?



Slightly flatten it a little bit more with rolling pin



Add 1 tbsp of filling



Pleat it and it is done.


Cooking tips:

1. Fill a pot which is enough to cover the dumpling and boil it.  Wait for the water to boil.
2. Add the dumpling, leave the pot open, don't close the lid.
3. When the water start boiling, add 1 bowl of cold water.  Wait for the water to boil again.
4. Repeat until after adding 3rd bowl of water.  When the water boil, they are done.

Note:  These dumpling freeze well in the freezer.  Freeze it before cooking.

Next time, when you have leftover chicken, you can consider make it into chicken porridge.

Ingredients:

• leftover chicken - boned and shredded
• 2 tbsp/ to taste soy sauce(optional, depends on the flavour of the leftover chicken)
• 2 tbsp sweet soy sauce
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• chicken stock
• rice
• salt to taste
• spring onion - chopped
• fried garlic

Procedure:

1. Marinate shredded chicken with light soy sauce, sweet soy sauce and sesame oil.
2. Cook porridge in chicken stock.  You can also add some diced celery/carrot for extra fibre.
3. Add salt to taste.
4. Ladle a bowl of porridge, spread 2 tbsp of marinated chicken, sprinkle 1 tbsp of spring onion, then add 1 tsp of fried garlic.

Serve hot.

What to put in the lunch box tomorrow?  What about a Square Ham Moulded Egg Sandwich?  This is a quick and easy lunch box idea for kids, even for adults.

Ingredients:

• 2 slices Light Spam
• 1 egg

Procedure:

Add 2 slices of Spam, fry for about 2 minutes

Turn the Spam and arrange nicely  to make a 'square' shape

Crack an egg and swirl the pan to make a circle

Fold the egg to make it square



Turn and fry for a minute

It can be serve with baked beans and toast as a brekky too.  Yum!!

Probably we can reduce the saturated fat intake by adding some ingredients in the mayo? 

Ingredients:

• 6 tbsp Mayonnaise
• 3 tbsp chili sauce
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 cloves chopped garlic
• 1/2 tsp mustard powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp chopped coriander
• 1 tbsp diced capsicum

Procedure:

1. Mix all ingredients.

Serve it with bake potato wedges.

No compromise on taste at all!!

Frankly, I just started to explore Tofu dish lately.  I have tried a few recipes, but, my kids love this recipe the best.  So, I would like to share it with you today.

Ingredients:

• 600g tofu - cut into 1.5cm cube
• 250g minced pork - marinated with 2 tbsp light soy sauce and 1 tsp corn flour
• 3 cloves garlic - minced
• 1 cup cut spring onion
• 2 tbsp cooking oil
• 1 tsp homemade chili oil - http://shlau06.blogspot.com/2010/10/chilli-oil.html
• 1 tbsp salted black bean
• 1 tsp soy bean paste
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce /to taste
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 tbsp corn flour + 2 tbsp water
• 1 cup water

Procedure:

1. Heat 2 tbsp of cooking oil, fry the marinated ground pork until brown.
2. Add minced garlic, fry for a minute, then add chili oil, soy bean paste, salted black bean, continue frying for another 2 minute.
3. Add tofu cubes, fry for another minute, then add 1 cup of water.
4. Add light soy sauce and sugar, thicken it with corn flour+water.
5. Pop in the spring onion and have the final stir.

It will take you less than 30 minutes from cook to serve!

Cucumber is really sweet and crunchy during this season.  Try this.  It is good.

Ingredients:

• 1 burpless cucumber - deseeded
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 cloves garlic - chopped
• A few slices of red hot chili/ chili padi
• 1 tsp sesame oil

Procedure:

1. Slice thinly the deseeded burpless cucumber.
2. Add 1 tsp salt and mix well.  Let it stand for 15 min.  Clean away the salt with drinking water for 2 times then squeeze dry.
3. Meanwhile, mix sugar into lemon juice until dissolved, then add garlic, chili and sesame oil into lemon juice.
4. Pour it over cucumber and mix well.

Enjoy!



Try to make a change to white radish.  It tastes different!

Yes you can!!

Get a fry pan

Add some water

Throw in some bamboo chopsticks



Add fish in steel plate



Close lid and turn on the heat

15 minutes later.....



Dinner time!


I learnt this from Better Home and Garden.

Ingredients:

• 1 small lemon (extract the juice) - can be substituted by balsamic vinegar, apple cider,white vinegar,...
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp sugar/honey (optional)
• 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp toasted sesame seed (optional)

Procedure:

1. Mix all ingredients and store in the fridge.  Use it within 2 days.

Ready to serve.

What do we have in fruits? All the nutrients, vitamins and most of all, fibre.  However, when we have fruit juice, we extract all the juice using a juice extractor, then throw away the fibre!!  emmm.....

Why not try having this fibrous fruit juice with empty stomach in the morning?  Then, let our body have some time to digest and absorb the goodies from the juice.  Have your breakfast half an hour later(or longer)

Do not try to combine too many types of fruits and veggies at one time.  I am not sure whether there is any reaction/side effect for having too many fruit/veggies at a time, but one thing for sure, it will taste :-< 
I usually mix 3 only. Our favourite trio are:-

• orange, green apple and celery(try to include leaves too)  + 1 cup water
• orange, green apple and strawberries + 1 cup water

Blend them in the blender, not juice extractor.

I like to include orange/any citrus fruits because I find that its fibre will improve the texture of the juice and makes it taste better. 

If you are trying it for the first time, I would like to suggest that you start with only oranges, because the texture is the most similar to the juice from juice extractor.  If it is too sour, add some honey.

Even though I always have fibrous fruit juice for my breakfast, I still enjoy my ordinary fruit juice(without fibre type) when I eat out :O