Steamed Arugula with Sole tomato sauce

This is another Anniversary dish I made today. It is very soothing dish with cherry tomatoes and buttery sole fillet, put on top of steamed arugula. Yes, I think you never heard of steamed arugula, and this is a new way of eating it. Surprisingly, the arugula did not taste bitter once cooked in the hot boiling water. The texture was soft and greeny, just like bok choy or chinese green. Love it with just soy sauce, but I was laying the sole tomato sauce on top of it in addition to the soy sauce. So good and comforting.

Recipe soon.

Indian cabbage

Cabbage is my favourite vegetable especially when they are cooked thoroughly and long. I use the curry powder, cumin and coriander to spice up the indian flavor, with garlic. Easy to cook, remember always to use lid to cover the pan or pot while cooking cabbage. Cook faster.

Recipe:-

1 head Cabbage - however you want to cut it
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
2 Tablespoon Vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
Salt to taste
1/2 cup water

Method:-

1. Heat the non-stick saucepan with the oil on medium high, add the garlic and stir for a few second. Dont burn it.
2. Add cabbage, curry powder, cumin, coriander and water. Put high heat, stir for a minute and then cover with lid. Let it cook for 2 minute.
3. Add salt to taste and stir well.

"Anda Boleh" Namaste

Carmen's Grill

Carmen Mayo, our friend from Seattle, came back to visit her parents the other day. She invited us to go to her place and have bbq. It was just 3 of us, so I thought, great, we have zuchini, eggplant, sweet nectarine and chicken thigh in the fridge. So easy to marinate these vegetables, just use olive oil, salt and pepper, a little curry powder would be great. Chicken thigh, mixed soy sauce, olive oil, sugar, salt and Chinese 5 spice powder. Remember, chicken needs some time to cook.

"Anda Boleh"

Roasted Garden Beets

Healthy but with the leftover Chicken wings. Ok, here is the story again. I had a very bad sore throat few weeks ago, so I had to be very careful on what I put into my mouth. I had soft baby food for days, to make sure that I am 100% recovered. So, I stopped cooking and posting on my blog for a while. When I was 99% better, I made all these food to satisfy my craving. The duck confit with berry sauce and the Recovery Fried Squash and Sole other than this one, Roasted Garden Beets, Garden Corns and Leftover BBQ Sauce Chicken Wings.

Recipe:-

6-8 Small red beets with tops (clean them thoroughly)
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

* Using aluminium foil, mixed all the ingredients evenly and wrap them. Roast them in the oven at 400 F for about 35-45 min until soft.

"Anda Boleh"

Just vegetables

I loved this picture of all the bright colors vegetables on this white bowl. There are so many healthy things in this bowl, of cos, most of these were from our garden bed.

Recipe soon.

Chef Chong's Beef Stew

Chef Chong's Beef Stew and sauteed home grown vegetables. What do you think?

Recipe soon.

Chinese Gumbo

This is what I called, Chinese Gumbo. Very quick and easy meal especially when you have less time to cook. Also when you have leftover steamed rice of any kind, Safeway roast chicken and leftover shrimps from the Memorial Weekend BBQ.

Ingredients:-

2 cups Chicken stock or any kind of stock in your freezer or pantry

1/2 cup Leftover steamed rice

3 pc Ore-Ida Tater Tots or you have leftover french fries (cut them into small pieces)

3 pc Leftover $5.99 Roast Chicken

Garnishing:-

Few Shrimps

Few Chards

Few Pea pods

(sauteed them together with cooking oil, salt and pepper until the shrimps turned red and curled up)

Method:-

1. Heat a pot with the chicken stock on high. Once boiled, add the rice, tater tots, chicken together. Cook for 3-4 min on medium heat.

2. Seasoned with salt and pepper.

3. Garnished with the sauteed shrimps and vegetables.

"Anda Boleh"

Steak Ramen Noodle

This is really less than 20 min meal. Thats why I have a big box of Top Ramen at home, ready for anytime. Gregg left me a message at 1145am, saying that I will come home at noon and we can eat out. I was running in the park then. So I got home around 1155am. I listened to the message and then I called back. He said he was at the post office which is few blocks away. So I quickly boil the water, put in 2 packs of top ramen. While the ramen being soften, I picked some pea pods in our garden, cut the leftover steak in small pieces, chopped some onions and picked some cilantro. Then......

Ingredients:-

2 packs Top Ramen

Leftover steak

Pea Pods

Cilantro

Onions

Salt and Pepper

1 teaspoon Sweet Soy sauce

1 teaspoon fish sauce

Method:-

1. Soften the top ramen in hot boiling water, just for few seconds. Drained.

2. Heat the non-stick pan on high, put in cooking oil, throw in onions, steaks and pea pods. Stir fried for few seconds, add salt and pepper.

3. Put in the noodle in the pan, add the sweet soy sauce and fish sauce, mixed well with other ingredients.

4. Served.

"Anda Boleh"

Halibut light and easy

Halibut is a very tasty white fish. I love it when it is seared and steamed provided it is fresh. This time, I am cooking it in the oven at 450 F so that I no need to clean the stove top from searing the fish. It is a very interesting combination of marinade, and with capers.

Recipe soon.

Pancit Noodle

Malaysian loves having instant noodles such as Maggi and Cintan, and every household has few packs at home for a fast satisfying quick meal. I went to Seafood City supermarket the other day and got some instant noodle, Pancit brand. I dont know how it taste like and tried making it for quick lunch, my style. The picture shows it all, very similar to Maggi and Cintan instant noodles in texture wise. However, the seasoning is abit bland for me. Therefore, I made the thick dark soy sauce noodle with beansprouts, brocolli and fried egg. The seasoning is just a teaspoon of each: thick dark soy sauce or they called sweet soy sauce (just like molasses), fish sauce, oyster sauce and pure sesame oil. Add in little garlic salt to taste (optional).

Method:-

1. Boil a pot of water, hot. Cook the instant noodle first for 2 min.

2. Add in the vegetables (your choice) into the pot, cook for a min. To maintain the crunchiness of the beansprout and brocolli. (Asian loves crunchy vegetables).

3. Once cooked, drain it.  Put it back into a big bowl or platter or use back the pot for mixing all the seasoning together. Add in some shallots and garlic oil if you have some.

4. Fried an egg and garnish with cilantro or cut green onions or red pepper.

"Selamat Mencuba"

Gotta eat your veggies

I know we all gotta eat our veggies.  But who says they have to be boring and tasteless?   A little bit of garlic goes a long way.   Here I sauteed some baby carrots and green beans to be a healthy side to any entree.

Recipe
Soon to come

Gregg's Onion Steak

That day, Gregg wanted to have steaks for dinner and he told me to cook the steak like last time with onions and bbq sauce. Well, since we have some steaks in the freezer, we were having steaks.

Ingredients:-

8 oz steak, marinated with sugar, soy sauce, sake, olive oil and pepper, over nite.

Methods:-

1. After over nite marinating the steak, heat a non-stick pan with some oil on medium to high. Sear the steak first side for about 4 min or little brown, then the other side for another 4 min, depends on your preference, either rare, medium or done.
2. Take the steak when done on a plate for rest.
3. Caramelised the onion and put back the steak with bbq sauce and very little water to dilute the thickness of the sauce.
4. Serve with sauteed vegetables.

Ingredients for sauteed vegetables:-

1 zuchini
1/4 purple cabbage
1/2 yellow and red peppers
1/4 cup chopped mint and basil
garlic salt to taste

Trout Bourguignon

I am sure most people love Beef stew or Beef Bourguignon. However, what if you have other meat instead especially a Trout, Salmon, Seabass, Talapia, Sole, Catfish, Snappers, etc in your freezer? Dont worry so much, I am showing you how to make Trout Bourguignon, Chef Chong's way. The main thing of Bourguignon is the sauce char winery flavor. Yes, red, white or even sake is good, as long as there is a alcohol in it. Cooking is about fun and suiting your own taste buds.

Recipe soon to come.......

You can Sushi too!

You don't have to be an expert Sushi Chef to make sushi. In fact, you don't need any specific ingredients besides the rice and the nori (seaweed). Again, whatever's leftover in your fridge/freezer is fair game. This weekend, I had leftover bacon, eggs, shrimp, mushrooms and cucumber. I tried combining a couple of these ingredients, and you know what, it tasted great!

Gregg Mee Goreng

I yerned for a Mee Goreng this afternoon and I had a pack of yellow noodle in the fridge. The weather was great in the backyard, cool air and lots of sun. Perfect place for a Mee Goreng and a glass of chilled apple juice. I named it Gregg Mee Goreng, because Gregg loves it and good for lunch. Light, tasty, lots of vegetables, right portion of carb and protein. Very Malaysian feeling.

Ingredients:-

Fresh Yellow noodle (1 pack) from Asian market

8 Asparagus - the tender top

2 Carrots - juliened

8 Shrimps with tail

2 medium sized Tomatoes - cut into 4 each

1 small Zuchini - juliened

2 Shallots - sliced

2 cloves Garlic - chopped or crushed

2 tablespoon each chopped Fresh parsley and Basil

1 tablespoon chopped Chilli or Jalapeno (optional)

Sauce:-

1 tablespoon Oyster sauce

2 tablespoon Soy sauce

1 teaspoon Hot Sauce (can use Sri Racha)

Little sugar to taste

Recipe:-

1. Blanch the noodle in a hot water, just like rinsing and then drain, rince over cold water and then put aside.

2. Add vege oil (peanut oil is the best) in a medium heat pan, caramelised the sliced shallots.

3. Add chopped garlic, carrots and zuchini, cook for 1 min.

4. Add Shrimps, tomatoes and Asparagus and cook for another 1 min until the shrimps turn red and curled. Remember to stir. (can add chilli/jalapeno here optional)

5. This time, add the noodle, chopped herbs together with soy sauce, oyster sauce, hot sauce, stir stir for only 1 min.

6. Lastly, try it out to your taste, should be a little salty, sweet and little spicy. Can add little more sugar (1/2 teaspoon) for a sweeter taste.

7. Garnish with Basil. Serve hot and good for 4 person.

Note:-

Remember, you have hot sauce in the noodle, and if you want more spicy, you can add the chilli or jalapeno.

Blanching the fresh yellow noodle is to cook it al dante and to get rid of the extra starch. You can use the dry noodle, and cook it just like pasta. Also always drain and run thru a cold water to wash off starch.

Tofu Curry

Again, you see I'm doing a curry. A curry can be with anything: meat, chicken, vegetables. This time, since I was serving with other meat dishes, I balanced it out with a vegetarian curry.

Ingredients:-

1 can Coconut Milk

2 tablespoon Yellow Curry Paste (Thailand)

1/2 cup Chopped Onions

2 stalks smashed lemongrass

1 tablespoon Fish sauce

2 tablespoon Vegetable oil

Salt and Sugar to taste
1 packet Soft Tofu (cut into cubes)

1 bunch Asparagus

1 zuchini (cut into cubes)

few Cherry tomatoes (cut halves)

Methods:-

1. Use a 8" pot or bigger to cook this curry and put medium heat.

2. Caramelised the chopped onions with the vegetable oil.

3. Add in curry paste and lemon grass together, stir fried a little until the oil changes its color to yellow.

4. Add zuchini, asparagus and tomatoes. Stir for a minute or two.

5. Add in the coconut milk, fish sauce and tofu. Let simmer for 2-3 minutes.

6. Add salt and sugar to taste, should be a little sweeter side but maintain the creaminess of the coconut milk. Garnish with cilantro.

It's good to go green

I don't know how brussel sprouts got their bad reputation. I love brussel sprouts. Make them like this recipe for your loved ones, and you'll change brussel sprout's reputation, one person at a time.

Ingredients:

Dried shrimps - 1 tbsp

Brussel sprouts - 3 cups julienned, shredded or chopped

Olive Oil - 2 tbsp

Salt - to taste

Curry powder (optional) 1 tsp

Recipe

• Heat the oil on medium heat
• Put the shrimp in (You might have to go to an asian market to get this, BUT GO! You'll find so many things - get some fish sauce, oyster sauce, hot sauce, greens, live seafood. You'll find a world of new tastes for a great price)
• Fry the shrimp for a few seconds until it's brown
• Add the brussel sprouts and stirfry until some is brown, for that great caramelized taste
• Add salt and curry powder (if you'd like a little kick)
• Stirfry again for another few seconds until well mixed

Serve with some rice, and brussel sprouts might become your new favorite veggie dish.

A different "Bed of Rice"

How many times do you see a recipe that says serve on a "Bed of rice". That bed of rice thing can get a bit boring time after time. How about changing it up and using some vegetables instead. Here I simply used some sprouts and some asparagus. It's very simple, very easy:

• Roast the asaparagus with salt, pepper and olive oil


• Saute the sprouts in a little olive oil

Done, in less than the time it takes to make rice.

Then when you add a great steak, or a delicious chicken, the sauces with the sprouts and asparagus make a perfect combination!