Fish Ball Meehoon Soup

All I want for winter is something soupy & something hot!

Fishball Meehoon Soup

Fish Ball Meehoon Soup (40 mins)

Mee hoon
A loose handful of big dried shrimps (har mai in Cantonese) *Key Ingredient!*
Chicken stock (yes, I used the store-bought Maggi chicken stock)
Baby kailan
3 mushrooms
Fish balls

Salt

1. Boil 2.5 bowls of water in a pot. The formula is 1 bowl of water per person and approximately half a bowl more to allow for evaporation. Add about 1.5 teaspoons of chicken stock & big dried shrimps and let the soup boil for about half an hour to get it all sweet and tasty. 
2. Soak the mushrooms in warm water and set aside.
3. Soak the meehoon in a tub of water. A huge bale of meehoon should be enough for 2, or if you are using the small packets, then 2 small bales should suffice.
4. Soak the baby kailan and then rub each leaf under running water to get the chemicals off. 
5. Soak the fish balls for a short while before rinsing them off.
6. The mushrooms should be soft by now, drain them & cut into small long pieces. I usually use scissors instead of a knife - it's quicker. Add the sliced mushrooms to the soup. 
7. Let the soup boil for about another 1 minute.
8. Next, drain the water from the meehoon and add it to the soup, followed by the fishballs and the baby kailan. 
9. Let it all boil until the meehoon is sufficiently soft.
10. Taste the soup, if necessary, add a pinch of salt.
11. Serve.

Hainanese Chicken (minus the rice) using the Magic Saver Cooker

Behold further wonders from the trusty magic pot!

Hainanese Chicken

Hainanese Chicken using the Magic Saver Cooker (40 mins)

Chicken drumsticks, or chicken wings or breast meat whichever you prefer
Ginger
Black sauce (thick caramel sauce)

Salt

1. Defrost the chicken and then peel off the skin. You can skip this if you like to eat chicken skin. 
2. Wash the chicken thoroughly and salt it all over, before rinsing it again. 
3. Peel and cut up some ginger. Then, mince it until it looks like, well, minced ginger. If you have a pestle and mortar, that would work better but as I don't, I just keep chopping it up with my chopper until it looked very well minced. 
4. Pour some water into the magic saver cooker for boiling. The water level should be about 1 inch high. If you are cooking a whole chicken, the water level should be about 2 inches high.
5. Once the water is boiled, put in the chicken, close the lid and boil for about 7 minutes (for a small chicken) or 10 minutes (if the chicken is bigger).
6. Turn off the fire and place the pot in the magic saver cooker for half an hour.
7. Remove the chicken and put a pinch of salt into the water, which by now should be some sort of chicken stock; boil for a bit.
8. Serve the chicken with the soup, ginger and black sauce.

Steamed Vegetables

Sometimes it's hard to believe that healthy things can taste great...but they do!

Steamed Cauliflower and Carrots

Steamed Vegetables (20 mins)

Cauliflower, carrots, broccoli or your favourite vegetables

Salt

1. Soak the vegetables in a tub of clean water, then wash them.
2. Peel the skin of the carrots, then slice them into french-fry shapes (see picture below).
3. Use a pair of scissors to cut off the little 'trees' of the broccoli and cauliflower. I find that using scissors is easier, cleaner and reduces the crumbly bits that fall out. 
4. Place all the vegetables on a stainless steel plate. 
5. Place a steaming rack in the middle of a wok or non-stick frying pan. Then, fill the wok/pan with water; the water level should be slightly lower than the top of the steaming rack. 
6. Put the stainless steel plate on top of the steaming rack, then cover the wok and leave the vegetables to steam away merrily for about 10 - 15 minutes or until as tender as you like. You can use a fork to test the tenderness of the veggies. 
7. Serve.

How to cut carrots into rectangular shapes (like French Fries)

Mashed Potatoes

The good things in life are the simple ones.

Mashed Potatoes

Mashed Potatoes (30 mins)

2 potatoes

1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon butter
Salt
Black pepper

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into cubes.
2. Boil the potatoes for 20 minutes or until really soft. Soft = Very little effort required to poke the potatoes with a fork!
3. Drain the water and leave the potatoes in the pot. The heat will cause excess water to evaporate. 
4. Add the milk and butter. As for the salt and pepper, add as you taste until you have achieve the desired taste.
5. Mash the potatoes (I used a fork to mash and it worked very well). 
6. Serve.

Agar-agar Gula Melaka (Brown Sugar Jelly)

A refreshing and (somewhat) healthy dessert!

Agar-agar Gula Melaka (Brown Sugar Jelly)

Agar-agar Gula Melaka (Brown Sugar Jelly) (10 mins)

1 cup agar-agar (Vegetarian gelatin)

3 "cylinders" brown sugar (refer picture below)
4 cups water

1. Put all ingredients into a pot and bring to a boil.
2. Make sure all ingredients are well mixed together before turning off the fire. 
3. Let the mixture cool down before spooning it into the jelly mould. 
4. Put it into fridge. 
5. Before serving, remove the agar-agar from the mould.
6. Serve.

Baked Fish with Dried Chillies

When I was a kid, we had fish almost every day. I used to grumble about it, now I'm thankful when there's fish on the table!

Baked Yellow Croaker with Dried Chillies

Baked Fish with Dried Chillies (45 mins)

Yellow croaker or your favourite fish

As many dried chillies as you like
Salt

1. Pre-heat the oven at 200 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes.
2. Defrost the fish, which has been scaled and gutted by your kind fishmonger, then wash it thoroughly under running water. 
3. Rub a pinch of salt all over the fish for taste. 
4. Use a pair of scissors to cut the dried chillies into smaller pieces. 
5. Make a few slits on both sides of the fish and then stuff the chillies into the slits. 
6. Bake the fish for 40 minutes.
7. Serve.

Shellfish Fried Rice

Another really easy all-in-one dish in 10 minutes!

Shellfish Fried Rice

Shellfish Fried Rice (10 mins)

Shellfish

Cooked rice (preferably cooked the night before and refrigerated)
Garlic
2 eggs
Salt

1. Soak, rinse and drain the defrosted shellfish repeatedly until the sediments are gone. I did this about 5 times. This is the only tedious part.
2. Crush, chop and dice 3/4 bulb of garlic.
3. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil. In the mean time, crack 2 eggs into a bowl and beat them thoroughly. 
4. When the oil is hot, fry the garlic until slightly golden brown. 
5. Add shellfish AND rice and stir-fry for a bit.
6. Quickly pour in the eggs and mix well. The trick is not to fry it for too long because the shellfish will become rubbery if cooked for too long.
7. Serve.

ABC Soup

All nutrients in one good soup, perfect for the working person!

ABC Soup

ABC Soup for 2 (30 mins)

This is my "weekday soup", best prepared the night before and left to self-cook in my magic cooker so that by the time I come back from work the next day, it's ready to eat! For the record, the magic cooker is a pot, which has insulation to keep the heat in, just like a flask. You can use it to cook virtually anything from soups to stews to rice! The beauty of this pot is it saves ELECTRICITY and GAS, simply because it doesn't need either resources to cook your food! It virtually self-cooks - magic! Whatever you're cooking, just give it a boil over the stove for 10 mins or so and put it into the magic cooker. After a few hours, your food will turn out exactly as if you have left it on the gas continually. Mine is from Cosway, Malaysia, but nowadays I'm sure you can get this cooker from pretty much any shopping mall. 


Chicken drumsticks, however many you would like to have

2 potatoes
1 carrot
2 tomatoes
2 sticks celery
1 big onion

1. Defrost the chicken drumsticks. Once defrosted, wash them thoroughly by rubbing and rinsing it under running water. Rub the drumsticks with salt and then rinse them again.
2. Boil the UNPEELED tomatoes in a small pot of water - this makes skin removal as easy as ABC. 
3. Wash and peel the potatoes and carrots, then slice them into small cubes. 
4. The tomatoes should have been well boiled by now. Pour away the water and let the tomatoes cool. 
5. Wash the celery, then remove the fibrous bits. (Sometimes when I'm in a rush, I cheat by not doing this and honestly I don't feel much difference although my mum is inclined to disagree.) To do this, just sort of pinch a little wee bit of the end of the celery stick, then peel it, like peeling a banana. The fibrous bit will peel out and looks like a cellophane tape. Do this until you have removed as much of the fibrous bits as your patience allows you to. 
6. Slice the celery into smaller pieces.
7. For the next step, it's best to wear a pair of swimming goggles, ski goggles or whatever protective gear you have which covers your eyes thoroughly. Spectacles don't work. 
8. Remove the onion skin then slice it in chunky pieces. It doesn't have to be too small because it will crumble anyway when you boil the soup. 
9. Remove the goggles. If you didn't wear goggles, you should be unable to open your eyes now. 
10. Hopefully the tomatoes are cool enough for you to handle them. Else, just put it under cold running water to cool it. Then peel the skin with your hands. Just give the skin a little tug and it will all fall out obediently.  
11. Slice the tomatoes in half, then half it again. 
12. Put everything into the magic pot: tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, celery, chicken drumsticks and pour in 2.5 bowls of water. This scientific calculation is derived as such: 1 bowl per person, with approximately half a bowl of water extra to allow for evaporation. 
13. Bring the soup to a boil, then let it boil for another 10 minutes before placing it into the magic cooker. 
14. The next morning, before heading off to work, boil it over the stove for another 10 minutes and then place it in the magic cooker.
15. After work, just before eating, add a pinch of salt, and boil it over the stove for a few minutes. 
16. Serve.

Bittergourd with Salted Eggs

Eating out always gives me inspiration to try out new dishes!

Bittergourd with Salted Eggs (15 mins)

Bellagio, a Taiwanese restaurant in Beijing is one of our frequently visited restaurants and they have this bittergourd with salted egg dish, which is one of my favourites! My homemade version doesn't taste as fab as theirs does, of course, but I get to satisfy my craving for this dish in the comfort of my home! AND it's terribly easy to whip up. 


Garlic, 4 cloves

1 bittergourd
2 salted duck eggs

1. Wash the bittergourd thoroughly by rubbing and rinsing it under running water.
2. Cut off the edges and then half the bittergourd, then split it open so that you can remove the seeds in the middle. I usually use a teaspoon to scrape out the seeds.
3. Slice the bittergourd as thinly as you can manage. When I'm in a hurry, it's not so thin as you can see from the photo above. 
4. Remove the shell from the duck eggs and mash it up with a fork into a bowl until it's all crumbly. 
5. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil. 
6. When the oil is hot, fry the garlic until slightly golden brown. 
7. Add in the bittergourd and the crumbly salted eggs. 
8. Fry until soft. You'll have to cover the frying pan for about 2 minutes to soften the bittergourd. 
9. Serve.

Dry Chicken Curry with Lady's Fingers

Even one hour cooks need to be creative. 

Dry Chicken  Curry with Lady's Fingers (30 mins) 

My fridge is always stocked with pretty much the same ingredients: fish, chicken breast, chicken drumsticks, pork ribs (for soup) and the usual green vege. For a change, sometimes I just use my imagination and hope it turns out OK. 


Chicken breast meat

Curry powder 2 tablespoons
Lady's fingers/okra/lady's thumbs
Garlic
Soy sauce 2 tablespoons
Sesame oil 1 teaspoon

1. Defrost the chicken breast meat before you go to work.
2. After work, wash the chicken breast meat thoroughly under running water. Rub it all over with salt and then rinse it again. Slice the breast meat into small bite-sized pieces. 
3. Marinate the meat by mixing in the curry powder, soy sauce and sesame oil. 
4. Crush, chop and dice 3/4 bulb of garlic.
5. Slice the lady's fingers into thin slices in slightly slanted cuts (if you know what I mean). 
6. When the oil is hot, fry the garlic until slightly golden brown. 
7. Then, add the marinated chicken breast meat and stir-fry it until the meat colour has changed and the meat has shrank a little.
8. Next, add the lady's fingers and fry until cooked. You will need to cover the frying pan for about 2 minutes to soften the meat. 
9. Serve.

Effortless Fried Rice in 10 Mins

When all I have is 10 minutes, but I still prefer home cooked...

Effortless Fried Rice (10 mins)

Garlic

Cooked rice (preferably cooked the night before and refrigerated)
1 packet pre-packed peas+carrots+corn
2 eggs
Soy sauce
Salt

1. Crush, chop and dice 3/4 bulb of garlic.
2. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil. In the mean time, crack 2 eggs into a bowl and beat them thoroughly. Mix in a tablespoon of soy sauce.
3. When the oil is hot, fry the garlic until slightly golden brown. 
4. Pour in the peas+carrots+corn and stir-fry for a bit.
5. Next, mix in the rice, give it a few stirs, then pour in the eggs. 
6. Fry until it is all evenly mixed. Serve.

Fried Udon (for a change)

It's amazing how the same concept for cooking a certain dish can be applied to different dishes...and turn out great!

Fried Udon for 2 (45 mins)

Garlic
Lots of ginger, more than garlic
125gm udon, approximately 1.5 bunches (see below)

Mushrooms
2 carrots
1/4 cabbage, shredded
2 eggs
Salt

1. Soak the whole, uncut, unpeeled cabbage in clean water. 
2. Soak the mushrooms in warm water.
3. Remove the outer 'leaves' of the cabbage - it's usually dirty as everyone has been handling it. Then, slice off about a 1/4 of the cabbage. Use a very sharp, high quality peeler to 'shred' the cabbage. No cutting or slicing required. Just keep 'peeling' the cabbage with the peeler.
   My peeler is from Kai Housewares and I bought it from Jaya Jusco for RM79.90 (see picture below). I really think it was a wonderfully good investment because the blade is really sharp and the quality of the peeler is great! Worth every sen of my RM79.90. It also comes with an extra replacement blade.
4. Crush, chop and dice the garlic and ginger.
5. Pour away the water from the soaked mushrooms and soak it for a 2nd time in another batch of clean new water; warm if the mushrooms are still hard and cold if the mushrooms are already soft.
6. Wash thoroughly, peel and slice the carrots.
7. Boil the udon in a pot of water for approximately 8 minutes to cook and soften it. As you can see in the picture above, my udon packet consists of 3 bunches of udon weighing 90gm each. For 2 people, I used approximately 1.5 bunches. 
8. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil. In the mean time, crack 2 eggs into a bowl and beat them thoroughly. 
9. When the oil is hot, fry the garlic+ginger until slightly golden brown. 
10. Pour in the carrots and stir-fry for a bit. Then, add the shredded cabbage and stir-fry it well. 
11. Add in the mushrooms and continue stir-frying.
12. By this time, the udon should be well-boiled. Pour away the water and add the boiled udon to the frying pan. Mix well. 
13. Lastly, add in the eggs. I like my eggs to sort of stick to the udon. If you don't really like that, add the eggs BEFORE you mix in the udon.
14. Add in salt for taste. Fry until it is all evenly mixed. Serve.

My wonderful peeler from Kai Housewares (got it from Jaya Jusco for RM79.90)

Yummy fried udon!

Baked Sweet and Sour Turbot

I really think all working women should have an oven.

Baked Sweet and Sour Turbot

Baked Sweet and Sour Turbot (30 mins)

For the baked turbot:
1 turbot, all cleaned and gutted by your helpful fishmonger
Salt

For the sweet and sour sauce:
1 capsicum
1/2 big onion
4 tablespoons tomato sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon corn flour/tapioca flour
Water

1. Defrost the turbot before going to work.
2. Just before cooking, preheat the oven at 200 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes.
3. Once defrosted, clean the turbot by rinsing it under running water and rubbing it. 
4. Pat the turbot dry with some kitchen towels, then rub it all over with salt. 
5. Put the turbot into the oven and let it bake for 15 - 20 minutes, depending on the size of the fish.
6. Chop up the onion and capsicums.
7. Heat up the non-stick frying pan and some oil.
8. Once the oil is hot, fry the onion and capsicum slices for awhile.
9. Add in the tomato sauce, sugar, water and corn flour.
10. Fry it until well-mixed and cooked. 
11. Pour the sauce over the baked turbot. Serve.

Mixed Vegetables

Greens always make a meal complete!

Mixed Vegetables

Mixed Vegetables (20 mins)

Broccoli

Cauliflower
Red and green capsicums
Garlic
Salt
Oil

1. Soak the broccoli and cauliflower in cold water for awhile. 
2. While the veggies are soaking, crush, chop and dice 4 cloves of garlic. 
3. Wash the broccoli and cauliflower under running water and using a pair of scissors, cut them into bite-sized pieces. I find that scissors instead of a knife, helps minimize the crumbly bits that fall out when you cut these veggies.
4. Wash the capsicums under running water and rub the surfaces thoroughly. Cut off the 'heads' of the capsicums, scrape the seeds out with a spoon and then cut them into bite-sized pieces.
5. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
6. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
7. Throw in the broccoli, cauliflower and capsicums and fry it just a bit.
8. Cover the frying pan for about 30 seconds.
9. Pour in a little water and add a dash of salt; mix it up evenly.
10. Serve.

Steamed Lap Cheong (Chinese Sausage)

Lap cheong is Chinese fast food!

Steamed Lap Cheong (Chinese Sausage)

Steamed Lap Cheong (15 mins)

Lap cheong
Ginger

This dish is great for days when you're in a rush!

1. Boil a small pot of water and when it reaches boiling temperature, put the lap cheong in and let it boil for about 2 minutes. 
2. Pour away the boiling water and rinse the lap cheong with cold water.
3. Typically, there will be a protective plastic-like 'skin' on the lap cheong. Remove it.
4. Slice the lap cheong into thin slices. 
5. Peel and slice some ginger into thin slices too. 
6. Place the ginger pieces on a stainless steel dish, then place the lap cheong slices on the ginger pieces.
7. Place a steaming rack in the middle of a wok or non-stick frying pan. Then, fill the wok/pan with water; the water level should be slightly lower than the top of the steaming rack. 
8. Cover the wok/pan and let the water boil. Again, once the water reaches boiling temperature, place the dish with the lap cheong and ginger slices on the steaming rack and then, cover the wok/pan. 
9. Let the whole thing steam for 10 minutes.
10. Serve.

Stir-Fried Potato and Chicken Slices

Cooking is as easy as you make it to be. 

Stir-Fried Potato and Chicken Slices

Stir-Fried Potato and Chicken Slices (20 mins)

Chicken breast

Potatoes
Black sauce
Soya sauce
Sesame oil
Corn flour
Garlic
Oil

When I buy chicken breast meat, I wash and marinate it before I put it into the freezer. Here's how:

1. Wash the chicken breast under running water. Rub it thoroughly with salt, then rinse.
2. Cut the chicken breast into eating-friendly sizes and place in a bowl.
3. Add 1 tablespoon of black sauce and soya sauce each, 2 teaspoons of corn flour (heaped) and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil. Mix it up well. 
4. Put in a sealed container and store in freezer. 

Doing this makes the chicken meat really flavourful when I use it, because the meat has been well marinated. Plus, it makes a handy ingredient when I need to cook fast!

For stir-fried potato and chicken slices:

1. Defrost the marinated chicken breast slices.
2. Wash, peel and slice potatoes into eating-friendly sizes. Thinly sliced potatoes cook faster. 
3. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
4. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
5. Fry the garlic until they turn slightly golden-brown.
6. Add the potatoes and stir-fry them till cooked.
7. Add the chicken slices and make sure everything is well-mixed.
8. Once the chicken meat changes colour, add in enough water for the gravy.
9. Cover the frying pan for about 30 seconds, then uncover and give it another stir.
10. Serve.

Easy Peasy Long Beans Porridge

I like to go all vegetarian quite a bit when I'm home, 

because it's easy and healthy!

Warning: This dish is very vegetarian, so unless you 

love greens very much, I wouldn't recommend it.

Long Beans Porridge

Long Beans Porridge (20 mins preparation, Total = Min. 30 mins)

Long beans

Rice (1 cup per person, if you're a fairly big eater)
Eggs (1 egg per person)
Soya sauce

Salt

1. Wash the long beans by rubbing each bean individually, then cut off the ends.
2. Cut the beans into tiny sizes.
3. Beat the eggs and add in 1 teaspoon of soya sauce.
4. Get your magic saver cooker out and wash the rice in it.
5. Add in the eggs and long beans.
6. Bring the whole thing to a boil; every now and then before it boils, give it a few stirs to prevent the porridge from sticking to the pot. Once it boils, add salt, stir and let it continue boiling for another 5 minutes.
7. Put the pot into the magic saver cooker and let it self-cook for 30 minutes.
8. If in a rush, just use a normal pot and let it boil all the way until cooked. Stirring is a must to prevent the porridge from sticking to the pot and burning.
9. Serve.

Radish and Pork Ribs Soup

Everyone needs a cooking support system. 

Thank you for parents, sisters, aunts, in-laws and friends, 

who impart good cooking basics!

Radish and Pork Ribs Soup

Radish and Pork Ribs Soup (20 mins preparation, Total = Min. 2 hours)

Radish

Pork Ribs

Salt

The night before:

1. Defrost pork ribs, which have been cut into small pieces by pork seller. 
2. In the meantime, peel and cut the radish into your preferred size.
3. Once the pork ribs are fully defrosted, wash each individual pork rib thoroughly with water. Rub each piece with salt and rinse.
4. Boil the pork ribs in a small pot of water. Once it comes to a boil, let it continue boiling for another two minutes.
5. Throw away the hot water and rinse the pork ribs.
6. Get your handy magic saver cooker out and put the pork ribs and radish into the pot.
7. Pour in 2.5 bowls of water. The formula on how much water is the number of bowls of soup you'd like to drink + 0.5 bowls. Hence, if I want 2 bowls of soup, I need to use 2 + 0.5 = 2.5 bowls of water. 
8. Bring the whole thing to a boil and then let it continue boiling for another 5 minutes.
9. Put the pot into the magic saver cooker and let it self-cook.

Just before meal time:

1. Take the pot out of the magic saver cooker and boil it over the stove.
2. Add in a dash of salt and let it boil for about 10 minutes.
3. Serve.

Stir-Fried Kailan

Stir-fried is one of the best cooking formulas - 

Simple + Repeatable + Quick = Tastes good each time!   

Stir-Fried Kailan (Chinese broccoli)

Stir-Fried Kailan 芥蓝 / Chinese Broccoli (15 mins)

Kailan (Chinese broccoli)

Garlic

Salt

1. Soak kailan and wash each individual leaf by rubbing it to get those pesticides off. This is one thing, which I never compromise, regardless of how rushed for time I am.
2. Separate the stems from the leaves by breaking them.
3. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
4. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
5. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
6. Throw in the stems first and fry it for a bit, say 30 seconds.
7. Then throw in the leaves and stir-fry it.
8. Add a little water for gravy, salt and stir.
9. Serve.

Mee Hoon Soup

I'm grateful for peeled ikan bilis (anchovies)...

from my mother-in-law!

Mee Hoon Soup Ingredients

Mee Hoon Soup

Mee Hoon Soup (30 mins)
Mee hoon
Peeled ikan bilis (anchovies)
Siu pak choy / baby pak choy / 油菜 in Beijing
Dried mushrooms
Fu chok (dried beancurd skin)
Eggs
Salt

1. Soak the dried mushrooms and fu chok (dried beancurd skin) separately in warm water to soften it. Soak the mee hoon in cold water.
2. Rinse the ikan bilis (anchovies).
3. Start boiling the ikan bilis soup by adding the washed ikan bilis and 3 bowls of water to a pot. The formula is X + 1, with X being the number of people eating. So, if I'm cooking for 2 people, it's 2 + 1 = 3 bowls of water.
4. Soak the siu pak choy and then wash each leaf by rubbing it under running water. 
5. After the laborious task of washing the siu pak choy, the ikan bilis soup should have come to a boil and you would have lowered the fire to let it simmer. 
6. Cut both the softened mushrooms and fu chok into more edible-friendly sizes with a pair of scissors, then add it all into the ikan bilis soup.
7. After letting it boil for about 5 minutes, add in the mee hoon and siu pak choy. Give it all a stir.
8. Crack in the egg and cover the egg with some mee hoon to help it cook faster.
9. Taste the soup, if bland, add some salt. Add water if the soup dries up.
10. Once the egg is completely poached, serve.

Stir-Fried Lotus Root

I discovered this dish in Beijing and...
YUMMY! 
Need I say more?

Stir-Fried Lotus Root

Stir-Fried Lotus Root (15 mins)
Lotus root
Garlic
Salt

1. Wash the lotus root by rubbing it under running water.
2. Chop off the ends, then peel off the skin.
3. Slice the lotus root as thin as you prefer and half the slices if the lotus root is fairly big.
4. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic. 
5. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
6. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
7. Throw in the lotus root slices and fry it just a bit.
8. Cover the frying pan for about 30 seconds.
9. Stir-fry for awhile more; pour in a little water and add a dash of salt; mix it up evenly.
10. Serve.

Mee Hoon with Long Beans and Eggs

Just use whatever there is in the fridge.

~ Papa

Mee Hoon with Long Beans and Eggs

Mee Hoon with Long Beans and Eggs (30 mins)

Mee hoon

Long beans

Garlic

Eggs

Soy sauce

1. Soak the mee hoon in a basin of water.
2. Wash the long beans by rubbing each bean under running water.
3. Dice them or slice them longwise, whichever you prefer, although my friend Yoong says that slicing longwise is aesthetically better.
4. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
5. Beat the eggs into a bowl together with a teaspoon of soy sauce and some pepper.
6. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
7. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
8. Throw in the long beans and stir-fry them for a bit.
9. Then add in the mee hoon and then the eggs. 
10. Stir it all to ensure they're all well-mixed.
11. Before dishing it out, add soy sauce so that the mee hoon will have some flavour and colour.
12. Serve.

Black Sauce Chicken

My parents introduced the magic saver cooker to me and 
it was the best present ever!

Black Sauce Chicken and veggie assortments

Black Sauce Chicken (1 hour)
Chicken pieces
Potatoes
Black sauce
Soy sauce
Sesame oil
Corn flour
Garlic
Ginger

1. Wash the defrosted chicken pieces under running water, rub them with salt, then rinse them. 
2. Marinate the chicken pieces by adding 2 tablespoons of black sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and 1 tablespoon of corn flour. Mix it all well, then leave it for half an hour. Of course, the longer you leave it to marinate, the better the taste will be.
3. Skin and slice the potatoes into thin slices. 
4. Chop up the garlic and ginger. 
5. When the chicken is ready, heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
6. Fry the garlic ginger until they get a little golden brown.
7. Throw in the potatoes and give them a little stir-fry.
8. Add the chicken and stir-fry them until the chicken meat shrinks and changes colour.
9. Transfer the chicken to the magic saver cooker pot and pour in water.
10. Boil the whole concoction over the stove for about 10 mins, then let the chicken self-cook in the magic saver cooker.
11. When ready to eat, give it another boil before serving.

Fried Sardines

Porridge reminds me of childhood days...

Porridge with Fried Sardines, Chinese Mustard Greens and Century Egg

Fried Sardines (15 mins)

Fresh sardines, not the canned variety

Oil

1. Wash defrosted sardines under running water. Pat dry with a kitchen towel.
2. Heat up the non-stick frying pan and pour some oil (not too much, we're not deep frying) into it.
3. Line as many sardines as you can in the pan but be sure that they don't overlap.
4. Once they're brown on one side, use a pair of chopsticks to flip 'em over to allow the other side to brown. 
5. Pat away the excess oil from the fried sardines with a kitchen towel.
6. Serve. 

Stir-Fried Brinjal and Eggs

I just learnt that brinjal is also known as guinea squash!!!

Fried Brinjal and Eggs

Stir-Fried Brinjal (Eggplant/Aubergine) and Eggs
Brinjal
2 eggs
Garlic
Soy sauce

1. Wash the brinjal by rubbing it under running water.
2. Cut off the edges and then slice it as thin as you can muster.
3. Crack the eggs into a bowl, add 1 teaspoon of soy sauce and beat it. 
4. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
5. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
6. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
7. Throw in the brinjal and fry it for a bit so that it becomes drier, not so squashy and wet.
8. Add the eggs and fry the whole thing for a bit more.
9. Cover the frying pan for about 30 seconds.
10. Add a dash of salt; mix it up evenly.
11. Serve.

Stir-Fried Broccoli

My friend once described broccoli as 

"that veggie that looks like a mushroom but is green".

Stir-Fried Broccoli

Stir-Fried Broccoli (15 mins)
Broccoli
Garlic
Salt

1. Soak the broccoli for awhile.
2. While the broccoli is soaking, crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
3. Wash the broccoli under running water and using a pair of scissors, cut it into bite-sized pieces. I find that scissors instead of a knife, helps minimize the crumbly bits that fall out when you cut the broccoli.
4. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
5. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
6. Throw in the broccoli and fry it just a bit.
7. Cover the frying pan for about 30 seconds.
8. Pour in a little water and add a dash of salt; mix it up evenly.
9. Serve.

Steamed Chicken

What I love best about cooking is that I can control the amount of salt and oil in my food.

Steamed Chicken

Steamed Chicken (10 mins preparation, Total = 40 mins)

Chicken

Wolfberries

Salt

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes.
2. Wash the defrosted chicken pieces (which were helpfully chopped up by the chicken seller) by rubbing each piece with salt carefully and rinsing it.
3. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.
4. Rub the chicken with salt for taste.
5. Rinse the wolfberries.
6. Line the oven tray with aluminium tin foil, fold up the edges so that it forms a sort of bowl. Grease the foil with a very thin layer of oil so as to prevent the chicken from sticking to it.
7. Place the chicken pieces on the foil and pour water into the aluminium foil 'bowl'. The amount of water should be as much gravy as you would like to have. Sprinkle a little salt into the water.
8. Bake the chicken at 180 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes or until cooked.

Steamed Turbot with Cherry Tomatoes

Apparently, it's advisable to eat at least 2 servings of fish a week.

Steamed Turbot with Cherry Tomatoes

Steamed Turbot with Cherry Tomatoes (30 mins)

Turbot

Cherry tomatoes

Ginger

Salt

1. Pre-heat the oven at 150 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. 
2. Wash the fish (which has been cleaned by the seller) thoroughly under running water, then rub it all over with salt.
3. Chop some ginger. 
4. Wash the cherry tomatoes and half them. 
5. Line the oven tray with aluminium foil, fold up the edges so that it forms a sort of bowl. 
6. Lay the fish in the middle and the cherry tomatoes around it. Liberally sprinkle the ginger over and around the fish. 
7. Pour water into the aluminium foil 'bowl'. The amount of water should be as much gravy as you would like to have.
8. Sprinkle salt in the water for taste and stick the tray into the oven for 20 mins or until cooked.
9. Serve.

Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage

Really, all you need is garlic and ginger at all times.

Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage

Stir-Fried Chinese Cabbage (20 mins)

Chinese cabbage

Ginger
Garlic

Salt

1. Soak the greens and rub each piece of leaf to get those nasty chemicals off. Yes, this will take awhile.
2. Cut the cabbage into smaller sizes to make it more eating-friendly.
3. Chop the garlic and ginger.
4. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
5. Fry the garlic ginger until they get a little golden brown.
6. Throw in the Chinese cabbage and fry.
7. Pour in water for the gravy and add a dash of salt; mix it up evenly.
8. Cover the pan for awhile to soften the cabbage.
9. Serve.

Chicken Porridge

When it's all cold and the wind is howling,
Porridge is just so comforting...

Chicken Porridge

Chicken Porridge for 2 (40 mins)

2 cups rice

Chicken pieces

2 eggs

Soya sauce

1. Wash the defrosted chicken pieces under running water. Rub them with salt thoroughly and rinse.
2. Boil the chicken pieces until cooked.
3. While waiting for chicken pieces to boil, wash the rice and cook it over the stove with lots of water depending on how watery you want the porridge to be. 
4. While waiting for rice to boil, beat the eggs. Add 1 teaspoon of soya sauce to eggs and beat till well-mixed. 
5. Pour the eggs into the rice. At this time, the rice should start to boil. Stir the rice and eggs to mix it up and avoid the rice from being burnt. 
6. Once the chicken is cooked, shred the chicken into the rice while occasionally giving the rice a stir.
7. Continue stirring the porridge until cooked. Alternatively, put the porridge into the magic saver cooker and leave it for about 30 - 45 mins.
8. Serve.

Baked Chicken

It's OK to put on weight in winter. Tuck in!

Roasted Chicken

Baked Chicken (10 mins preparation, Total = 50 mins)

Chicken pieces
Salt
Oil

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes.
2. Wash the defrosted chicken pieces by rubbing each piece with salt carefully and rinsing it.
3. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.
4. Rub the chicken with salt for taste.
5. Line the oven tray with aluminium tin foil and grease the foil with a very thin layer of oil so as to prevent the chicken from sticking to it.
6. Place the chicken pieces on the tray and bake the chicken at 180 degrees Celsius for 40 minutes or until cooked.
7. Take a bath, read your favourite book or have a snooze while waiting for the chicken.
8. Once the oven goes 'ting', stick a fork into the chicken pieces to ensure they're cooked.
9. Serve.

Stir-Fried Bittergourd

When I only have 30 minutes and no meat, I go vegetarian.

Fried Bittergourd (and rice)

Stir-Fried Bittergourd (15 mins)

Bittergourd

Garlic

Salt

1. Wash the bittergourd by running it under cold water and rubbing it.
2. Cut off the ends and then cut the bittergourd into half (longwise) and dig out the white stuff in the middle.
3. Slice the bittergourd (shortwise) as thin as possible.
4. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
5. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
6. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
7. Throw in the bittergourd and fry it for a bit. 
8. Pour in some water and cover the frying pan to soften the bittergourd. 
9. After about 1 minute, lift up the cover and let the water evaporate. Stir it continuously to prevent it from burning.
10. Add salt and stir.
11. Serve.

Stir-Fried Spinach

Believe it or not, I really liked veggies when I was young...
and I still do!

Stir-Fried Spinach tastes yummy with soup too

Stir-Fried Spinach (20 mins)

Spinach

Garlic

Salt

Just before dinner time:

1. Soak the spinach, use a pair of scissors to cut off the ends and rub each piece of leaf to get those nasty chemicals off. Yes, this will take awhile.
2. Crush, chop and dice 3 cloves of garlic.
3. Heat up the non-stick frying pan, pour in some oil.
4. Fry the garlic until they get a little golden brown.
5. Throw in the spinach and fry.
6. Pour in a little water and add a dash of salt; mix it up evenly.
7. Serve.