Curry Prawn and Mango Wrap

I guess mango is in season.  You will spot mango in abundance in the supermarkets and wet markets.  Do you love mango?  I do!  From having it raw in mango salad or ripe, sliced or in desserts.  So versatile, these mangoes!

So how do I relish this yummy health booster this time round?  I used it to make this super duper simple savoury curry prawn wrap.  It is just Amazing!

Ingredients (Serves 4)

16 medium prawns (i used frozen)
1 tbsp curry powder
a pinch of salt
1 tbsp olive oil
4 spinach wrap (you can use plain or wholemeal)
2 mangoes, cut and cubed
mesclun salad
dallops of cottage cheese

Method

Thaw and wash the frozen prawns.
Marinate prawns with curry powder and salt for about 30 minutes.
Heat olive oil in a non stick pan and pan fry prawns until cooked and set aside.
To prepare wrap, place mesclud salad on wrap, followed by cubed mangoes, prawns and drop dallops of cottage cheese.
Fold the edges of the wrap towards the centre and secure.
Serve immediately.

Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry

Have you ever found yourself strapped for time and need to prepare dinner in a hurry?
I made this Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry a few nights ago and I thought this is perfect for those nights when you need to feed yourself or even your family in a jiffy.
This recipe is great because you have both your meat and vegetable proteins in one dish.
You may of course add red capsicums for added colour and nutrients and thicken the sauce with cornstarch, but I didn't.

Serve it with plain steamed rice.

Ingredients

250gm store bought pre-cut stir fry beef

2 tbsp soy sauce, divided

2 tbsp fish sauce, divided

2 tbsp worcestershire sauce, divided

2 tbsp oyster sauce, divided

4 cups fresh broccoli florets

1 big onion, sliced

2 pips garlic, finely chopped

1 cm ginger, finely sliced

oil 

water

Method

Marinate beef with a tablespoon each of soy , fish, worcestershire and oyster sauce.

Heat some oil in a wok and over medium heat, stir fry beef till it is cooked and no longer pink.

Remove and keep warm.

Heat some oil again and saute the onion, garlic and ginger.

Add in the broccoli and stir fry briefly.

Then add some water and the remaining sauces to the broccoli and cook till broccoli is tender but crisp.

Lastly add the beef to the broccoli, remove from heat and serve with warm steamed rice.

Macaroni Soup

I love soup.  It soothes.  Don't you agree?
It's been raining quite a fair bit these past few days and flash floods were reported in many parts of Singapore.
It was raining heavily last Sunday and what better way to spend a cold Sunday with a bowl of soothing Macaroni Soup.
I bet everyone loves such comforting soup on a cold or even crappy day so why don't you give this simple recipe a go!

Ingredients

170 gm macaroni

2 onions

4 cloves garlic
2 red chilli
1 cube chicken stock
2 tbsp oyster sauce
fishballs
crabsticks, sliced
some olive oil to fry
2 litre water

salt and pepper to taste
chopped cilantro to garnish
fried shallots to garnish

Method

Cook macaroni in a pot of salted boiling water till al dente.

Drain and wash under running water.

Pound the onions, garlic and chilli and saute in some olive oil.
Once fragrant, add water.
Then add in the chicken stock as well as oyster sauce and stir well.
Bring it to a boil then add in the fishballs and crabsticks and let it cook for a few minutes.
Season with salt pepper.
Serve soup over macaroni and garnish with chopped cilantro and fried shallots.

Vegetable Shell Pasta in Tomato Cream Sauce

I am on leave this whole week.  It is exam week.  A week I dread the most.
Thank god, there are only two papers to clear this semester as the third subject is project based.

I love the fact that I am able to plan what to cook for my girls for dinner when I am at home.

It is quick simple dinner today - Vegetable Shell Pasta in Tomato Cream Sauce.

I bought the vegetable shell pasta some time back at some fair that was held in school.

The rest of the ingredients are what I can find in the fridge - pasta sauce which is expiring soon, leftover frozen chicken franks and fresh mushroom which I bought a week ago to actually make mushroom soup but never did.

I prepared the ingredients about 45 minutes before the girls got home and by the time they got home and showered, the pasta is ready for my famished girls.

Ingredients

170 gm vegetable shell pasta

2 onions, diced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced (i used white and brown button mushroom)

4 pcs chicken franks, sliced diagonally
2 cups ready made pasta sauce

170 gm cream

some olive oil to fry

salt and black pepper to taste

Method

Cook shell pasta in a pot of salted boiling water till al dente.

Drain and wash under running water.

Saute the chopped onions and garlic in some olive oil.
Then put in the chicken franks and mushroom and fry for a little while.
Add in pasta sauce and cream.
Season with salt and coarsely ground pepper.
Put in the drained shell pasta and mix well.
Serve immediately.

Minced Meat Baked Pasta

I love weekends because that's like the only time I can prepare food for the family. Today I decided to have pasta! I have already bought the ingredients for Tuna Baked Pasta the day before but mind is thinking of Minced Meat Baked Pasta.

It's really a toss between the two. Tuna Bake or Mince Meat Bake Pasta. I chose the latter. I actually do not have any mince in the freezer and made use of burger patties instead.

Today is special because I let Tihani help me in the kitchen. She loved her time in the kitchen, although all that she did was to help me fry or stir.


Ingredients

250g minced beef, pre cooked with a pinch of salt n pepper (i used 3 burger patties, chopped)
1 onion, diced
1 clove of garlic, diced
a tablespoon of oil for frying
340g ragu sauce (bought off the supermarket shelves)
salt to taste
150g twist pasta
a pot of salted boiling water

Cheese Sauce
a tablespoon of butter
a tablespoon of flour
3/4 cup of milk
100g of cheddar cheese + a handful to sprinkle

Method

Boil the pasta till el dente and drain.
Heat oven to 180C.
To make the ragu sauce, heat oil in a pan.
Add the onion and garlic until softened.
Add in the mince.
Stir in the spaghetti sauce and let it simmer.
Tip in the drained pasta and mix well.
Ensure that pasta is saucy.
Pour pasta in a baking tray.

To make the cheese sauce, melt butter and stir in the flour.
Cook for a minute and then gradually stir in milk.
Lastly stir in the cheese.
Once cheese has melted, pour evenly over the pasta.
Top the handful of cheese on top.

Bake until the cheese on top is golden and starting to brown.

Mince Meat Pasta
Topped with Cheese Sauce

Mince Meat Baked Pasta
I must say the baked pasta was a hit. Tihani had second helpings and Auni gave me a thumbs up when I asked if it was yummy!

Black Pepper Seafood Pasta

I was talking to a friend over the pasta I made the other day and he mentioned that I should try making black pepper pasta. Suddenly I started to hanker for black pepper pasta! I love black pepper dishes of any sort - black pepper beef, tamarind fish with black pepper, etc etc .. I loikeeeeeeeeee .. *drool*

Right after work earlier, I went to the supermarket to buy lacking ingredients to make Black Pepper Seafood Pasta. Got home, rested and about 7.45pm, I started cooking my pasta.

Ingredients

a handful of linguine
1 small red onion, chopped
2 pips garlic, chopped
60 gm fresh button mushroom, sliced
10 prawns, peeled, deveined and leave the tails intact
5 pcs crabstick, sliced diagonally
4 tbsp black pepper sauce
2 tbsp water
coarsely ground black pepper
salt
coriander leaves, chopped

Method

Cook linguine in a large pot of salted boiling water till al dente.
Drain then wash under running water.

In a pot, saute some onions and garlic.
Then put in the prawns, crabsticks and mushroom.
Add in black pepper sauce and water.
Then lastly put in the pasta and mix well.
Season with salt and more coarsely ground pepper.
Serve immediately, garnished with coriander leaves.

The next time I make this, I may want to try adding some oyster sauce. It might taste good or not better!

I was burning inside after a plate of that pasta I made but somehow I love that burning sensation though!

Creamy Linguine with Smoked Salmon

I have always loved creamy pasta. As you can see, I seldom cook but bake rather alot. While looking at other food blog, I came across this recipe here and was rather amazed to find out that creamy pasta is reaaaaaaaaaaalllllllllyyyyy eaaaaaaasssssssyyyyyyy to whip up.

When I saw that recipe, I kmew I had to make some for myself. So for dinner today, I made Creamy Linguine with Smoked Salmon. You could prepare, cook and finish eating this in less than an hour! Am not kidding! Really a breeze!

Eating this pasta warm on a cold rainy day .. what more could I ask for!

I tweaked the recipe with what I have. I am sure it tasted as good as the recipe that I saw.

Ingredients

250 gm linguine
1 small red onion, chopped
200 gm cream (add uht milk if not enough creaminess)
75 gm smoked salmon, chopped (more if you have .. i only had that much)
60 gm fresh button mushroom, sliced
a handful of fresh basil, chopped
salt and crushed red pepper

Method

Cook linguine in a large pot of boiling water till al dente.
Drain then wash under running water.

In the same pot, put in cream, onion, mushroom, basil leaves and smoked salmon.
Put in the pasta and mix till the pasta is coated with the creamy sauce.
Season with salt and crushed red pepper.
Serve immediately with sprinkles of more crushed pepper for an added kick.

The kids also had this creamy pasta for dinner. Theirs was a more simpler version of just cream, chopped sausages, button mushroom and then seasoned with salt.

So there you go .. another recipe which could be prepared in a jiffy!

Here's a meme TRIVIA:
Did you know that I am a sucker for easy recipes??
I guess now you know .. ;-)

Ritzy Chicken Nuggets

I saw Nigella making Ritzy Chicken Nuggets on Ch 16 Travel and Living last Wednesday and thot hey that is something I could make on Sunday.

So today as planned, I made my kids Ritzy Chicken Nuggets ala Nigella and baked potato chips. I cant remember what the real measurements were hence I made up my own measurements.

Nigella uses Ritz biscuits which I am totally sure can be subbed for any other savoury biscuits. I had Ritz at home so I settled for that.

Nigella also uses buttermilk but I subbed it with greek yogurt. Nigella mentioned that the use of buttermilk to marinade is to tenderise the chicken nuggets. And yes! tender these little chicky nuggets were!

Here's the recipe based on my measurements:-

Ingredients

320gm chicken fillet, sliced into nuggets sized (i got abt 20 pcs)
250gm greek yogurt
100gm ritz biscuit, crushed
sea salt and pepper, to taste

Method

Marinate the chicken slices in greek yogurt overnight.

When ready to bake, heat oven to 200C.
Season crushed biscuits with salt and pepper.
Take each chicken fillet and coat with biscuits crumbs and lay on tray.
Bake for abt 20 - 30 mins.

I served the kids these nuggets with baked potato chips!

Kacang Phool

It is Sunday today and as any other Sundays, we would eat breakfast together. I prepared Kacang Phool. We ate this with this yummy stuff with warm baguette.

Ingredients

Condiments
6 limes, halved
2 onion, chopped
2 grean chillies, chopped
6 sunny side ups eggs

The beans
3 onion, 2 ground and 1 roughly chopped
5 pips garlic
1 cm ginger
5 cm cinnomon stick
1 star anise
1 tbsp ground dried chilli
1 tsbp curry powder
250 gm minced meat, precooked
2 cans broad beans
ghee
salt

Method

In a blender, grind onion, garlic and ginger. Put aside.
In a blender, grind the broad beans roughly.
Pound cinnamon stick and star anise in a pestle and mortar.
Heat some ghee in a pot and fry the ground and pound ingredients and curry powder till fragrant and crisp.
Put in minced meat and lastly the broad beans.
Add salt to taste and cook thru.

Plate the kacang phool and top it off with lime, chopped onion, chopped green chilli and sunny side up. Serve with warm baguette.

Mum's Mee Soto

OK .. as mentioned in yesterday's post, I wanted to serve my guests Mum's Mee Soto and I did. Sifu Sainah (dats my mum by the way) .. hehe .. was at my house to give me a hand at cooking Mee Soto as it is my first time.

Ingredients

1 whole chicken cut into 12 pieces, cleaned
2 heaped tbsp coriander seeds
1 level tsp cumin seeds
5 - 7 big onions, roughly chopped
3 pips garlic, roughly chopped
3 cm fresh turmeric
3 candlenut
2 red chillies, roughly chopped
1 lemongrass
2 lime leaves
2 salam leaves
water
1/4 cup coconut milk
2 tbsp sweet soya sauce
salt and sugar to taste
oil

Method

In a blender, grind coriander seeds, onion, garlic, turmeric, cumin, candlenut and chillies with a lil bit of water.
Heat some oil in a pot and fry the ground ingredients till fragrant and crisp.
Press the end of lemongrass with a pestle and put in the lime and salam leaves and put them in the pot.
Add some salt and sugar then add enough water and leave it to boil on high flame.
Once it has started to boil, lower the flame and put in the chicken pieces and leave it to coook.
Add in the coconut milk and sweet soya sauce and leave it boil again.
Leave it for a moment and turn off heat.

Serve chicken soup hot with noodle or vermicelli or rice cakes and blanched beansprouts.
Top it off with condiments such as fried crispy shallots, chopped cilantro and spring onions and "sambal kicap" - made of ground birds eye chillies, garlic and sweet soya sauce.


Oh yeah .. Mum's Mee Soto was also a hit with the guests .. really kewl stuff.
This is my first time cooking this and surely not the last .. :-)

Mum's Chicken in Coconut Sauce & Kai Lan in Oyster Sauce

My older daughter is feeling under the weather. She's down with cough and slight bronchilitis. I have started her with her ventolin yesterday. Today, I brought her to see the doctor and doctor had advised that we continue with the ventolin for 3 more days and he passed me some medicine for her cough and running nose.

We stayed at my mum's place today. We had late breakfast which means our lunch was late too .. ehehe

And today my mum cooked for us Chicken in Coconut Sauce and Kai Lan in Oyster Sauce.

Here is the recipe for My Mum's Chicken in Coconut Sauce (Ayam masak Lemak).

Ingredients

1 whole chicken cut into 8 pieces, cleaned
2 potatoes, skinned and quartered
200ml coconut milk
1 tomato, quartered
2 tbsp coriander seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 onion, roughly chopped
5 pips garlic, roughly chopped
1 cm fresh turmeric
1 candlenut
2 red chillies, roughly chopped
1 lemongrass
4 lime leaves
water
salt to taste
oil

Method

In a blender, grind coriander seeds, onion, garlic, turmeric, cumin, candlenut and chillies with a lil bit of water.
Heat some oil in a pot and fry the ground ingredients till fragrant and crisp.
Press the end of lemongrass with a pestle and tear some lime leaves and put them in the pot.
Add some salt then add about a cup of water and leave it to boil.
Then add in the coconut milk and leave it boil again.
When the sauce starts to boil, add chicken and then potatoes.
Leave it to simmer till the chicken and potatoes are cooked through.
Lastly add the tomatoes and turn off heat.
Serve hot with rice.

This is how my mum cooked the Kai Lan in Oyster Sauce.

Ingredients

Kai Lan vegetable, washed them clean and sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 garlic, chopped
1 red chilli, sliced
1 tbsp oyster sauce
a dash of chicken granules
water
salt to taste
oil

Method

Heat some oil in a wok.
Once hot, add onion, garlic and chilli and fry till fragrant.
Add in the kai lan stems.
Then add a pinch of salt, chix granules and oyster sauce.
Lastly add the kai lan leaves and turn off heat.

This is my late lunch - hot rice with my mum's chicken cooked in coconut sauce.

Yummy .. who in the world doesnt enjoy mum's cooking .. :-))

Savoury Bread Pudding

So wat did I whip up for tea today?? I made Savoury Bread Pudding. Even though, I havent got the ingredients such as cilantro, spring onions and cheddar cheese, I still made them. I had to make do with just what I have in the kitchen .. hehe ..

The result .. perrrgh .. it was really good eaten hot/warm. I also did not put the red chilli, so my two angels also enjoyed the pudding. As for hubby and me, we ate them with mayo & cilli sauce .. really lazaaaaaaaaat!!

After assembly

Hot from the oven

My piece of the pudding


Ingredients
Filling

250 gm minced meat
1/2 tbsp curry powder
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 small onion, diced
1/2 small can mushroom, diced
Salt and pepper to taste
Oil to fry

Spring onion, chopped
Cilantro, chopped
Red chilli, chopped
Fried shallots

Bread Pudding

5 pcs of bread (cut to fit the tin - 2 layers)
1 pc of bread (cubed)
Butter
Mozarella cheese
Cheddar Cheese
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs

How to prepare the minced meat
1. Mix minced meat with oyster sauce and leave for 30 minutes.
2. Heal a little oil and fry the diced onions.
3. Then add the minced meat. Fry till all the water (from the meat) has evaporated.
4. Add the mushroom, curry powder then add salt and pepper. Fry for a further few minutes and set aside.

To assemble the pudding.
1. Beat eggs with milk.
2. Butter the bread and cut to fit the baking tin. I used the small square aluminuim tin.
3. Place the bread, buttered side up, in the tin.
4. Pour some of the egg and milk mixture to soak the bread.
5. Then layer with the meat mixture.
6. Next layer with mozarella and cheddar.
7. Repeat a 2nd time as above.
8. Then sprinkle chopped spring onions, cilantro, chilli and fried crispy shallots.
9. Lastly, top it off with cubed bread soaked in the balance egg and milk mixture.
10. Then pour whatever egg and milk mixture you have over the pudding.
11. Bake for 30 minutes for 180 degree celcius.

Serve with chilli sauce and mayonnaise.

Mini Chicken Nuggets

It was my niece's birthday last Saturday. I made Mini Chicken Nuggets to bring to her birthday party. It is really a yummy treat - different from the chicken nuggets you buy from the supermart.

Ingredients

500 g minced chicken
1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1 onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and white pepper to taste
flour, seasoned, to coat
1 or 2 egg(s) to coat
japanese breadcrumbs to coat
oil, to fry

Method

Mix well minced chicken, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper and chill in the fridge for a while.
Shape the mixture into small balls and flatten the balls a little.
Coat with seasoned flour.
Then coat with egg.
And lastly coat with japanese breadcrumbs.
Fry over a medium low heat till golden.

Serve with mayo and chilli sauce.

Chicken Wrap

For Sunday's lunch, since there were leftover roasted chicken - mainly the breasts, from Saturday's "lunner", I thought hey why not make Chicken Wrap. I had all the ingredients needed except for tomatoes to make the Chicken Wrap. Here it is the pic and recipe.

Ingredients

flatbread
cooked chicken, shredded
onions, sliced
lettuce, shredded
mazorella cheese, shredded
mayonnaise
chilli sauce

Method

Spread some mayonnaise on the bread.
Fill with chicken, onions and lots of lettuce.
Then sprinkle some mazorella cheese.
Fold the bread into 2 and toast it on a pan or put it in a preheated oven till the cheese melts.

Serve drizzled with chilli sauce.

I also made a dessert for Sunday's lunch which I will share tomorrow. Check out this space again yah!

Seafood Fried Noodle

Like mentioned in my earlier blog, my buddies came to my house on Saturday afternoon. We went grocery shopping before we head home though.

So for lunner - dats lunch cum dinner .. hehehehe .. we had Seafood Fried Noodle that we fried our own and Spring Chicken (1 Roasted and the other fried) that we bought.

I also made Baked Kueh with Mince Meat aka Kueh Bakar Berlauk that we had with pandan tea. Izz also managed to make Crab Rangoon using the cheese mixture that I had prepared and froze some time ago.

My buddies left about 7pm bringing home with them the Kueh Bakar Berlauk, Crab Rangoon and the leftover Fried Noodle.

Here I share the Seafood Fried Noodle recipe, courtesy of Mila aka Dimplez.

Ingredients

3 eggs, beaten
2 big onions, ground
3 cloves garlic, ground
15 dried chillies, soaked and ground
1 pack dried plain maggi-like noodle (can be found at a supermart)
250g prawns
1 pack fishball, sliced
1 pack crabstick, sliced diagonally
2 tbsp sweet soy sauce
2 tbsp tomato sauce
1 tsp salt
oil for frying
spring onions and fried shallots to garnish

Method

Heat a pot of water then boil the noodle till aldente, drain off the water and put aside.
Heat some oil in a wok and fry the beaten eggs and put aside.
Use the same wok, heat more oil and fry the ground ingredients till frangrant.
Put in the prawns, fishball and crabstick.
Toss in the noodle then eggs.
Season with soy sauce, tomato sauce and salt.

Serve garnished with spring onion and fried shallots.

Chapati and Keema

I prepared Indian food for dinner yesterday - Chapati and Keema. Actually mum prepared part of the ingredients for me as I do not have the slightest idea of how to cook Keema. Mum then explained to me the other ingredients that I need to prepare and how to cook them.

As for the chapati, I bought them frozen from the supermarket. Just need to heat it up on a non stick pan for a few minutes and it is ready to eat.

Thanks mum for the great Keema recipe!

Ingredients

3 onions, diced
3 cloves garlic, pound
1 cm ginger, pound
1 level tsp ground coriander
1 level tsp ground cumin
4 heapful tbsp ground dried chilli
1 tbsp tomato sauce
2 small potatoes, cubed
1 small carrot, cubed
3/4 cup water
500 gm mince meat (pre cooked)
Chicken granules and salt to taste
Oil for frying

Method

Heat oil in a pot.
Fry onion, garlice and ginger till soft.
Add in ground coriander, cumin, ground chilli and tomato sauce and fry till frangrant.
Put in diced potatoes and carrot and add in water.
When potatoes and carrot are almost soft, add in the precooked minced meat.
Put in chicken granules and salt to taste. Mix well.

Serve keema with chapati.

Fried Rice, Breaded Fish Bites & Baked Chix

I had a severe migraine since Friday and only got better this morning after I popped Naramig prescribed by my GP yesterday evening. Although still feeling groggy, I managed to whip a simple lunch of Fried Rice, Breaded Fish Bites and Baked Mid Joints.

The recipe for the Fried Rice and Breaded Fish Bites can be found below.

Ingredients

2 cups cooked rice
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 green chilli, thinly sliced
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp ground dried chillies
1 tsp chicken seasoning
2 eggs
4 crabsticks, sliced
Oil for frying

Method

Heat oil and fry onion and ground chilli till fragrant.
Put in sliced chilli, oyster sauce and chicken seasoning.
Fry in the eggs and crabstick.
Then stir in the rice.

Ingredients

1 dory fillet, cut into 20 bites & season with a lil salt
Flour seasoned with salt and pepper
1 egg
Japanese breadcrumb
Oil

Method

Coat fillet bites with flour.
Then coat with egg.
Then with japanese breadcrumb.
Heat oil and fry fish bites for about 5 mins.

I bought this pre marinated mid joint wings at the supermarket. Its really tasty and peppery hot!

Feel Like Having Pasta

Buddies felt like having pasta for lunch last Sunday. I made them Spaghetti Bolognaise, something rather simple for me to prepare since there were other things that I need to prepare as well.

Ingredients

500 g minced beef, pre cooked with a pinch of salt n pepper
2 tbsp ground chilli
2 big onions, diced
4 cloves garlic, diced
a lil oil for frying
2 celery, diced
1 can button mushroom, sliced
1 jar spaghetti sauce (bought off the supermarket shelves)
1/2 jar water (use the spaghetti sauce jar to measure)
salt and sugar to taste
1 pkt spaghetti
a pot of salted boiling water
parmesan cheese, grated

Method

Heal oil in a pan.
Fry the ground chilli, onions and garlic until they are softened.
Put in the celery, mushroom and then ground beef.
Pour in the spaghetti sauce followed by 1/2 jar of water.
Season with salt n a lil sugar.
Lower the heat and simmer for abt 20 mins.

Meanwhile, boil a pot of water and put in abt 2 tsp of salt and a few drops of oil.
When water reaches boiling point, put in the spaghetti and cook till al dente and drain.

To serve, place some spaghetti on a plate topped with the spaghetti mixture and sprinkle with some parmesan cheese.