Deep Fried Crunchy Fish

Ingredients:

Fish, 4 small fish, any fish you prefer
Salt, 1 tbsp
Pepper, few dashes
Juice of 1 Lime




Method:

1.     Clean, rinsed & pat dry fish.
2.     Rub salt & pepper over fish.
3.     Coat fish with juice of 1 lime and marinate for at least 20 minutes or longer.
4.     Heat enough oil to cover fish and deep fry till skin is golden in color.
**    Be careful of splattering oil at this stage.  
5.     Drain and serve.

 

Stir Fry Curly Leaf Spinach With Fish Cake

 
Ingredients:

Garlic, 5 pips, leave whole
Ginger, 2 slices, cut into shreds
Fish Cake, 1/2 cake (I used the 2x5 inch type)
Curly Leaf Spinach, 1 bundle
Oil, 1 tbsp
Salt, 1 tsp
Chicken Stock, 100 ml (may use water as a substitute)
Chinese White Cooking Wine, 1 tbsp (optional)

Method:

1.    Heat oil in wok.
2.    Fry garlic and ginger till garlic is golden brown and ginger is fragrant.
3.    Add in fish cake (may add a few splashes of chinese white wine here if you prefer)
4.    Continue with the chicken stock and salt.
5.    Lastly add in spinach and stir fry till cook.
6.    Serve.

Deep Fry Macau Fish In Thai Chillie Sauce

NGREDIENTS:

1. Fish, 1 big slice (any type of fish that you may like)
2. Ginger, 2 slices, julienne
3. Thai chillie sauce, 3 tbsp
4. Water, 250 ml
5. Cornstarch, 2 tsp
6. Salt, half tsp
7. Pepper, half tsp
8. Oil for frying
9. Spring onion for garnishing

METHOD:

• Clean and pat dry fish with kitchen towel
• Rub salt & pepper over fish
• Leave to marinate for at least 10 mins
• Prepare sauce: combine water, Thai chills sauce in a bowl

 

• Pat dry fish once again, coat with cornstarch 
• Fry fish in pre heated oil till golden brown and skin crisp (should be slightly covering fish).
• Remove and set aside
• Leave a tbsp oil in pan
• When oil is hot, fry ginger till golden color
• Scatter over fish
• Heat up the prepared Thai chillie sauce, pour over fish
• Garnish with spring onions to serve 

 

Storing Chicken Stock For Everyday Use

We uses stock in everyday cooking to enhance the flavor of the food. But cooking up our own homemade stock requires time so it is always good to have a store bought stock in hand. 

Store bought stock like the one I'm using here is quite strong in flavor.  Normally for a 3 liter I will use like maybe 1/3 can only.  Otherwise, if you add too much, the dish will be overpowered by the stock.

I keep my stock freezed in ice cube tray where I can conveniently pick a cube to add to whatever dish that I'm preparing anytime I need boost up the dish.

Soy Sauce Steam Fish

Fish is my hubby's favorite food.  Once he is done eating the whole fish, you wont know there was a fish unless you spotted the bones.  He would chew on every single parts of it, even the head is not spared!

I cooked this last night and with the help of my daughter, this dish went to the dining table before me.  By the time i finished clearing up the mess in the kitchen, this is what is left of the fish.  And i haven't even had time to take a snap shot of it.  But anyway, at least they left the garnishing there to make it 'still pretty' :)

Ingredients:

1. Fish, 1  [any fish suitable for steaming will do, medium size]
2. salt, 1 tsp
3. Ginger, 4 big slices

Sauce:

1. Water, 200 ml  [I like sauce to go with my rice]
2. Light soy sauce, 2 tbsp
3. Salt, 1/2 tsp
4. Sugar, 1 tsp
5. Sesame oil, 1 tsp
6. Wine, 2 tbsp  [i used white Chinese cooking wine, you may use Shao Hsing wine too but I don't have that in my kitchen yesterday]

Garnishing:

1. Ginger, 4 big but thin slices, julienned
2. Red chilli, 1/2 pcs, julienne [lengthwise, u may use whole pcs too]
3. Garlic, 4 pips, minced
4. Oil, 2 tbsp
5. Coriander, few stalks

Method:

• Clean and pat dry fish.  Make slanting incisions on fish's body with the sharp bottom of blade facing fish head, and top of blade facing fish tail.  Make two incisions on each side.
• Rub 1 tsp salt over fish, insert a piece of sliced ginger into each incisions and pour prepared sauce over fish and steam for at least 15 minutes, depending on size of fish.
• While waiting for the 15 minutes, prepare the garnishing. 
• A minute or so before the fish is ready, heat 2 tbsp oil in wok.
• Fry remaining 'julienned' ginger till golden brown.  Add in garlic and chilli.  Stir around a bit till fragrant.
• When fish is done, transfer the fried garnishing on top of fish. 
• Top with the coriander and it's ready to be served.

 

* this will remind me to take a snap shot of food faster the next time before it gets eaten :p

Cold Tofu In Onion Oil

If you love tofu, this is as easiest as it can get.  Use soft tofu or semi hard 'white' tofu, both works for me.  This tofu here is actually half of a leftover tofu i have in my fridge.  The other half i used it yesterday to cook Creamy Tofu Soup. This recipe is super easy as you do not need to cook the tofu. It can be eaten cold. You may steam it if you like it really hot but be sure not to over steam it as it can loose its nice appearance.

Ingredients:

1. Soft Tofu, 1/2 pcs
2. Salt, 1/3 tsp
3. Oyster sauce, 1/3 tsp

Garnishing:

1. Red Onion, 1 bulb, minced
2. Red Chilli, 1/2 pcs lengthwise, julienned
3. Spring Onions, few stalks, chopped
4. Oil, 1 1/2 tbsp

Method:

• Rinse tofu, halve it [so it is not too thick], rub salt and oyster sauce over tofu.
• Set aside in a dish.

• Lay Red Chilli on top of tofu.

• Heat Oil in wok. 
• Fry onions till golden brown and dish out onto the tofu, on top of chilli.
• Sprinkle chopped spring onions on top of it and it's done.

Note:  The hot oil from frying the onions will partially heat up the tofu and that will create a hot and cold sensation when you bite it.

This dish of mine, Creamy Tofu Soup, is the first dish that I am posting here in my blog.  Most of the measurements in my cooking are "agak agak" only (that is how my mum cooks too hehe)  But here, I'll do my best to make it more accurately.

INGREDIENTS: 

Marinate
Pork or Chicken, 200 gm
Corn Flour, 1tsp
Dark soy sauce, 1tsp
Light soy sauce, 1tsp
Pepper, 1 tsp
Oil, 1tsp

*Mix all of the above together in a bowl and leave aside for at least 5 minutes.

Red onion, 1 bulb, minced
Garlic, 2 pips, minced
Ginger, 2 slices, finely julienne

Shitake mushrooms, 2 pcs, diced or julienne
(I used dried ones, washed and soaked till soft, diced or julienne.  Reserve soaking water for cornstarch mixture later)

Sea Cucumber, 2 pcs, diced
Prawns, 2 pcs, diced

Carrot, 1 inch, julienne
(I used half, lengthwise, just to add some color to the dish)

Water, 700 ml

Wet Tofu, 1/2 pcs, diced

Egg, 1, lightly beaten
Spring Onion, few stalks, chop finely for garnishing

Seasoning
Salt, 1 tsp
Pepper, 1 tsp
Dark Vinegar, 2 to 3 tsp (may be omitted if you don like vinegar)
Fish Gravy, 1 tsp

* add more salt or fish gravy if you find it a bit too bland  

For cornstarh mixture

Corn flour, 1 tbsp

Plain Water/ Chicken stock/ Water from soaking mushrooms
(I used water reserved from soaking mushrooms)

Method:

• Heat up oil, stir fry pork till 3/4 cook, add ginger, red onions, garlic and stir fry till fragrant
• Add mushrooms, sea cucumber. Cook for a few seconds, add prawns and carrots
• In goes the water and seasoning.  Let it boil. Taste and adjust to own preference here
• Add tofu, cornstarch mixture (should look creamy and not sticky)
• Turn down heat, add beaten eggs. Lightly swirl it with spatula to create streams of egg trails (direct translation from mandarin, we call it "egg flower")
• Lastly, sprinkle on chopped spring onions and its ready to serve.

Note:  strips of fresh red chillies may be added for more color.