Sweet & Sour Pork Belly Stirfry

Sweet & Sour Pork Belly Stirfry, originally uploaded by AuRoRiN & MoOoK.

i hate deep frying cos that usually meant that i've got a mess to clean up after. so here's an adapted version of the sweet sour pork. not too bad so says the wife.

ingredients:

• rindless pork belly, washed, scalded and cut to thin slices
• chopped garlic
• chopped onion
• frozen mixed veg
• fish sauce/ soy sauce
• ketchup
• oyster sauce
• pepper
• corn flour (usually 1 tbsp is enough, mix with half bowl of cool water)
• chinese cooking wine
• fragrant oil (shallots oil)
• sugar (optional)
• water

recipe:

•  marinate pork belly pieces with fish sauce/ soy sauce, fragrant oil, chinese cooking wine, garlic and pepper. set aside for 30 min
• then quickly stir fry pork at high heat till pork is cooked. set aside pork slices but leave gravy in wok/pan
• stir fry the veg and onion (sweat the onion)
• add 3 part ketchup to 1 part oyster sauce, add some water (not too much cos you want a gravy not soup), stir well (add sugar if need be)
• when gravy is to taste, add corn flour solution and stir till gravy thickens
• pour gravy over pork slices and serve

Steamed Drunken Chicken Wings with Asparagus & Wolfberries

Steamed Drunken Chicken Wings with Asparagus & Wolfberries, originally uploaded by AuRoRiN & MoOoK.

something quick and easy. result of yet another daily 'invention test'.
fragrance from the wine, ginger, chicken oil and shallot oil is always nice on a cold day.
soup will be a nice blend of veg & chicken taste to it.

ingredients:

• 5-6 chicken wings
• 7-8 stalks of asparagus (skinned, chopped to halves)
• ginger finely shredded
• wolfberries (handful, soaked washed, cleaned)
• fragrant oil (shallots oil)
• pepper
• chinese cooking wine
• salt
• fish sauce/ soy sauce (couple of teaspoon, to taste, optional)

 recipe:

• marinate chicken by rubbing in salt, pepper, fragrant oil (i actually also added just some fish sauce for the 'smell') for about 15-20 min
• put steamer to boil at high heat
• place chopped asparagus at bottom of plate/tray
• add approx enough wine to level of asparagus
• add part of ginger and all of wolfberries to wine
• place wings on top of asparagus, add rest of ginger and wolfberries on top of wings
• steam at high heat for 20 minutes (make sure chicken is fully thawed before steaming. how to know if its cooked? the bones wld have turned white and the bloody parts turned dark)
• drizzle fish sauce/soy sauce (optional) should soup require more 'taste'

Don't loiter around here. Click the link under the ugly brown fella.

go to mekiddo site

Cravings

Last night (or was it early this morning), i walked away from my laptop with a craving for something sweet. i hung round the kitchen for a while hovering above the biscuits...then i remembered i bought a pack of beh teh sors from laguna asian grocery at QV about 1 week back. yesh its a pack of glory's beh teh sor. it's packaged in a pseudo traditional style (packed in a small plastic bag and then wrapped in a white piece of paper like how it's done before...last time no plastic bag). it's small, dry and the caramel (for the lack of better word) within hardened. sad but still worth savouring at this hour (the pix has a soup spoon for comparison on size).

I don't have a sweet tooth but i do like a certain type of sweetness.
Not the rich chocolate sinful sweetness but closer to baklava and even closer still, the beh teh sor/pong piah kind of sweetness with a savoury aftertaste. Maybe cos the sweetness comes wrapped in some flaky confectionery and the latter is one of those comfort food that i'd grown up with. well, the paternal side of the family used to patronise this Hokkien confectionery Tan Hock Seng along Telok Ayer for its tau sah pia, beh teh sor and pong pia as offerings/snacks. of cos the prices now are hugely inflated and servings had largely shrunk proportionately.

it's certainly gonna be one of my pit stops when i go back to Sg in 2 weeks time!

Stirfry Pork Belly Slices with Vegemite

there'd been this jar of vegemite sitting around in the kitchen for a while now (courtesy of eric & snow). might have passed the expiry date but i reckon that it's ok if i'd used it as condiment. had tried deep fried chicken with vegemite sauce before back in sg many moons back. vegemite exudes a fragrant, bittery, saltish taste in that dish so i figured it'd be strong enough for pork too. i've added honey to give a sweet tinge to the dish.


ingredients

• 500 g of pork belly, cut to bite size
• spring onions, 3 stalks, separate stems and leaves
• ginger, 3 cm portion, sliced
• garlic, 4-5 cloves, chopped
• ground black pepper
• dash of 5 spice powder
• 2 tsp salt (moderation)
• 5-6 tbsp chinese cooking wine
• cooking oil
• dark soy sauce (3 tbsp)
• 2 tsp of vegemite (i suppose marmite will do too)
• honey (4-5 tbsp)
• warm water
• chopped chilli (optional)

recipe

• marinate pork belly with cooking wine for >30 min
• drain of liquid (keep for use later) and rub in salt and pepper
• brown garlic, ginger and pork in cooking oil
• add soy sauce, 5 spice powder and stir fry, making sure pork belly is evening coated
• add 1 cup of warm water, stems of spring onion and let simmer for 20-30 min at mid heat. stir occasionally and let it reduce (but not too dry)
• once pork belly skin is sufficiently tender and sauce reduced, add liquid (from marinate), vegimite and honey. stir occasionally so as to not let the honey burn in the pot. let gravy reduce further if need be (low-mid heat at approx 5 min)
• when satisfied with tenderness of pork, stir in spring onion leaves and chilli and serve

东坡肉redux

Had meant to make roast pork belly but was too lazy to go get lime & try out my sis's father-in-law's recipe. besides the slab had too much bones so i decided to remake the 东坡肉 with some changes to the previous recipe.

bigger chunk of pork
longer frying time
more even caramalising
more dark soy sauce
more salt
more wine
more frequent topup of water but essentially same ingredients (1 less chilli) n same cooking time.
& a whole sinful chunk to yourself! muahahahahaha. boil some noodles and vegs & that's lunch!

Endtrip

i'm to leave again for melbourne in 2 days time while the wife & kid will be catching a later flight in a week's time cos she's gonna attend a friends wedding at the end of the month. it' interesting how this trip has been marked by weddings at both the beginning and the end.

in the span of approx 6-7 weeks, i'd......

• attended 1 wedding in Singapore
• attended 1 wedding in KL (strange to see my sis going through 2 ceremonies in a span of 2 weekends)
• realised that i could no longer fit into my old dress pants (well, 1 was bought some 10 yrs ago n another 5 yrs ago...glad they cld be altered to fit present waist line)
  
• saw a side of KL which i'd not previously known
• mingled with my sis's very eloquent in-laws
  
• made 1 trip up Humen and saw the wife's 95 yr old paternal grandma
  
• made 1 trip to Hong Kong Disneyland with Wife, kiddo, bro-in-law, MIL and her 2 kakas
  
• eaten some 5 rounds of buffet and some sumptuous dinner spreads (courtesy of my sis's weddings and in-laws)
  
• bought tons of books for the kiddo
• (rather her laolao & gugu) bought tons of clothes for the kiddo
• spent CNY and caught up with most of my relatives (strangely nostalgic even though i usually just see them for no more than 6 hours annually on the very same occasion)
• caught up with some old friends, ex-schoolmates and ex-colleagues. for some, i'd really wish i could spend more time with
• caught 1 awful movie called Avatar. and dang that's the only movie i watched (downloads don't count).......
  
• packed and unpacked 3 times
• learnt about zero windows config to get internet connection on my FIL's peecee & cranky usb wifi modem adapter
• visited the doctor twice (once for flu/cough & 2nd for stomach viral infection...he'd been given a large enuff angbao)
• finally picked up my referral from my ex-boss
• read half of zhao ziyang's biography (maybe i'll get to finish it)
  
• stuffed myself with bakwas, pineapple tarts and kweh bangkit (i think that explains for my new found zits and probably 2 extra kilos which i had previously lost over the 6 mths in Melb)
• observed how the kiddo has grown & come to learn new things
  

i'd have loved to......

• spend more time with my folks/ let them spend more time with the kiddo
• bring the kiddo to more places in Sg
  
• tidy up the tank i'd left me dad
• stay on for my JC schoolmate's wedding
  
• eat the humful char kway teow and chicken rice at queenstown market & tau sar piah & pong piah from any traditional chinese confectionary store
  
• look for some long distance part-time work from over here
• etc......
  

I can't help feeling nostalgia creeping in towards the end of this trip. perhaps it's my mind's response to the uncertainty of our future - the 'not quite here-not quite there' conundrum. I was also saddened by the news of the sudden passing of another JC schoolmate just weeks short of CNY. but these emotions served to remind me to make the most of my life and treasure all the lil things that everyone around me had to offer. while i may not be able to see very far from where i am now, i'm glad that i can afford lil steps and have my loved ones around, however near/far.

Observations of The Kiddo Dec09-Jan10

The Wife maintains a blog for the kid. in fact she does a pretty good job at it and i've just been plain lazy to contribute my observations. but of late, she'd grown to be more interactive and expressive....e.g.

• she's certainly not reserved in literally pointing out to you what she wants. she will also make short 2-syllabic 'commands' when she points
• she shakes her head and pushes item away when i get the wrong stuff for her
• she understands 'give' and of late will assert her refusal to give by shaking her head rigorously and spinning herself in circles (when she's seated)
  
• she pouts and frowns when i think she's thinking hard enuff
• she joins in the conversation, often exclaiming with outbursts of 'hahahas' & outstretched arms
• she does some imaginative play with her toys, 'talking' to them
• she treats everything with buttons as a phone (she used to just press n bite on them), placing them next to her ear and mumble to it
  
• she is proactive in getting us to play with/demo to her. sometimes when she can't get a desired reaction from her toys/wants our participation, she'd take our hand and place the toys in them (e.g there was this once when she took her tutu as a phone and stuffed it in my left ear)
• she crawls fast and explores new places a lot more
• she associates certain sounds to some animals - cow says, moo, sheep says baa, tiger& lions says hraarrr, cat says meoow, dog says woowoo
• she waves byebye (& the odd mumble of byebye when she remembers...tho she can't do flying kiss)
• she kisses by doing a forehead knock on us
  

i'd also like to think that she'd gotten more discerning and exhibits different behaviour when she's with either of us. for example......

• i'm the iphone guy & she'd come to me for her sesame st-on-the go kick. she no longer likes The Elmo Song...now she prefers Bert & Ernie's Lalala Song, Diana Krall's Everybody Song & The Pointer Sister's 12 Pinball Song
  
• i'm the carry-me-hi-hi guy & she'd try to get onto my shoulder when i carry her

but she's still pretty much the same in other ways.....

• she has only 2 grown teeth
• i hope she'd learn to stand and maybe totter around as she builds more confidence over the weeks.

2010

i'm gonna be traveling back Sg in a few hours time with the family.
my sis is getting married in a week's time and i'm really happy for her. it's indeed a happy occasion for everyone in the family. i'm glad we're attending this after missing out on her solemnisation in jul 09. i'm also gald that my grandma gets to see her grandchild walk down the aisle and this time round, avery's gonna be there to see her gugu in her beautiful wedding gown.

i hope this signals a good start to the new year. 2009 has been kind to me and my family. we relocated to melbourne and i took on the role of a full time parent. looking back at the past half year, it certainly wasn't easy. realigning goals, managing expectations, living off savings.....all these well away from the comfortable distance of family and friends back home. but we'd made new friends, got ourselves a new routine in life. to be honest, i think i really really really wouldn't trade anything in the world for the past 6 months cos i watched my kiddo grew. i was there everyday, every step, every meal & every poo heh. perhaps, i've just grown a lil wiser with her around.

i'm horrid at keeping resolutions hence i'd ceased making any since i was 20.
but this year i'm gonna try giving it a go, afterall i'm already a father of a 1 yr old and life around is no longer as cushy as it used to be & i have only 1 for myself.

1. i must be more focused in life

& i jolly well keep to that.

东坡肉

We're having a couple of friends over for dinner and i'd prepare a menu of stirfry celery+carrot, grilled chicken wings, braised pork belly and stirfry prawns. it's been a while since i'd to cook for >2 adults but it's always fun cos i'd then have an excuse to experiment.

This is not the usual braised pork belly. It's adapted from a recipe for 东坡肉 which is sweet and melts in the mouth. personally i think i shld have just forgo the chilli altogether but i did get the texture right. i'd also added a pinch of salt to make it work for the eggs i'd added for the braising process (cos for some strange reason, ppl tend to associate eggs as part of the braised repertoire). took about 2 hrs to whip this up but i think its well worth it.

ingredients

• 500-600 g pork belly, cut into thick chunks
  
• approx 5 cm thick piece of ginger, sliced
• 5-6 x spring onions (stems only)
  
• 1 x cinnamon stick
• 2 x star anise
• 2 x cloves
• 2 x cardommon pods (break open)
• 2-3 chilli (optional)
• 4-5 hardboiled eggs (optional, cos to be honest they go better in the salty version of braised pork), gently prick the egg whites (like some 9-12 holes/egg, not too deep)
  
• ground pepper
• 1-2 tbsp rock sugar
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 2-4 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 2-4 tbsp cooking wine
  
• cooking oil
• warm water

recipe:

• scald cut pork with boiling water and pat dry. make sue belly pieces have fat & skin on them
  
• ready pot with oil heated at medium
• lightly brown the pork, turning occasionally to get an even browning. this helps to seal the pork's flavour before putting it through the braise
  
• once browned, remove from pot and set aside. pork should only be about 60-70% cooked
• pour out excess oil, leaving just some in pot. wait for pot to cool a lil before leaving it on at low heat
• add in the rock sugar, stir and let it melt into a syrup, make sure it does not brown and carbonise
• stir in the pork and make sure they are evenly coated with the syrup. set aside and let cool
• using the same pot, stir fry the ginger, spring onion, spices
• add the remaining ingredients, soy sauce, water and wine to the spices and bring to boil
• stir in the pork pieces and let simmer at low-medium heat
• set aside some space in the pot for the eggs and introduce them into the pot after the pork pieces are uniformly 'stained'
• let pot simmer at low heat for at least 50 minutes. i'd them simmer for 90 minutes and the pork and its skin was definitely very tender by now. make sure to turn the eggs and pork around once in a while to ensure even 'staining'
  
• once u like the texture of the meat, turn off hob and serve.
  

Those Blardy Prawns

i love seafood. especially crustacean & shellfish.
perhaps it stemmed from a family that limited such indulges to festive/ red letter days (cos they are pricey) & largely cos my dad ain't one of their biggest fans.

i love my prawns whole, ie head & shell. in fact, i tend to ingest them whole too (save for the pointy bits in the head and the tough bits in the tail). i guess that provides some form of calcium intake and may even save some moolah on buying calcium pills.

this is a version that is adapted from the familiar ketchup prawns that most mums would whip up. what's different is that it's a whole lot more prawny, pastey and spicy, just the way i like it. sure to give u a cholesterol kick too but hey once in a while...should be ok lah.

ingredients

• half kg prawns (i used banana prawns...any medium sized proawns will do)
• 2 chopped tomatoes
• garlic (finely chopped)
• ginger (finely chopped. ratio of ginger to garlic = 1:2)
• ground pepper
• ketchup/tomato paste
• chilli sauce (optional)
  
• chopped chilli
• chopped spring onion (as garnish)
  
• 2-3 tbsp dark soy sauce
• sugar (to taste)
• fish sauce/salt (to taste)
• 5 tbsp chinese cooking wine
  

recipe

• trim off legs, eyes and feelers of prawns. when you snip off the front part of the head, you'll cut into the head. that's good cos you'd want the prawnliness to be extracted from those exposed heads
• brown garlic, ginger and reduce tomatotes in same pot at mid heat
  
• add in prawns, stir and let cook till 60% cooked
• add pepper, ketchup/tomato paste, chilli sauce, soy sauce, sugar, fish sauce
• once prawns are alomost cooked, turn heat down and add cooking wine
• close lid and let simmer till prawns are all cooked and gravy is reduced
• add garnish & serve