lalayuen's homecooking: May 2011

30 May 2011

Pan fried Chinese dumplings / 煎饺子

Stir fry: Chinese leaves, soy marianted beancurd, chicken leg mushroom

雲吞 / Wonton

This is my 2nd time making wonton.
fresh prawns, cut in cubes
pork belly, cut in very small cubes (smaller than prawns)
mix the prawns and pork together, season with salt, sugar, peppers, light soy sauce, sesame oil
leave it in the fridge for 1 hour such that seasonings can be absorbed by the meat.
ready to make the wonton!!!!
not difficult at all, easier than making dumplings :-)

馒头 / mantou

finally it was a success.

thanks to jasmine sharing this recipe with me

http://maomaomom.com/%E9%B2%9C%E5%A5%B6%E5%B0%8F%E9%A6%92%E5%A4%B4/

i found that i have used the wrong yeast previously, the dried active yeast which needed to dissolve in water, is wrong.

the correct one should be "Easy Bake Yeast" which is for making bread, and that mix with the flour directly, is the correct one. Different names used in different places, i m glad i have found the right yeast :-)

27 May 2011

Our first homegrown strawberry!!!

Baked salted mackerel

i have bought a very fresh mackerel, so i was thinking whats the best way to cook it?? lets make a "salted fish"!!!

i marinated the fish with lots of salt, then i chucked it to freezer for a week.

on a day when i feel i want to eat salted fish, i take out from freezer and defrost it.

wash it and pat dry it

wrap the fish with foil, adding a very little rock salts, black peppers, and a splash of olive oil

bake in oven for 25 mins.

ready!!! i like it because it is not dry. a bit of moist and salty flavor, yum!!!

i will make it again!!!

24 May 2011

Italian cooking class 2 - Tiramisu

I can't believe making tiramisu is this easy.
dip the Savoiardi biscuits with coffee.
mix mascarpone cheese, double cream and icing sugar together
layer the biscuits, add the cream
top with coco power, done

oh well, it turned out the biscuits become very soggy, i know the tricks now, will make a better one next time :-)

Italian cooking class 2 - Involtini di Carne

the teacher said...
Involtini means "wraps"
Carne means "meat"
and this is topside beef slices wrap, filled with fresh breadcrumbs, pancetta, garlic, parmigiano cheese
i think they are similar to Hong Kong people's 金菇牛肉卷 (Enoki mushrooms wrapped with beef) haha very nice.

and the Sugo di Pomodoro !!??!!. ok the tomato sauce, is made by squeezing the (tinned) tomatoes with a vegetable mouli. so all the seeds, skins etc are removed. i m thinking if i need to buy this new kitchen gadget!! fun :-)

lastly the teacher said Italian meat dishes shall served with small pasta, not with spaghetti, tagliatelle etc.. so I used shells pasta! they look not bad at all!!!

Grilled salmon fish head / 鹽燒三文魚頭

A very easy dish to make!!
u don't need to put in any oil, and it tastes just like u have pan fried the fish.
ask the fish monger to cut the fish head in pieces
marinate them with salt for half an hour.
put them in a baking tray, season with some rock salts and black peppers.
bake them for 20 mins
ready!!

My first homemade fish balls

wow i made my first homemade fish balls.
recipe from here http://www.hongkitchen.com/2011/03/ho-chew-fish-ball-soup.html
i cooked them in tomyum soup base coz i afraid they might taste a bit fishy.
turn out they are wonderfully edible.
definitely will try to make them again!!!

红烧排骨

滷水雞肝 / Poached chicken livers in soy sauce

These are organic chicken livers from Waitrose! :-)

20 May 2011

蒸Seabass / Steamed Seabass

18 May 2011

Italian cooking class 1 - Risotto di Funghi

Attended my first Italian cooking class, and this is the dish made - Risotto di Funghi.
My first time cooking risotto, it is not difficult. And I will do it again, next time with butternut squash & pancetta. coz the teacher gave us a few different versions of risotto recipes. better to try a different one next time.

17 May 2011

Radish cress and tofu soup

the "radish cress" is selected and grown by mr chen.

so i made him this soup, adding tofu and water and chicken stock. easy!!!

Crusty Cod

1. season the cod with salt and pepper
2. top with a layer of mayonnaise
3. sprinkle breadcrumbs and parleys mixture all over the fish
4. bake for 15 minutes
yum!!!

15 May 2011

蔥油餅

涼拌西芹

紅燒茄子五花腩 / Stewed pork belly with aubergine

14 May 2011

蛋撻 / Egg Tarts

After numerous attempts, finally i found the right recipe. the pastry is made according to Delia's English custard tart recipe. and the egg filling is half milk, half water, three eggs and vanilla extract and sugar. Mr Chen just complainted it is a bit too sweet now so i need to adjust the sugar amount next time. Anyway the pastry is really nice and crisps. the key is to bake the pastry first before adding the egg fillings :-)

http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/type-of-dish/desserts/tart/old-fashioned-english-custard-tart.html

Malaysia Chicken Curry

This is made from Malaysia curry sauce pack which is a gift from Sammi. Quite a lot of oil but I guess it is mostly because of the chicken. It tastes really good, not very spicy.