Cooking for me is all about family and friends, the earth, and its harvests. That’s what inspires me to cook. Learn how to make restaurant dishes in a home kitchen. Some easy-to-cook recipes describes what I really cook during the week for friends and family. And once in a while, I will add tabletop touches to make entertaining fun for both you and your guests. Enjoy!

Recipes

SAMBAL SOTONG
Malay
Serves: 3 to 4 as part of a meal

This is a simple family dish that we can all enjoy during this Hari Raya celebration period. It makes a tasty addition to the feast which usually includes Rendang Beef, Ketupat and Serondeng, a dish of grated coconut stir fried with spices.

Ingredients
500g squid, small or medium-sized
1 tbsp tamarind pulp (assam)
1⁄4 cup water
1⁄4 to 1⁄2 cup coconut milk
1⁄2 tsp salt
3 to 4 kaffir lime leaves (daun limau purut)
4 tbsp vegetable oilSpice Mixture
5 candlenuts (buah keras)
10 fresh red chillies
1 stalk lemon grass (serai)
10 shallots, peeled
1⁄2 tsp shrimp paste (belacan)

Method

For Spice Mixture: Wash candlenuts, drain. Discard chilli stalks and slice roughly. Clean lemon grass and use only bottom 5 to 6 cm. Slice lemon grass and shallots roughly. Pound candle-nuts, add chillies and lemon grass and continue pounding to make a rough paste. Add shrimp paste and shallots and pound till fine. Or grind all ingredients in a food processor.

Clean squid, peel off skin and cut into 2 cm rings. Wash the head, and make sure you cut off the ink sac without piercing into the sac as this will prevent the ink from spurting out. Use both the body and the head.

Mix tamarind pulp with water, knead and strain through a sieve to remove seeds. Retain tamarind water.

Heat oil in a wok or small saucepan and when it is hot, add the spice paste and stir fry over medium heat till the mixture is fragrant and the oil exudes. Takes about 3 to 4 minutes.

Add squid, and all the other ingredients and simmer gently till the gravy is thick and the squid is cooked.

Back to top

KUEH MAKMUR
Malay
Serves: Makes 30 to 40 cookies

A traditional Malay cookie for the Hari Raya festivities, made without eggs, Kueh Makmur is a particular favourite of mine – its melt-in-the-mouth tenderness and peanut filling makes for a simply scrumptious cookie.

For pastry:
350g plain flour
1⁄4 tsp fine salt
200g butter or margarine
3 tbl iced water
1 tsp vanilla essence
Mix together for filling:
50g toasted peanuts roughly ground
30g fine sugar

For topping:
1 cup icing sugar

Method:
Sift the flour with the salt. Melt the butter and when it is cooled down, mix into the flour, kneading well. Add the water mixed with vanilla essence and knead till you get a firm dough which does not break apart.

Break off a small mound of dough, make a well in the centre and spoon about 1⁄2 tsp of the filling into the well. Seal by pinching the edges together.

Using a pair of pineapple tart pincers, pinch a leaf pattern on either side of the pinched edge and place on waxed or greaseproof paper on a baking tray.

In the meantime, pre-heat the oven to 160 to 180 degrees C for 10 minutes.
Bake the Kueh Makmur in the oven for between 15 to 18 minutes till the cookies are cooked.

Remove from the oven and when the cookies are not too hot, roll in icing sugar. When the cookies are fully cooled, store in an air tight container.

To Serve:
Delicious as a cookie during the Hari Raya visit – serve with coffee, tea or a soft drink.
 

Back to top

CLASSIC CANTONESE BEEF
WITH ONIONS
CANTONESE
Serves: 2 to 4

Ingredients
300g fillet of beef, cut into fine strips
4 cups vegetable oil
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 large onion, peeled

Marinade for Beef
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp Chinese yellow wine (hua tiao jiu)
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cornflour
1/2 tsp sesame oil

Sauce
1 tsp light soya sauce
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp water

Method

1. Mix all the marinade ingredients together except for the sesame oil.
2. Mix sauce ingredients together and set aside.
3. Just before cooking, mix the beef with the marinade mixture. Stir well to mix before adding the sesame oil. You add the oil last so that the oil will not prevent the other marinade ingredients from penetrating into the meat.
4. Heat oil in a wok or saucepan and when it is very hot, that is, when smoke exudes, put a sieve into the oil, making sure that the sieve is smaller than the wok or saucepan rim. Add the beef and with a pair of chopsticks vigorously stir the beef for about 30 seconds till the beef is cooked. Remove the sieve from the oil and suspend it over a pot to allow the excess oil to drip off. This method of frying beef is the correct restaurant cooking method as it ensures that the meat is cooked evenly and quickly all round so that the surface is lightly crispy browned while the inside of the meat remains juicy and tender. If you are health conscious, you can omit the deep frying and stir fry the beef in 4 to 5 tablespoons of very hot oil.
5. Drain the oil, but keep about 3 tablespoons in the wok. Heat it up again and stir fry the onions till limp. Remove onions from wok,
6. Add the garlic and stir fry till fragrant and then add the beef slices and sauce and stir fry for a few seconds, around 6 to 10 seconds. Remove and serve, with a garnishing of fried onions.

NOTE: Though this recipe is simple and contains few ingredients, it showcases the classic Cantonese restaurant cooking technique of deep frying meats, and even vegetables to ensure even cooking and a crisp outer surface. This style of fast cooking prevents the meat from exuding its juices and keeps it all deliciously intact.

Back to top

HAR LOKE
CANTONESE
Serves: 2 to 4

Prawns fried in tomato sauce, Cantonese-style, are a great party food. It’s easy and quick to prepare and goes with all kind of dishes.

Ingredients
10 to 12 large prawns with shells
3 cups vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 plants spring onions, washed and cut into thump lengths

Sauce
2 1/2 tbsp tomato ketchup
1 tsp pounded brown salted soya bean (taucheo)
1 tsp oyster sauce
3 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Method

1. Wash prawns, trim heads. Cut a slit down the back and with a toothpick, pull up the intestinal vein and discard.
2. Heat oil in wok. Add prawns and deep-fry till shells turn red. Remove and drain.
3. Pour out oil, leaving only about 2 tablespoons in the wok. Heat again and add chopped garlic. Stir-fry briefly and add sauce ingredients. When sauce thickens, add spring onions and mix well, stirring three times before turning off the heat.

NOTE: This is a dish which demonstrates the Cantonese method of deep frying ingredients before putting them through the stir fry process. Prawns with shells in particular, are ideal for this type of cooking as the prawns will get cooked and golden red very quickly.

Back to top

THAI SCALLOPS,
MANGO AND RAISIN SALAD
THAI
Serves: 2 to 4

Ingredients
200g scallops, lightly steamed till cooked
2 firm semi-ripe mangoes
1 stalk celery, sliced thinly
2 large onions
10 cherry tomatoes, cut into quarters
15 to 20 red and green bird-chilies (chili padi)
2 stalks lemon grass (serai)
5 to 6 tbsp golden raisins
2 plants coriander (wan swee)
3 to 5 tbsp freshly-squeezed lime juice*
2 to 4 tbsp fish sauce or light soya sauce
Lettuce leaves to garnish
Julienne of red peppers

Method

1. Fresh scallops are usually sold frozen. De-frost, steam for about 2 to 3 minutes, re-fresh under cold running tap water, drain and pat dry. Cut into 3 to 4 circles.
2. Peel the mangoes and slice into thin slices or into julienne.
3. Peel onions and slice lengthwise into thin strips.
4. Wash tomato pieces and discard the seeds and pulp. Pat dry with paper towels
5. Slice bird-chilies finely. Discard seeds which drop off.
6. Cut off outer portions of the lemon grass and shred the bottom 2 cm (1 inch) finely on the diagonal. Discard the remaining lemon grass.
7. Cut coriander leaves into short 1/2 cm lengths.
8. Put mangoes and celery into a large bowl with the onions, chilies, lemongrass and raisins Toss well.
9. Add lime juice and fish sauce or light soya sauce and toss well. Add scallops just before serving and garnish with the tomatoes and coriander leaves and serve. Decorate with lettuce, julienne of red peppers and other leaves for an exciting appetizer presentation.

* Use either Thai thin-skinned limes or the small tangerines known as Limau Kesturi in Malay and as Calamansi in Filipino.

© All pictures by UV Picture Library

Back to top