Posted by Eric.N
I just picked up a bunch of fresh KangKung, which is water spinach or water convolvulus (空心菜) from the Asian market. It’s been some time we didn’t cook this. Bel and I love this vegetable dish especially when it is cooked with Sambal Belacan. Again? Yes! In fact Kangkung Belacan is a signature dish in Malay recipes and yet it is another must-order-dish when you visit Malaysian restaurant. In Chinese translation, this dish is a representation of Malaysian style cuisine (馬來風光).
Cooking with Sambal Belacan is indeed an unique style of cooking in Malay cuisine. Some people might not like the fishy smell from the Belacan or shrimp paste, but once you have tried the prepared dish you will love it. The Belacan brings out the fresh and sweetness of the dish and gives a pungent aroma that you can’t resist. There are so many dishes that you can incorporate with these two main ingredients. See Bel’s other related posts such as the Sambal Okra, Sambal Belacan Asparagus, Rojak, Indonesian Fried Rice for more cooking with Sambal Belacan.
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Posted by Patrick.C
I heart all kinds of omelette from all time American to Asia (because I adore eggs). Shrimp omelette is one of the Chinese omelettes I love the most especially in those street food catering stalls or Chinese restaurants in Malaysia.
This dish consists of an omelette with a filling primarily composed of luscious shrimps. Onions or scallions are sometimes added for an intense taste. In the past, pork lard was often used to fry the omelette to provide an extra fragrance but less and less people are using it these days due to health conscious. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted by Bel.C
The sweet snow ear dessert (糖水) is a Chinese delicacy cooked with white snow ear fungus (雪耳), lotus (蓮子), lily bulbs (百合) and dried red dates (紅棗) in sweet rock sugar (冰糖) soup. The girls will especially love this dessert as it is claimed to be beneficial for facial beauty because of the ingredients used are highly nutritious.
The white snow ear / snow fungus / silver mushroom is a kind of edible jelly fungus used in Chinese cooking mostly in dessert. It is shaped like a ear or flower and white in color. It has no taste itself but it will absorb the liquid from other ingredients when it is cooked with and take on the taste. The snow fungus contains protein, fat, various amino acids, minerals and glycogen that are great for whitening and maintain one’s beauty.
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Posted by Bel.C
Red Cooked Chicken or Ayam Masak Merah is one of the famous red curry or red chili dishes in Malay cuisine. It is one of those curry dishes that doesn’t use coconut milk. The specialty about the Ayam Masak Merah is the chicken pieces are pan fried till golden brown and cooked in the red hot and sweet tomato sauce. The sauce is made freshly from tomatoes, red chilies, herbs and spices. It adds a hint of spiciness to the sweetness of the sauce. Great for those who don’t like too spicy.
Ayam Masak Merah is a popular dish among the Malay communities. You can usually find it serving with nasi tomato (tomato rice) or nasi lemak (coconut milk rice) in the Malay stalls. Some people may think this is something similar to Italian spaghetti tomato sauce as it uses mainly tomatoes as the main ingredient but the difference is the Malay style has a more spicy hot kick to it and different spices that made it so special in taste.
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Posted by Patrick.C
We are having fish dishes marathon in the house. Right after Bel made her steamed striped bass with bean sauce, I decided to make another steamed fish dish with my favorite Chilean sea bass. Seriously I am a big fan of Chilean sea bass because I am amazed at how such ugly fishie can be so tasty.
The Chilean sea bass or Patagonian toothfish (as the proper name for it) is a large, vaguely cod-shaped fish found in cold, deep waters of the Southern Atlantic. Due to its size, the Chilean sea bass actually produces good-sized fillets of white meat with mild flavor, pleasantly firm texture and high healthy fat content that formulates it almost impossible for overcook. Thus, it is good for dry-heat cooking methods such as grilling, broiling, and sautéing but this time I’ve prepared it with the steaming method.
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