Sour plum Chicken ~ 酸梅鸡

There are many sweet and sour dishes in Chinese cuisine and many of them calls for deep-frying of the meat, be it chicken, pork, pork ribs or fish. I do not encourage deep-frying in my kitchen and this dish only requires some sauteing and pan-frying and hence not much of oily mess to clean up. The sweet and sour sauce helps to 'open' up your appetite and pairs very well with white rice or bread.

Sour Plum Chicken ~ 酸梅鸡

Ingredients

700 gm free-range chicken, cut into bite size

1 tomato, cut in wedges

2 sour plums, lightly mashed

4 pips garlic, chopped

a small knob of ginger, chopped

2 red birdeye chillies, chopped

1 tsp taucheong, bean paste

1/2 tsp dark soya sauce

Seasalt to taste

Sugar to taste

2 tsp Cornflour + 1 Tbsp water to thicken

Method

Marinate the chicken with some seasalt

In a non-stick pan, heat up some oil and saute

the chopped garlic, ginger, chillies and bean paste till fragrant

Add in the chicken , pan fry and add in 1 cup of water, the sour plum and

let it simmer till chicken is cooked

Add in dark soya sauce, seasalt and sugar to taste

Toss in the tomato wedges

Add in cornflour mixture to thicken

Dish out and serve with rice

Braised Pork Belly with Mui Choy ~ 梅菜焖五花肉

Mui Choy is preserved mustard greens and there are two types, one is salty while the other is sweet. There are many ways of cooking mui choy with pork belly. Instead of braising, you can steam it with minced pork but here I am using only the sweet mui choy and I braised the pork belly with it. This is a flavourful dish and you can serve it with plain rice or plain porridge. Braised Pork Belly with Mui Choy ~ 梅菜焖五花肉 Ingredients 400 gm pork belly cut into bite size 100 gm preserved sweet mui choy 3 cloves of garlic 2 slices ginger Seasoning for the pork belly 1 Tbsp dark soya sauce 1/4 Tbsp sugar 1/4 Tbsp sesame oil 1/4 Tbsp oyster sauce 1/2 tsp pepper 1/8 tsp light soya sauce Method Season the pork belly for about an hour or more. Set aside. Soak the mui choy for 45 mins., rinse and squeeze dry. Cut into slices Heat some oil in the wok, fry the mui choy. Add in the ginger slic...

Snow Swallow Dessert ~ 天然野生雪燕

Natural Wild Tragacanth Gum 'Snow Swallow' or Xue Yan is a gum derived from different varieties of sterculia trees. It's actually a sap drained from the root of the plant and the gum dries as it exudes and is then collected. Once rehydrated will increase to about ten times in size and their white stringy, jelly like strands texture resembles that of the much prized and highly valued bird's nest. One thing to take note when cooking this dessert is that the gum is highly soluble in water and cannot be boiled too long. Since it is 'cooling' for our internal organs, the elderlies should take this in moderation and not recommended for nursing mums for the breast milk may cause the baby to purge. Snow Swallow Dessert ~ 天然野生雪燕 Ingredients 8 gm Snow Swallow gums 10 gm red dates 10 gm goji berries 20 gm dried longan Rock or piece sugar to taste 1 litre water Pandan leaves (optional) Method Soak the Snow Swallow gums in plenty of water for at least...

Herbal Jelly ~ Gui Ling Gao

H erbal Jelly ~ Gui Ling Ga o literally translated means 'Tortoise Jelly' is one of my family's favourite desserts. It's much more economical to prepare this at home for you'll need to fork out between Rm 9 to Rm 11 for a bowl of this cooling dessert in any of those herbal tea outlets. This soothing jelly, served chilled, is supposed to be able to help reduce our body heat, helps to get rid of toxins and is believed to be good for the skin thus culminating a healthier complexion.

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