No-Frills Recipes ... cooking, baking & excerpts on travel

  Fish Maw is the commercial term for dried fish bladders of large fishes like sturgeon.  Fish Maw (鱼鳔)  is cheaper and more affordable than shark fins or birds nest but the higher grade Fa Gau  ( 花膠) is very much more expensive.  Fish maw is bland in taste but the spongy texture allows it to absorb flavours from the other ingredients.  Here I am sharing with you a Fish Maw stew which can be easily done at home far more cheaper than what you have to pay for when eating this in a restaurant. Fish Maw Stew ~  鱼鳔羹  Ingredients 4 shitake mushrooms, soaked, stemmed and sliced 25 gm dried fish maw, soaked in hot water and cut 150 gm chicken breast meat, shredded 2 cloves of garlic, chopped 1 tsp chopped ginger 1 litre chicken broth 1 Tbsp oyster sauce 1 egg, beaten 2 tsp cornstarch + 2 tsp water for thickening 2 tsp sesame oil 1 Tbsp Shaoxing wine Pepper Salt to taste Balsamic vinegar (optional) Method Saute the mushrooms with the chopped garlic and ginger till fragrant. Add in the chicken b

  These healthy Chocolate Almond Muffins are grain free and serve as a perfect breakfast for the whole family or to snack on at any time of the day. They are moist, soft, full of chocolate flavour and bursting with chocolate chips with added crunch from the almond slivers. Chocolate Almond Muffins  ~    巧克力杏仁玛芬 Ingredients 188 gm plain flour 45 gm cocoa powder 1 Tbsp cornstarch 130 gm caster sugar 1/4 tsp baking soda 1 tsp baking powder 1/8 tsp salt 2 'L' eggs 1 cup buttermilk (milk + 1 Tbsp vinegar or lemon juice to make 1 cup) 1/2 cup oil 1 tsp vanilla 50 gm chocolate chips Almond slivers to sprinkle Method Sift flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, salt, baking soda and baking powder into a mixing bowl.  Add in sugar, whisk to combine. In another bowl, whisk eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mix just to combine.  Overmixing will make tough muffins. Divide the batter between the paper lined muffin pan.  Sprinkle chocolate chips and

  This is a very common dish but delicious and appetising.  The method of cooking this dish is less labour intensive and does not incur frying.  I marinated the whole legs of chicken overnight which made them more tasty and the sauce is the essence of this dish.  You can also throw in some hard boiled eggs and with a veggie dish on the side, you can serve this with plain white rice or plain congee. Soy Sauce Chicken ~  豉油鸡 Ingredients 2 whole leg of chicken, deboned 3 cloves garlic, chopped 1.1/2 cup water 2 Tbsp light soy sauce 1 tsp dark soy sauce 1.1/2 tsp Shaoxing wine 1.1/2 Tbsp rock sugar 1 tsp cornflour + 2 tsps water to thicken White part of spring onion White sesame seeds lightly toasted (optional) Method Season the chicken with the chopped garlic, light and dark soy sauces for a few hours or overnight. In a pan, boil the water with the white part of the spring onion and add in the seasoned chicken,. Add in the rock sugar and let the chicken simmer till tender and cooked. Let