Corn Soup cooked at home differs from family to family. Some use corn from cans. Here, I use fresh corn bought from the wet market. It imparts a natural sweetness to the soup, which I think is much better than those from tin cans. My elder daughter loves this soup very much and also enjoys having her fingers dirty eating the corn

This recipe is pretty simple and does not take much effort. It is best if cooked over a charcoal stove. I am very partial towards food cooked using a charcoal stove as the taste is usually better than those cooked using gas or electrice stove. Moreover, the slow cooking process using charcoal makes the meat tender and brings out all the natural flavours from the ingredients.

This is my recipe for Corn Soup

Ingredients

• 2 fresh corn (washed and cut into smaller pieces)
• 200 grammes of pork ribs or pork suitable for cooking soup
• 1 large carrot (cut to smaller pieces)
• a handful of red dates
• 2 1/2 soup bowls of water (approximately 800 ml)

Seasoning

• Salt to taste

Method

Bring water to boil in pot. Add pork ribs and bring back to boil. Remove scum that appears on surface of water as it reboils.

After 3 minutes of reboiling, add the rest of the ingredients, bring back to boil and allow to boil for 2 minutes before reducing heat to medium low and simmer for at least 1 hour.

Add salt to taste prior to serving.

Technorati Tags: Recipe, Soup, Corn, Malaysia

I like Hong Kong Kai Lan (chinese kale). This vegetable is tender and crunchy to the bite and is not as “fibrous” as the usual Kai Lan. I do wonder whether these Hong Kong Kai Lan are genetically modified to its current size since it looks like a baby kai lan. Even the Hong Kong Choy Sum also tastes as good.

Anyway, one of the most common way of cooking this vegetable is to add fresh prawns into the dish. The prawns lend a sweetness to the dish and a contrasting texture as well. But really, even if you can’t get your hands on fresh prawns, you can also omit it altogether.

This is my recipe for Stir Fried Hong Kong Kai Lan with Prawns

Ingredients

• 200 grammes of Hong Kong Kai Lan (washed thoroughly and separate leaves from stem. Slice the stems lengthwise)
• 10 to 15 medium sized prawns (devein and shelled, you can leave the tails intact if you want)
• 6 slices of ginger (diced)
• 5 cloves of garlic (chopped)
• 30 ml warm water
• Corn starch (add 1 tablespoon corn flour to 3 tablespoons of water and mix well)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Cooking oil (palm oil)

Seasoning

• 2 teaspoons oyster sauce
• Salt to taste
• 2 teaspoons chinese cooking wine

Method

Heat oil in wok and fry ginger till aromatic. Add garlic and prawns and stir fry till prawns begin to turn colour. Add kai lan stems. Stir fry for about 20 seconds.

Add the kai lan leaves. Stir well and add seasoning. Add warm water and continue to stir fry till leaves turn dark green colour and limp. Add a little bit of corn starch if gravy too runny for your liking.

Serve warm preferably with white rice

Technorati Tags: Recipe, Vegetable, Prawns, Chinese, Malaysia

I like asparagus very much and it’s a really healthy vegetable (if you can stand the smell). In chinese cooking, I think asparagus and prawns are like a match made in heaven. Some cooked them in belacan but I prefer mine simple with garlic. Less oily, I guess. These asparagus I bought from the supermarket are the local variety grown in Cameron Highlands. They are thinner in size compared to their Aussie or European counter-parts.

As you prepare the asparagus spears, gently remove the thin layer of skin using your fingernails (wash your fingernails first, please - ahem!). It’s not easy but you’ll get the hang of it. You can skip this process but you may get too much stringy fibre between your teeth when you chew on them. LOL!

Anyway, this is my recipe for Stir Fried Asparagus with Prawns

Ingredients

• 250 grammes of asparagus (cut to 4 or 5cm lengths)
• about 5 to 10 medium sized prawns (remove shell with tail intact, devein)
• 4 cloves garlic (chopped finely)
• 30 ml warm water
• 2 tablespoons palm oil

Seasoning

• 1 teaspoon of light soya sauce
• a pinch of salt
• a dash or two of white pepper powder

Method

Heat oil in wok on high heat. Saute garlic till beginning to brown. Add prawns and stir till begins to turn red. Add asparagus and seasoning.

Stir well and add water. Cover lid for 30 seconds to a minute. Check to ensure that dish does not dry out. Add a little bit more water if it is dried out. Asparagus should be cooked in less than 2 minutes with just a little gravy to keep the dish moist.

Technorati Tags: Asparagus, Prawn, Chinese, Recipe, Food

I bought a small bottle of fish sauce recently though I have never used fish sauce in my cooking before. In fact, I don’t even know what it tastes like. Having bought and tasted it straight from the bottle, it was kinda slight saltish in taste.

Anyway, this dish was yet, another experiment for me. We had a small bunch of four-angled beans in the fridge and I thought I would just give this a try. I was blown away by the result and beaming from ear to ear as I happily crunched this during dinner. I don’t know if anyone else has cooked this before or something similar…but I think if you can get your hands on these ingredients, you should give it a go.

This is my recipe for Stir Fried Crunchy Four-Angled Beans with Fish Sauce

Ingredients

• 200 grammes of four-angled beans (sliced thinly)
• 5 to 10 bulbs shallots (sliced thinly)
• approximately 30 grammes dried prawns (about 15 to 20 pieces, soak for 5 minutes)
• 2 tablespoons of palm oil

Seasoning

• 1 to 2 teaspoons fish sauce
• 1/2 to 1 tablespoon of sugar

Method

Heat oil in wok and fry shallots till golden brown. Push fried shallots to the side of the wok. Add dried prawns and stir fry for 30 seconds till fragrant. Return the fried shallots to the dried prawns and add four-angled beans.

Stir well and add seasoning. Sprinkle one or two tablespoons of water if you want the four-angled beans a little moist. As the four-angled beans can be eaten raw, the cooking time is up to you. I like mine crunchy, so I only give it a couple of stir to ensure the seasoning is mixed well. The next time I cook this, I will try to add a squeeze of lime for a little tang to it.

Technorati Tags: Recipe, Vegetable, Chinese, Fish Sauce