Korean Cooking Project Kimchi Tofu Soup 김치순두부찌개

Kimchi Stew (김치 찌개) is one the Koreans favourite soup which is available all year round at their dinning table. It is sometime known as either "Kimchi Soup, Kimchi Stew or Kimi Jjigae " which is all referring to a pot of piping red hot soup made with Kimchi, Tofu and Meat or Seafood.

Although I have being to Korea about 2 years ago during our winter trip (read more HERE),  I have never come across my mind to learn how to prepare Korean dishes at home. As friendly speaking I am not a fan of their well-known appetizer; Kimchi(김치) or Korean Rice Cake (Tteok - 떡) which can be used to cook soup, stewed or noodles. (stay tune for my upcoming Korean Rice Cake with Ramen - Rabokki)

KIMCHI TOFU SOUP
(김치순두부찌개)

Recently I am into watching Korean drama craze whereby it makes it curious and keen to learn some of their basic homecook dishes shown in the drama such as Kimchi Stew(김치 찌개), Spicy Korean Instant Ramen, and Japchae(잡채) and etc. So without hesitate I loot back quite a number of Korean Ingredients(read more HERE) to start this Korean Cooking Project.

(Serves: 2 | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
150g of Kimchi(김치)
200g of Chicken Fillet, cut into strips
150 - 200g Napa Cabbage(大白菜), cut into thick sections
1 Box Silken Tofu, cut into thick section
2 Stalks of Spring Onion, cut into sections
1 Medium Brown Onion, sliced
3 Garlic Cloves, minced
2 Tablespoons of Gochujang(고추장)
600ml Of Boiling Water
Salt and Pepper

Method:-

1. Place a hot pot or pan on the stove, saute minced garlic with some 1 teaspoon of sesame/cooking oil till fragrant. Add in chicken fillet and cook till it changes colour to almost white.

2. Add onion, spring onion, kimchi and gochujuang and give it a quick stir till combine before adding water and bring to boil.

3. Add in napa cabbage and simmer over the mixture over medium low heat for about 10 minutes.

4. Lastly add in tofu and simmer for about another 5 - 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, garnish with extra spring onion or cut chilli.

5. Serve hot with steamed rice.

For the first dish of my Korean Cooking Project, I would like to share with you this simple "Kimchi Tofu Soup ( 김치순두부찌개)" which could be prepared in about 15 minutes time.  And this is definitely a perfect soup for cold weather such as rainy days to go with a bowl of hot steamed rice or ramen.

JAPCHAE(잡채)

(Preview)

Stay tune for my next Korean dish which is known as "Japchae(잡채)", or also known as "Korean Stir-fry Noodles with Beef and Vegetables". 

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Coriander Ham Soup 芫荽火腿汤

This is the results of a chat with a friend over how we can replace the usual pork ribs with ham. :P



I love the coriander stem for the crunch and fragrance but sometimes I have so much of the leaves left that I didnt know what to do with it. So thats definitely going it to the soup.:P  My friend suggested adding onions to make it sweet.



Its a trial and error soup that turned out alright for me and the best part of it is, it only takes 20 minutes to prepare and cook! Youll enjoy this if you like coriander.

Ingredients:

(1 serving)

• 1/3 tablespoon Butter


• 1 small Onion, diced


• 2 clove Garlic, chopped


• 4-5 slices or 100g Ham, chopped


• 1 big handful of Coriander Leaves, chopped


• 250ml Chicken Broth

How to do it:

1. Melt butter in pot.


2. Add in onion, garlic and ham.


3. Saute till garlic is fragrant and onion is softened.


4. Add in the coriander leaves and chicken broth.


5. Bring to a boil.


6. Pour mixture into a blender to blend to your desired consistency (mine still have bits of ham and onion).


7. Return to heat up and season with salt if necessary.

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April 20 Budget Meal Seaweed and Minced Pork Soup Fried Bitter Gourd Omelette and Ma Po Tofu

I have being craving for those Cze Char style Seaweed Soup recently and after asking around for a quick and easy recipe. I managed to settle on Alices version where she is very patience to guide me through  the steps during one of our chat on MSN. Her method was pretty good with boiling of  fresh ikan bilis stock and she also share on how to "clean" the seaweed by frying it dry in a non-stick pan which will enhance its fragrance and at the same time removes any dirt that is trapped in between the seaweed.

This set of Budget Meal cost about S$6.60 which is good enough for 2 - 3 servings.

SEAWEED SOUP

Ingredients: (serves 2 - 3)
1/4 Portion of Dried Seaweed, cut from a 20cm round
60g Minced Pork
2 Garlic Cloves, lightly pound
1 - 2 Slices of Ginger
1 Stalk of Spring Onion, cut into sections
1 Medium Tomato, cut into wedges
1 Egg, lightly beaten
1 Litre Hot Water
1/2 Cube or Knorr Ikan Bilis Stock

Method:-

1. Marinate minced pork with light soy sauce, sesame oil, pepper and corn starch for about 5 minutes.

2. Heat up 1/2 Tablespoon of oil in a soup pot, saute ginger, garlic and spring onion till fragrant then add in minced pork and continue to stir-fry for a few minutes till cooked through.

3. Pour in hot water and bring to boil, add stock cube, let it simmer for 2 - 3 minutes. Remove the garlic, ginger and spring onion before adding in the tomato and seaweed.

4. Turn off the heat, slowly swirl in the beaten egg and serve.


Total cost for this dish is about S$1.80 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Seaweed = S$0.40
~ Egg = S$0.20
~ Tomato = $0.20
~ Minced Pork = S$1.00

Whenever we visit any Cze Char(煮炒) stalls, we will always order either their "Bitter Gourd Omelette" or "Egg Foo Yong(芙蓉蛋)". Here we can also prepare a simple version of this delicious omelette dish at home according to personal preference. If you are not sure on how to choose the bitter gourd, you can always ask the stall owner for help. But if you are getting it from supermarket, just try to get those with bright jade green colour and wider pattern lines so that they are not on the extreme bitter taste.

BITTER GOURD OMELETTE

Ingredients: (serves 2 - 3)
2 Large Eggs
100g (1/3 Portion of a Medium) Bitter Gourd, thinly sliced
2 Garlic Cloves, finely minced
1 Teaspoon of Light Soy Sauce
Dash of Pepper and Sesame Oil
1.5 Tablespoon Oil for frying Omelette

Method:-

1. Before cooking the bitter gourd, add 1 teaspoon of salt and marinate for 5 minutes, wash and squeeze dry to reduce the bitter taste.

2. Heat up oil in frying pan, saute garlic until fragrant. Add in bitter gourd and mix well.

3. Stir-fry the bitter gourd until soft, slowly swirl in the beaten egg (beat egg, light soy sauce, sesame oil and pepper together till combined) .

4. Pan-fry at medium heat until set, turn it over and continue to fry until golden brown.

5. Dish up and serve.


Total cost for this dish is about S$0.90 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Bitter Gourd = S$0.50
~ 2 Eggs = S$0.40

It has being long since I last set my wok with this popular Chinese dish which is known as Mo Po Tofu(麻婆豆腐). It has a combination of tofu (beancurd) and minced meat that cooks in a spicy chili and bean based sauce. For this home version of Mo Po Tofu, I used the instant Lee Kum Kee Mo Po Tofu sauce which is slightly mild compare to the original "spicy" taste that we ate from Chinese Restaurants.

MA PO TOFU

Ingredients: (Serves 2 - 4)
90g Minced Pork
250g Soft Tofu, dice in 1" cubes
2 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
1/2 Teaspoon Sugar, optional
1 Packet of Lee Kum Kees Ma Po Tofu Sauce

Method:-

1. Preheat frying pan with 1.5 tablespoon of oil and saute minced garlic till fragrance before adding in the minced pork.

2. Stir-fry minced pork till cook through, pour in Lee Kum Kee Sauce For Ma Po Tofu and simmer for 10 seconds.

3. Slowly add in the drained tofu and give it a quick stir to absorb the flavour from the Ma Po sauce and slightly thickened. (You can add in some sugar to balance the spicy and salty taste from the sauce)

4. Dish up on serving plate, sprinkle with some chopped spring onion and serve immediately with warm steamed rice.


Total cost for this dish is about S$3.90 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Silken Tofu = S$1.50
~ Lee Kum Kee Sauce = S$1.40
~ Minced Pork = S$1.00

Using simple ingredients like EGG and TOFU you can also whipped up something delicious like what we had for dinner. And I am sure most of you can also come out with some other delicious dishes using these simple ingredients too. Most important you know what is good for your family and  I am sure you will try to incorporate as many healthy ingredients as you can in your daily cooking.

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Creamy Mushroom Soup with Sauteed Chanterelles

Even though Steven isnt a big soup person like me, were both crazy about mushroom soup, specifically the one from our local specialty grocery store (MM). MM makes a delicious version thats thick, creamy, and loaded with hearty pieces of mushrooms. I might balk at 99.9% of the prices in that store, but we rarely leave without a container of our favorite soup. Of course we always bring the ladle down to the very bottom of the deep stainless steel pot to make sure to get as many of the big beautiful pieces of mushrooms as we can, since they tend to settle at the bottom. Gotta get the most bang for our buck, ya know? Anyways, recently MM seems to have stopped offering that soup, and that made us quite sad. :( Then it hit me! Take the dried porcinis sitting in my pantry and combine that with the fresh chanterelles Stevens mom gave us (only $10/lb at Costco!), and we could make our very own mushroom soup.

The mushroom soup from the store always had this characteristic earthy and absolutely delicious aroma but Steven and I could never pinpoint exactly what it was. But as I was soaking the dried porcinis, the exact same mysterious smell filled the kitchen. Turns out, the soup smells like dried porcinis and porcini water! Yummm! (Definitely some good quality soup that the store offers.) As for the taste, the soup I made tasted just like the one from the store, maybe even better.

Notes:
- The sauteed chanterelles are optional. You can replace them with your choice of fresh mushrooms, like shiitakes or portobellos, or omit them entirely.
- Most recipes call for pureeing the mushroom soup before serving, but Steven and I love big chunks of mushrooms, so Ill leave that up to you.
- You can use white button mushrooms instead of the criminis (which are actually just immature portobellos), but I think criminis have more flavor (maybe thats just me but cmon theyre brown!). :)
- Next time Ill try adding a little more flour because it wasnt as thick as the one at the store.

Mushroom Soup with Sauteed Chanterelles

1 lb crimini or button mushrooms
About 1/2 oz of dried porcinis (I dont have a scale and its pretty hard to eyeball dried mushroom weights)
2 C chicken stock
1 1/2 C water
3 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1/2 small onion, minced
1 small clove of garlic
Leaves from 2 sprigs of thyme, minced
1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 C heavy cream
About 2 - 3 Tbsp of sherry or Maderia (I substituted 1/2 white wine and 1/2 Marsala)
Salt and pepper to taste

Optional Garnish
Sauteed fresh mushroom
1 Tbsp butter
4 - 8 oz. fresh mushrooms (like shiitakes, portobella, chanterelle, morel, etc.)
1 small clove of garlic
A little salt and pepper
Fresh chives

Bring 3/4 of a cup of water to a boil (I use the microwave). Pour this over the dried porcinis in a bowl or if the water is already in a bowl, just add the dried porcinis and poke them down into the water with a spoon. Cover the bowl with a lid, a small plate, or some plastic wrap, and let it sit to rehydrate the mushrooms.

Clean the crimini mushrooms by brushing them with a soft brush or wipe them with a damp paper towel, trim off any discoloration or spots. Slice them thickly or quarter them, its up to you. Mince half the onion, set aside. Remove the leaves from the thyme sprig and give them a rough chop, set aside. Press or mince the clove of garlic, set aside.

(Note: why is this step so complicated? Because you wanted to save both the hot water that the porcinis have been soaking in and the water you use to wash them. Then you can combine the two liquids, and pass them through a filter to get rid of the dirt and debris. This liquid is crucial for the flavor of the soup.)
By now the porcinis should have softened. Do not discard the soaking liquid!!! Doesnt it smell good? The recipe called for 1 1/2 C of water so in another bowl, add the remaining 3/4 C of water. It can be warm or cold, doesnt really matter. Use a fork/chopsticks/your impeccably clean fingers and fish out the porcini pieces from the soaking liquid and then give them another rinse in the second bowl of water. This will dislodge any remaining dirt or grit from the mushrooms. Give them a good rub if theyre stubbornly dirty. After all the mushroom pieces have been washed, the liquid in the second bowl will be pretty brown too, and save that. You can combine the soaking liquid and the rinsing liquid. Then line a fine mesh sieve with 2 pieces of coffee filter or a layer of paper towel folded in half. Wet the filters or paper towel to prevent it from soaking up the precious porcini water. Then slowly pour the porcini water into the lined sieve into another bowl or measuring cup and set aside for later. The coffee filter or paper towel will prevent the dirt and grit from passing through. Give the porcinis a good chop.

Heat two tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat and add the onions. Add a little salt and cook until the onions have softened. When the onions have softened, add the minced garlic, freshly ground nutmeg, and thyme, and let it cook until it is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Then add the chopped criminis and porcinis, some salt and pepper. Cook until the liquid released by the mushrooms have evaporated. When the liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms are starting to brown, you can stop cooking them and set the pan aside.

Melt a tablespoon of butter in a 3 quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk the roux until it smells toasty and nutty and looks blond, almost very light brown. Then slowly add in your chicken stock and whisk vigrously to get out any lumps. Then add the porcini water, sometimes there will be very fine dirt that managed to pass through the filter settled at bottom of the cup or bowl, so you can discard the very bottom of the liquid if that occurs. Use a good rubber/silicone spatula and scrape all of the sauteed criminis, porcinis, and any liquid in the skillet into the saucepan. Simmer the soup for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile you can prepare the optional sauteed mushroom topping. Slice your mushrooms and mince/press the garlic. Heat a tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, the garlic, some salt, and pepper. Saute until any liquid released from the mushrooms have evaporated and the mushrooms start to brown a little. Set aside for your garnish.

After the soup has simmered for a bit, you can puree it with a immersion blender or in a normal blender (but be careful of the hot soup erupting Old-Faithful-style, only fill the blender jar halfway and hold the top with a towel). Or you can skip the blending part if you like chunky soup like me. Stir in the heavy cream and sherry/Maderia/white wine + Marsala blend and bring the soup back up to a simmer again and then serve. (Usually the soup is sufficiently hot that you can just add the cream and alcohol and serve without simmering again).

Garnish each bowl with some sauteed mushrooms and chopped chives and enjoy. :)

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Halloween Trick or Treat Broccoli And Spinach Soup Graveyard Fried Rice Plus Apple Banana And Dragon Fruit Smoothie

Halloween is just a week from now and we are so excited about this weekend Angry Bird Halloween Party at Sentosa. For the past two years I have shared some Halloween themed dishes and treats which you could read more here. Although what I did this year was rather simple as compared to last year, but after all we do enjoy the process on preparing the food and etc on a raining cozy evening.

This year, we are having Spooky Broccoli Soup which served together with Graveyard Fired Rice and Bloody Smoothie.

BROCCOLI AND SPINACH SOUP
(Using Cuisinart Hot And Cold Blender)

We do love western cream soup especially Cream of Pumpkin and Cream of Mushroom but I always put it off the menu lists because of the steps plus blending of the soup which I find it too troublesome as compared to our Asian boiled soup.  Till recently when I received an amazing gift from friend which is the new Cuisinart Hot and Cold Blender (read more here) it actually inspired me to cook western soup again.

This innovative blender actually cook and blend soup within a few steps. It is so easy to use and all you required is to add in the necessary ingredients, set the timer, press a few buttons and after which you would enjoy a bowl of delicious soup, porridge or dessert in a breeze.

(Serves: 4 | Preparation: 10 minutes |  Cooking: 25 - 30 minutes)

Ingredients:
300g Broccoli, cut into small florets
2 Potatoes (200g), peeled and cubes
50g Spinach Leaves, roughly chopped
1 Small Brown Onion, roughly chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, crushed
1 Knob (15g) Of Butter
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
750ml 7500ml Hot Chicken/Vegetable Stock
1/3 (90g) Cup Greek Yogurt / Light Sour Cream
Some Crusty Bread to Serve

Method:-
1. Place butter and olive oil (butter should be on the heating plate rather than on the blades) in Cuisinart Hot And Cold Blender. Set timer to 25 minutes and melt butter on LOW heat.

2. Add onion, garlic and cook until softened, press the STIR button (on the right side) to stir the mixture regularly to avoid burning.

3. Through the hole on the press-on lid,  add potato, broccoli and hot stock into the glass jug and bring it to boil using HIGH heat. (it takes about 2 - 3 minutes)

4. Change to SIMMER and cook the mixture until the last 2 minutes, add in spinach and continue to cook until end of the cycle.

5. Once everything is cooked, blend on LEVEL 1 until smooth.

6. Pour soup between serving bowls and serve with a dollar of Greek Yogurt or Sour Cream together with crusty bread.

This year our Halloween Spooky Soup is no longer using "pumpkin" but instead we go for something "green" which are Broccoli and Spinach.  Although I love broccoli soup but I have never tried adding spinach in it till this recipe as I wanted to obtain a darker green colour for the soup.

Surprisingly it taste good without that "leafy" taste from the spinach and together with my little boy we also decorated the soup with some Greek yogurt to resemble  spooky ghosts.

GRAVEYARD FRIED RICE
(Using Seahs Singapore Fried Rice Spices)

Since it was a rainy day that evening we decided to have some fried rice to go with the soup instead of the usually spaghetti. And the Seahs Singapore Fried Rice spices that I have comes in handy for this dish as it makes a good seasoning and flavour for the plain rice. And in order to create the Halloween spooky theme, we also decorate the fried rice with sausages, egg , cucumber, jelly worms and etc.

(Serves: 4  | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 5 minutes)

Ingredients:
1 Packet of Seahs Singapore Fried Rice Spices
800g Cooked Rice, around 2.5 rice cooker cup uncooked rice
1/2 Cup Frozen Mixed Vegetables
2 Garlic Cloves, crashed
2 Tablespoons Cooking Oil
Some Cooking Wine
Some chopped Spring Onion
12 Japanese Chicken Sausages
4 Eggs

Method:
1. Boiled or Grilled the sausages, set aside. Fry sunny side-up eggs individually and set aside too.

2. Add oil in preheat wok, saute garlic till fragrant before stirring in the mixed frozen vegetables and cook for 1 minute.

3. Add cooked rice and continue to stir-fry for 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring occasionally.

4. Gradually add in Seahs spices into the fried rice according to your taste (you might not need the whole packet), stir well, drizzle some cooking wine and continue to stir-fry for another 1/2 minutes.

5. Remove, garnish with prepared sausages, egg and etc shown above. Serve hot.

APPLE AND BANANA SMOOTHIE
(Using Cuisinart Hot and Cold Blender)

As for the beverage of the day, we decided to go for two colour tones smoothie whereby I blend the Apple, Banana and Milk for the white tone and Red Dragon Fruit puree for the purplish red tone. And we love the refreshing fruity combination.

(Serves: 4 | Preparation: 30 minutes freezing | Blending: 2 minutes)

Ingredients:
2 - 3 Frozen Banana, skin remove and cut into chunks
2 Green Apples, skin removed and cut into cubes
1 Cup (250ml) Fresh Milk
1/4 Cup Ice Cubes, optional
1/2 Red Colour Dragon Fruit(pitaya), skin removed cut into chunks

Method:-
1. Put frozen banana, apple, fresh milk and ice cubes (if using) into the blender jug.

2. Fix the lid on and blend on LEVEL 4 for about 1 minute or until smooth.

3. Fill 4 tall serving glass half full, add some dragon fruit puree (shown below) and continue to fill up the glasses with remaining smoothie.

4. Swirl the mixture and decorate with some Halloween treats and serve immediately.

5. To prepare the Dragon Fruit Puree: Blend half of the Dragon Fruit on LEVEL 4 for 30 seconds or until smooth. Pour into bowl and set aside while preparing the smoothie. 

Till then have a great Halloween Party and do share with us if you have any good ideas on preparing Halloween dishes and bakes too!

"SAVOUR THE GOOD LIFE"
Soup Making Competition

Photo credits to ToTT.

Lastly just to share a quick finding, while searching for more information and cooking tips on this new Cuisinart blender, I happened to read about this Soup Making Competition (here) which is organised by ToTT and  Cuisinart where you could stand a chance to travel to Hong Kong to compete for the grand prize . Sounds good right?

To participate:-
~  First form teams of TWOS;

~ Submit a RECIPE as well as a PHOTO of the soup dish together with both full names, mobile numbers, NRIC numbers, and addresses, via email to pr@tottstore.com by 31 October 2012.

~ Recipes should serve up to 5 portions and must incorporate the use of Cuisinart’s Hot And Cold Blender.

~ It should also take no longer than 45 minutes to prepare.

To find out more about this competition you could visit ToTT Facebook Page for details. Good Luck everyone!

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Seafood Egg Drop Soup 海鲜蛋花汤

 Something easy that I cook very often. Its a very versitile, quick and easy soup. You can change the ingredients if you like.



The idea here is to stock up of homemade stock so you can always have home cook soup in minutes. You can always get store bought stock if you are really hard pressed for time.

Ingredients:

• 1.5 litre Chicken Stock


• 2 Egg, lightly beaten


• 1 small can Button Mushroom, sliced


• 1 handful Frozen Pea, thawed


• 5-6 stick Imitation Crab-stick, cut in 3 pieces each or sliced length-wise


• Pepper and Salt to taste

How to do it:

1. Put all ingredients except pepper and salt, in a pot.


2. Bring to a boil.


3. Stir in beaten eggs.


4. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Note:

• You can also stir in corn flour mixture to thicken it too.

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Minestrone Soup is a Once in a Lifetime Experience

I always feel a little apprehensive when I post a recipe like this minestrone soup. It’s the type of dish I never make the same way twice, and the fear is that someone will watch and assume that this is my “official” version.

You don’t need a recipe for minestrone, just like you don’t need a recipe for a great sandwich, or an epic salad. To make minestrone soup precisely same way every time, using a very specific list of ingredients and amounts, is to trample on the soul of this Italian classic.

Having said all that, what if you happen to make it so incredibly delicious one time that you want to experience the exact same shuddering soupgasm in the future? That seems like a perfectly sound reason for why you should write down the recipe…except cooking food doesn’t work that way.

Your perception of how a recipe tastes involves so many factors above and far beyond the list of ingredients. Remember that time you made that super awesome whatever, and it was so perfect, and then you made it again, exactly the same way, but somehow it just didn’t taste as great? This is why.

So, I hope you give this amazing minestrone recipe a try soon…but only once. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
3 oz pancetta

2 tbsp olive oil

1 diced onion

1 cup diced celery

4 minced garlic cloves

4 cups chicken broth

1 (28-oz) can plum tomatoes, crushed fine

2 cups water, plus more as needed

salt and pepper to taste

1 tsp dried Italian herb blend (mine was thyme, oregano, rosemary, basil)

red pepper flakes to taste

1 cup freshly shucked cranberry beans (aka shelling beans)
2 or 3 cups chopped cabbage

1 (15-oz) can garbanzo beans, drained

1 bunch swiss chard, chopped

2/3 cup raw ditalini pasta

extra virgin olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and fresh Italian parsley to garnish the top

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Creamy Mushroom Soup 奶油蘑菇浓汤

I did a Cream of Mushroom before which was like those canned soup. A friend who tried it told me it would be better if it taste less floury. You can make creamy mushroom soup without using or use very little of flour and it taste equally good. Just spend slightly more money *wink*.



Anyway, this recipe is adapted from my Creamy Broccoli Soup.

Ingredients:

• 300g White Button Mushroom


• 10g Butter


• 300ml Chicken Broth


• 250ml Whipping Cream


• Salt to taste

How to do it:

1. Saute Button mushroom with butter till mushroom absorb the butter.


2. Pour mushroom into the blender.


3. Add the broth.


4. Blend till smooth.


5. Pour into a pot.


6. Add in the whipping cream.


7. Stir to mix well.


8. Bring to a boil.


9. Serve.

Note:

If you prefer the soup to be thicker, gradually stir in cornflour mixture to thicken it.

• Click HERE for printer-friendly version of an original recipe.
  
  

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Ginseng Chicken Soup 人参鸡汤

Two months ago, after running errands for my mother-in-law, I went to Tiong Bahru market to have lunch. While there, I went to the wet market and happened to see fresh ginseng and bought a packet home.



I finally decided to use the ginseng today. Being fresh and not dried, it doesnt require a usually longer time to cook it. The taste is milder as well, which is more acceptable by the kids. Personally, I preferred the soup using fresh ginseng too.



I had been advised to use stoneware/glassware when cooking using fresh ginseng. Its said to have some reaction if cooked using metal. I had use my earthen pot to make the soup.



Ingridents:

• 900ml Water


• 2 Large Chicken Drumstick


• 2 tablespoon Chinese Cooking Wine


• 2 Fresh Ginseng Root


• 5 Red Dates 红枣


• A small handful Wolfberries 枸杞子 (optional)

How to do it:

1. Blanch chicken.


2. In a non-metal pot of water, add chicken, ginseng root, red dates and wolfberries.


3. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.


4. Skim off any scum.


5. Continue to simmer for an hour.


6. Add in wine and salt to taste.


7. Continue to simmer for a further 30 minutes.


8. Serve hot.

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Corn and Melon Soup 冬瓜玉米汤

Another super easy soup but yet tasty. This is like the marriage of a simplified ABC soup to Winter Melon Soup. ;)





Ingredients:

• 250g, Pork Ribs, blanched


• 300g Winter Melon, cubed


• 1 Corn, chopped into 4-5 pieces


• 1 tablespoon Wolfberries


• 1.5 litre Water


• Salt to taste

How to do it:

1. Put all ingredients except salt and wolfberries.


2. Bring to a boil.


3. Reduce to a simmer and continue cooking for 2 hours.


4. Half way to cooking, add in the wolfberries.


5. Add salt to taste.


6. Serve.

• Click HERE for printer-friendly version of an original recipe.
  
  
  
  
  
  

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Flour Vermicelli in Thick Soup

Many many years ago when I was still working, my friend brought me to Alexandra Market and ordered this Flour Vermicelli. Its unlike what we usually take which requires the use of chopsticks. The vermicelli is all crushed and all you need is a spoon and the soup is in thick form.

In Chinese, its called 面线糊. Its kind of like what Shihlin has but I had this many year before Shihlin came to Singapore and I have not been to Taiwan either. So to me this was the original.

I had no idea how it was done but I came up with my own verison. The idea came from the Little Bowl Fins. This is also one of my Saturday dinner because it is fast and easy to cook. But be warned. The vermicelli will expand so its advisable to cook this when you are ready to eat.

Ingredients:

• 2 bunch of Rice Vermicelli, crushed
  
• 10 Fresh Shitake Mushroom, sliced
  
• 10 Scallops, sliced halfed and blanched
  
• 750ml Chicken Broth
• Cornflour Mixture (Thickener)

Seasonings:

• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Light Soy Sauce
• 1/2 tablespoon Chinese Cooking Wine
• 1/2 tablespoon Oyster Sauce
• 1 teaspoon Sesame Seed Oil

How to do it:

1. Add mushroom to the broth and bring to a boil.
2. Add in seasonings.
3. In another pot with, add in a teaspoon of oil and bring to a boil.
4. Add in the crushed Rice Vermicelli.
5. Gently stir while cooking.
6. Drain after 2 minutes of cooking.
7. Add the Rice Vermicelli to the broth.
8. Gradually add in thickener, when the soup begins to boil.
9. Add the scallops to cook for 20 seconds or till thoroughly cooked.
10. Serve.
    

Note:
The ingredients is used here are whatever I find in my fridge.
You can add (cooked) shredded chicken instead of scallops. Add in before thickening the soup.

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Mushroom Cheese Soup 芝士奶油蘑菇浓汤

Its school holidays and I cant get much housework done with the kids around. Theres no point packing as it will get messy the next minute. What I do is stay up late to clear my housework. Anyone wants to help out?



I always have mushroom in my fridge cos its the familys favourite. For one of my late night suppers, I decided to make soup as I wanted some easy and fast to cook. Something I dont need much time to prepare nor lots of cleaning after cooking.



I had wanted to cook this but run out of cream. I stole a few slices of my daughters cheese to replace the cream instead to change it a little. Hot, creamy and yummy soup for the cold night. Just my kind of comfort food.



Ingredients:

• 500ml Water


• 8 Button Mushroom, diced


• 4 Shitake Mushroom, sliced


• 15g Butter


• 4 slice Cheese


• 1 tablespoon Flour


• 2 tablespoon Water

How to do it:

1. Melt butter in a sauce pan.


2. Add in the mushroom and saute till mushroom softens.


3. Add in the water and bring to a gentle boil.


4. Add in the cheese and stir to melt it.


5. Mix flour with water.


6. When soup begins to bubbles, gradually stir in the mixture to give the soup a creamy texture.


7. Serve with bread.
   
   

Note:

• I do not add salt as its salty enough with the cheese. However, if you find it not salty enough for you, add more cheese.


• You dont have to use 2 types of mushroom. I used 2 types, more if I have, as I prefers different texture.

This recipe is for Weekend Wokking hosted by Marija of Palachinka.

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20 Budget Meal Five Nuts Soup and Steamed Dumplings with Assorted Vegetables

Quick and Easy meal that comes with good and healthy combination of meat and vegetables are always something that busy working adults or parents look for. Here we have a fusion of Asian Steamed Dumpling with array of colourful vegetables such as Pumpkin, Carrots, Peas and Broccoli that will definitely cheers up your Monday Blue evening. These two sets of Steamed Dumpling and Five Nuts Soup meal only cost about S$12.20 which can serves around 2 - 3 persons.

To make a complete meal, I have boiled some five Nuts Soup that consists of 5 different colours of ingredients such as Fresh Fox Nuts, Lotus Seeds, Chinese Barley, Wolfberries and etc. This is a great nutty flavour soup which helps to calm nerves, strengthen Qi and nourish the body. The fresh fox nut can also helps to heal indigestion, diarrhoea and poor bladder control too.

FIVE NUTS SOUP

Ingredients: (serves 2 - 4)
300g Pork Ribs (排骨)
1 Packet of Fresh Foxnuts(茨实)
20g Chinese Barley (中国薏米)
20g Lotus Seeds (莲子)
10g Wolfberries (枸杞子)
5 Big Red Dates (红枣)
1.8 Litres of Water

Method:-

1. Blanched Pork Ribs in boiling water for 2 - 3 minutes, remove and rinse with tap water. Set aside.

2. Soak lotus seeds (unwashed) in a bowl of warm water for about 5 minutes. Remove the green pith in it to avoid bitterness. Rinse and set aside.

3. Rinse Chinese barley 2 - 3 times in a big bowl, remove any decay seeds and dirt.

4. Bring 1.8 litres of water to boil in a soup pot. Add in all the ingredients except wolfberries and when the mixture comes to boil again, lower the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes till lotus seeds and barley are soften.

5. Add in wolfberries and season with salt to taste according to own preference.


Total cost for this dish is about S$6.00 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Pork Ribs = S$3.00
~ Fresh Foxnuts = S$1.50
~ Lotus Seeds, Red Dates, Wolfberries, Barley = S$1.50

Making of these dumplings can be hassle free by using the “Gyoza Mold(shown below)” which comes in handy by just placing a gyoza or wonton wrapper on top of the press (mold), add in fillings, close and press tight to form a perfect sealed gyoza or dumpling.

STEAMED DUMPLINGS WITH ASSORTED VEGETABLES

Ingredients: (serves 2, makes 12 dumplings)

125g Broccoli, cut into florets
70g Snow Peas, trimmed
120g Butternut Pumpkin, cut into 1" cubes
Half Medium Size Carrot, cut into 0.5" thick sticks
12 Round Wonton Wrappers
3 - 4 leaves of iceberg lettuce, optional

Dumplings:
150g Minced Pork
100g Medium Prawns, shelled, removed vein and cut into chunks
4 Water chestnuts, chopped
1/2 Teaspoon ginger juice
1/2 Teaspoon Cooking Wine
1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon Cornflour
1/2 Tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
Dash of Ground Pepper
Some Chopped Spring Onion

*Note:-

~ You can replace Wonton Wrapper with Gyoza Wrapper too.

Method:-

1. Mix all the dumpling ingredients in a bowl, stir till well combine and set aside marinate in the refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

2. Place a piece of dumpling wrapper on the dumpling(gyoza) mold, scoop 1/2 tablespoon of the mince mixture on the wrapper and fold and press the edge of the mold to enclose the fillings. Repeat with the remaining mince mixture.

3. Line two bamboo steamers with iceberg lettuce/baking paper. Divide broccoli, carrot and pumpkin and wrapped dumplings equally into each steamer, drizzle with some sesame/olive oil.

4. Stack the steamers, covered and place it into a big steamer pot or over a pan of simmering water.

5. Steam for 3 minutes on medium high heat, swap the bottom layer of the steamer with the top and continue to steam for another 2 minutes before adding in the snow peas and steam for another 1 minute or till tender.

6. When done, remove from heat. Drizzle evenly with 1/2 tablespoon of soy sauce mixture (50ml hot water, 1/2 teaspoon light soy sauce and dash of sesame oil) and serve immediately with steamed rice or on its own.


Total cost for this dish is about S$6.20 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Pork Minced = S$1.00
~ Prawn = S$1.50
~ Wonton Wrapper = S$0.50
~ Broccoli, Pumpkin and Water Chestnut = S$2.00
~ Carrot and Sweet Peas = S$1.20

GIVEAWAY plus more NEW DUMPLING RECIPES

For those who is interested in trying out some dumpling recipes, do stay tune on the next upcoming post on “3 Ways of Eating Wonton/Dumpling” and plus a chance to WIN a set of this "Gyoza Mold" shown above. Have fun!!!

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