Fried Crabstick

It is a tradition for married couples to give red packets to unmarried juniors during Chinese New Year.   Red packets are also known as 压岁钱 (which literally means using money to suppress or put down the evil spirit) during this period.  It is also a tradition to put brand new notes inside red packets.

My first trip to the bank was unfruitful as they ran out of new notes and was told to come back the next day.  The second trip yielded no favourable result too as new notes were running out fast.  I only managed to exchange new notes on my 4th trip to the bank.

While I in the queue, I overhead a commotion.  A couple in their fifties and an elderly (probably in her eighties) were attended by a Malay staff.  The staff explained that since the elderly only speaks and understands Teochew, she couldn't proceed with the withdrawal transaction as she was worried the elderly may not be aware that money will be withdrawn from her account.  The staff explained that she will have to refer them to her Chinese colleague so that mutual communication may be carried out.  The couple showed their displeasure and insisted that the old lady is aware of the happenings.  Apparently, the withdrawal is in the form of a cheque, addressed to the younger lady.  Given the benefit of doubt, the elderly may be withdrawing money on own accord but we have heard and see many cases of elderly being cheated of their hard-earned money.  I applaud the staff for their conscientious towards this matter.

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XY shared this very interesting snack in a mothers' forum a few weeks ago.  I never like the idea of deep frying so I started off with the microwave.  They turned out crispy alright but some ends turned brown due to the uneven heating.  Next I tried baking in a low temperature oven, with and without oil.  The crabstick turned out crispy but the whole lot got stuck together despite a stir in-between baking time to break them up.  Finally I resorted to deep-frying but it was way too oily.  I'm definitely going to make this again either with the microwave or oven, no more deep-frying.  This is a simple yet delicious snack.

I'm sharing the method of cooking this with microwave.

Fried Crabstick

Ingredients

1 packet crabstick, shredded

Method

1. 
   
   Lay shredded crabstick in a microwavable plate on a single layer.
2. 
   
   Microwave on High for 2 mins, remove and give it a stir, microwave for another 2 mins.
   
   

Happy Mama Blogger Award

Here's another award from A Full-Timed Housefly, thanks Pearlyn!

Pearlyn created this award specially for mothers, for their love, sacrifices and efforts given to their families.  I wonder if I can dedicate this award back to her for being such a great cook, churning out wonderful meals for her family?

Another few mothers I'll like to dedicate this to are (not in order of preference):
1. Wendy of Table for 2.... or more...
2. Sonia of Nasi Lemak Lover
3. Ju of The Little Teochew
4. HHB of Happy Home Baking
5. Lee Lee of Baking Mum

Kreativ Blogger Award

This award was long forgotten but since I'm not feeling too well today and can't stomach looking at food pictures (makes me nausea), I decided to take this opportunity to thank Tested & Tasted for my very first award.  It came as a pleasant surprise as I was only into my 5th month of blogging and didn't expect any award.

The Kreativ Blogger Award comes with some rules:

1. You must thank the person who has given you the award.
2. Copy the logo and place it on your blog.
3. Link to the person who has nominated you for the award.
4. Name 7 things about yourself that people might find interesting.
5. Nominate 7 other Kreativ Bloggers.
6. Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.
7. Leave a comment on which of the blogs to let them know they have been nominated


I’m supposed to say seven things about myself and pass it along to seven people. Here goes:

1. Honestly speaking, I can't even think of  anything interesting to talk about myself :P
2. I hope I will get my butt moving to make some macarons!  Not that I love macarons, it's just a challenge to myself.
3. I do not want to die young as I want to watch my children grow up into adults and have children of their own.  And maybe, I may look after my grandchildren so my children can go to work without worries :)
4. I love children, not just mine but children in general, for their innocence.
5. I'm a copycat, I don't create recipes but always on the lookout for interesting recipes to fill my family's tummies.  BUT, I always give credit to the originator.
6. My favourite quote "Respect has to be earned, not given".
7. Really can't think of anything else...

As there are simply too many fabulous bloggers out there and I do not wish to leave anyone out, please help yourself to this award.

Healthy Juices

This was extracted from an email I received about a year ago.

HEALTHY JUICES
Carrot + Ginger + Apple
Boost and cleanse our system.

Apple + Cucumber + Celery
Prevent cancer, reduce cholesterol, and improve stomach upset and headache.

Tomato + Carrot + Apple
Improve skin complexion and bad breath.

Bitter gourd + Apple + Milk
Avoid bad breath and reduce internal body heat.

Orange + Ginger + Cucumber
Improve Skin texture and moisture and reduce body heat.

Pineapple + Apple + Watermelon
To dispel excess salts, nourishes the bladder and kidney.

Apple + Cucumber + Kiwi
To improve skin complexion.

Pear + Banana
Regulates sugar content.

Carrot + Apple + Pear + Mango
Clear body heat, counteracts toxicity, decreased blood pressure and fight oxidization .

Honeydew + Grape + Watermelon + Milk
Rich in vitamin C + Vitamin B2 that increase cell activity and strengthen body immunity.

Papaya + Pineapple + Milk
Rich in vitamin C, E, Iron. Improve skin complexion and metabolism.

Banana + Pineapple + Milk
Rich in vitamin with nutritious and prevent constipation.

Roast Pork (烧肉)

I've always wanted to make my own roast pork (烧肉) but have read many reviews that they couldn't get a nice crisp.  Some were crispy while it's hot but turned chewy when cooled.  Some couldn't even get the skin crispy at all.  In addition, most recipes ask for red fermented beancurd (南乳) which I do not have at home.  After much contemplation, I decided to just shelf the idea until I saw Pearlyn's roast pork as she uses relatively basic ingredients.

To be doubly sure I get a nice crisp, I googled for more ideas and I found a really good tip in Lily's blog here, that is to score the skin instead of just piercing.  Also, another blogger, Pure Enjoyment shared to scald the meat first and to leave it marinated in the fridge uncovered to dry up the skin.

Being my first attempt, I was concern the salt content may be too high so I reduced it accordingly and it was just right for our family.  The baking time was almost a good 2 hours, I started off with 240C for 40 mins, then reduced to 210C and baked till I see bubbles on the skin.

The meat was very juicy and tender with a nice crispy skin!  Yes, I did it and it was a success!  I'm definitely going to make this again!

Pardon my chopping skills as it was my first time using the chopper :P

Roast Pork (烧肉)
(Recipe adapted from here, here and here)

Ingredients
1 piece of pork belly (around 1kg)
1.5 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp five-spice powder

Method

1. Scald pork belly in boiling water for a few minutes. Drain and cool the pork belly completely.
2. Using a sharp pointed tool such as a chisel (I used a fork), pierce as many holes as possible onto the skin layer.  Then score the skin using a sharp knife (see 2nd picture).
3. Mix five-spice powder and salt together and rub the seasoning into the pork.
4. Leave the pork belly in the fridge (uncovered) to season overnight. This will dry up the skin.
5. Pre-heat oven up to 240C.
6. Place pork belly (skin side up) on a rack with a tray lined with aluminium foil to collect the oil drippings.
7. Roast the pork belly for 40 minutes.
8. Remove the pork belly from the oven and brush the skin with the diluted glazing.
9. Reduce heat to 210C and continue to roast till you see " bubble " all over the skin.
10. Cool completely before chopping into bite-size pieces and serve.

Chewy Double Chocolate Chip Cookie

DS2 was invited to a play date at his classmate's house yesterday. As it was only decided after school, I decided to fix up something quick and easy for him to bring along and cookies seem like the only answer.

Using the same recipe here, I added some cocoa powder and ground ginger for extra flavours.  Again, instead of using all chocolate chips, I replaced 1/2 portion with currants.

This recipe supposely yields 18 cookies but as I was rushing for time, I didn't want to bake 3 - 4 trays, with each tray baking for 15 mins.  So I used a tablespoon and scooped out a big heapful at a time and managed only 11 cookies (and that's only 2 trays).  Also, as I've reduced the butter slightly, the cookies didn't spread out as much and thus they were quite thick after baking.

Nevertherless, NQ's mother messaged me to say her parents enjoyed the cookies with a cup of coffee and commented that "IT'S OUT OF THE WORLD" ^-^

Chewy Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 11 cookies (10cm diameter, 1.5cm thick)

Ingredients
220 g all-purpose flour
1 heaped tbsp cocoa powder
1/8 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt
150 g unsalted butter, melted
120 g packed brown sugar *
40 g white sugar *
1 egg
1 egg yolk
340 g semisweet chocolate chips/currants

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 165 degrees C. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, ground ginger, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended.
4. Beat in the egg until light and creamy.
5. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended.
6. Stir in the chocolate chips by hand using a wooden spoon.
7. Drop cookie dough 3/4 tablespoon at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets.
8. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
9. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted.
10. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Note
I still find it too sweet so you may want to reduce more sugar if you do not have a sweet tooth.

Garlic Oil

I've been adding shallot oil to my blanched vegetables, never occur to me to try out garlic oil until I saw it here.  The vegetables tasted very different from using shallot oil but I must say it tasted just as good.

  

Instead of cooking the garlic oil in a pot/wok, my lazy mode was turned on again.  I used the microwave oven and cook it on High for 2.5 - 3 mins so there's no need to wash another pot/wok :P

Note
Extracted from Drugs.com

Do not take garlic without first talking to your doctor if you have a bleeding or blood clotting disorder or diabetes, or if you are taking any medicines to prevent or treat a blood clotting disorder or diabetes.  Garlic has been reported to affect blood clotting and blood sugar levels.