Chapati (Indian Roti)

Ingredients:

2 cups whole wheat flour (extra flour for coating and rolling)
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
120 mL water
oil for coating

Method:

In a bowl, mix flour and salt.

Gradually pour-in water, knead till smooth dough (the more it is kneaded, the lighter the bread will be).

Lightly oil both hand palms, form dough into ball, set aside for an hour or more (if left overnight, the chapatis will be lighter and tender; wrap dough with plastic wrap for that).

Flours working surface and rolling pin.

Lightly oil both hand palms, knead dough again for another 2 minutes.

Shape dough into smaller ball about the size of 3 cm in diameter (the size depends on the size of griddle and personal preference) .

Flatten dough ball with hand palms, pick another smaller piece of dough, coat all surface with oil, place it into the center of flattened dough, wrap-up to seal, reform to ball again, repeat the filling and shaping steps for the remaining dough.

Heat-on griddle or high heat resistance frying pan till very hot.

Flatten dough balls with hand palms, smear dough around with flour to coat.

Plate on floured working surface, roll out dough to a circular shape with the thickness of about 2 mm.

Flip thin chapati around both hand palms for few times and lastly flip it on griddle.

Cooks chapati till proof-up small air-trapped bubbles, lightly spread-on some oil or ghee on both sides with spoon.

Flip chapati around continuously till brown spots formed at both sides (occasionally press lightly for a second interval around the surface of chapati with kitchen towel to encourage bubbles to form and thus yield lighter chapati; punch-down large air-trapped bubbles with spoon for even griddling).

Serve immediately with butter or dry curries.

Yield 12 chapati with 12 cm in diameter.

Chili Crab

Ingredients:

1 kg crab, cleaned and chopped
4 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 inch fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp Shen Yuan Hua Diao wine or any Chinese wine
1 tbsp sesame oil
3/4 cup water
1 tsp cornflour
1 egg
1/2 cup chopped coriander leaves

Seasoning:

2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp soy bean paste
3 tbsp sambal omelek chili paste
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp white rice vinegar

Method:

In a bowl, mix together all the seasoning ingredients; set aside.

In a wok, heat oil.

Add-in garlic, stir-fry till fragrant.

Add-in onion and ginger, stir-fry till aroma and golden yellow.

Add-in crab, stir-fry for another 2 minutes.

Pour-in wine and sesame oil, stir-fry for a while (about 1 minute).

Pour-in seasoning mixture, stir-fry for another short while to evenly spread the seasoning.

Pour-in water, cover and leave to simmer for about 10 minutes.

Remove cover, add-in cornstarch and egg, continue stir-frying to break the egg and obtain thick gravy.

Add-in coriander leaves, stir-fry for another short while.

Dish up and serve immediately.

Yau Char Kway (Chinese Cruller)

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
120 mL water
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp cornmeal (optional)
oil for deep-frying

Method:

In a bowl, mix flour and baking powder; set aside.

In another bowl, dissolve salt and sugar in water.

Pour water solution to flour mixture, knead dough till soft, smooth and elastic but remain sticky; set dough aside covered to rest for few hours.

Flours working surface, pin roller and hands.

Divide dough into 2 portions.

Shape doughs into rectangular shape on floured working surface, sprinkle-on cornmeal.

With pin roller, stretch doughs out into 1/4 inch thick rectangular with the desired length X width.

With a knife, cut doughs into individual long strips of about 1/2 inch wide each.

With bamboo skewer dipped in water, swipe onto the center of alternate strips to draw a middle line.

Place undrawn strip on top of the drawn strip.

With wet bamboo skewer, lightly press on the double layers strip to create a middle line on top surface, set aside covered with wet towel while working on the remaining strips.

Repeat these stacking and pressing steps for the remaining strips.

Heat oil in deep wok over high heat.

Pick a double layers strip, hold both end and gently stretch it out.

Drop into hot oil, wait till it floated, turn it continuously with wooden chopstick till it fully expands and golden brown on all sides.

Drain on supported wire rack.

Serve warm with or without dipping sauce (example: mayonnaise, peanut butter, rojak sauce, coconut jam and etc.).

Red Bean Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups dried red bean, soaked overnight in water
4 cups water
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup brown cane sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup cake flour (tipo 00)
2 tbsp corn flour
3 tsp baking powder

Method:

Boil soaked red bean with 4 cups water till soft and cooked thoroughly (I used rice cooker till almost dry but yet burn), allow to cool to handle-able temperature, mash; set aside.

Grease a cake pan (26 cm in diameter), dust bottom and side of pan with bread crumbs and tapping out the excess; set aside.

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

In a bowl, combine mashed red bean and sugars, beat to incorporate fully.

Add-in eggs and oil, beat till well blended.

In another bowl, combine flours and baking powder.

Add dry ingredients into the red bean batter, mix well.

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool thoroughly.

Chinese Fragrant Spareribs

Ingredients:

600 g pork spareribs
1/4 cup light soy sauce
1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
1/4 cup plum sauce
2 1/4 tbsp water
2 tbsp Shen Yuan Hua Diao wine
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp Chinese five-spice powder
1/2 tsp black pepper

Method:

In a saucepan, stir to incorporate soy sauces, plum jelly, water, wine, garlic powder, five-spice powder till jelly dissolves.

Let the mixture to cool to room temperature.

Pour mixture into a zip-lock bag, add-in spareribs, seal bag and shake to coat spareribs with sauce.

Keep in refrigerator to marinate overnight.

Place marinated spareribs on an aluminum foil baking tray, cover with foil (reserves the marinade).

Bake spareribs in preheated oven at 230 °C for 30 minutes.

Remove spareribs from oven, drain liquid from baking tray.

Return spareribs to oven and bake uncovered at 180 °C for another 15 - 30 minutes or till cooked thoroughly (turn and bast spareribs several times with the reserved marinade).

Remove spareribs from oven and serve hot with rice.

Jalebi

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp rice flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2/3 cup warm water
oil for deep-frying

Sugar Coating Syrup:

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1 tbsp milk

Method:

Batter:

In a bowl, sieve flours and baking powder; set aside.

Add half of water to yogurt; beat well to incorporate.

Add yogurt solution to the flours mixture, gradually add-in the remaining water, whisk well till smooth batter; leave overnight to ferment.

Sugar Coating Syrup:

Dissolve sugar in boiling water.

Add-in milk, boil for about 15 minutes or till achieves one thread consistency (when single thread is formed and does not break when your forefinger and thumb are pulled apart gently).

Keep the syrup warm.

To Make the Jalebis:

Heat enough oil in wok.

Fill batter into an empty ketchup dispenser (or any plastic bottle with a small hole on lid).

Press batter out from bottle, circularly drop the pouring consistency batter into hot oil.

Fry jalebi till both sides are golden yellow.

Remove jalebi from oil and place on paper napkin to adsorb excess oil for about 1 minute.

Immerse jalebi into warm sugar syrup, set aside to soak for about 5 minutes.

Lift jalebi from the syrup and serve hot.

Sweet Potato-Red Bean Dessert Soup

Ingredients:

1 cup dried red bean, soaked overnight
1.6 L water
1 large sweet potato, cut into bite size
1/2 cup rock sugar or to taste

Method:

Boil red bean for about 2 hours or till softened and cooked thoroughly (I used rice cooker).

Add-in sweet potato and sugar, continue simmering for another 10 minutes (not to over cook the sweet potato).

Serve warm or chill.

Plum Snow Skin Mooncakes

Ingredients:

2 cups glutinous rice flour
1/4 cup wheat starch
1 1/4 cups icing sugar or brown cane sugar
20 g butter, softened
60 mL cold water
1 tbsp plum sauce

Mung Bean Paste Filling:

1 cup mung bean, soaked overnight
2 cups water
20 mL milk
1 tbsp butter, softened
50 g dark chocolate (optional)
1/2 cup brown cane sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup desiccated coconut/freshly shredded coconut
40 mL milk/coconut milk (only if using desiccated coconut)

Method:

Mung Bean Paste Filling:

In a bowl, mix desiccated coconut with milk.

Toast in a preheated oven at 180 °C for 15 - 20 minutes or till fragrant and golden yellow (stir occasionally for homogeneous toasting).

Remove from oven, set aside to cool completely.

Bring water to boil, add mung bean, continue the boiling till mung bean is softened, cooked thorough and became almost dry (not to burn).

With blender, blend together the cooked mung bean with milk.

With double boiler, melt chocolate, add into mung bean paste.

Mix-in butter and sugars, stir till sugars are dissolved and well-incorporated.

Add-in toasted coconut flakes, stir well to evenly mixed.

Keep in refrigerator till uses.

Plum Snow Skin:

Place glutinous rice flour in a heat resistance plate, steam over high heat for 30 minutes.

Remove from steamer.

Dry-fry the flour over moderate heat for about 15 minutes (alternately, toast in a preheated oven at 160 °C for 45 minutes, stir occasionally; or microwave on high for about 6 - 8 minutes, stir well after every 1 minute) or till yellowish in color.

Sift the cooked glutinous rice flour together with wheat starch, set aside.

In a bowl, beat butter with sugar till thoroughly mixed.

Add-in plum sauce, stir to mix thoroughly.

Add-in flours and gradually pour-in water, mix to a soft and smooth dough.

Keep in refrigerator to set for an hour or more.

Mooncakes Assemblies:

Flour snow skin mooncake moulds with cooked glutinous rice flour; set aside.

Divide dough into 4 portions.

Lightly knead each dough and form into a ball.

Flour both hands with cooked glutinous rice flour, flatten dough and shape to cup on palm.

Fill-in enough mung bean paste, wrap to seal and roll to a ball again.

Place the filled dough into the prepared mould (seam side up), press firmly to conform with the shape of mould.

Bang the sides of moulds to dislodge out the mooncakes.

Chill in refrigerator till serve (preferentially for at least few hours or overnight before serving) .

Mung Bean Truffles

Ingredients:

1 cup mung bean, soaked overnight
2 cups water
20 mL milk
1 tbsp butter, softened
50 g dark chocolate (optional)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown cane sugar

Coating:

1/2 cup desiccated coconut/freshly shredded coconut
40 mL milk/coconut milk (only if using desiccated coconut)

Method:

Batter:

With rice cooker, bring water to boil, add mung bean, continue the boiling till mung bean is softened, cooked thorough and became almost dry (not to burn).

With blender, blend together the cooked mung bean with milk.

With double boiler, melt chocolate, add into mung bean paste.

Mix-in butter and sugars, stir till sugars are dissolved and well-incorporated.

Keep in refrigerator to set for few hours or preferentially overnight.

Coating:

In a bowl, mix desiccated coconut with milk.

Toast in a preheated oven at 180 °C for 15 - 20 minutes or till fragrant and golden yellow (stir occasionally for homogeneous toasting).

Remove from oven, set aside to cool completely.

Forming Truffles:

With a teaspoon or two, scoop-up batter, form into even and round balls.

Dip each ball into toasted coconut flakes.

Roll and turn to coat evenly.

Keep covered in refrigerator till serves.

Avocado-Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

1 medium avocado, peeled and diced
1/2 cup left-over cooked chicken, sliced
1/2 yellow bell pepper, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 carrot, sliced
1/4 lemon juice

Method:

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients.

Sprinkles with lemon juice and fold to mix.

Serve immediately.

Chocolate Scotch Shortbread

Ingredients:

50 g dark or bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 1/2 cups cake flour

Method:

Line a large baking tray with parchment paper, set aside.

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

With a double boiler, melt chocolate; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter till fluffy.

Add-in sugar, continue beating till very light, pale and fluffy.

Pour-in melted chocolate, stir to incorporate fully.

Stir-in flour, gradually knead and roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness.

With cookies cutter, cut into the desired shapes.

Place them onto the prepared baking tray, about 1 inches apart from each others.

Bake the cookies in a preheated oven for 10 - 12 minutes or till aroma.

Remove cookies from oven, let them stand for 1 minute.

Transfer cookies on wire rack, let cool completely before store into air-tight container.

Yield 98 cookies.

Char Kuey Teow (Stir-Fry Flat Rice Noodles)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup boiled dry flat rice noodles (5 mm)
5 prawns, removed shells
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1 egg
1/4 cup chinese chives, cut into 1.5 inches length
5 cockles, washed, boiled and removed shells
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp oil

Chili Paste:

1/2 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 1/2 tbsp sambal omelek chili paste
4 tbsp oil

Seasoning:

2 tbsp prawn stock
1/2 tbsp sweet chili sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp white pepper

Method:

In a small pot, mix all the seasoning ingredients, let simmer over low heat to thicken the sauce; set aside.

To make the chili paste, blend onion and garlic to yield paste. Heat 4 tbsp oil in wok over low heat, stir-fry onion-garlic paste still fragrant, add-in omelek chili paste, continue stir-fry till aroma, remove from heat, set aside.

Clean the wok, heat 2 tbsp oil, fry garlic till fragrant and golden.

Add-in prawns, stir-fry over high heat still prawns are seared.

Add-in noodles and enough seasoning sauce, toss over high heat for few minutes.

Add-in bean sprouts and 1 tbsp of the prepared chili paste, continue tossing for another few minutes.

Spread noodles aside, crack 1 egg into the center of wok, sprinkles-on few drops of seasoning sauce on egg, scramble the egg.

Return the noodles onto the egg.

Add-in cockles, stir-fry for short-while.

Add-in chives, stir-fry for another short-while.

Dish-up, serve hot with white pepper and half-cooked egg if desired.