Gingery Trout with Caramelized Sugar and Vinegar (糖醋鱼)

Ingredients:

1 large trout or 2-3 fillets, cut to three sections each

Marinate: 

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp Chinese black rice vinegar

1 tsp dark soy sauce

1 tsp cornflour

2 tbsp oil

Gravy Seasoning:

6 tbsp sugar

9 slices ginger

9 tbsp Chinese black rice vinegar

6 tbsp light soy sauce

1 cup water

1 stalk spring onion, segmented

Method:

To prepare the fish:

Marinate fish with all the marinating ingredients for at least 30 min; set aside.

In a sauce pan, heat oil over medium high heat and brown both side of fish until fragrant and cook.

Transfer to serving plate and sprinkle-on spring onion, set aside.

To prepare the gravy:

In the same sauce pan or wok, discard excess oil and melt sugar over low heat till golden and caramelized.

Add-in ginger and stir until fragrant and golden.

Pour-in vinegar, soy sauce and water.

Leave simmer over medium high heat and stir occasionally until gravy is thicken and bubbly.

Remove from heat and pour immediately onto the prepared fish.

Best serve warm with steamed rice.

Braised Pork Spareribs with Sugar and Vinegar (糖醋排骨)

Ingredients:

400 g pork spareribs, cut into bite size

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp Chinese black rice vinegar

1 stalk spring onion, segmented

2 cup water

9 tbsp Chinese black rice vinegar

6 tbsp light soy sauce

9 slices ginger

6 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp oil

Method:

Marinate ribs with salt, pepper, sugar and vinegar for at least 30 min; set aside.

In a sauce pan or wok, melt sugar with oil over low heat till golden brown and caramelized.

Add-in ginger and stir-fry over high heat until fragrant and golden brown.

Add-in ribs and stir-fry for 3-5 min or until shrink and golden.

Add-in soy sauce, vinegar and water (add enough water to cover ribs fully).

Leave simmer covered until gravy reduced to half.

Reduce heat and continue simmer to thicken the gravy and tender the ribs (Stir occasionally for even cooking.Note: to accelerate the cooking time, the marinated ribs can be pre-deep fried until golden brown before use).

Once sticky gravy form with lot of entrapped air bubbles, sprinkle-on spring onion and dish-up.

Best serve warm with steamed rice.

Chinese Meat Balls (貢丸)

Ingredients:

500 g pork + 5 tbsp water

100 g Chinese mushroom

Seasoning A

2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine

2 tbsp fish sauce

1½ tsp salt

1/4 tsp sugar

1 tbsp soy sauce

1/2 tbsp oil

1 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp cornflour (last)

Seasoning B

1/2 tsp white pepper

2 tbsp garlic powder

1 tsp ginger powder

1 whisked stiff egg white

Method:

With food processor/blender, process pork and mushroom with water to form paste.

Add-in all the seasoning A and stir well until sticky texture.

Leave in refrigerator for 30 min.

Add-in seasoning B and stir-generously.

Bring a pot of water to boil then remove from heat.

Pick desired amount of paste and form into ball with wet hands.

Drop them into the warm water.

Reheat the water that contain a layer of meat balls over low heat to just enough to simmer without boiling.

Once meat balls are floated, allow to simmer for another few more seconds before transfer them into ice-cold water.

Drain-well and store in fridge with air-tight container till next use.

Mapo Tofu (麻婆豆腐)

 

Ingredients:

500 g soft tofu, cubed

250 g ground meat (pork or beef or mix)

3 tbsp chili bean paste

1½ tbsp fermented black bean - garlic sauce (or pure fermented black bean sauce)

1½ tsp sichuan peppercorn

3 slices fresh ginger

2 glove garlic

1½ tbsp light soy sauce

1½ tsp vinegar

1/2 tsp white pepper powder

1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup water/stock

2 tbsp oil

1 tbsp cornstarch in 2 tbsp water

Chopped spring onion for sprinkling 

Method:

In a wok or deep pan, heat oil over medium high heat.

Saute peppercorn till fragrant, remove the peppercorn and reserve the oil.

Add-in garlic and ginger, saute till fragrant and golden brown.

Add-in meat, chili paste and black bean sauce, stir-fry for 1-2 minutes or still meat is seared.

Add-in tofu and gently mix for short while or until the tofu is charred.

Pour-in water, bring to boil and seasoning with soy sauce, vinegar, pepper, sugar and salt.

Reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the tofu is cooked thoroughly with occasional stirring.  

Add-in starch solution and gently stir to thicken the gravy (adjust taste accordingly)

Sprinkle-on green onion before dish-up.

Best serve hot immediately with steamed rice.

Curry Spring Roll

Ingredients:

100 g meat, coarsely chopped
1/2 big onion, thinly sliced
2 handful glass noodles
1 tbsp cornstarch in 1 tbsp water
1 handful coriander leaves, chopped
1 tbsp oil

Seasoning

2 tbsp curry powder
2 tbsp rice wine
1 tbsp ketcup
1/2 tsp sugar
1/3 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper powder

enough medium size spring roll wrappers (thawed)
1/4 whisked egg
oil for deep-frying

Method:

Soak noodle in cold water until soften (about 30 minutes) and drain well; set aside.

Heat oil in a wok, pot or non-stick deep pan, saute onion till fragrant and softened.

Add meat and seasoning, stir-fry until meat shrink and half cooked.

Add noodles and keep stirring until noodles are well distributed.

Adjust taste with sugar and salt, add more curry powder if strong taste is desired.

Pour-in cornstarch solution and stir to thicken.

Dish-up and stir-in coriander leaves; set aside to cool completely.

To assemble spring rolls:

Place a sheet of spring roll wrapper on a clean working surface.

Locate enough filling on one corner of the wrapper.

Spread the filling lengthwise along the wrapper by using chopstick or fork (reserve some spaces at all edges for sealing).

Fold-up left and right sides of wrapper over filling.

Lift-up the filling side egde and roll upward to the other end.

Seal roll end by brushing-on some egg solution on all opening.

Deep fry spring rolls under hot oil till golden brown and crispy.

Remove from oil and drain well on absorbent papers.

Serve spring rolls warm with Thai sweet chili sauce or any favorite homemade dipping sauce (chopped fresh chili in 1/3 cup plum sauce and 3 tbsp light soy sauce).

Steamed Chinese Sponge Cake with Palm Sugar-Coconut Filling

Ingredients:

Sponge

160 ml (3) eggs
80 ml sugar
drop of green food coloring
drop of pandan essence
enough flour

Filling

1/4 cup palm or molasses sugar
1 cup water
1/2 cup dessicated coconut

Method:

To prepare filling:

In a small pot, bring water to boil.

Add-in sugar and stir to dissolve.

Add-in dessicated coconut, stir continuously till water almost dried out.

Remove from heat and set aside.

To prepare sponge:

Lightly grease enough muffin tins (about 6); set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar-coloring-essence till pale, light and fluffy.

Gently fold-in flour one spoon at a time till batter level sinks to 80% of total height.

Spoon enough batter (about 1 ½ tbsp) into the prepared tins and steam over high heat covered for about 5 minutes.

Remove cover and spread on a layer of prepared filling in the middle of cake.

Spoon-on another layer of batter all over on top of filling surface and steam covered again for another 10-15 minutes.

Remove from heat and run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the tins to loosen the cakes.

Remove cakes from tins by inverting on palm and transfer onto serving plate.

Spread the remaining filling on top of each cakes and ready to serve.

Pan-Fried Stuffed Buns (水煎包)

Ingredients:

Dough

150 g all purpose flour
80 ml water
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 tbsp oil

Filling (in excess)

300-400 g minced meat
10 shrimps, shell removed, cleaned & chopped
1 ½ tbsp grated ginger
1 tbsp white pepper powder
1 tbsp garlic powder
1tbsp light soy sauce
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 ½ tbsp cooking wine
1/2 tbsp cornstach
1/2 cup chopped cabbage
1 stalk scallion, chopped

Method:

To prepare dough:

In a large bowl, combine all dough ingredients, knead till soft and smooth.

Lightly greased a container, place-in the dough, cover and let proof till doubled in size (about 1.5 hours).

To prepare filling:

In another large mixing bowl, combine all the filling ingredients except cabbage and scallion.

Stir thoroughly to give sticky texture.

Lastly add-in cabbage and scallion, stir to homogeneously incorporate.

Adjust taste accordingly with salt.

To assembly:

Over a lightly floured surface, punch down the dough and knead again for another 3 minutes.

With floured knife, cut dough into small pieces according to preference sizes.

Sprinkle-on some flour, flatten each small dough and roll out thin into rough sheet.

Place a spoonful filling onto the center of pastry, twist to seal the top and flatten lightly.

Place the filled buns on heavy floured plate with seal side down, cover with kitchen towel and leave to rise for about 20-30 minutes.

Lightly grease a non-stick pan, pan-fry buns to brown one side for about 1-2 minutes.

Flip over buns, sprinkles-on about 1 tbsp water around each bun, cover and steam for about 3-4 minutes to brown the another side and cooked thoroughly.

Once water just dried out, flip over buns, and cook the previous side for about 1 minutes covered again.

Remove buns from heat and best serve warm.

Cantonese Sweet & Sour Ribs (京都骨)

Ingredients:

600 g pork spareribs, cut to bite sizes
enough oil for deep-frying

Marinate

1 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 ½ tsp Chinese five spices powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp ground pepper powder
1/2 tsp ginger powder
1 tbsp cooking wine

Sauce

1/2 cup ketchup
3 tbsp black rice vinegar
2 tbsp cooking wine
4 tbsp sugar
3 tsp light soy sauce
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt or to taste

1 cup sliced bell pepper
1 onion, wedged
2 clove garlic, chopped
1 knob ginger, sliced
1 tbsp oil


Method:

In a bowl, marinade ribs with all the marinate ingredient for at least 30 minutes or overnight covered in fridge.

In another bowl, combine all sauce ingredients; set aside.

In a wok, deep pan or pot, heat enough oil over medium high heat and deep fry marinated ribs for 15 minutes or till brown.

Remove from oil and set aside on paper towels to absorb excess oil.

Remove excess oil from wok or pan.

Reheat 1-2 tbsp oil in the wok or pan, sautes garlic and ginger till fragrant.

Add-in onion and bell-pepper, stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, remove from heat and set aside.

Pour sauce mixture into saucepan, bring to boil and let simmer for 10 minutes (add water if appear dried out).

Return the ribs and precooked garnish into saucepan, stir to mix and thicken.

Dish-out and best serve hot with steamed rice.

Shanghainese Crispy Noodle-Pancake (兩面黃)

Ingredients:

120 g (4 small coils) dried egg noodles
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 cup finely stripped pork
1 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tsp light soy sauce
drops of sesame oil
1/4 tsp pepper powder

2 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 carrot, cut to thin strips
2 dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked and thinly sliced
2 spring onion, chopped
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tbsp cooking oil

Method:

Bring a pot of water to boil, branch noodle till soft and cooked.

Drain well and seasoning with oyster sauce, soy sauce, fish sauce and sesame oil; set aside.

In a bowl, marinade pork with its following 4 ingredients; set aside.

In a flat non-stick saute pan, heat oil and saute garlic till fragrant.

Add-in marinated pork, stir-fry for few minutes or till almost cooked through.

Add-in carrot and mushroom, stir-fry to soften carrot and cooked thoroughly.

Remove from heat and stir-in spring onion; set aside.

Over medium heat with lightly greased saute pan, spread-on half of the cooked noodle evenly onto the pan as base layer.

Spread-on half of the precooked filling at center as another layer and top with the remaining noodles as final layer.

Pan-fry noodle pancake till bottom side turn brown and crispy.

Carefully inverse the noodle pancake and continue brown the other side till crispy (add some oil to avoid burning).

Pour egg all over the edge of noodle pancake and leave to stand till cooked through.

Transfer noodle pancake onto a flat plate and spread-on the remaining filling to serve.

Stir-Fry Brussels Sprout

Ingredients:

1 medium bowl Brussels sprout, halved
1 handful sliced meat/chicken
2 inch carrot, skin removed & stripped
1 tbsp oil
1 clove garlic
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp fish sauce or to taste
1 tsp sesame oil
pinch white pepper powder
pinch sugar

Method:

In a wok, deep pan or pot, heat oil over medium high heat.

Sautes garlic till fragrant.

Add-in carrot and meat, stir-fry till almost cooked.

Add-in Brussels sprout, stir-fry for short while.

Pour-in oyster sauce and fish sauce, stir-fry for another short while.

Pour-in water and simmer covered over reduced heat for few minutes (3-5 minutes).

Sprinkle with sesame oil, pepper and sugar, stir to incorporate (adjust taste accordingly).

Dish-up for serving.

Steamed Chicken Wings with Ginger & Sesame Oil

Ingredients:

400-500 g chicken wings, cut into pieces

Marinate

2 dried chilli, soaked to soften & sliced
2 stalks spring onion
2 inch ginger, peeled & strips
1 tsp Chinese cooking wine
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp oyster sauce
1 tsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp dark soy sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp white pepper powder

1 tsp cornstach + 1 ½ tsp cornstarch-2 tbsp water
1/2 tbsp light soy sauce or to taste
1 tsp sesame oil

Method:

In a container, marinade chicken with all the marinate ingredient for at least 30 minutes or overnight covered in fridge.

Add-in 1 tsp cornstarch and stir to incorporate fully.

Steam over boiling water with high heat for 20 minutes, drain and reserve stock.

Transfer chicken onto a serving plate.

Bring stock to boil and season with the remaining light soy sauce and sesame oil.

Thicken gravy with cornstarch solution.

Pour the hot gravy over chicken right before serving.

Polo Buns (菠萝包)

Ingredients:

Bread Dough

240 ml plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
30 ml sugar
1 tbsp beaten egg
1 tsp dried instant yeast
70 ml milk
1 tbsp butter

Polo Pastry

2 tbsp butter
25 ml powdered sugar
pinch of salt
1 tbsp beaten egg
95 ml plain flour

Filling (optional)

2 ½ tbsp butter
1 ¾ tbsp sugar
pinch of salt

Method:

To prepare the bread dough:

In a large mixing bowl, add-in all the dough ingredients and mix with fingertips to combine and detach from side wall of bowl.

Knead generously for about 15-20 minutes or till form smooth and soft skin dough.

Set aside covered with wet kitchen towel to proof for 1 ½ hours or till double in size.

Punch down proofed dough to release entrapped gas, divide dough into 4 portions and set aside to rest for 15 minutes or till use.

To prepare the polo pastry:

In a bowl, beat butter, sugar and salt still pale and fluffy.

Beat-in egg till fully incorporated and grassy.

Fold-in flour and mix well with fingertips.

Divide into 4 portions and set aside till use.

To prepare the filing:

In another bowl, beat butter, sugar and salt till incorporated fully.

Chill in fridge till firm then divide into 4 portions and chill in fridge again till use.

To assembly:

Flatten one portion of bread dough and fill-in a portion of filling.

Wrap up, twist edges firmly to seal and ground the sealing tip onto the dough.

With both hands, shape the dough into proper dough ball, set aside.

Flatten one portion of polo pastry.

Gently lift up the flattened pastry and transfer onto the center of hand palm.

Place-on a filled dough and press the dough toward pastry till all the side walls of the dough being covered by the pastry (filling seal side down).

With both hands, shape the entire bun into ball.

With sharp knife, draw chequer pattern on the pastry surface and set aside to proof for about 1 hour or till double in size.

Brush-on egg wash and bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C for 15 minutes or till golden.

Best serves fresh or reheat it in oven for few minutes on the next day before serving.

Steamed Pork Ribs Dim Sum

Ingredients:

250 g soft bone pork ribs, cut to bite size

1 tbsp black bean sauce
2 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1/2 tsp sugar
1 tsp oyster sauce
1/4 tsp white pepper
1 tbsp shaoxing wine

1 tsp tapioca starch or cornstarch
1 tbsp sesame oil for sprinkling

Method:

Mix pork with the remaining ingredients except cornstarch and set aside to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Add-in cornstarch and mix well to incorporate.

Steam with boiling water over high heat for 8 minutes.

Dish-up and sprinkle with sesame oil.

Chinese Chives Box (韭菜盒)

Ingredients:

Dough

240 ml all purpose flour
80 ml hot boiling water
40 ml cold water

Filling

2 cup diced Chinese chives (about 1 cm length)
1 ½ cup ground pork (not lean)
1/3 cup dried shrimp, soaked and drained
handful of segmented glass vermicelli noodles
1 tbsp shao xing wine
1 tbsp light soy sauce
3 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp pepper powder
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
1 tbsp of garlic or shallot flavored olive oil

Method:

To prepare dough:

In a large bowl, add-in flour.

Pour-in hot water and stir with chopstick or fork to form crumbs.

Pour-in cold water and knead to form dough (dough will remain sticky).

Set aside covered to rest for at least 30 minutes.

To prepare chives filling:

In another large mixing bowl, add-in pork and seasoning with wine, soy sauce, sesame oil and pepper.

Stir thoroughly to give sticky texture.

Add-in shrimp, noodles and chives, stir to homogeneously incorporate.

Adjust taste with salt and stir-in the remaining oil thoroughly.

To assembly:

Over a lightly floured smooth surface, knead dough into smooth long log (about 5 cm in diameter).

With floured knife, cut dough into 15 pieces.

Sprinkle-on some flour, flatten each small dough and roll out thin into rough sheet.

Place a spoonful filling onto the center of pastry, fold one side of pastry to the another, press edges firmly to seal and pleat accordingly to shape.

Over a non-stick pan, dry-fry or pan-fry dumplings with little oil over low heat to brown both sides and cooked through.

Best serve warm.

Pandan-Coconut Flavored Fortune Cookies

Ingredients:

1 egg white
1/4 tsp pandan essence
1 ½ tbsp vegetable oil
4 tbsp all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp cornstarch
4 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 ½ tsp coconut milk

Method:

Preheat oven to 150 °C.

Beat egg white, pandan essence and oil till foamy but not stiff.

Add-in flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt, stir till smooth.

Gradually stir-in coconut milk just till blended.

Generously grease a baking tray and drop a teaspoonful batter for each cookies.

Swirl the tray to spread out batter round evenly.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes or till 1/2 inch of outer edges become brown.

Remove one cookie from oven with spatula or metal spoon.

Quickly fold cookie into half, crease the center of cookie over edge of cup and hold the shape by placing the cookies inside a cup as it cools.

Yields about 25 cookies.

Steamed Minced Pork with Toy Choi (Chinese Preserved Vegetable)

Ingredients:

250 g minced pork (not lean)
1 tbsp tong choi (Chinese Preserved Vegetable)
1 tbsp shallot crisps
1/2 tsp light soy sauce
1/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp pepper
1 ½ tbsp water
1 tsp cornflour
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Method:

Combine minced pork with tong choi and all the remaining ingredients, set aside for at least 15 minutes.

Transfer mixture into a lightly greased heat-proof bowl.

Steam over high heat for 15 minutes and cooked thoroughly.

Dish up and best serve with steamed rice.

Glass Vermicelli with Minced Pork (蚂蚁上树)

Ingredients:

100 g glass vermicelli
100-150 g minced pork

3 tbsp oil
2 slices ginger, cut into silvers
2 clove garlic, finely chopped
3 chinese dried mushroom, soaked, thinly sliced and reserved the soaking water
1 tbsp preserved soy bean paste
1 fresh red chili, removed seeds and thinly sliced (optional)
1 tsp chili sauce
1/4 cup water/stock/reserved soaking water
1/2 cup bean sprouts (optional)
1 stalk spring onion, sliced long

Marinade for pork:

1 tbsp rice wine
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp pepper
pinch of cornstarch

Method:

Combine minced pork first with the liquid marinade ingredients and last with cornstarch; set aside for at least 15 minutes.

Soak noodles till soften and drain well; set aside.

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok over medium high heat, stir-fry pork till browned and cooked thoroughly.

Remove pork from wok and set aside.

Add another tbsp of oil to the wok, saute ginger, garlic and fresh chili till fragrant.

Add-in mushrooms, stir-fry briefly.

Add-in soy bean paste and chili sauce, stir for short while.

Add-in noodles, stir for another short while and pour-in water.

Return the cooked pork into wok and add-in bean sprouts, stir briefly till blended.

Add spring onions and stir till most of the liquid has been absorbed.

Garnish with some fresh spring onion and serve.

Homemade Fish Balls and Soup

Ingredients:

Fish Balls Ingredients

600 g white fish
1 tbsp water
1 tsp salt

100 ml water
1 tsp salt
dash of pepper
3 tbsp cornflour

bowl of water
1 tsp salt

Soup Ingredients

reserved bone & skin of fish
1000 ml water
1 stalk spring onion, chopped
1 tbsp tong choi (Chinese preserved radish)
1 tsp salt or to taste
2 tsp light soy sauce

Method:

To prepare the fish balls:

Fillet fish with sharp knife by removing fresh meat from bone and skin.

Further scrape out the remaining fish meat from skin and bone with metal spoon, reserve the bone and skin.

Blend fish meat with 1 tbsp water and half tsp salt till very fine or alternatively pound it with the back of chopper and gradually add-in the salt solution.

Transfer fish paste into big bowl and stir rigorously till sticky.

Gradually, stir-in the 100 ml water, 1 tsp salt, pepper and corn flour.

Lift up handful of fish paste and throw against bowl till springy on whole.

Grease hands with oil and form fish paste portion by portion into balls via gently squeezing the paste out between thumb and index fingers.

Drop fish balls into a bowl of water added with 1 tsp salt and leave to soak for at least 30 minutes.

To prepare the soup:

Pan-fry the reserved bone and skin till fragrant and golden brown, remove from heat and set aside.

Bring water to boil in a pot or wok.

Return the fragrant bone and skin into the boiling water and let simmer over low heat for about 1 hour.

Drain the stock into another pot and bring to boil.

Drop-in fish balls and simmer over low heat till fish balls floated.

seasoning with salt, soy sauce and tong choi.

Sprinkle-on chopped spring onion on hot soup right before serving.

Sweet and Sour Chicken/Meat/Fish

Ingredients:

Breading for Chicken/Meat/Fish:

1 kg Chicken, Meat or Fish, cut Chicken/Meat into bite size
2/3 tsp salt or 1 tbsp soy sauce to taste
1/4 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp pepper
3 tbsp flour
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 egg

Oil for deep-frying

Garnish Ingredients:

1 large green bell pepper, cut to bite size
1 onion, sliced
1 tomato, wedged
1/2 can (580 g with 5 rings) pineapple chunks, cut to bite size
2 tbsp oil

Sauce:

1/2cup vinegar
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 salt
1/4 cup orange juice of 1 orange
1/4 cup reserved syrup of canned pineapple
1/4 cup ketchup

2 tbsp cornstarch + 1/8 cup reserved syrup of canned pineapple syrup

Method:

Marinate chicken/meat/fish with salt, sugar and pepper for 30 minutes or more.

In two separated bowls, one filled with flours and the other one filled with lightly whisked egg.

Toss marinated chicken/meat/fish first in flours mixture, then in egg wet mixture and again in flours dry mixture; set aside.

Deep-fry the marinated chicken/meat/fish into hot oil till crispy and golden brown; set aside on paper towels to absorb excess oil.

In a bowl, combine all the sauce ingredients; set aside.

Heat 2 tbsp in a saucepan or wok, stir-fry bell pepper and onion for 2-3 minutes, remove from heat and set aside.

Pour sauce mixture into saucepan, bring to boil and let simmer for 10 minutes (add water if appear dried out).

Pour-in cornstarch solution and stir to thicken.

Add-in tomato and pineapple chunks, stir to cook thoroughly.

Return the chicken/meat and/or precooked garnish into saucepan and stir to mix (for fish, pour the garnish-sauce over the deep fried fish on serving plate).

Dish-out and best serve hot with steamed rice.

Bak Kwa (肉干)

Ingredients:

450-500 g ground pork (not lean)

Marinate:

3/4 tbsp fish sauce
3/4 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar or to taste
1/2 tsp five spiced powder
1/4 tsp licorice powder
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp cooking wine
1/4 tsp salt
1 ½ tbsp honey

Method:

In a container, mix pork with all the marinate ingredients, stir-well to fully incorporate.

Place pork in fridge covered to marinate overnight.

Preheat oven to 100 °C.

Line a baking tray (dimension about 25 x 42 cm) with parchment paper.

Spread the marinated pork portion by portion onto the prepared baking tray as thin as possible (important).

Bake it in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes or till firm to touch (test with fork).

Remove from oven and absorb-off any excess oil with paper towels.

Cut the partially cooked pork sheet into smaller rectangular pieces.

Grill each over medium heat for about 10 minutes or till shrink and cooked thoroughly.