2 Mushroom Stir Fry

My affair with mushrooms started way long ago. Button mushrooms being the one that I love so much. And why not? Mushrooms are low in calories, carb, fat, sodium and cholesterol! And check out the nutrition facts:I normally have button mushrooms (or sweedish browns or small portobello) in pasta, pizza, noodles, either fried or in soups, salads and - even tom yum. I remember making mushroom tom yum when I dont have much meat in my fridge. Enoki mushrooms are perfect for salads and stir frys.

Simple recipe I made last night, with button and enoki mushrooms:

150gm button mushrooms, sliced
150gm enoki mushrooms
1 small carrot, julienned
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon light soy sauce
1 tablespoon chicken stock
1 green onion, sliced
1 garlic, chopped
dash of salt & pepper
1/3 cup water

1. Pre-mix the oyster/soy sauce, chicken stock with water. Put aside while you heat up the pan.
2. Heat some olive oil and fry the garlic and onions. Pour in the mixture and stir.
3. Add carrots and cook till soften, and pour in the mushrooms, stir until they soften a little.
4. Add salt & pepper, stir, and transfer to serving plate.

Everyone loved this as I wish I had made some more! ;-P Now I am off to start my Eid Mubarak baking project. Yay!

Crispy Muruku

One of the many things to do before Hari Raya (Eidul Fitri) comes is cooking special foods. Food that we normally don't make at home, or rather just buy. It's almost the same food every year, but it tastes good each year. Last nite, my parents kick-started the 'special food' for Raya, starting with muruku, a savoury South Indian snack loved by all.

Mum learned to make these from my Nani (father's mother) and also Mak Lah (my neighbour). She ends up making it her way, ofcourse. Some like it mild, some spicy. Some prefer it without sesame seeds, some can't decide whether they like white or black sesame. Some like the muruku all curled up like what you may normally see being sold is packets, and some like it like in the picture above.

This is my family's version, and you betcha - it's tasty, crispy, savoury, yummy, delicious, and once u pop it in your mouth - you wouldn't wanna share! :-) I don't really believe in mixing 'precise' portions of ingredients to 'make it happen' the way it's meant to be. I can say that I like to experiment and do it 'the other way' (stubborn mee..) and nothing can turn out bad, really... So here is the recipe:

rice flour: about 3 cups
urad dal flour: about 2 cup
2 eggs
2 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup white sesame seeds
1 tablespoon carom seeds
lukewarm water: about 2 cups
fresh karuveppilai (curry) leaves

Pour everything (well, except for the curry leaves) in a bowl, start with the dry ingredients - flours, carom seed, ... Chili - we used 2 tablespoons of chilli boh and a bit more of chili powder, but I would say that chili powder tastes so much better for making murukus. So, go ahead and add as much (or as little) into the mixture.Almost left out the sesame seeds! Man! It would had been 'plain' without the wonderful taste of sesame seeds! These are untoasted sesame seeds. You're gonna be frying them anyways. And eggs. Now let's get to the fun part of making muruku...

Note: please ensure hands are very clean, and if your nails are fashionably manicured - you might wana ask someone else to do this..With clean hands, mix it good. Add water as you go, little by little as we don't wana make it too 'weak'. My mum's really good at this.. I'd make a mess already! See that the colour becomes light orange, and the texture is very sticky. Some recipes calls for a bit of butter - but we never added butter. Your call. Now wash your hands after mixing it, because there's something else you're gonna need to do!
Whoops, did I say that you need the muruku mould for this? Umm... Yeah, this is what it looks like. If you don't have this, you can use a cake decorator and make it the way Simply Spicy makes it here. You can buy this mould from Indian grocers and they are pretty cheap n' useful. If you like, you can request me to purchase and have it delivered to you all the way from Penang :-) Drop me an e-mail!
Fill up the mould about 2/3 full and simply press the handles down with both your hands, like what my dad is doing in the picture. Might need to practise first as it can be 'hard' especially if your mixture is not soft enough. But good food comes from some hard work rite?! :-)

You need a big wok to fry these, as you need a lot of space. The idea is to make circles with your hands as you press the mould down. Oil must be very hot, but avoid too high a heat as you might burn the murukus too fast.
This is what it looks like half way thru frying. Now this is when you add the fresh karuveppilai in, just a few leaves. Why add in the curry leaves? It adds aroma to the savoury muruku. trust me, it smells amazinggg... And you can eat it too, it's very crispy and tasty! Oh, and mid way, using your spatula, turn the muruku over to cook evenly... When it's golden orange in colour, remove from wok and place on a cooler rack.We have karuveppilai planted in our garden. I would love to have a big herb garden but unfortunately I'd have to wait a long time for that - F and I bought a condo instead as landed properties in Penang are very expensive! We thought that a fully secured and nice facilities condo would make a good start for now ;-) A home and an investment...
Yummyyyyyyy..........

I can't wait to devour some more...

After cooling the muruku, store in tight lid containers and share with friends and families.
Want some?

Late, late, traffic jam and desperate for a pizza

Yee ha! It's Friday again and, it is the season's greeting of Eid Mubarak. Traffic jam is everywhere today and be patient - especially if you're from town going OUT of town. It's no escape for the next 7 days to be. To top that up, work is so, soo much especially when most people are already taken the week off for next week. So today is the last day to settle those long pending items lying on my desk since Monday :-(

BBQ Chicken Pizza

My mind is tired. Just so tired. Even my team mates agree, we're all mentally exhausted from the past 1 weeks' stuffs that were more than usual. All I can think of is my faraway fiance whom I miss so much (Come back soon will ya!) and of course, FOOD. I promised my mum earlier that I'd buy pizzas for dinner. After clearing up some of my work (and unfortunately taking some home with me) I rushed off. Out of office finally!

Traffic jam. Ugh!
I arrived at my destination (Domino's Pizza :-P) 15 minutes before buka puasa (breaking fast) time. It was Domino's Pizza in Island Glades. I quickly ordered 2 pizzas, chicken lasagna and a big bottle of coke. They just opened the outlet there a couple of months back. Fortunately the pizza arrived on time and I rushed home again. The smell of pizza in my car was making me hungry.

Extravaganva!

I always think pizza smells better... and they smell so good always! I arrived home in time, to set the dining table and take a few snaps of the pizza too! The lasagna looked small but it is tasty, creamy sauce and just nice. Much better than PizzaHut's lasagna so far. They only 2 things I love about PizzaHut is their garlic bread (simply cos Domino's in Malaysia does not have that garlicky bun, they have it on their flat baked dough rather than buns) and their Spicy Chicken Wings, hmmph they are so juicy and deliciousss...

Chicken Lasagna

Tomorrow morning I would be doing some groceries shopping for my baking project coming up real soon. I realised that I normally bake the same cookies year after year, just because they're easy to remember and they just keep improving! And, I have a little oven which makes it harder to make big baking projects!

Colour Me Green

It has never occurred to me that I use so much green herbs whenever I cook Malaysian. I'm used to having this mindset that "herbs" are basil, thyme, oregano, dill, chives, romemary... that I forget about my own local beautiful and aromatic herbs. Which I just normally call them "daun" - "leaves". I suppose herbs varies in usage and local reference from one country to the other.

Some of my favourite herbs:
Basil. Sweet and different.
Coriander. Be it in Indian, Malay, Chinese, Thai, or any else they all love the fresh and beautiful herb.
Kaffir Lime Leaves. Because it is fresh and awakens your senses.
Chives. Because it goes with almost all food regardless steamed, fried, boiled, roasted, etc.
These are widely used for cooking here in Malaysia, and at least I try to incorporate them whenever I can.

Since I have some leftover green curry paste, I made a small portion of Thai Green Curry Chicken. Almost too easy. It is very simple actually. Green curry goes well with chicken, beef, prawns or pork (from my experience working in a Thai fine dining restaurant in Australia because I do not eat pork!). And as for vegies, green curry tastes awesomely good with fresh mushrooms, eggplants, bamboo shoots, peas and carrots. The best way is to cut the meat (except if it is prawns, of course) to small pieces. Same goes with the vegies.

And herbs. Green curry though comes in an easy, ready to cook paste, but it tastes so much better when added fresh herbs in! Try these:
Kaffir lime leaves: Very finely sliced and added in the curry 5-10 minutes before you turn off
the heat.
Coriander : Usually not added in green curry but I love them therefore I chop and throw 'em in anyways!
Basil : Best is to fry them till they turn dark green and crispy. The smell is beautiful, and you add them to the curry just before serving. A tip I learned while working in the Thai restaurant some years back.

I've been wanting to make some Thai fish cakes and spring roll as well, but I am bad when it comes to anything fishy. If you do have an interesting Thai fish cake recipe, do drop me an e-mail! :-)

If you haven't tasted green curry before, and want to try something new, make Thai Green Curry your next must-try food. I thought I wouldn't like it, until I tasted it. Thereafter, it has become one of my favourite curries. Ever.

Ara Seafood Cafe, Bayan Baru, Penang

One of the favourite seafood spots around Bayan Baru/Bayan Lepas area of Penang Island. Mind the location that it is far from Georgetown, of about 20-30 minutes depending on the traffic jam, but it is reasonably priced that comes with good taste. Let's talk seafood!
There are 2 types of famous seafood outlets in Penang as far as I know. Chinese seafood and Malay Tom Yum Seafood. Although similar in the sense both has steamed or sweet n sour kind of whole fish, fried vegetables, savoury lala or clams, I gues the difference is the tom yum, sambal, and kerabu. Well, more or less pretty much mixed up!
These are some of the menus displayed around the restaurant. The best is to have 2 vegies, 1 fish, clams, tom yum, dessert, and rice. So with at least 4-5 persons, you can a taste a little bit of everything. Jugs of water is good to calm the mouth from that spiciness! They provided with free jug of lychee too!
Somtam, or kerabu mangga, or simple spicy mango salad. This salad is refreshing and "awakens" you almost instantly. A must-have if you see it on the menu! It is very simple to prepare this salad at home too, see my recipe of the spicy mango salad. Kailan is best stir fried with pounded fresh garlic and salty fish. Yummmm.... I just love the crunchy green leaves so muchhhh!
We ordered 2 types of fish - this one is deep fried fish with sweet n sour sauce. Lots of red chilli and tomoatoes. And this one is steamed with garlic, chilis, coriander, and i think lemon... I love this, it is just what I like: spicy, hot and sour. And I love corianders so this has got to be the best, of what I had this time..
Just for fun we also ordered fried eggs which look like this. Perhaps over-fried? I think I cook beter eggs but then again.. maybe it is the style - the way the egg is fired is different!
Seafood tom yum. With prawns, squids and chicken. For some reason the tom yum was "clear" and does not look reddish like most tom yum do. But it did tasted of tom yum! This is also one of my all time favourite soup!
Stor fried clams in chili and ginger. Oh wow, another favourite... I can't stop eating this and I wish I can make some right now!
All of the above, eaten with some rice . It was overall a good dinner and a happy one with all my family around. Lastly we had some dessert - mango pudding/jelly which was very tasty. I must learn to make this jelly!
Hope you enjoyed this set of mouth-watering sea food! :-) I should be planning my baking project for Hari Raya soon. I'm just too lazy to get started! Next week, next week...

Spicy & Soury Teaser

Most girls like hot, soupy, spicy and soury food.
Right?
YESSS!
(In my humble opinion).

Men?
Big chunk of beef steak or grilled chicken would suffice!
No vegie, no soup.
No?
I guess... You think???

. . .

I just got back from breaking fast from one of the popular Tom Yum restaurants in Penang. Pictures are all ready and I'm here! Only think is, I am so so sleepy and I need to have my rest before I walk like a Zombie to work tomorrow.

So, Here's some Seafood Tom Yum for you first! I'll post about my dinner soon! :-)

Malay Delicacies for Breaking Fast Today

I must say, my parents went to buy so many type of kuih (delicacies) today. I got excited so see my favourites.
Frm 12 o'clock: Potato samosas, Cucur Badak (stuffed potato with savoury fried coconut), and Cucur Keria (Malay donuts made from potatoes n sugar coated).
The green "spring roll" is oh my goodness. I forgot the name! arghh!! The white & brown one is called "Kuih Talam Gula Merah" (Steamed Coconut Pudding with Palm Sugar) - Sounds delicious already? Mmmmhhh!. The white part tastes of sweet coconut cream and the brown is the colour of palm sugar. :-)This is my favourite delicacy - Kuih Lapis (layered cake) because I just love to slowly but carefully peek the white and pink layers, and eat them layer by layer. Unless when I'm hungry like a ghost :-P
Ahh, my favourite - roti jala (lace pancakes) with chicken curry. This is a MUST try Malaysian food.
Bean Curd in syrup. Very good to cool down with this. I think i'm going to have some now! They're sold almost everywhere now - back then, I think it is mainly sold by the Chinese long time ago and now, Malays have learned to make them and, taste as good too. :-)
Cempedak goreng (fried jack fruits in flour batter) - A Malaysian loved snack especially in the evenings, but I don't like jackfruit so I dont fancy this... But many people do love this!
Know what JLo and this green dessert have in common? Their name. This is Kuih Lopeh aka Lopez. So now you know why. I love this kuih as well, which is pandan flavoured and with sprinkles of shredded coconut, and served with melted palm sugar. Mmmmppph!

Hope some of you get some smiles looking at these yummy pictures which I took earlier from dinner! :-)

Some good Malaysian Food right here. Right now!

Beef samosas. They are bite sized finger food as snacks or starters. Everyone loves them because it's savouricious. I bought these from the Pasar Ramadhan in Bayan Baru, Penang recently. What is different about it is the stuffing. Different from the usual potato and curry flavour, this one has one chunk of meat which has been cooked in a tasty sauce, before being wrapped in cute triangles and deep fried. If you happen to see some of this type of samosas sold, be sure to have some! :-)
Blue Rice? Really?! Yes, really. This is Nasi Kerabu Kelantan, and those from the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia would know this food. Actually, I got it mixed up - thinking it was Nasi Dagang. But then, someone (including my dad) corrected me. Thank you!!

It's a very tasty blue rice, served with some side dishes of salted egg, deliciously stuffed green chili (i think it's fish + coconut cream stuffing, very very tasty), salad (shredded cabbage, bean sprouts and herbs), fried fish (fried with some flour), thinly sliced beef and green coconut sambal.

I thought it was rather dry - I like curries or soups, so when this does not come with either one I felt weird...but that thought quickly went away the moment I tasted this dish. Lovely, different, but very tasty and, felt like I could eat more! I'm glad they have it here in Penang as I rarely see it here. Even IKEA has it man!
Now this is the ultimate everybody's favourite, come day or nite... AYAM PERCIK! Ayam Percik is basically barbequed chicken on charcoal fire, and constantly brushed with a lemongrass stick dipped in its marinade to keep it juicy... It is not spicy, but it is definitely very flavourful and delicious. It's aroma is intensifying to the nerves...in an extremely good way. It makes you hungry even if you just ate. It can be eaten dry, or with some savoury peanut sauce, whichever you prefer. My mum made this using turkey - usually for Hari Raya, and it is awsome!

I'm really looking forward to what mum's going to be cooking for raya in 2 weeks to come! :-P

Savoury Macaroni

As Italians loves Pasta, so do we Malaysians. We have created pasta dishes that would make you puzzled but if you like the different tastes of Asian food such as fried noodles, tom yum, laksa and more - chances are, you will love this Fried Macaroni - it's the Malaysian style of eating pasta. I have not come across anyone who does not like this!

I guess this dish originated from the fact that we love those oily fried, spicy food. Then we assume that pasta is just like our local yellow noodles. And rather than pouring the sauce on top of boiled macaroni, we have to pour the macaroni in the sauce, and fry, fry, fry away. See the style now?

Ingredients are very simple. I know of some who does not like vegetables so they cook the macaroni with minced meat only. But I am one of those who loves the little crunchy surprise that I can get from some mixed vegetables.

Overall, my style of cooking this fried macaroni may differ each time I cook, depending on what ingredients I have. So long as the key ingredients are there (pasta, tomato sauce, minced meat, vege), I'm happy to say that my fried macaroni is on the way! :-)

:: Recipe ::
2 cups Macaroni, boiled & drained (alternatively, I use Penne or any other short pasta)
1 can of Heinz Tomato Soup or plain Pasta sauce
1/2 cup frozen mixed vege
1 cup chopped fresh coriander/celery
1 large green onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 large tomato, chopped (optional, I just love fresh tomatoes)
some minced beef or chicken meat
1-2 tablespoon chili boh (chili paste)
a few dashes of McCormick's Italian Seasoning
1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
Olive oil for cooking
salt & pepper to taste

1. Heat up the pan with some olive oil - don't worry how much because olive oil is okay.. fry the onions and garlic. Add the chili boh (paste) and stir.
2. Throw in minced meat, sprinkle salt & pepper, and add in a few dash of the Italian seasoning (dried herbs). Stir until meat turns brown.
3. Pour in tomato soup or pasta sauce, add in the chopped tomatoes and mixed vege. Stir fry for 2 minutes and add in the fresh herbs. Add in the parmesan cheese too.
4. Does it taste good yet? Add in more sauce/pepper/salt/chili as you like and finally right before you add in the macaroni, turn off the heat & pour in the macaroni and stir to combine the sauce and pasta.
5. Pour in large plate to be shared by all! :-)

Sounds quick, simple and delicious? Yeah! How do you cook your fried macaroni?

Ramadhan, the month of fasting for Muslims

Pic courtesy of Bluryee

This is Ramadhan, the monh of fasting for Muslims wordwide and just to share some common thoughts on it.

Fasting is not easy for the first few days, you feel tired, dizzy, dehydrated, hungry, and more tiredddd. But it is for a good cause. Fasting is not only against food and drinks, but also what you see, speak, and do. Basically, fasting is the month where you do lots of good things and Allah rewards you for it :-) So the more good that you do, e.g. prompt prayers, notations to the poor, Quran recital, helping the poor, and being a good girl n boy, the better it is for you. :-) Basically, fasting is not because you are forced, or because someone asks you to, fasting is simply, because of Allah.

So, we start fasting from before the sun rises to sun sets. That's basically half the day. No wonder it's tiring? Maybe for the first few days, but after the first week, I feel normal. I just run around doing work and shopping... Usually for younger kids, the elderly, pregnant women, and unfit people need not fast.

Breaking fast is usually with family and friends - the more, the merrier! And usually break fast with a glass of drink, or sweet dates. We Malaysians usually have rice or noodles, and some kuihs like curry puffs and spring rolls.

Now, what I look forward to with regards to food, during this month, is the mushrooming of a variety of local food in Pasar Ramadhan around. These people set up stalls of food that they are expert of, and it is a scene that you only get to see during this month of each year.. Talk about Penang, I have 3 favourite place to go for Pasar Ramadhan.

Queen Street (at Georgetown)
This is where you will witness the Indian Muslim community and the various food available, from Nasi briyani, nasi tomato, bihun Singapore, putu mayam, curry puffs and samosas of diffeent flavours - sardine, chicken, beef, vegetarian, to sweet desserts which frankly, I can't even name them... perhaps like laddu, some fried kind od desserts, coconut water, and many more... The food here is always delicious and I see many tourists being brought to this spot to enjoy the different kind of food available. See some pictures at the scene here.

Pasar Ramadhan at Bayan Baru (just beside Sunshine Square mall)
Parking may be horrible and the number of people there may make me dizzy, but, the wide choice of food is amazing. It is because, this part of Penang has the largest concentration of Malay Muslims? I think so...anyways, find food from nasi dagang, nasi kerabu (sooo soo tasty) , nasi briyani, nasi kandar, nasi campur, murtabak,kebabs, ayam golek, kuih muih, mee, bihun, and ayam percik.... not forgetting lemang and serunding. Always be careful not to over buy because, it's really exciting to see all the food! Best time to go is about 4pm - 5.30pm. after which, most would have finished being sold already. See some pictures at the scene here.

Pasar Ramadhan near USM (near the Ivory apartment)
Much cheaper and this is probably because it is very near to the USM student's accommodation... and good food, really. They have chicken rice, curry puffs, spring rolls, laksa, kebabs, various desserts especially jellies and cream caramel, and drinks. Now here, parking is easier and not too busy!

My favourite....
drink: Air Sirap Selasih (sweet basil drink in red syrup)
kuih: Chicken samosas from Queen Street
main course: Chicken briyani from Hussains' Queen Street & Nasi Kerabu from Pasar Ramadhan Bayan Baru
dessert: cream caramel from either place!

What is your favourite food during the month of Ramadhan? It would be a good experience, even if you're not fasting, to join us and visit the various Pasar Ramadhan around your local area. The fasting month not only is for the Muslims, but also for everyone to enjoy the food and culture it brings! :-)