Curry Vegetables 咖喱菜

Curry Vegetables is one of my favourite dish. I love it with rice, noodle, even on it's own. I stopped having it so often when my cholesterol level increased. :p I tried replacing the coconut milk with other alternatives. It just doesn't taste as good.

Ingredients:

• 600ml Water or Stock
• 150g Yam Bean aka Jicama Bang Kwang (豆薯), skinned and cut into sticks
• 100g Cabbage, cut
• 1 large Carrot, skinned and cut
• 5 Long Beans, cut into section
• Dried Beancurd (豆包) or Firm Beancurd (豆干)
• 500ml Coconut Milk
• Salt to taste

Grind into paste:

• 1/2 tablespoon Dried Shrimp, soaked to soften
• 5 Dried Chilli, soaked to softened before hand
• 10 Shallot
• 3 clove Garlic
• 1 stalk Lemon Grass (white part only), sliced thinly
• 3 Candlenuts aka Buah Keras
• 7g Turmeric aka Kunyit
• 15g Galangal aka Lengkuas

How to do it:

1. Heat a tablespoon of oil and stir fry paste till fragrant.
2. Add in stock and bring to a gentle boil.
3. Add in all the vegetables.
4. Bring to a boil.
5. Gradually stir in the coconut milk.
6. Continue to simmer till the vegetables are cooked and softened to your liking.
7. Add salt to taste.

 

Minestrone Soup 意大利杂菜湯

My version of the Minestrone Soup, simple, fast and appetizing. If I'm having this alone, I'll add macaroni and make it a complete meal. The kids doesn't like macaroni and prefer rice, so I usually serve this as a soup.

Ingredients:

• 1.2 litre Chicken Broth
• 2 ripe Tomato, skinned and diced
• 1 stick Celery, diced
• 1 Potato, skinned and diced
• 1 Carrot, skinned and diced
• 1 Onion, skinned and diced
• 5 French Bean, diced
• 4-5 leaf Cabbage, chopped
• 2 teaspoon Dried Oregano
• 1 Bay Leaf
• Pepper and salt to taste

How to do it:

1. Heat a little oil and saute onion and celery till slightly soften.
2. Add in potato, carrot, french bean and cabbage.
3. Cook for a minute.
4. Add in the rest of the ingredients except for pepper and salt.
5. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
6. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes till vegetables are tender.
7. Season with salt and pepper.

Note:

• Size of the veggies used, ie, potato, carrot and onion, depends on your preference. If you not going to eat much of the veggies, get smaller size veggies.
• The sourness of the soup depends on the tomato used.
• You can add cooked macaroni (alphabet macaroni makes it more fun) before seasoning for a complete meal.
• I prefer to precook my vegetables first, especially the cabbage and onion, so they are soften and reduced in size. That way, they won't take up so much space in the pot and makes cooking easier.

Pan Fied Salmon with Mashed Cauliflower

I saw this meal suggestion in a magazine a couple of years ago and it has since became one of the regular dinners I cook for my husband.

In the picture here, I used salmon and asparagus with cauliflower mash. Sometimes, I use other white fish  and other veggies to pair them.

Ingredients:

• 150g Salmon
• 110g Cauliflower, cut into florets
• 3-4 Asparagus
• 1 1/2 tablespoon Margarine or Butter
• 1 teaspoon Light Soy Sauce
• Flour for dusting 
• Oil for pan frying
• Ground Black Pepper

How to do it:

1. Marinade salmon with soy sauce. 
2. Set aside to prepare the cauliflower mash.
3. Cook cauliflower in salted water for 5 minutes or till slightly soften.
4. Drain and blend the cauliflower with half the margarine.
5. Cook the asparagus together with the cauliflower but remove after 1 minute. 
6. Dust the salmon with flour.
7. Pan fry the salmon, skin side down first for 5 minutes or till lightly browned.
8. Flip over to pan fry for another minute or till cooked.
9. Place the salmon with the cauliflower mash and asparagus.
10. Either drizzle melted margarine over it or let it melt on the salmon.
11. Sprinkle ground black pepper over it.
12. Serve immediately.

Mashed Cauliflower