Beef Strips with Orange and Ginger

This is inspired by my dad’s cook but I twist the recipe a bit by using orange instead of lime. This is stir fry cooking, one of the best ways to cook meat with minimum fat. It is also one of the quickest ways to cook, provided you need to choose tender meat. So you will need:

Lean beef rump, fillet or sirloin. What ever, but cut into thin stips

Juice of 1 orange

1 tablespoon of Light soy sauce

Corn flour

2 tablespoons of Sesame oil

1 inch of ginger, finely chopped

Large carrot, cut into thin strips

2 spring onion, thinly sliced

Place the beef strips in a bowl and sprinkle over the orange juice. Leave it to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Drain the liquid from the meat and set aside, then mix with soy sauce, corn flour and ginger.

Heat the sesame oil in a wok or large frying pan and add the beef. Stir fry for about 1 minute until lightly coloured, then add the spring onions and the liquid that we reserved earlier, then cook and stirring until boiling and thickened.

Lastly, add the carrot and stir fry again for another couple of minutes more.

Now we done! Best served with plain rice or rice noodles.

Mix Vege Soup

This is super easy and healthy mix vegetable soup. Either way, this is an affordable and easy soup to put together. I made this with 100% vege, if you're like for a something different you can add chicken sliced or some prawns or what ever you fancy. So basically you will need nothing exotic, everything can be find at local grocery store.

Garlic..Ginger..Straw Mushroom..Baby corn..Chinese Cabbage..Cauliflower..Carrot

1. Add 1-cup water to pot.  Add minced garlic and sliced ginger. Bring to a boil over high heat.

2. Once it is boiled, uncover and reduce heat to medium.Put all the vegetables except Chinese Cabbage.

3. Stir, and add Chinese Cabbage. Add salt or seasoning if you like. I don't. I feel that my amount of garlic and ginger are good enough to bring the taste into the broth. 

Temerloh : Gulai Tempoyak Ikan Patin

I went to Temerloh few weeks ago  for my GF’s wedding, and at the same time, to sniff out some good eats. Said Temerloh, what else we can think..? Gulai Tempoyak Ikan Patin lah. As Pahang born and raised in Pahang, I am so familiar with this and this is my top favourite food other than Laksa Pahang, Opor Pahang and Murtabak Mengkasar. Hoi sedap. I’m already salivating thinking about it.

After I’m done with my GF’s wedding, I head over to Pekan Temerloh to have superb Gulai Tempoyak Ikan Patin. As I arrived at food court, wow the crowd is massive and diverse - families, couples, people in uniforms (policeman, nurse etc) and big bikers. The seat was full and I decided to take away the gulai since i’m still full from the wedding. 

I got an opportunity to ask the aunty who cooks the Gulai Tempoyak. The fish is actually not wild from the river, they are actually reared in the river itself. They are in cages and still able to swim around with fresh, flowing river water running through ensuring the fishes have a clean, wholesome taste.  They cook the gulai on the premises and served instantly. So that the gulai lover get freshly cooked gulai tempoyak right on the table.
A whole fish divided into two parts only – head and tail. Each part cost RM10, worth it. So I got my gulai tempoyak for my dinner. The gravy is tasty like no other, hearty, thick enough and fantastic. The color is great and just right. I don’t need any other adornment, just gulai tempoyak itself. The fish is so fresh, no fishy taste and it is so soft. Perfect and thumbs up aunty.

My brother and I managed to finish one part each (both head part), it sounds a lot but yes we did. This is addictive as the next morning my brother said he keeps thinking of the gulai tempoyak that we had last night. FYI, I don’t take both durian and tempoyak. I cant stand the smell but gulai tempoyak, I cant even resist it! Especially during Ramadhan, gulai tempoyak is a must have for my family. So for the Gulai Tempoyak Ikan Patin lovers out there, I enclosed a recipe that I heritage from my late mom.

You´ll need:

Ikan Patin, cut into 1.5 inch thick

Bird eye chili, blended – Quantity depends on your liking

A handful of red chili, blended

About 2cm of fresh turmeric, blended

2 stalks lemon grass, pounded

1 leave of turmeric

1 cup tempoyak (durian paste)

Old cucumber, peeled, cut into cubes

Water

Salt and sugar to add taste

The cooking method is super easy like abc :)

Wash the cut fish with tamarind juice for 2 minutes to get rid the fishy smell.

Add water into pot and bring the water boil.

Add tempoyak, bird eye chili, red chili, fresh turmeric, lemon grass and turmeric leave. Mix the ingredients and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Once the gravy is boiling, add the patin and cook under low heat. Season with salt and sugar.

Switch off the heat and add cucumber.

Have a great weekend, everyone! 

Spinach Soup With Sweet Potato

Spinach is a fast-cooking vegetable and packed with nutrients. It can be stir-fried and it can be cooked in soup. This is one in thousands my mom's recipe, which I have always loved and will always hold close to my heart. Who hate mom's cook..? No one right

So today I'm going to share a simple recipe which is spinach soup (also known as Bayam Masak Air). It is a simple spinach soup, with all in a bowl and one dominant flavor of anchovies with a hint of black pepper and this had always been our entire favorite. So here we go, Spinach Soup with Sweet Potato. Oh I’m on diet.

A bunch of red spinach 

5 Big garlic cloves - cloves separated, peeled and halved

1 Onion chopped

Black pepper to add taste. Thank You McDonald's

A handful of dried anchovies

2 Small sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes

The method is simple. First, add water to a sauce pan. Add the halved garlic cloves, black pepper and anchovies, bring the water to boil. Secondly, add sweet potatoes and onion, cook till onions are soft at medium heat. Cover and cook till the potatoes are soft but not mushy.

While waiting the broth boiling, rinse the red spinach and pluck at the stems. Discard old or thick stems. 

By the time I’m finished with the red spinach, my broth is boiling. Uncover and add the red spinach leaves. You may season the soup with a tiny bit of salt depending on the saltiness of the anchovies. Cover it back and switch off the heat. And you’ve done! 

This spinach soup with sweet potatoes is wonderfully light and nutritious. Its reddish color in a result. I love it.

Egg Sandwich

Boiled eggs as door gifts are commonly used in Malay wedding. I have a lot of it and I will make a super easy and simple recipe. Egg sandwich, great for breakfast and brunch or even lunch.

Eggs are a source of significant amounts of protein and are much more economical than protein's most common source such as meat. Eggs are also an excellent substitute for meat, except for people who need to limit their cholesterol intake.

So, to prepare an egg sandwich, you will need:

Fresh Lettuce

Pepper, then grind it to powder to add taste

Bread of your choice and butter or margarine. 

If you are concern about health and cholesterol intake, you can have the egg yolk of 1 egg but if you do not mind the cholesterol content found in egg yolks, you can include all the egg yolks. Egg yolks are yummy.

In a bowl, mix evenly chopped egg and pepper (salt if you like, I don't). Spread some butter margarine on a slice of bread.

Normally I add mayonnaise and mix with the chopped egg. But this time, I don't have mayo. 

Now spread the chopped egg with pepper onto bread. Add tomato slices and lettuce leaves. Top with another slice of bread. Cut into half diagonally if desired before serving. Makes one sandwich

Breakfast treat to my colleagues.

Coconut Jelly Cap Fifi

This is basic ingredients that u need.

Plain jelly powder

Young coconut juice (mixed with sugar when i bought it)

Sugar

First, u gotta be sure that air kelapa tu is room temperature. So let's get started.


Add 2 1/2 tbsp sugar + half glass of plain water + 3/4 plain jelly. Stir them quickly to avoid jelly lumpy. Stir n stir n bring to boil(low heat). 
The reason y I dont use the whole packet of plain jelly, because I want my jelly become smooth and chewy. Lagi pun I guna sebijik je kelapa muda.

This is sugar + water + jelly

While the mixture still hot, tapis kan dia. I don't want my coconut jelly nampak ketul2. Stir them quickly before it getting set to hardened. 

Boil again. Sambil tunggu nak didih, asingkan air kelapa dengan isi kelapa. Why..? I tamau isi kelapa i jadi lembik sbb kene hot temperature. Tak besh nak geget.

This is isi kelapa muda

Pour air kelapa muda into the mixture. As mentioned above (eceh formal mcm nak buat letter lak), air kelapa tu mesti room temp. sebab kalau air kelapa tu sejuk from the fridge, then mix with hot jelly, it will set quickly. Nanti tak sempat nak kacau, berketul2 sangat tak syok utk di makan.

Agak2 the jelly mixture n air kelapa dah mix properly n mesra (bak kata mak i dlu), it ready to be pour into bekas. I dont wait until it boil, sebab tak sabar. 

Pour into bekas. Suka hati u lah nak bekas apa, bentuk love ke 4 segi ke bulat ke. Im using the clear container isi Tau Foo Fah yang beli kat pasar malam tu. Earlier I asing kan the isi coconut, now isi coconut tu letak dalam bekas. 

Suka hati u lah nak mana2 banyak mana sikit. Nak berat sebelah ke nak adil ke..Ehehe digress!

1 biji kelapa muda and the other ingredients can make 3 bekas ni.

Best to leave jelly in the refrigerator so it'll be nice n cool.

Cost..?

1 biji kelapa muda = RM2.80

Plain jelly        = RM1.90

Sugar, water, periuk, sudu, senduk, strainer, gas = free

RM 4. 70 for 3 bekas or RM 1.60/bekas. What u'll get from pasar malam for 1 small bekas..? RM 1.20. What a big different. Sennorot kan. It just need ur kerajinan n usaha. :)

Happy weekend, everyone.