Simple cooking for Robyn's Family

Some people might find it strange but I really enjoy cooking for families. In this case, my girlfriend, Robyn had gone with me to Eat-Vancouver earlier this year and when she purchased a bunch of Asian sauces and condiments, I told her that I would teach her how to use some of them. This was what I did this past week. Unfortunately, the day we chose to do this happened to be one of the hottest record breaking day of this summer, 37C. With no air conditioning and no breeze, we found it very hard to keep cool let alone cook, but we did manage. Mercifully, as the evening progressed, the temperatures started to drop a little. Not something I would like to do again. I mean cooking in such hot weather!

So I made 2 dishes. The first is just a simple mixed veg stirfry with prawns because Robyn wanted to learn how to make this. Next I made a simple fried noodles with chicken and bak choy. Both of these dishes were seasoned with oyster sauce, soya sauce and a dash of sesamee oil. The mixed veg recieved a little bit of Chinese cooking wine at the end of cooking while the noodles had some dark soya sauce and cilantro for garnishing. I think it was a hit but you never know it they were just being polite!

In exchange for cooking, I recieved 3 portions of bison meat. I'm already thinking of using it to make lettuce wraps! Not sure yet. I'll keep thinking.

Stirfried Japanese Noodles

This was a hit! This was the first time that I used these Japanese udon noodles in a stirfry. As usual, I found this a really easy and simple meal. First I marinated minced pork with soya sauce, ground white pepper, sesamee oil and a little sugar. Next I sauteed some minced garlic in a large non-stick pan or wok.

Once golden, I put in the Japanese udon noodles and cook it till it starts to loosen. Push the noodles to one side of the pan and add the pork and fry till pink is almost gone before adding washed bak choy. This time I used both bak choy and yau choy because I didn't have enough of one kind of veg. So I decided to mix it.

Then I just tossed everything together well till the veggies are wilted. Finally I added finely sliced bird's eye chilli and some dark soya sauce. I might have added a little more light soya sauce making sure that the noodles are well seasoned. Reno Man must have had 3 helpings. Another keeper.

Roast Beef with Burnt Butter Mash & Bak Choy

I recently got a hankering for good ole roast beef. Before moving to Canada, I had never made roast beef before. Didn't know how easy it was until Reno Man's mum taught me how and I have been making it the same way ever since.

I normally buy an oven roast from Costco and season it with salt and pepper. Then I make somewhat of a crust/paste for the top using French onion soup. I make it into a thick paste and spread it on top of my roast and put it into the oven for 20 mins at 450F and then turn it down to 375F for the next 25-35 mins depending on the size of roast. I always use a temperature gauge to make sure I get the meat cooked exactly medium rare.

While the roast coooks, I made mashed potatoes and added melted butter that I browned over the stove in a pot. Ofcourse I added some milk, salt and pepper to taste. The burnt butter just adds a buttery nutty flavour to the mash that I love.

For the bak choy, all I did was to wash the veggie and put it into a steamer. Once it was cooked, I added a splash of onion oil, oyster sauce, soya sauce and sesamee oil. Mixed it well and its ready to serve.

Since I love gravy with my mash and meat, I made a green peppercorn sauce using the beef drippings and a regular mix. I love how the pink tenderness of the meat show through, sitting on top of the bak choy and mash. A lovely meal that leaves lots for roast beef sandwiches the next day. The extra gravy makes the sandwiches just perfect.

Satay Beef Stir-fry with Bak Choy

Somehow, coke always goes so well with Malaysian food. Hence the coke cans! Besides, they tend to bring a good contrasting colour to my pic! Now this is something I made up. I used Top sirlion steak, slightly frozen so that I could easily slice the beef thinly. Then I marinated it with soya sauce, a little sugar and minced garlic.

Then I prepared the bak choy. Just washing each leaf and separating the leaves invidually. Then I prepared my satay sauce. You can buy this from and Asian grocer instant or a pre-mix. I used a pre-mix where I just added water anda brought it to a boil for a few minutes. Next I put my pan on high heat and added a little oil. When the oil was hot, I added the beef and fried it for about 30 secs before adding the bak choy. This takes a little skill with 2 cooking utensils to toss till the bak choy is wilted. Finally, I add the satay sauce. Once it is well mixed and the meat and veggies area well coated with the sauce, I quickly serve it hot with steamed Jasmine rice. Oh! I think this is my current favourite. So quick and easy. And clean up is that too! -end-

Fried MiFun (vermicelli)

Easy fried vermicelli. I guess it very simillar to fried rice though with using noodles to stir fry, I like to use green leaf veggies like bak choy or yau choy or kai lan.

First I sauteed some minced garlic. Then I browned some sliced chicken that had been seasoned with soya sauce and pepper. Then I added alot of veggies. This time I used yau choy and sugar peas. Then I added the prawns and vermicelli that had been soaking in warm water. Before stirring, I added sweet and thick dark soya sauce and a little light soya sauce. OH! I also added a shredded carrot and tossed it all till well mixed. This type of noodle does not need very much cooking. It just needs to be warmed through. It will start to break into tiny pieces if this is over cooked. Also keep this stir fry relatively dry. Too much liquid or sauce will make the noodle mushy. To spice it up, I added some sambal after adding the veggies. It just gave it a bit of a zing. Oh! Don't forget to add a splash of fish sauce. It just adds to the flavour of the noodles. Just don't sniff the sauce from the bottle. Trust that it will taste good!

Potstickers with Korean Rice Cakes

Here's another one of my fast meals. It was 2:30pm by the time I got home for art class. I was going to have just an instant cup noodle but because my hunny was home and also hadnt eaten, I decided to make up something quick. I used ...
10 frozen potstickers from Costco that I pan fried with a little canola oil just till the pastry is a little crisp. These potstickers are often a life saver when I am in a time crunch to get a meal on the table. I have used them is stirfries and soups. Quite versatile.Then I add
1-2 cloves of chopped garlic to the pan and
1/2 a bag of frozen Korean rice cakes (you may have to pre-boil these first depending on the brand you get). Stif fry for 2-3 mins then add
1/2 tbsp sambal
2 tbsp soya sauce
1 tsp fish sauce. Stir till mixed well. Then add
1/4 cup water and
enough Bak Choy to compliment the dish. Stir till combined and cover with a lid to cook the vegetables. When vegetables are tender, this dish is ready to be served.

Char Siew Meen

I finally found some time to cook again this week. This is meal is a variation of a traditional hawker stlye noodle found in Malaysia. I used ...
1 portion of fresh shrimp egg noodle (you could probably get this from an oriental grocer)
1 portion of Chinese BBQ pork sliced
1 handful of cut and washed Bak Choy

Bring to boil a pot of water. When boiling, add bak choy and cook till prefered tenderness. Remove and set aside. In the same pot of water, cook the needles till prefered tenderness. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce for the noodles. Mix together,

1 tbsp of cooked onion oil (you can do this yourself by cooking thinly sliced shallots in oil. when the onions turn golden , remove from oil and use it as garnish.)
1 tbsp of think sweet soya sauce
1/2 tbsp of regular soya sauce
1 tsp of fish sauce
1/2 tsp sugar

When noodles are cooked, drain well and addd to the sauce and toss till evenly coated. Plate as seen in the photo above with bak choy and sliced BBQ pork and golden fried shallots. This recipe serves one. Do try it if you are adventureous. Let me know if you have any questions. Sure was yummy to me! Pity my hunny wasn't here to enjoy it with me. This is something I would love to serve my very good friends Chocolate girl and LivingSword.

Check out livingsword's website at http://www.lifeontheblade.blogspot.com/