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.

Malaysian Curry Laska

You might be able to tell that I have been craving for food from my country of origin, Malaysia. Not too long ago, my mummy sent me a care package with a bunch of food items that I am still not able to get in British Columbia, Canada. In this package she included a single packet of Curry Laska Paste. Below is what it looks like.

I haven't been feeling too well lately and thought this would be a simple fix. If it didn't live up to my standards, I could always get take out! Now, I have made curry laksa on my own from scratch before but I could never recreate it exactly because of the lack of some ingridients though I came close. I couldn't believe it when I tasted this. This is truely authentic! The only thing missing was the cockels to go with the meal. When I write about this paste, it only gives you the paste to cook the curry soup. The rest of the ingredients like the yellow noodles, chicken, tofu etc are fresh ingredients you have to put together yourself. I was so delighted with this. Not only that, it was so easy too! If I remember correctly, I just sauteed some minced garlic and onions, added the paste and water. Bring to boil and then add tofu and coconut milk. Simmer for a minute or 2 and its ready! HAH! It sure transported me back to the hawker stalls in Malaysia.

Potstickers in Egg Drop Soup

It was a rainy, cold Sunday afternoon, after a nap. All I felt like having was a hot soup but it had to be super fast since I was starving having missed lunch because of the nap.

So, to start, I sauteed some minced garlic with oil in a pot. Once golden, I added water and when the water came to a boil, I added frozen potstickers from Costco and some yau choy and let it cook. Meanwhile, I seasoned the soup base with wanton soup stock powder, white pepper, fish sauce and a little sesamee oil. Oh and some soya sauce.

Lastly, when the potstickers are cooked, stir in one beaten egg and gently stir the soup and turn off the heat. Serve immediately with fried onions or cilantro. It help me get through to dinner but best of all, it warmed me up.

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!

Sesamee Beef Stirfry

Simple, easy and tasty. In 30 minutes or less! Of course this is best served with freshly cooked Jasmine rice. So to start, get your rice started in your rice cooker or pot. Then, thinly slice a 10-12 oz of your steak choice. I used top sirloin but this would work well with a lower grade cut so long as you slice it across the grain. Marinade this in about 4-6 tbsp of soya sauce,1-2 tbsp of oyster sauce, 1 tbsp sesamee oil, 2 tbsp of roasted sesamee and 1 tbsp of sugar. Marinade well and lastly add 1-2 tsp of corn flour to the beef. Set this aside and wash a good portion of yau choy or bak choy. Cut the veg into 2 inch lenghts. Next heat your wok or non-stick pan to high with 2 tbsp canola/ corn or peanut oil. Add in 1 clove of minced garlic. When lightly golden, add marinated beef. Stirfry till meat is separated but not throughly cooked. Then add veggies and cook till just tender. Add a little water, stir till well mixed and then turn off heat. Serve hot with steamed rice. Its nice to toss a little more roasted sesamee on the beef before serving.

My kind of comfort food!

It certainly seems that as I keep making posts, that alot of the time, I am just trying to make really fast no hassel food. Tonight was another one of those nights. I resorted to feeding Renovation Man left over spaghetti meatballs and making instant pho' noodles with beef balls for myself. Its not something my hunny likes but certainly hit the spot for me. Throw in a handful of leafy veg and some hoisin and Vietnamese chilli sauce for dipping and I'm a happy gal! There's just something about a steaming hot bowl of noodle soup that just reminds me of my Oriental heritage. Add this to a great Survivor episode and a glass of coke just made my evening. I guess I've mentioned how satisfied I was already.

Asian Concoction

Here's one of my own recipes. I often throw a few ingredients together and hope for the best! I used something that is unusual to North America but more common in ... Oriental cooking. I marinated a pork tenderloin that I cut into thin strips with soya sauce, Chinese cooking wine, sesamee oil, a little sugar and 2 tsp of cornflour. I sauteed some minced garlic till golden in some canola oil and added the pork. I cooked it till is was nicely browned. Then I added chopped yau choy and stir till wilted. Then I added preserved green mustard stem in chili oil that have been cut into strips and oil removed. Here's what the preserved green mustard stem in chili oil looks like in a bottle. Then I threw in about 500g of Hokkein noodles. I tossed it till well mixed and heated through. Then I added a little more Chinese cooking wine and soya sauce to taste. Serve hot with sliced chili. My hunny, Renovation Man thought this was a good flavour combo.

A lunch menu from my kitchen

What an absolutely georgeous day, in beautiful British Columbia. My day started of with a lovely surprise from my hunny, Renovation Man.....doughnuts from Tim Hortons! For most living in Canada, Tim Horton's coffee and doughnuts are a staple in their everyday menu. (www.timhortons.com) Not so for my hunny and I. We try to eat and live healthy so a box of doughnuts is a very rare find in our home...

Lunch came surprisingly too fast. But I had purchased some black pepper pork chops from T&T (a large oriental grocer in the Lower Mainland http://www.tnt-supermarket.com/main-e.php) last night and thought that would be a nice and quick meal with yau choy and egg noodles in an asian sauce. It sure hit the spot. Unfortunately, in my excitement to get to the food, I forgot to take a picture of this yummy lunch.

This is certainly not a typical Canadian nor North American lunch and to some may sound like something one may have for dinner. But in South East Asia (which is where I am from), that meal could be for breakfast, lunch or dinner. I am certainly used to having a hot meal for lunch so although a soup and salad would suffice or even a sandwich, my preference would be a hot meal of some kind.

Tonight's menu is a stir-fried Vietnamese beef noodles with sugar snap peas.