Pre-Pregnancy

http://mag.udn.com/mag/newsstand/storypage.jsp?f_ART_ID=209381

Handmade Noodles

Make your own flat noodle or pan mee If you know how to make bread, you will know how to make noodle. Here it goes:

Ingredients 600 g plain wheat flour 4 tbsp corn flour 2 tbsp corn oil 4 tbsp water 4 egg salt and pepper to taste Method Put dough ingredients in a large bowl with egg in the centre. Beat on medium speed till smooth, about 3 minutes. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 10 minutes. Cover with damp cloth and let stand to prove for 1 hour. Divide the dough into 10 portions. Use a noodle maker or a rolling pin to roll each portion into thin sheets of about 0.5 mm. Use the thin noodle mode to roll the thin dough sheets into strands of noodle, like that of wanton noodle. Set aside for blanching before serving. Alternatively, use knife or a pair of scissors to cut into strands. Noodle is ready for use. Before cooking the noodle, it needs to be blanched first. For blanching, put each portion of noodle into boiling water for 30 seconds. Dish out and rinse thoroughly with tap water to prevent strands from sticking together. Toss noodle with a tsp of onion oil in a serving bowl to further prevent sticking. sssSSH...Grandma said: The process of making wheat noodle is almost the same as that of making bread; minus the yeast, and thus minus the rise and the punch factor. The rise process in bread making is replaced by the proving process in noodle making.

Secret of making good noodle Good noodle is one that gives the right texture, not too hard and not too soft, and does not get soggy on standing after cooking or blanching. The inclusion of corn flour in noodle making ingredients is vital in getting good noodle. Corn flour adds 'body' to the noodle. More egg in substitution for water also gives the same effect. (Pic: Noodle maker to cut strands into varying uniform thickness)

Dry Chili Pan Mee - ( Flat Chili Noodle ) The noodles texture must be just right, not to hard and not too soft. The combination of the minced pork, bull's eye egg, the crispy fried anchovies and the indispensable flaky chili sauce give a very unique and absolutely delicious flavor. Chili pan mee has become a craze in Malaysia, especially in Kuala Lumpur. It has become a 'must-not-miss' signature noodle dish if you visit Kuala Lumpur. (Pic shows the signature flaky chili sauce in a spoon to be added to the chili pan mee at the most popular Kin Kin restaurant )

As a general rule, Chinese egg noodles are long since length symbolizes longevity and good luck. Besides, long noodle taste much better than short ones, any logic? Probably, it must be due to the satisfaction derived from feel of completeness from long noodle, or by tradition. The same goes to spaghetti, we enjoy rolling the long strands before putting inside the mouth. We feel that would taste better, right?

There is a wide range of shapes for Chinese noodles, including rounded spaghetti-like noodles,
( wanton noodle or Hong Kong noodle; yellow noodle ), slim flat noodle called pan mee ( Shanghai noodle, pan mien ) and other shapes like the Mongolian noodle or 'tear' pan mien. As a general rule, almost all fresh noodles are fast cooking. Most fresh noodles are already al dente before being blanched or cooked. For dried noodles, time taken to become al dente ranges from 1 minute (rice vermicelli ) to 5 minutes ( dried Shanghai noodles. )

Proper preparation of noodle to get the right texture and hardness, before actual cooking is of vital importance for a successful tasty noodle dish. The finished noodle must be long and chewy and not short and soggy. Blanching with running tap water is an important intermediate stage to halt further cooking and softening.

There are different ways of cooking Chinese noodle:

Fried noodle ( chow mien ), braised noodle, soup noodle, lo mien, yee mien (deep fried crispy noodle), kon-lo mien ( blanched noodle added with little soup concentrate).

Source:

http://www.chiliwonders.com/noodle.making.htm

Lau Gong's links

Pumpkin Rice: http://eatingpleasure.blogspot.com/2009/08/savoury-pumpkin-rice.html

Yam Rice: http://eatingpleasure.blogspot.com/2009/08/yam-rice.html

Yee-Fu Noodle: http://eatingpleasure.blogspot.com/2009/09/braised-yee-fu-noodles.html

Tumeric Pork Slice

Ingredients:

1. 300g lean pork.

2. 3 to 4 tbsp of Canola oil.

3. Seasoning: 1 tbsp Ghee Hiang sesame oil, 2 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 flat teaspoon of turmeric powder and a dash of pepper.

Method:

1. Thinly slice the lean pork, marinate and season it for at least 15 minutes.

2. Heat Canola oil in the wok, and fry the marinated pork slices.

3. Keep on frying until the meat slices' edge turn a bit darker yet it is not burnt. For reference, see the texture and the colour in the above photo.

Source:
http://eatingpleasure.blogspot.com/2008/07/turmeric-pork-slice.html

Radish Cake (3)

Source from: http://blog.yam.com/homeeconomics/article/13417378

Mint Soup

Ingredients:

• 3/4 oz small dried shrimp (3 tablespoons)
• 8 cups Nonya chicken stock
• 2 cups loosely packed fresh spearmint leaves
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preparation:

Soak shrimp in warm water to cover in a bowl 5 minutes, then drain in a sieve, discarding water. Bring stock and shrimp to a boil in a 3-quart saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes. Stir in mint and immediately remove from heat. Add eggs in a slow stream, stirring slowly in one direction, then stir in salt and pepper.

Source:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Mint-Soup-234641

My Sambal Chili Paste

Ingredients:

1. 4 tablespoons of chili paste (Ohbin and Thai Lady)
2. 6 shallots
3. 1 teaspoon of belacan (Thai yellow bottle)
4. 4 cloves of garlic
5. 1 large red onion slice into round

Method:

1. Ground and blend the above into paste.
2. Heat up 2 tablespoon of oil.
3. Saute the chili paste.
4. Add 2-3 tablespoon of tamarind juice.
5. Add salt and sugar to taste.

Nasi Lemak

Source from:
http://www.malaysianfood.net/recipes/recipenasilemak.htm

Chili Paste (Ohbin style)

材料：

1. 辣椒干100g

2. 蒜头一大粒 （2瓣）

3. 小葱 200g （5粒）

4. 洋葱3大粒

5. Asam 水半杯

6. 江鱼仔150g

7. 虾米150g

8. 糖15汤匙（不够再加）

9. 盐适量

做 法：

1. 全部东西搅烂， 热油（差不多一杯）

2. 小火炒，炒至出油，颜色会由浅变深

3. 马来aunty说，要煮到很够，不然吃了会肚子疼

Source:

http://ohbin.blogspot.com/2008/03/ohbinsambal.html

Tarte aux epinards

1. Utiliser une pate a gateau ronde abaissee et une plaque d'env 28cm de dia.
2. Disposer la pate sans retirer le papier sulfurise sur la plaque et piquer plusiers fois le fond.
3. Parsemer de 3 c. a soupe de parmesan rape. Reserver au frais.

Garniture:

1. Faire suer 1 gros oignon hache menu dans un peu de beurre pendant env. 3 min.
2. Ajouter 500g d'epinards en branches haches grossierement, couvrir et etuver. Laisser refroidir.
3. Melanger 1 dl de demi-creme, 1 c. a soupe de farine et 2 oeufs, assaisonner avec 1/2 c. a cafe de sel, un peu de poivre et de noix muscade. Melanger avec les epinards.
4. Incorporer 100g de gorgonzola coupe en des et repartir ce melange sur la pate.
5. Cuisson env. 35 min dans le tiers inferieur (en bas) du four prechauffe a 220C. (200C pour un four a chaleur tournante).

Crepes

Ingredients:

250g de farine
une pincee de sel
4 oeufs
un demi litre de lait
50g de beurre
sucre

Preparation:

1. Melangez la farine, le sel, les oeufs puis incorporez progressivement le lait.
2. Laisser reposer 1h.
3. Mettre une noisette de buerre dans le poele chaude puis versez votre preparation.
4. Mettez le sucre sur la crepe encore chaude.

Sambal (Chili Paste)

20 dried chilies (seeded and soaked to soften)
10 fresh red chilies (seeded and sliced)
8 shallots (peeled and chopped)
4 cloves garlic (peeled and chopped)
6 tablespoons cooking oil

Method:

Use a mortar and pestle to pound the sambal ingredients or use a mini food processor to blend well. Heat up a wok with oil. As soon as the oil is heated, transfer the sambal paste into the wok and stir-fry continuously for a few minutes or until you smell the heat from the sambal or the oil separates from the sambal. Dish out and set aside. Refrigerated for future use.

Cook’s Note:

Traditionally, sambal is prepared fresh–or bought ready made from the wet market in Malaysia. It’s then used immediately to cook the dish. In the US, I always make my sambal into a chili paste so I can keep it in the refrigerator and use it on the go. I also use more dried chilies to make the sambal paste lasts longer in the refrigerator. The fresh chilies give a nice red color as dried red chilies look duller in color.

Source:
http://rasamalaysia.com/sambal-asparagus-recipe/