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Sorry, more cooking than writing at the moment. Have to eat to live, but not necessarily blog, you see. But you, blog reader, are very important to me nonetheless. Just that the thesis is more important - for the moment.

Recipe for goreng pisang (fried banana fritters), with a little side ramble about Yan Kit So and chinese cook books, written. Check it out here!

Recipe: Braised chinese mushrooms (draft)

Will consult mum about this first.

Recipe: Tangerine Beef (Draft)

A new dish, practice for Hunan guest.


Dried preserved tangerine peel


Ginger! Secret ingredient. Stir fry secrets.

Long distance relationships

Whoever said that LDRs made the heart grow fonder is both right and wrong.

I miss The Boy terribly. Every telephone call takes on a special meaning, because you've looked forward to much to that moment that's the right time to call - his morning on the way to work, my afternoon lunch break; my bedtime, when he leaves work; weekends, when every time is right but you can't talk the whole time, can you? But it's also scary, because every telephone call is not special, but you expect it to be. There's that anti-climax when you put down the phone, when you feel that you might have said what you did not say, or tell him 'I love you' one more time. Then there are the times when you're so busy that you forget to miss him, or your heart gets tired of carrying this feeling all the time. Those are the times you don't want to talk, and you push him away, and feel bad about it. The longer it goes on, the more all these things cloud your view, till there's more darkness than light.

But then you turn to the hills for your help, that source of light, life and all things good. It doesn't make you feel better about what's going on, but you being to grow in the knowledge there is hope, a future, and you are finally able to sleep, because you trust - trust in love, trust in him, and most of all, trust in Him.

Recipe: Pulled pork

The Boy is crazy about pulled pork. When he was living in London, he discovered the American expat haunt Bodeans, which I wrote about here aeons ago. Ah, memories of their "tenner pig out" - pulled pork, ribs, slaw and chips (fries) for ten pounds. The fact that the founder and owner is from Kansas City and used to smoke his meat a few yards down from his parents, and that they show college basketball on tv, definitely added to the draw.

In the spirit of cooking things that The Boy likes to eat, you can imagine my excitement when Homesick Texan posted an extraordinarily easy recipe for carnitas, Houston style. You must try it! A hunk of pork rump, salt, orange juice and water - and you're good to go! I also added 2 tsp of sugar at the end, to edge the caramelizing a little.


My Lovely Flatmate's cerulean blue Le Creuset oval casserole has lessened the pain of being away from my own cerise one, which now resides permanently in Houston. It has been the source of much warmth and nourishment in our little Marylebone flat. And also pots and pots of great hearty chili - I can't believe I haven't posted a recipe yet! Chili was something I was perfecting a while ago. Will endeavour again when I'm in Houston next.


I've been a little stressed lately - with work and selling my furniture and packing and the wedding and the prospect of leaving London forever and all - and have been looking to the hills (Psalm 121). Tonight, a dollop of salsa, a shred of coriander, and some pulled pork with its sweet crispy edges and soft melting insides, on a corn tortilla heated in a drop of chili oil. A cucumber salad. A roof over our heads. Good conversation. Love and friendship.

I felt we would be so blessed.

Recipe: Goreng pisang (fried banana fritters)

I love goreng pisang (fried banana fritters - in Malay language, which is Singapore's national language - it's a historical thing - 'goreng' means fried, 'pisang' means banana). When I was a little girl, Dad would sometimes pick a couple up on his way back from work at our favourite stall in Lagoon hawker centre on the east coast of Singapore.

I think people say that pisang raja (a particular type of bananas, small ones) are the best for this dish. I like them cos they have a special sweetness balanced with a raw undertone that I like. I've spied bananitos at my local Waitrose, and wonder if they're the same thing... any banana experts out there? Anyways, we have to make do with whatever we have wherever we are, right? That's how cuisines evolve. =) I mean, chinese food in Singapore looks and tastes nothing like chinese food in China, and is a completely different creature in America. But I digress...

The recipe is from Yan-Kit So's excellent classic chinese cook book. Like me, Yan-Kit So was chinese (but from China), transplanted in London and the USA. Unlike many chinese cook books, she writes with a sensitivity to modern times and offerings, yet succeeding in retaining an authentic spirit in the food (insofar as they correspond to my own memories and experience growing up eating at my mother's table). In my inexpert opinion, chinese cook books are divided broadly into

(1) authentic cookbooks written in a style or language I don't read too well, usually containing too many ingredients I can't get or processes that are laborious and passe in the light of modern techonology, and

(2) westernised chinese cooking that I don't like.

Yan-Kit So engenders that rare third category, which is authentic chinese cookery that is modern, in English and relatively easy to obtain, both in terms of ingredients and the final product. I've been collecting these rare creatures over the years. Am not a big fan of Fuschia Dunlop, although she is considered an expert in certain regional chinese foods. Siong Mui Ng is another excellent resource. Barbara Tropp I use selectively. To name a few, but I digress again...

Note: I used wholewheat flour instead for this recipe successfully. Can be eaten plain without caramelizing (optional).

RECIPE: GORENG PISANG (FRIED BANANA FRITTERS)

6 bananitos or 3 bananas, peeled and cut into 4" parts
1 tbsp plain flour
Oil for deep-frying

100g self-raising flour
1 large egg
8 tbsp water
1 tbsp oil

(optional)
9 tbsp sugar
sesame seeds

1. Prepare the batter: sift self-raising flour into a mixing bowl and beat in egg. Add water gradually and stir to blend into a smooth batter. Leave to stand for 15 mins, then blend in oil.

2. Toss banana pieces well in plain flour.

3. Heat oil in a wok on high. One by one, dip banana pieces in batter and deep-fry in oil until golden brown (2-3 mins). Turn bananas with tongs or chopsticks as needed. Remove and drain on kitchen paper.

(optional)

4. Fill a large bowl with water and ice cubes.

5. Clean wok and heat fresh oil over high heat. Add sugar and dissolve in oil, stirring all the time. As soon as it turns light brown in colour, turn heat down. Immediately add all the banana pieces, turning them to cover all over with the caramel. Sprinkle sesame seeds all round. Remove and immediately dip into ice water so that the caramel sets. Caramel threads are supposed to form, but sometimes I'm successful, other times I'm not.

Serve immediately.

Recipe: Kung Pao Chicken

Kung pao chicken is a dish characterised by its sweet, spicy, ginger combination of flavours. Dried chilis are the main ingredients, and are the spice of life in most of Sichuan cuisine, where chilis are grown in abundance. It turns out that the dish has a history as well.

The Boy had trouble finding small dried chilis at Kroger and Whole Foods, and got these large dried red jalapenos instead. But they are sold in abundance at all Asian grocery stores. Dried chilis would be a key ingredient if you are looking for a "starter pack" to Chinese cooking. I would also include in this pack: light soya sauce (NOT "soy"), dark soya sauce, sesame oil, shaoxing wine, rice wine vinegar, oyster sauce, chili sauce, chili oil, corn starch, potato starch, rice flour, dried shitake mushrooms. There are several brands out there, but everyone has their favourites. For the sauces, I like Lee Kum Kee generally.

Kung pao prawns is one of my favourite dishes when my family goes out to a Sichuan restaurant. We always order that, si ji dou (fried long beans with minced pork - also The Boy's favourite veg dish), ma po tofu (tofu with minced pork) and deep fried man tou (buns), among other things. I tried the recipe with prawns instead of chicken last night, and it turned out ok - except that the prawns were a bit mushy when they were supposed to be firm and bright, because I accidentally tipped the whole packet of corn starch into the marinade... anyhow.

RECIPE: KUNG PAO CHICKEN

(This recipe is taken from Yan Kit's Classic Chinese Cookbook by Yan Kit So, previously reviewed here.)

350g (12oz) chicken breast meat, cut into cubes

4 tbsp oil

4-5 dried chilis

2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

4-6 slices ginger

1 tbsp Shaoxing wine

3 stalks scallions, cut into small rounds

Large handful of roasted peanuts or cashew nuts

Marinade:

1/3 tsp salt

2 tsp light soya sauce

2 tsp Shaoxing wine or dry sherry

1 tsp corn starch

1 tbsp egg white

Sauce:

1 tbsp dark soya sauce

1-2 tbsp chili sauce

2 tsp rice wine vinegar

2 tsp sugar

1.5 tsp corn starch

6 tbsp water

*****

1. Marinate meat for 15-30 minutes.

2. Prepare the sauce.

3. Heat the oil in a wok over high heat until smoky. Stir fry the dried chili, then add the garlic and ginger - this releases their frangrance into the oil.

4. Add marinated chicken and toss in the wok.

5. Splash the wine around the side of the wok, tossing continuously. This makes sure the wine is heated before it touches the chicken, again releasing its fragrance. The wine is also useful for deglazing the bottom of the wok.

6. Add spring onion and stir fry until the chicken is cooked.

7. Give the prepared sauce a stir and add into the wok. Stir until it thickens.

8. Mix in the peanuts and remove to a serving plate. Serve with white rice.

Recipe: Sweet and Sour Pork

I've been experimenting a lot with a classic Chinese favourite - sweet and sour pork. I say "a lot" really as an understatement, but which me and my (now ex-) flatmate gladly understated. It - both the cooking process and the end result - kept us going over the period when we were extremely stressed about work (me: finishing The Thesis) and The Big Move.

Sweet and sour pork is one of my (many) comfort foods. I simply love it and even have occasional SSP cravings. The natural sweetness of the vegetables, combined with the sourness of the vinegar, touched by a hint of ginger - mmm... Paired with fluffy steaming white rice, it is beautiful. It's also an exquisite blend of East and West, as I have discovered. In the West, it tends to be slightly sweeter and more gooey, with the addition of canned pineapples. I tried this with Yan Kit So's recipe below. It can also be made with sliced pork butt/belly, or with minced pork as in Barbara Tropp's recipe below. I've tried all these recipes with the following results:

- No canned pineapples. This tends to a) make the sauce too sweet, and b) mars the complexity of the flavours.
- No minced pork. This is a) difficult to coat and fry, and b) lacks the chewiness of sliced pork which adds a complex texture (crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside) to a complex flavour.
- Use 3 types of flour. Corn flour, with a tinge of water, makes the meat tender. Rice flour adds fluffiness to the batter. Potato flour/starch makes the batter crispy when fried.
Note that "corn flour" is called "corn starch" in America, to distinguish it from "corn meal" which is confusingly sometimes called "corn flour". Also, brown rice flour gives the batter a nutty flavour.


RECIPE 1: BARBARA TROPP


RECIPE 2: YAN KIT SO


RECIPE 3: MUM'S RECIPE, with tweaks from recipes (1) and (2).

400g lean pork shoulder or belly, sliced thickly
1 egg
corn starch
rice flour
potato starch

For the sauce:
8 tbsp water
4 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp soya sauce

2 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp chilli sauce (optional)
3 tbsp rice or white wine vinegar
1/2 tbsp A1 sauce or Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp sesame oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1" ginger, cut into fine threads
1 big onion, peeled and chopped into small pieces
1 cucumber, seeded and chopped into small pieces
2 tomatoes, chopped into small pieces
1 red chilli, sliced
3 stalks scallions, sliced into 3cm strips


1. Marinate the sliced pork with 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp sugar. Coat with 2 tblsp of cornflour. Add 2 tbsp of water and stir in one direction until all the water is absorbed. Beat in one egg. Knead thoroughly and rest for 15 mins or longer.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce by mixing all the ingredients for the sauce.
3. After the meat has been marinated well, coat each slice with a combination of rice flour and potato flour in the ratio of 1:1. Heat about 1 inch of oil in a wok until smoking slightly (180 degrees celcius). Deep fry one batch until cooked and crisp, about 4 mins. Remove and drain. Repeat until all the meat has been cooked. Add and heat more oil as needed.
4. Heat 2 tbsp of clean oil. Fry the ginger and garlic until fragrant, about 3 mins. Add in onion, cucumber, tomatoes, chilli, and scallions. Stir fry for about 2 mins. Then add sauce and bring to a boil. Adjust the taste. Thicken with cornstarch solution if needed.
5. Add in the fried pork and mix well. Or serve pork with sauce in a separate bowl. Garnish with cilantro and serve with rice.

Bon appetit!

You can be frivolous AND read the FT weekend - a Saturday morning post