Baked Spare Ribs with Red Wine Lees

Apart from Hong Zao Ji(红槽鸡) which is one of the common confinement dishes that most confinement nanny would prepared. This Baked Spare Ribs with Red Wine Lees (烤红糟排骨) is also another simple Foochow(Xinghua - 兴化人) homecook dishes where red wine lees is used to marinate and bake together with the spare ribs.

Thanks to one of my cooking pal, Alice whom share her recipe and tips on baking this Foochow style spare ribs dish. This is indeed a keeper recipe and it is best to use spare ribs instead of the usual pork ribs for its tender texture and nice presentation. The adding of extra ginger juice here is to remove some of that pork odor as well as act as natural tenderiser to the spare ribs.

Ingredients: (serves 2 - 3)
600g Spare Ribs(排骨), about 10 pieces
2 Heap Tablespoons of Red Wine Lees(红糟)
1 Teaspoon of White Sesame Seeds(白芝麻), optional

Seasonings:
1 Tablespoon of Cooking/Rice Wine
1/2 Tablespoon of Light Soy Sauce
1 Teaspoon of Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 Tablespoon of Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon Fresh Ginger Juice
1 Teaspoon of Cornflour
Dash of Pepper

Method:-

1. Trim, rinse and blanched the spare ribs in boiling water for about 3 minutes. Rinse well and set aside. (this step is to allow the meat to absorb the marinate but it is optional)

2. Marinate prepared spare ribs with Red Wine Lees and seasonings till well combined.

3. Transfer mixture into a zip-lock bag and keep in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to an hour. (try not to marinate more than ah hour or else the meat will be tough)

4. Arrange marinated spare ribs on baking tray that is line with baking paper and drizzle some extra sesame oil on it before baking in preheated 180 degree oven for about 25 - 30 minutes  or till meat is cooked through (turning at least twice to get an even colour coating).

5. Remove the cooked spare ribs, arrange on serving plate and sprinkle some lightly toasted sesame seeds on it for that extra fragrant.


If you have NEW ways of using these Red Wine Lees(红槽) for cooking/baking do share with us your ideas or recipes so that we can keep these traditional ingredient and dishes going on.

Thanks for all your "BUZZ(s)" and support friends. Baked Spare Ribs With Red Wine Lees post has make it to FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 21st May 2011.(Here)

Featured On: FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 21st May 2011.(Here)

[30 Minutes]Tau Suan With You Tiao(豆爽油条)

Whenever you walk into a local hawker center or foodcourt in Singapore, you can easier spot a stall or two selling variety of desserts such as Red Bean Soup, Green Bean Soup, Black Sticky Rice, Ginkgo Barley with Beancurd Sheet, Ice Kachang and etc. Tau suan(豆爽) is also one of the popular item on the list which is a sweet Chinese dessert made of split mung beans which are steamed till soften before being stirred into a pandan infused water then thickened with either potato or water chestnut flour.

Last two weeks so coincidentally I have received about 4 request on this Tau Suan recipe which I thought perhaps I could prepare with some step-by-step photos to share this all time favourite hawker dessert with more readers who is interested in preparing this at home.

This dessert is served warm with crispy sliced fried fritter (you tiao - 油条) and the texture is kind of like porridge consistency where the bean appears in clear thick liquid. Whereas mine was a bit overcooked because I left it in the thermal pot while running some errands before having it a few hours later.

[STEAMING METHOD]
Ingredients: (serves 2 - 4)
100g Spilt Green Bean (hulled mung bean, 去壳绿豆)
2 Knots of Pandan Leaves
1 Litre of Water
Cane Sugar To Taste
1 Pair of Fried Fritter (You Tiao, 油条)

For Thickening:
1/2 - 3/4 Tablespoon Potato/Water Chestnut Flour
100ml Drinking Water

Method:-

1. Soak mung beans for at least 30 minutes in lukewarm water till the bean slightly expand.

2. Drain well, steam mung beans with a knot or small pieces of pandan leaves for about 20 - 30 minutes on medium heat till soft.

3. While waiting for the mung beans to be cooked, in another pot bring about 1 litres of water to boil, add in a knot of pandan leaves together with cane sugar to taste.

3. When the bean is cooked and soften, add it into the prepared syrup water and slowly stir in the flour mixture (mix potato/water chestnut flour with water and give it a stir before adding to the soup) to thicken the water.

4. Turn off the heat and ladle into serving bowls and top with fried fritter/you tiao.

Other than the common way of steaming the mung beans I have learnt another new way from a video on YouTube by Mr KF Seetoh from Makansutra Cooking. He actually fried the mung bean(soaked and drained) with some caster sugar till caramelised before adding it into the pre-cooked pandan water. Then he sweeten the mixture with sugar and thickened it with water chestnut flour mixture before serving.  According to his method the whole process of cooking takes less than 30 minutes so if you are interested you can take a look at the video HERE with cooking instructions and recipe too.

[STIR-FRIED METHOD]
Ingredients: (serves 2 - 4)
100g Spilt Green Bean (hulled mung bean, 去壳绿豆)
2 Knots of Pandan Leaves
1 Litre of Water
1 Tablespoon Caster Sugar
Cane Sugar To Taste
1 Pair of Fried Fritter (You Tiao, 油条)

For Thickening:
1/2 - 3/4 Tablespoon Potato/Water Chestnut Flour
100ml Drinking Water

Method:-

1. Soak mung beans for 10 minutes in lukewarm water till the bean slightly expand. Drain well and set aside.

2. While soaking the mung bean, in another pot bring about 1 litres of water to boil, add in pandan leaves together and simmer for about 5 - 7 minutes till the water change colour. (refer to the photo above)

3. In a non-stick pan or pot, add in drained mung bean together with about 1 tablespoon of caster sugar and fry over medium low heat till the beans are fragrance and caramelised. (according to Mr Seetoh this process will held to firm up the beans while cooking) Turn off the heat and set aside.

4. Remove the pandan leaves from the water, add in the cooked beans and simmer on medium low for about 5 minutes then season it with cane sugar/caster sugar to taste.

5. Lastly lower the heat and quickly stir in the potato/water chestnut flour mixture to thickened it.

6. Turn off the heat and ladle tau suan into serving bowls, top with fried fritter/you tiao and serve.


Overall I preferred the second method where you stir-fried the mung beans with caster sugar to caramelise it for that extra fragrance and colour. And it also speed up the cooking process without the need to pre-soak and steam the beans for at least an hour or so. And in this way, you can easily cook your favourite Tau Suan at anytime of the day in just less than 30 minutes time. If you can't find fried fritter/you tiao in the middle of the night you can always replace it with some ready to eat frozen prata sheet which can be reheat in a couple of minutes. So which method do you prefer, Steaming or Stir-fry?

Once again, thanks for all your "BUZZ(s)" and support friends. Tau Suan With You Tiao(豆爽油条) post has make it to FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 20th April 2011.(Here)

Featured On: FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 20th April 2011.(Here)

[April $20 Budget Meal] Cream of Cauliflower Soup and Ham and Egg Pizza Tart

So fast, another week has past and today we are into the 3rd weeks of April where Good Friday and Easter Sunday will be on this week. Till now I have not thought about preparing anything for our Easter Sunday compared to what I have done last year on the "Chocolate Hot Cross Buns" and "Nested Easter". So I guess I have to work hard on that and find some inspiration for our Church, Good Friday picnic special.

If you followed this blog, last Monday our menu was on Asian flavour such as "Five Nuts Soup and Steamed Dumplings with Assorted Vegetables". Today we are having something western which cost around S$8.60 for 2 - 3 servings.

Cauliflower can be roasted, boiled, fried, steamed or eaten raw. This is the first time I  am using cauliflower to make soup and I am really surprised with it's outcome which is so tasty and it is definitely a great way to hide veggies especially in kid's meal. For this version, I have omitted the cream and replace it with extra 50g of potatoes to act as a nature thickening agent for a healthier soup.

CAULIFLOWER SOUP

Ingredients: (Serves 2 - 3)
1/2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1cm Cube of Butter
1 Medium White Onion, roughly chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, Crushed
300g Cauliflower, cut into florets
200g Potatoes, peeled and chopped
400ml Instant Chicken Stock
150ml Hot Water

Method:-

1. Heat oil and butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic cook and stir occasionally for about 3 minutes or until onion has softened.

2. Add cauliflower and potato, stir and cook for 3 minutes.

3. Next pour in stock and water. Season with pepper. Cover and bring to the boil.

4. Reduce heat to medium low. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until potato is tender. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

5. Blend the soup, in batches until smooth then return to pan over low heat.

6. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until heated through. Serve with some freshly ground pepper.


Total cost for this dish is about S$2.50 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Cauliflower = S$1.00
~ Potatoes Onion = S$1.00
~ Chicken Stock = S$0.50

Here we give a twist on the usual thin crust or handmade pizza dough by replacing it with the crispy think layer of ready-rolled puff pastry sheet. This recipe makes each and every slices of your cheesy pizza with a delightful flaky bites. So why not give this a try and I am sure all your kids and friends will love this for a chance.

HAM AND EGG PIZZA TART

Ingredients: (Serves 2 - 3)
1 Sheet of Puff Pastry, partially thawed
1 1/2 Tablespoon of Barbecue/Pizza Sauce
1/2 - 3/4 Cup Grated Mozzarella Cheese
50g Shaved Honey Baked Ham
1 - 2 Eggs
5 Cherry Tomatoes, halved
1/2 Small Green Capsicum, cut into strips

Method:-

1. Preheat oven to 180 degree fan-forced and grease 1 large pizza tray.

2. Cut a 20cm round from the puff pastry sheet using a plate or bowl as a guide. With a small knife, cut a 1 cm border around pastry.(carefully not to cut through it as this will act as a border around the tart).

3. Place the round on prepared tray, spread inside circle with barbecue sauce and sprinkle it evenly with half of the grated mozzarella cheese.

4. Brush/spray border with oil. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until sides have puffed.

5. Remove tray from oven, crack egg(s) onto the center of the tart, top with shaved ham, tomatoes, capsicum strips and sprinkle with remaining cheese.

6. Bake for another 15 minutes or until egg whites have set and cheese is golden. Serve with prepared soup.


Total cost for this dish is about S$6.10 with breakdown shown below:-
Cost of Ingredients:
~ Cheese = S$2.00
~ Shaved Ham = S$1.50
~ Cherry Tomatoes and Capsicum = S$1.60
~ Puff Pastry Sheet - S$1.00

Making pizza is one of the interesting task for kids to take part in the kitchen. They can help to spread the sauce and arrange whatever toppings that they preferred while the adults can just stand by the side and help to supervise and place the prepared pizza into and out of the oven. And homemade pizza can be even easier with ready-made pizza base or with any interesting base that you can think of, such as:- Puff Pastry, Sandwich Slice Bread, Pita Bread, Tortilla Sheet, Baguette and etc.

Since our "Easter April Budget Meal"(click the link and scroll down for the details at the end of the post) theme is using egg as a main ingredient, I have added an egg onto my pizza tart which which it a twist to the usual pizza that we often have.

Thanks for all your "BUZZ(s)" and support friends. Cream of Cauliflower Soup and Ham and Egg Pizza Tart post has make it to FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 19th April 2011.(Here)

Featured On: FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 19th April 2011.(Here)

CLOSING DATE FOR [EASTER APRIL BUDGET MEAL] EVENT:

~ Monday, 25 April 2011, 2359 hours  and all entries will be compiled and posted on 30th April 2011.

Grilled Sasame Chicken Mid-Joints

Apart from the "Water Chestnut, Ginkgo and Lean Pork Soup(马蹄白果瘦肉汤)" (recipe HERE) which I have tried from the cooking show, here is another dish known as "Yong Ge Kao Ji Chi(永哥烤鸡翅)". This dish requires minimum ingredients such as light and dark soy sauce with garlic cloves as seasonings. And the end product taste great with a layer of beautiful char-grilled colour skin and lightly sesame fragrant that comes from the sesame oil and seeds.

Ingredients: (makes 8 Mid-joints)

8 Chicken Mid-Joints
4 Teaspoon of Light Soy Sauce
1 Teaspoon of Dark Soy Sauce
1 Teaspoon of Cooking Wine
4 - 5 cloves of Garlic, lightly smashed
1.5 Teaspoon of Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon of Sesame Seeds, optional

Method:-

1. Rinse and pat dry the mid-joint, make a small slit at both side of the joint so that the marinade will get into the flesh.

2. Marinate the mid-joint with light and dark soy sauce, cooking wine and garlic cloves for at least 20 minutes or more in the fridge.

3. Before baking, drizzling 1.5 teaspoons of sesame oil on the marinated mid-joints, toss well and arrange them on baking tray.

4. Bake in pre-heated 180 degree oven, on grilled function for about 20 20 - 30 minutes or till golden brown and cooked through. Alternatively;

5. You can bake the prepared mid-joints in oven toaster for about 30 minutes, turning occasionally between each 10 minutes to get that evenly brown colour.

6. Drizzle sesame seeds on the mid-joints at the last 2 minutes of baking time.


If you want to serve this as a one dish meal, perhaps you can used the de-boned chicken drumlets with thigh portion and serve this grilled chicken chop with steamed rice and salad or salad and fries too.

Another way of preparing Chicken Mid-Joint

Baked Sweet Chili Chicken, recipe HERE.

Thanks for all your "BUZZ(s)" and support friends. Grilled Sasame Chicken Mid Joints post has make it to FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 08th March 2011.(Here)

Featured On: FoodBuzz Today's Top 9, 08th March 2011.(Here)

[Featured @] Foodbuzz ~ Today's Top 9

Hi friends and readers from Foodbuzz, thanks for your all your "BUZZ" that makes "[Valentine's Dessert] Melt Your Heart ~ Strawberries Yoghurt Cubes" and "Orange Cinnamon Sorbet" being featured on Foodbuzz Top 9 on 12 February 2011 and 26 February 2011 respectively! And out of the 4,163 posts from the Foodbuzz Community, this Strawberries Yoghurt Cubes has make it way up to Top #3 as choosen by the Foodbuzz editors and users.

You can also take a look at the rest of the 8 entries from this link HERE. Once again thanks for all the supports as it's all your BUZZ that makes this happen.

"Orange Cinnamon Sorbet" being featured on Foodbuzz Top 9 on 26 February 2011.