Recipe: Steamed Cream Dory in Light Soy Sauce and Ginger

My previous posts with regards to cooking with cream dory were mostly done using pan fry method. I love cream dory for its meaty but light texture and sometimes it's good to cook them with no oil. And so one afternoon upon surfing with Mr. G, I stumbled upon a blog post with this recipe - Steamed Cream Dory in Light Soy Sauce and Ginger.

Steamed Cream Dory in Light Soy Sauce and Ginger

Big thanks to Jammy of The Happy Tummy Kitchen for sharing this recipe on her blog :)

For the steamed fish:

3 cream dory fillets, sliced in serving pieces
a pinch of salt and pepper for rubbing the fish
1 tbps of sliced ginger strips
water for boiling

- rub fillets with salt and pepper, put them in your steamer and place the ginger strips on top and on the sides of the fish and steam for a good 10 to 15 minutes. Set aside

For the light soy:

1/4 cup light soy sauce
2 1/2 cups of water (or more if you still find it salty)
1 tsp grated ginger
more or less 4 tsps brown sugar
1 tsp oyster sauce (optional)
about 1/2 tsp of sesame oil to taste

- in a saucepan put all ingredients together, mix well and simmer to a boil.

For the garnish, just prepare:

about 1 bulb of garlic, chopped finely (half a bulb of toasted garlic will do if you're not really much of a garlic fan :)
about 1/2 cup of chopped spring onions

- saute the garlic in cooking oil until golden brown or toasted if you like. Then set aside.

To assemble the dish: put steamed fillets in a serving platter or shallow bowl, pour the sauce and garnish with toasted garlic and chopped spring onions.

My take on the recipe? It's definitely something new to my palate but I sure love the taste. And yes, the dory melts in your mouth and the ginger-y taste is great to serve when you need a boost of  healthier meal. Although most of us in the family find it cool to have tried it, they would still prefer those plain "rice meals." So if you think serving this dish would be appreciated by the bigger always-hungry-boys in your house, better think twice! Just an advice :)

Barclays Premier League 2011-2012: The Liverpool Edition

Konek!

Carutan untuk Liverpool. Sebab seri perlawanan pertama menentang Sunderland sebentar tadi.

Potong stim betul. Dah sexited berangan menang besar 3-0 bagai. Pastu boleh kau seri je.

Photo source

Khabarnya separuh masa pertama Liverpool bermula konfiden dan garang, Luiz Suarez membuka buku jaringan gol untuk BPL pada minit ke 5. Dan semua geng #YNWA saya di Twitter bersorak riang.

Oh dapat nasi ayam for moreh after terawikh. Hiks.

Gol Sunderland dijaringkan oleh Sebastian Larsson. I think I found someone to look out for during Sunderland matches. Daim cake yummilicious.

Jane! Kembali pada Liverpool. Astaghfirullahalazim. Macam mana boleh leka dengan Sebastian Larsson ni.

Dari kerana mata.

Sebenarnya, jujur saya ingin menyatakan disini saya tidak bersedia dari segi mental untuk perlawanan menentang Sunderland. Tak sempat saya nak sediakan apa-apa kata semangat untuk di hantar ke @LFC di twitter. Ini kerna saya ingatkan perlawanan Liverpool menentang Sunderland adalah pada hari Ahad.

E P I C  F A I L ! ! !

Tengahari tadi di Twitter saya berkesempatan bertanya pada rakan-rakan #YNWA lain tentang apakah impian dan harapan mereka untuk Liverpool FC pada 2011/2012 ini. Berikut adalah diantara respons yang telah saya dapat.

Maaf jika ada terlepas pandang tweeps geng #YNWA lain.

Rata-rata menyatakan harapan untuk top 4 dan kelayakan ke Liga Juara Eropah. Dan mungkin Piala FA?

Harapan saya? Saya berharap Liverpool akan sentiasa maju ke hadapan dan tolong jangan biarkan keputusan seri pada malam ini menjadi petanda kayu aras untuk performasi Liverpool FC untuk game seterusnya pada masa akan datang.

Impian saya agar Liverpool terus mara, walk on through the rain, berjalan terus walaupun basah kuyup dek hujan.

Still, suck balls sungguh bila seri ni. Oh well. I take the one point over nothing at all kan?

To the best season yet! You'll Never Walk Alone!

Recipe: Malunggay Iced Tea

I've written here before how to make a malunggay tea freshly handpicked from our vegetable garden. In addition, I also posted a recipe made healthier by adding malunggay powder to the dish. This time, I'll be sharing a successful experiment mom and I made (since we're all trying our best to live healthy), may I present to you our Homemade Malunggay Iced Tea.

Malunggay Iced Tea

Ingredients:

a pitcher of Malunggay Tea, refrigerated (click this post on How to Make Malunggay Tea)

10-12 kalamansi

brown sugar

honey

Simply mix all the ingredients according to your desired sweetness. Best serve with ice.

Mom and I have been trying to convince my younger brothers on drinking the hot malunggay tea but they wouldn't. After trying on this recipe and having those burst of sweet flavors and not telling them that it's actually malunggay tea, we've finally got them to drink and they actually love it! It's a cheaper and healthier substitute for those sachet packs of ready to drink iced teas. 

Food shopping tips to save more money

Intelligent shopping can save us extra money, time and energy. How well we shop is a test of our skill in judging products and controlling money. Here are some helpful tips I learned in doing the marketing.

1. Create a shopping list

To put the list together, start with your meal plans for the week. From there you can write down the ingredients of each recipe then check if you already have some of those (go over your ref, pantry and freezer). At this stage, keep in mind your family’s low-cost favorites so as not to strain your budget. Also add staples that are running low.

2. Once you’ve made your list, stick to it and stay within your budget. Avoid impulse buying.

3. Buy small or little if you ought to buy new products for the first time, until you decide whether or not it’s satisfactory.

4. When purchasing meat, figure out how many servings you will get per kilo. Half kilo of boneless meat usually serves 4 people. Sometimes their price may seem low, but could actually be expensive if the cut contains large amount of bone and other waste.

5. In buying fruits and vegetables, the largest size is not always the best quality nor the most economical. Buying by weight usually gives you the greatest value.

6. Learn the season

Fruits and vegetables in season, especially if grown in nearby areas are often low in price. They are at their peak in flavor, quality and appearance.

7. Use the store’s saving/discount cards. Always bring these cards, you’ll save a lot in the long run. Don’t hesitate to offer your card if the person paying in front of you doesn’t have a discount card. More than often, they’ll say yes!

8. Buy in bulk – by the dozen, giant sizes, the case. But if the food is perishable, or if you do not have sufficient storage space, buy only what you can reasonably expect to consume within a short time.

9. Look for special prices on purchases of more than one can of the same type of food. Buy such a food if it is one your family enjoys. And remember, no food is a bargain if it goes uneaten.

10. Always bring with you your grocery bag. Some supermarkets offer discounts when you bring your own bag, plus you’ll help save our environment too.

How about you? Share with us some of your shopping tips – those that saves time, money and energy.

Recipe: Pork Siomai

Without a doubt, Filipinos have certainly embraced this delightful Chinese dish. Inspired by a video from Monterey's recipe.tv, I tried my hands on making pieces of my own version of Pork Siomai. I added some dashes of thyme in the recipe for that added earthiness and I find this version a little too soft and juicy compared to others that are marketed outside, probably because this recipe uses ground lean pork.

Pork Siomai

Ingredients:

1 pack Siomai wrapper Filling:
½ kilo Monterey Ground Lean pork (kasim)
250 grams Grated and squeezed turnips
1 grated carrot
1/3 cup Chopped spring onions
1 Egg
1 cup Cornstarch
2 tsps Refined salt
¼ tsp Ground black pepper
1 tbsp Sesame oil
dashes of thyme

Procedure:

1. Mix siomai filling ingredients in a bowl.
2. Set aside in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
3. Fill each siomai wrapper with 2 tsps filling.
4. Steam for 8 to 10 minutes.
5. Serve warm with a dip made of soy sauce and calamansi juice.

Makes about 35-45 pieces (depends on the size of your siomai wrapper).

sharing with you the video that inspired this recipe...

Safee Sali Ke Bundesliga? Kau Biar Betul!

Gokhan Tore lawan Chris Lowe, dua pendatang baru Bundesliga yang dah rasa peritnya minggu sudah

Semalam kecoh bila pecah berita bahawa penyerang paling power dalam Harimau Malaya, Safee Sali dilaporkan telah mendapat tawaran dari sebuah kelab Bundesliga. Astro Arena telah pun mendedahkan berita ini yang dikatakan turut diakui Safee Sali sendiri. Bagaimanapun tawaran yang dikatakan itu masih di peringkat awal, katanya.



Kalau betul Safee Sali mendapat tawaran bermain di Bundesliga ini memang satu berita baik. Baik untuk Safee Sali sendiri dan bolasepak Malaysia secara umumnya. Cuma aku berharap Presiden FAM tak keluar TV buat kenyataan bijak berharap pemain Malaysia kekal di Malaysia untuk menyumbang kepada liga bolasepak tempatan macam yang pernah dibuatnya masa Safee Sali hendak ke Pelita Jaya dulu.



Macam biasa selepas pecahnya berita ini maka ramailah yang sudah mula mencongak-congak kelab Bundesliga mana yang bakal disertai Safee Sali (kalau betul berita ini). Ada yang meramal Bayern Munich, atau Borussia Dortmund, VfB Stuttgart, Bayer Leverkusen atau Schalke 04. Pendek kata semua kelab-kelab Bundesliga yang power. Tak ada siapa pula kot yang terfikir kalau tawaran itu datang dari FC Augsburg, SC Freiburg atau Borussia Monchengladbach pun sudah kira cukup kuar biasa sebenarnya.



Namun kelab yang paling disebut-sebut bakal menjadi destinasi buat Safee Sali ialah FC Koln, kelab Bundesliga berpengkalan di Cologne yang juga merupakan kelab penyerang kebangsaan Jerman, Lukas Podolski (tapi Podolski ini dah menghampiri ambang senja dalam skuad Die Mannschaft). Jika benar bagai dikata, bolehlah agaknya Safee Sali bergandingan dengan Lukas Podolski di bahagian serangan ye tak?



Tapi itu semua belum pasti lagi. Dan walaupun Bundesliga merupakan liga di mana banyak pemain luar Eropah tidak ternama diberikan tawaran bermain, ia bagaimanapun bukanlah liga cap ayam. Bundesliga memang terkenal sebagai salah satu liga yang banyak menghasilkan bintang baru bolasepak dari pemain yang langsung tidak dikenali sebelumnya. Dan siapa-siapa yang rajin layan Bundesliga pasti tahu betapa pantasnya permainan mereka. Purata pemain Bundesliga akan berlari lebih dari 10km dalam 90 minit permainan dengan corak permainan menyerang dan pesta gol yang merupakan perkara normal.



Setakat ini, kebanyakan pemain Asia dalam Bundesliga berasal dari Jepun. Antara yang paling berjaya ialah Shinji Kagawa, pemain tengah berusia 22 tahun yang Borussia Dortmund beli pada harga ciput sekitar EUR300,000 tahun lepas. Sekarang nilai Kagawa paling busuk pun EUR3,000,000 agaknya.



Aku sebenarnya kurang yakin Safee Sali ini 'Bundesliga material'. Ya kat dalam Asia Tenggara memang dia gempak tapi Asia Tenggara ni tahap mana je? Pemain Jepun boleh kot main Bundesliga tapi pemain Malaysia seekor pun tak ada yang main di J-League.



Mungkin betul Safee Sali bakal ke Bundesliga. Mungkin juga betul-betul bakal menyertai FC Koln. Atau mungkin yang sebenarnya Safee Sali dapat tawaran dari kelab 2. Bundesliga, yakni divisyen ke-2 bolasepak Jerman.



Bukan apa, Astro Arena ni duk pulun cakap 'tawaran dari kelab Bundesliga' tapi kena ingat Bundesliga ini ada 2 jenis juga.



Tapi, kalau dapat tawaran dari kelab 2. Bundesliga pun dah gempak habis sebenarnya. Suka hati engkaulah Safee Sali, yang penting kau glamer sebab benda yang bagus, bukan sebab Jejari Runcing atau Dahlia Teteck.

Recipe: Galunggong with Sweet and Sour Sauce

One affordable kind of fish that's very much available in the market today is galunggong or round scad in english. I decided to add a little more fun to the regular plain fried galunggong most Filipinos cook. Here goes my Galunggong with Sweet and Sour Sauce recipe:

Galunggong with Sweet and Sour Sauce

Ingredients:

5 pcs of galunggong

flour

half cut carrot, julienne

ginger, julienne

red and/or green bell pepper, sliced

onion, sliced 

garlic, crushed and diced

4 tbsp ketchup

2 tbsp brown sugar

1 tbsp cornstarch, dissolved in 2 tbsp water

salt

small can of pineapple chunks/tidbits

3/4 cup of water

cooking oil

Procedure:

1. Cover the galunggong with flour and fry until cook. Set aside.

2. In a hot pan, heat up oil and saute onions, garlic, carrots, ginger, bell pepper for about 10 minutes.

3. Add 3/4 cup of water and simmer for about 5 minutes. 

4. Add pineapple, brown sugar and ketchup and dissolved cornstarch to thicken sauce. Simmer.

5. Pour sauce over fried galunggong and serve.

some recipe ingredients