Fried Korean Transparent Noodle with Vege

A delicious and simple recipe, this dish is adopted from the traditional Korean Cookbook I bought from KL.

Normally it is cooked with beef and vegetable. I didn't have beef at that time. So, if that happens, what Korean normally does is to substitute beef with pressed tofu for an equally tasty vegetarian dish.

I didn't have that either. Well, so be it. I improvised.

Korean transparent noodle vs Chinese glass noodle
Korean transparent noodle is different from Chinese glass noodle, it is more chewy. I can still vividly remember when I was 17, studying in British Council to 'upgrade' my English after SPM, one of my classmates was a Korean lady whose husband was working in KL then. We were so terribly bad in spoken English that we could only smile at each other as greetings then... until one day, as you can roughly figure it out by now, she invited me over to her house for lunch. Maybe she was charmed by my smile huh? I gladly accepted it. :-p

As a matter of fact, 4 classmates were invited, including myself (so my smile was not so charming after all. Haha... ). That was my first Korean dining experience. Traditional Korean dishes that were totally alien to me (not many people then had the privilege to dine in Korean restaurants or with Korean families, you know?) She cooked for us a few traditional Korean dishes, transparent noodles was one of them. I was telling CY that it was different from Chinese glass noodle and we must find it and cook it.

After cooking this, my memory was refreshed. We lost touch after graduation. I wondered how is she now? She was such a good host with superb culinary skill. Her grace gestures warm my heart with fond memory.

Serves 4

Noodles:

1 packet (250g) dried sweet potato starch noodles (soaked in hot water for 30 minutes, drained)
1 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs sugar
1 tbs sesame oil
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp ground white pepper

Vegetables:

1 onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
4 dried black Chinese mushrooms, rinsed, soaked in hot water for 30 minutes to soften, stems discarded and caps thinly sliced
1 carrot, cut in sections, then into thin strips
Some chives,, cut in sections,
1 scallion, cut in sections, then into thin strips
2 chili, cut in sections, then into thin strips
1 cup of bean sprout
1 tbs soy sauce
½ tsp salt
½ cup water

Method:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles for 8 minutes (see packing instructions). Drain well, season with the soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, salt and pepper and set aside.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in the wok, add the onion and garlic, stir-fry until transparent. Add the mushrooms and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Then increase the heat slightly and add the carrot, bean sprout, chives and chili. Stir-fry for another 2 minutes. Add the soy sauce, salt and water. Stir-fry until the vegetables are tender and the liquid has evaporated.
3. Toss the noodles and vegetables together.

Stir-fry Vege

When I learned how to cook as a child, Mom taught me how to stir fry first. This is really the simplest way of learning cooking. Sometimes, if we don't have time, we just stir fry whatever ingredients that were left in the fridge. :p

Stir frying is used to describe two fast cooking techniques: chǎo (炒) and bào (爆). Cantonese restaurant patrons judge a chef's ability to perform stir frying by the "wok hei" produced in the food. When food is stir-fried properly in high heat with garlic, it has a subtle smoky fragrance, i.e. the "wok hei". This in turn is believed to display their ability to bring out the "qi" of the wok.

Firstly, a wok is heated to a high temperature. A small amount of cooking oil is then poured down the side of the wok (hot wok, cold oil), followed by dry seasonings (such as ginger and garlic), then at the first moment the seasonings can be smelled, meats are added. Once the meat is seared, vegetables along with liquid ingredients (a combinations of soy sauce, oyster sauce, vinegar, wine, salt, sugar, and cornstarch) are added. The wok then may be covered for a moment so the water in the liquid ingredients can warm up the new ingredients as it steams off.

To keep the meat juicy, usually a cook would take the seared meat out before vegetables are added, and put the meat back right before vegetables are done. In some dishes, or if the cooking conditions are inadequate, different components may be stir fried separately before being combined in the final dish.

Make sure that your vegetables and meats are all cut approximately the same size - bite size, as a matter of fact. Stir-frying uses high heat, so pieces must be small enough to cook through without burning.

Learn the different cooking times of meats and vegetables. You'll need to stagger additions to the stir-fry according to how long they take to cook. For example, carrots need more time to cook than some vegetables like Bak Choi and peppers.

Don’t forget to STIR.

Ingredients used here are very simple: prawn, broccoli and carrot.

For the flavour, I used finely chopped garlic, a few slices of ginger, 1/2 tbsp Korean bean paste, some water, and soy sauce.

Easy right? :)

Ayam Sioh (Chicken with Tamarind & Coriander Seeds)

Ayam Sioh is a Nyonya style of cooking chicken that is not so famous as compared to Ayam Buah Keluak. It is chicken cooked with mainly tamarind water and coriander seeds. This dish is very appetizing and lovely. Once you have eaten it, you will never forget its taste.

My way of cooking Ayam Sioh is adopted from Nyonya Flavours cook book. This cook book is the result of two years of collaboration between the State Chinese (Penang) Association and Star Publication, of which, some of the recipes inside were handed down from mothers to daughters, through several generations. I reckon that this book has most of the Nyonya recipes than any other Penang Peranakan cook book in the market, some of which have never before been published or featured on the menus of Nyonya restaurants, like this one.
This is really a simple dish where anyone can prepare without a fuss. Recommended to cook this to impress your future in-laws too. However, you must prepare this beforehand to let the flavours infuse into the chicken.

Ingredients

3 tbsp oil
120 g shallot
1 tbsp yellow bean paste
8 drumlets
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
30g toasted coriander seeds, ground
1 tbsp tamarind sauce OR 1 tbsp tamarind pulp strained with 1 cup water
1 cup water
Sugar and salt to taste

Method

Heat oil, sauté shallot till golden brown.
Add bean paste and chicken. Sitr to mix well before adding the dark soy sauce and ground coriander.
Add shallot tamarind water and season to taste with sugar and salt.
Add little water and cook until the gravy is thick and chicken is tender, about 20 mins.

Note:
Always taste the sauce while cooking to make sure that the sauce is not over seasoned.

You can also substitute the chicken with duck to make Iteh Sioh.
I didn’t have the time to marinate the chicken overnight, will try to do so next time. But this time round is good enough to make you sing after the first bite, really!

Best Food Blog - Top 10 Finalist

We are thrilled to find out that Foodies’ kitchen is being nominated into the top 10 finalist in the best food blog category. Really never thought of going this far; we were just recording down moments of our culinary journey (be it successful or failure) in this special place where people can share our experience too.

Thanks Jasmine Yeo, for nominating Foodies’ Kitchen.

If you like this blog, & you happen to be from Singapore, please support us by nominating in the Singapore Blog Awards. Thank you!

你眼光独到！ ；）

Korean Seafood Miso Soup

I don’t know much about Korean food before watching the Korean Foodie show. As you have known by now, I am truly inspired by it and have been trying to cook whatever dish from the show that interests me. I have tried making stir-fried beef and Kimchi previously. Now it is Korean Miso soup's turn.

In this show, Lee Sung Chan (the lead male) likes to cook and eat Korean Miso soup outdoors with Jin Soo (the lead female). They eventually become a loving couple. Their secret formula? When you feel comfortable eating with someone else, you have found your other half. The soup, which has been heart-warming and fulfilling, bonded them together. Whenever Sung Chan cooks Korean soup, he would dunk in miso bean paste to make the soup base (during when I would be salivating...).

So, we had to get this Korean bean paste. Three weeks ago, we bumped into a Korean food mart in Tampines One & got it. Hence, today’s recipe. This recipe is adopted from a Korean cook book. After trying and eating, I would recommend everyone here to try this Korean Seafood Miso soup.

Ingredients

3-5 tbs bean paste (taste when add in additional 1 tb)
1.5 liters of water
1 cup of sliced cabbage Kimchi, about 120g with juice
1 firm to fu
10 Bak Choi stalks, cut into strips
1 bowl of mussels, cleaned and washed
Half a salmon fish head
8 prawns
Spring onions cut into 2 inch long
1 red chili, sliced
5 slices of ginger
1 small leek, white part only, thinly sliced
1 tbs of ground red pepper
1 tbs of minced garlic

Method

Pour water into a cooking pot. When water start boiling, add bean paste, garlic & ginger.
Add Kimchi, toufu & ground red pepper
Simmer for 3 mins, add in mussels & fish head
Cook for abt 5 mins until mussels open up,
Add bak choi & prawns
Simmer for about 5 mins, till prawns turn pink
Add spring onions, leeks, chili to garnish
When boil again, turn off the heat and serve.

Note: You can the amount of soybean paste you use and salt to taste towards the end of cooking time.

Korean Classic Cabbage Kimchi

“A man can live without a wife but not without Kimchi”, this is an old Korean saying. Even today, it is virtually impossible to find a Korean family without a clay Kimchi pots being buried in the earth or on the porch or balcony.

Kimchi can be preserved for a long time, its hot and spicy taste stimulate the appetite, and it is nutritious, providing vitamins, lactic acid and minerals. It is also high in fibre, good for maintaining a healthy bowel.
Red chili and garlic are the mainstays of the basic Kimchi formula, which calls for heads of fresh cabbage to be cut open, salted, and placed in brine. Later, the vegetables are seasoned with lots of red chili and garlic, and set to ferment.

Besides red chili and garlic, favourite Korean seasonings include spring onion or Korean leek, ginger, sesame oil, rice wine and soy sauce. After being inspired by the Korean show, we were set to make our own Kimchi. Following a recipe in a Korean cook book, this classic Kimchi is made with Chinese cabbage, chives, daikon radish and leek; it’s seasoned with chili garlic and ginger. For a sour Kimchi, cover and store in a cool place for 1-2days to ferment, then keep refrigerated for up to 3 months. Kimchi can also be eaten fresh.

Ingredients:
1 large Chinese or Napa cabbage
¾ cups (210g) sea salt
8 cups of water

Kimchi Spice Mixture
4 tbs glutinous rice flour
1.5 cups water (375ml)
2cm ginger, peeled and crushed
4 tbs fish sauce (can be reduced to 3 if too salty)
8-10 tbs groud red pepper
½ tbs sugar
1 radish, sliced into 2 cm strips
1.5 cups Chinese chives, sliced into 2 in lengths
½ leek, thinly sliced diagonally

Rinse the cabbage, remove 2 outer leaves and set aside. Halve the rest of the cabbage lengthwise. Rub ¼ cups of sea salt between all the leaves and place the cabbage in a large plastic tub or container. Add the remaining salt and the water. Place a big plate on top the cabbage to weigh it down and keep the cabbage immersed in a plastic container. Soak for 4 to 6 hours or more, until the stems soften, bend without breaking.

Before soaking

After soaking

To make the Kimchi Spice Mixture, firstly, make a glutinous rice flour paste by heating the flour and the water in a small saucepan. Stir constantly until it thickens, abt 4 mins, then set aside to cool. Once it has cooled, combines with garlic, ginger, fish sauce, red pepper and sugar in a large bowl and mix well. Add the chives and leek, mix gently and set aside.

After the cabbage has finished soaking, rinse the leaves thoroughly under running water. Fill a tub or container with fresh water and shake the two halves of the cabbage firmly to remove excess water and set aside to drain. Rub the Kimchi Spice Mixture all over the cabbage and in between all the leaves. Press the leaves together and place into a large airtight container. Top with the reserved outer leaves and cover.

Leave the Kimchi to stand unrefrigerated overnight or 1 day, then refrigerate.

Daikon Kimchi is an excellent accompaniment to noodle dishes like beef noodle.

MOF Japanese Sweet @ Pavilion KL

This outlet is opened by Singaporean at Pavilion, KL.
The price is not cheap for the local.

We tried this Mocha pancake, delicious! The Mocha on top was so creamy that one bite in your mouth, you want to hold it there for a longer time to indulge in its flavour.

We ordered Hazelnut latte and ice chocolate. The hazelnut latte was a big disappointment, it was very bitter and I had to order sugar syrup to add myself into the drink. The ice chololate was just ok.

This Mocha Zen was a killer. Surprisingly, it's sweet but not overwhelming, the Mocha ice-cream blended just nice with the red bean paste when eat together. Pop one white Japanese dumpling into your mouth, hmm... very chewy and yummy!