Cold Tofu

This is one of my mama's speciality. It's healthy and simply to prepare, and best of all, it's perfect for the hot weather - very important criteria for a busy mother with 3 hyperactive kids. We usually had it for lunch, when the noon day heat made us cranky and restless.

The crunchy shallot bits were my favourite parts. It was a race against my brothers to be the first to scrap them off the top and spoon them into my mouth, before they soften in the sauce.

Now, it's the silky texture of the tofu that that I appreciate, and the cool taste in my mouth. It almost slows down time and calms me down after a stressful day at work.

Let's just sit back and enjoy this beautiful dish of cold fresh tofu.

Ingredients
1 block of fresh silky tofu

Garnish
Coriandar, chopped
Spring onions, finely cut
1 tablespoon of fried shallots
1 red chili, finely sliced (optional)

Sauce
1 tablespoon of dark soya sauce
Half tablespoon of sesame oil

Preparation time: 5 mins
Cooking time: None required
Level of difficulty: Easy peasy

Open the pack of tofu and drain off the liquid. Carefully transfer the tofu to a small serving plate. Mix the ingredients for the sauce and dribble over the tofu. Garnish with the herbs and fried shallot. Serve very cold.

White Wine Sangria

Anyone who likes fruit, put your hands up! I like, love and adore fruits, especially when it is in some kind of drink... like a margarita, a martini, pina colada... you know the type. 


Today, instead of making a typical fruit cocktail, I have done a white wine sangria. Not sure if it is classified as a cocktail but in my books, it does!

Ingredients
A good bottle of white wine, I use sauvignon blanc 
Small splash of ginger ale
A selection of your favorite fruits (roughly chopped), I recommend using apples, peaches, kiwis and melons
Mint leaves, pressed and torn


This is so simple, just place the fruits and mint leaves in a glass or a jug.
Add in a splash of ginger ale if using a glass or fill the jug up to 1/6 with ginger ale.
Top up with wine.


There you go, easy, breezy white wine sangria!
Have a great weekend ahead.

Caprese Salad

I recently changed careers and am now working from home. So lunch can sometimes be a little hassle. In Singapore, it is so easy to walk out and buy something from the hawker center or food court, but I do not like having a heavy lunch. It makes me very unproductive in the afternoon and since I work from home, it is hard to restrain myself from naps. So, I have been trying to be healthy and making a light meal for myself. 


Like today, a refreshing caprese salad made a satisfying lunch and then its back to work!

Ingredients
1 large size tomato - I am a big fan of the Japanese tomatoes
1 mozzarella di buffalo - this ingredient is KEY, use a good one please!
Basil leaves, freshly picked or from the fresh herb section in the supermarket
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Salt and Pepper


Preparation time: 7mins
Cooking time: none
Level of difficulty: Easy peasy

Wash and slice the tomato keeping a 0.5cm thickness and l

ine them up on a plate.

Slice the mozzarella di buffalo (it comes in a ball, drain the liquid and slice) and place on top of the tomatoes.

For the basil leaves, press each leaf to release its flavours before tearing them into small pieces and scatter them on top of the mozzarella.

Drizzle some olive oil on top and sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste.

I have my balsamic vinegar on the side as not everyone likes it. However, you can lightly drizzle it with the olive oil if you are a fan. Enjoy! 

Thai Calamari Salad

I have a love-hate relationship with calamari. I love the taste and tender texture of well-prepared calamari. For some strange reasons, it always evokes thoughts of the Amalfi Coast in Italy... Strange because I'm sure that I didn't have any squid when I was there. Perhaps I associate good calamari with warm fuzzy thoughts of Italy. Ahhh, Italy.... *sigh*

But I hate calamari when its texture becomes rubbery. Like microwaved calamari rings or squid that we find with fried noodles in Singapore. I can't figure out whether it is due to overcooking (my theory) or undercooking (le Monsieur's theory). Never mind, one look at the succulent white rubber band would send me shuddering for the rest of the meal. *shivers*

This Thai calamari salad has never failed me. Scoring the insides of the calamari makes the tough interior less tough and chewy. You know it's perfectly cooked when it curls up. Not too overcooked or undercooked, just well-cooked and tender - the way calamari is meant to be enjoyed.

Thai Calamari Salad - serves 2
Ingredients
2 cleaned calamari
2 japanese cucumber, sliced thinly
2 red shallots, diced finely
1 handful of coriander, cut finely
Cooking oil

Dressing sauce
1 red chili, deseeded and diced finely
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Juice of 1 green lime
1 teaspoon of sugar (optional)

Preparation time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins

Put the cucumber, shallots and coriander in a big bowl. Leave to chill in the fridge. In a small mixing bowl, mix the ingredients for the dressing sauce. If using sugar, stir until all the sugar has been dissolved. Set aside.

Open up the calamari, cut into 2 pieces. Score the inside of the calamari in a crisscross pattern. and slice into 3 cm strips.

Heat up some cooking oil in a frying pan on high heat. When hot, place the calamari, score-side down, on the pan and cook until golden and crispy on the edges. Flip over and cook until curled. Remove from heat and add into the bowl with cucumber, shallots and coriandar. Toss quickly with dressing sauce.

Serve immediately. To make it into a meal, you may serve with a bowl of steaming white rice.

Clams in White Wine Sauce

"Can we have seafood for dinner please? I have enough of curry and meat. The food in India is too heavy", says my husband over the phone. He was boarding the plane from India on his way home, after 3 weeks. Seafood.... I could do something with fish or prawns...hmmmm... But I wanted to make something special (special usually involves alcohol) and yet, light.


This dish, totally inspired by the menu from Brussels Sprouts came to mind. Clams in white wine sauce, with sauce you can practically drink! Here's how to start.

Ingredients
1 packet fresh clams (I used 1kg for 2 people), washed
4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 yellow onion, sliced thinly
150g cherry tomatoes, washed and kept whole
Handful of thyme and basil
3/4 cup chicken stock
White wine to top up
Olive oil

Preparation time: 10 mins 

Cooking time: 20 mins
Level of difficulty: Easy peasy

Heat some olive oil in a deep saucepan.

Add the garlic and onions, stir until brown.

Add in the tomatoes, thyme and chicken stock, stir and cover.

Once the stock starts to simmer, add in clams and white wine until the clams are just covered by the wine. Cover and wait until you see the clams open.

Uncover, stir, tear in basil, leave to simmer for an additional 2-3mins and serve in a bowl with a fresh baguette.  

If you prefer a thicker texture to the sauce, you can add some cream into the sauce just before serving.

The sauce is very tasty and if you are not too careful, slurping up the whole pot might just get you drunk! 

Forbidden Food

Medium rare is not allowed

While in Tokyo, I went out to dinner with a few female colleagues. Of the 6 Japanese who were at the table, 3 of them had worked overseas for a few years (USA, Germany and Thailand). Besides me, there were a 3 colleagues from France, one based in Malaysia, one in Japan and the last from France. So it was a very international and interesting group, and I felt privileged to be a part of it that night.

Our conversation revolved around many topics, sharing our very different cultures and work experiences with each other but it invariably went to food. One of the French ladies was pregnant - she told us that she could not take sushi or drink any alcohol, something which was very difficult for her since she loved raw fish. The Japanese women exclaimed astonishment, they ate raw food and drank (in moderation, one quickly added) all through pregnancy. How can we avoid sushi, another woman exclaimed. This is Japan!

Sake labels outside an izakaya

Apparently French women were told to avoid non-pasteurised cheese and raw food all through pregnancy. Cigarettes, caffeine and alcohol were out of bounds too.

I remember an American friend telling me that she had to avoid a long list of food, including fishes with high mercury content. She carried the list around with her and showed it to the waiter in every restaurant that we went to. It must have been common practice in the US, for all the waiters handled her questions professionally and in a knowledgeable way.

Besides the usual cigarettes, caffeine and alcohol, I don't know if there are any taboo foods for expectant mothers in Singapore. My mother is often "blamed" for taking too much dark soya sauce when I was in her tummy because I turned out dark-skinned and have a dark birthmark on my body. My sister-in-law avoided all dark-coloured foods throughout both her pregnancies. My niece and nephew were indeed fair-skinned and extremely cute.

What forbidden foods are there for expectant mother? Are they scientifically proven or just old wives' tales?

Dumplings, Korean Style

Dumplings!

A friend once called dumplings a mouthful of meat and that's exactly what these Korean inspired dumplings are not!

I've mixed some silky tofu and kimchi in the minced meat to refine the texture and charge up the taste factor. And they are really a mean mouthful of goodness now. Try it, and you'l know what I mean.

Dumplings, Korean Style - makes 20-25
Ingredients
300g minced pork
200g silky tofu
200g kimchi, sliced into small pieces (squeeze out as much liquid as you can)
1 egg
Dumpling wrappers (the white ones are preferable to the yellow "wantan" ones for this)
Chinese 5 spice power
Soya sauce
Sesame oil

Dipping sauce
1 tablespoon of soya sauce
1 tablespoon of mirin
A few stalks of chives, cut finely

Preparation time: 25 mins
Cooking time: 10 mins
Level of difficulty: Easy peasy

Marinate the minced pork with soya sauce, sesame oil and a big dash of Chinese 5 spice sauce. Leave in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Mix the pork, tofu and kimchi in a big mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, beat an egg and add this to the minced pork mixture.

With dry clean hands, peel off 1 dumpling wrapper and put a tablespoon of the minced mixture in the middle, leaving some space around the edges. Quickly moisten the edges with a little water and fold into a semi-circle. Check that there are no air bubbles trapped inside or it will break the wrapper when cooking.

Arrange in a steamer and steam for around 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the dipping sauce by mixing the ingredients together. Serve immediately.

Mushroom Soup without the Cream

I love mushroom soup and usually, the creamier the better! But after hitting 30, the declined metabolism rate started to take effect and indulging in sinful delights were no longer a regular event. 2 options: I had to control what I ate or make healthier alternatives (strike out first option).


So this is one recipe that has gone through modifications and proven a success. But still not sin-free....enjoy!


Ingredients - Serves 4
10g dried porcini mushrooms
250ml hot water
50g butter
1 medium red onion, chopped
4 small shallots, chopped
1 medium size potato, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
350g swiss mushrooms, chopped
750ml chicken stock or vegetable stock if you prefer
2 thyme sprigs
6 large basil leaves
90g low fat sour cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt to taste
Olive oil to drizzle

Preparation time: 20 mins (without marinating time of 4 hrs)

Cooking time: 40 mins
Level of difficulty: Easy peasy

Put the porcini mushrooms in a bowl and pour in the hot water. Leave to soak for 10mins.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large saucepan and once melted, add in the onion, shallots, potato, celery, garlic and stir. 
Once the vegetables are coated with the butter, reduce heat to low, cover the saucepan and let the vegetable simmer, stirring occasionally for 5mins.
Add mushrooms into the saucepan and cook for 3mins. 
Add in the stock, thyme sprigs and porcini mushrooms (including water) and slowly bring to a boil.
Once it starts to boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 15mins.
After that, uncover and remove the thyme sprigs (you can bin them now).
Let the mixture cool slightly.
Once cooled, pour the mixture into a large blender (or u need to do this in batches) and whizz in pulse mode. 
Before it reaches the texture you like, add in salt, lemon juice and sour cream, whizz until final texture is achieved.
Pour into 4 separate bowls, tear some basil leaves into the soup and sprinkle some pepper on top.
Lastly, drizzle on some olive oil to finish.