Fried Rice Noodles Topped With A Raw Egg 月光河 - "Malaysian Monday 26"

We have had some extremely hot days here in Melbourne (exceeding 35 C). Shopping for food was a big task and going to an internet cafe to do my blogging was an even bigger task in such extreme heat. Thankfully a light cool change made posting this Malaysian Monday post possible. This is an extremely simple noodle dish but one with a rather poetic name - 月光河 (pronounced yue guang he in Mandarin) literally means moon lit river. The noodles are supposed to resemble the shimmering river while the egg yolk represents the brightly lit full moon. This is my take on the popular hawker dish and I think it tastes pretty close to the one served at my favourite noodle stall.
I must also apologize for not being able to visit all your recent posts which I will catch up on one weekend when the internet problem is finally solved.
P.S I just remembered having posted a Japanese noodle dish with the moon represented by a raw egg - check out tzukimi udon (moon viewing udon)

recipe per serve
you'll need;
a handful of fresh rice noodles, mixed with 1 tbs of dark soy
150 g of chicken breast, sliced and marinated*
5 whole prawns
10 slices of fish cake
3 Chinese cabbage leaves, sliced
2 stalks of kailan, sliced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbs of oyster sauce
1 tbs of light soy
1.5 tbs of caramel sauce
1 tsp of sugar
white pepper to taste
1 very fresh free range egg
pickled green chillies and sliced bird chillies to serve

marinade for chicken;
1 tsp of light soy
1 tsp of sesame oil
1 tsp of Chinese cooking wine
1 tsp of corn flour

Have all ingredients ready.

Loosen the rice noodles and mix in the dark soy.

Heat wok and add in a little cooking oil. Add in the rice noodles and stir fry on high heat for a minute. Remove noodles and set aside.

Saute chopped garlic with a little cooking oil for 30 seconds before adding the marinated chicken and prawns. Fry on high heat for a minute before throwing in the vegetables and fish cake slices, continue to cook for a further minute.

Add noodles and seasonings and mix well, continue to fry on high heat for a minute. Check for seasonings.

Place noodles on a plate and place an egg yolk on top.

Mix in the egg yolk (it makes the noodles even more silky) and enjoy this delicious dish with some pickled green chillies and sliced bird chillies in soy.

My friend Sharon from Test With A Skewer will be hosting the first event of 2011. Please send all your  January entries to its.sharon.gmail.com, to find out more about the event please click HERE. 

Yam Muu Krop ยำปลหมูกรอบ Crispy Pork Salad

As promised I am posting another Thai dish using muu krop that is both very colourful and delicious. A lackluster version during our last Thai meal out prompted me to recreate this at home. One can really enjoy the contrast of texture and flavour from each mouthful, not to mention the joy of looking at such a colourful dish. Wash this down with a few cold Singhas or serve it as part of a Thai meal.

P.S Our phone company requires someone to be at home during working hours so we are still without internet connection at our place.

Serves 4 as part of a Thai meal

you'll need;

2 pieces of  muu krop (crispy pork) 

1 large granny smith apple*, cut into neat matchsticks

1 lebanese cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise and sliced

3 Chinese cabbage leaves, finely sliced

1 lemon grass (white part only) finely sliced

10 mixed cherry tomatoes, quartered 

2 shallots, sliced

1/2 cup of coriander leaves

a handful of mixed salad leaves

a handful of cashew nuts, toasted and lightly crushed

*or any other tart fruit in season

for the dressing;

3 garlic cloves, chopped

3 to 6 bird chillies (adjust accordingly), chopped

1.5 tbs of castor sugar

1 tsp of salt

juice from half a large lime

2 tbs of fish sauce to taste

Cut muu krop (crispy pork) into manageable pieces.

Prepare the rest of the ingredients and set aside.

To make the dressing - pound garlic, chillies, sugar and salt to a fine paste. Add lime juice and and fish sauce and check for seasonings, it should taste hot, sour, sweet and salty.

Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl, pour in the dressing and mix well.

I hope this will tempt you make some crispy pork soon! Aroy Maak!

Kaeng Khiao Wan Muu Krop แกงเขียวหวานหมูกรอบ Green Curry With Crispy Pork

After 2 rather disappointing Thai meals out I decided to take matters into my own hands. I made a  quick trip to the Asian shop after work to pick up some Thai basil and apple eggplants and made a very colourful green curry using some leftover crispy pork (muu krop) and butternut squash I had in my fridge. Roast pork belly from the Chinese restaurant can be a good substitute if you don't have time on your side. Come back tomorrow for another dish using muu krop which might tempt you to prepare some yourself soon.

P.S As food bloggers we all love a little "shout out" from fellow bloggers so when 3 hungry tummies was mentioned by New York Times Diner's Journal, it was a very humbling experience for a small time food blogger like me. It made blogging from the internet cafe a much sweeter experience today!  Thanks Julia!X

serves 4 as part of a Thai meal
you'll need;
2 pieces of crispy pork (muu krop), cut into manageable pieces
6 Thai eggplants, halved
1/4 of a butternut squash, cut into 2 cm cubes
4 kaffir lime leaves, torn
1 bunch of Thai basil, picked
400 ml of coconut milk (I used Ayam brand)
3 tbs of homemade or shop bought green curry paste
2.5 tbs of palm sugar
fish sauce to taste

Some crispy pork that I made the day before.

Prepare the vegetables and cut the pork into manageable pieces.

Heat up the coconut cream (the solid part on top of the canned coconut milk, so do not shake the can before opening the can) til the oil starts to split. You can only achieve this (cracking the coconut) with Ayam brand. Fry the curry paste in the cream/oil mixture for 5 to 10 minutes until a thin film of oil appears.

Pour the rest of the coconut milk into the pot followed by kaffir lime leaves and palm sugar. Bring it to a boil and add in the vegetables.

When the vegetables are almost done, add in the crispy pork and cook for a further minute before throwing in most of the Thai basil. Remove the pot from the heat and season with fish sauce.

Garnish with extra Thai basil, cut chillies and finely shredded kaffir lime leaves. I served the curry with steamed rice, a sunny side up each and cut chillies with fish sauce on the side.

Kari Mei Fen 咖喱米粉 Rice Vermicelli With Curry Broth - "Malaysian Monday 25"

Life is slowly getting back to normal at the tummies' and we are enjoying every aspect of our new home.  This is a dish I love to order at my favourite noodle stall back in Cameron Highlands, one can of course use any type of noodle with the curry broth. The same goes with the toppings; bean curd, char siu and roast chicken can also be added. I am keeping this a very brief post as it feels rather strange blogging from an internet cafe. 

P.S Thanks for all the well wishes and I am looking forward to visiting all my favourite blogs once the internet is connected at our new home.

serves 4 as a one dish meal

you'll need;

1 packet of rice vermicelli, soaked in cold water for 15 minutes and drained well

3l of stock

400 ml of coconut milk

3 kaffir lime leaves

12 prawns*

12 fish balls

8 stuffed bean curd skin

2 spring onions, chopped

2 sprigs of coriander leaves, chopped
2 stalks of mint, picked

3 red chillies, sliced

crispy shallots 

lime wedges to serve

sambal belacan to serve

*poach prawns with stock, remove and peel. Return prawn shell to the stock and simmer for 20 minutes, strain and set aside.

for the curry paste;

3 shallots, chopped

5 cloves of garlic

5 bird chillies, chopped

5 dried chillies, soaked with hot water until soften and chopped

5 cm knob of ginger chopped

2 cm knob of galangal, chopped

1 lemon grass (white part only), finely chopped

a small piece of belacan (shrimp paste), toasted

1/2 tbs of turmeric powder

1 tbs of Malaysian curry powder

sambal belacan;

3 red chilies

3 to 5 bird chilies

1 tbs of toasted belacan* (shrimp paste)

1 tsp of salt

2 tsp of sugar

juice of one lime

Blend everything in a blender and check for seasonings.

*to toast the shrimp paste - wrap shrimp paste in foil and place in a pre-heated oven for 5 minutes.

To prepare the curry paste - pound all spices into a wet paste and add in the turmeric powder, curry powder and toasted belacan.

Fry curry paste with 3 tbs of peanut oil for 5 to 10 minutes, untill oil separates.

Add reserved prawn stock, coconut milk and kaffir lime leaves and simmer for 20 minutes. Check for seasonings.

My choice of toppings.

Sliced chillies, chopped herbs, fried shallot and sambal belacan.

Blanch vermicelli and bean sprouts or noodles of choice and drain well.

Ladle curry broth over the noodles and add the toppings. Serve immediately with sambal belacan and a wedge of lime on the side.

My friend Sharon from Test With A Skewer will be hosting the first event of 2011. Please send all your  January entries to its.sharon.gmail.com, to find out more about the event please click HERE. 

A Quick Hello From Our New Home

Hello everyone! I must first apologize for my rather long absence from this blog. The moving went rather smoothly  and we are settling well in our new home that is twice the size of our old place. I am taking the rest of the week off from blogging as there are still quite a lot of work to be done. See you on Monday for a Malaysian Monday post!

P.S I have added a few photos while checking my emails at the internet cafe.

I have been cooking in our very large kitchen and loving every moment of it!

Work in progress for both our front and back garden. 

Moroccan Spiced Grilled Chicken (Djej Mechoui)

Just one more sleep before our big move; I can't begin to tell you how relieved I am with everything packed and the rain has finally stopped after raining non stop for a week. I haven't been cooking much but I did manage to find this dish that I cooked a while back. This is a very simple and delicious chicken dish that is also perfect for a summer bbq, that is if we are getting any nice sunny days at all. For those who are not very keen of dealing with a whole bird, chicken maryland will be a wonderful substitute.

P.S Internet at our new home will not be connected until the 28th but I will find  way to post regularly. have a wonderful weekend and happy cooking.

recipe adapted from The food of Morocco
serves 2 with a side salad
oven preheated at 180 C
you'll need;
1 free range chicken, butterflied
pinch of saffron threads
1 tsp of sea salt
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1.5 tsp of paprika
1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper
2 tsp of ground cumin
1/2 tsp of black pepper
1 tbs of lemon juice
1 tbs of olive oil
2 lemons
2 tbs of icing sugar
lemon wedges

To butterfly the chicken - cut of the back bones using a pair of kitchen scissors and flatten it breasts side up. Cut into 2 halves.

To prepare the marinade - pound garlic, saffron and sea salt into a paste. Slowly add in the other spices, olive oil and lemon juice.

Marinate chicken overnight or for at least an hour.

Grill chicken on a hot griddle to get the lovely grilled marks.

Finish off in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, rest chicken for 10 minutes before serving.

Grill lemon wedges on the hot griddle and set aside.

Sprinkle chicken with a little icing sugar and serve with a simple tomato, cucumber and onion salad.

Ipoh Hor Fun 怡保河粉 - "Malaysian Monday 24"

Ipoh is famous for many things; it's amazing caves, bean sprouts (yes mung bean sprouts!!), hor fun (rice noodles), lovely colonial buildings and beautiful women (Michele Yeoh being one of them). Apparently it's natural spring water plays a big role in it. We would go to Ipoh very regularly to visit relatives or simply to top up things that we couldn't get in the highlands, eating was a very big part of those visits of course. Ipoh hor fun was one those must have, being a greedy child it was hard to choose among all other wonderful food being offered then.

Another chilly night in Melbourne, bowls of homemade Ipoh hor fun should do the tricks for us. If you prefer the dry version check out my rice noodles with shredded chicken (雞絲河粉).
P.S This is a revamp of an early post I did when I first started my blog with step by step instructions.

makes 8 to 10 serves
you'll need;
1 free range chicken
1/2 kg of prawns
1 head of garlic
1 large onion, peeled
5 cm knob of ginger, bashed
2 tbs of rock sugar
4 l of water
white pepper and salt to taste
fresh thin rice noodles
bean sprouts
2 spring onion chopped
1/3 cup of cooking oil
1 head of garlic, chopped
3 tbs of hot chili flakes
1 tbs of sugar
salt to taste

Add onion, ginger, garlic to 4 l of water and when it comes to a boil add the chicken. When the water returns to a boil; put the lid on and turn off the heat, let the chicken steep in the hot broth for 3 hours.

After 3 hours; remove chicken from the pot and tear chicken into nice neat slivers. Discard the chicken skin but reserve the bones.

Bring the stock back to a boil and cook prawns for 3 to 5 minutes. Shell prawns and halve lengthwise, reserve the heads and shells.

To make the chili oil - Fry chopped garlic with 1/2 cup of cooking oil till golden, remove garlic and drain well. Add reserved prawns heads and shell and fry for 5 minutes, press the shells lightly with a masher, remove shells and set aside.

 Add chili flakes to the same pan and fry for a minute, add salt and sugar and remove from heat.

To finish the broth - add reserved chicken bones to the stock and simmer for 30 minutes then add the fried prawn shells and simmer for a further 20 minutes. It is ready when red oil starts to appear on the surface. Strain broth and check for seasonings.

We are ready to serve with everything now ready to assemble.

Blanch noodles and bean sprouts for 20 seconds, drain well and place in a large bowl.

Pour stock over and garnish with chicken, prawns, crispy garlic, spring onions and some of the chili oil. Mix well and enjoy!

My friend Sharon from Test With A Skewer will be hosting the first event of 2011. Please send all your  January entries to its.sharon.gmail.com, to find out more about the event please click HERE.