Big Breakfast Salad From The Tummies' Kitchen

I shun places that serve breakfast all day; not because I think bacon and egg should only be served before noon but being in a room filled with (a good majority of) hungover people is not how I prefer to spend my weekend.

Well it is the weekend again so how about a slightly sinful salad with all the breakfast favorites? The list of ingredients that can go into this salad is an endless one; grilled tomatoes, sauteed mushrooms or even a few pieces of potato cakes are just some of the possible candidates.

recipe from the tummies' kitchen
serves 2 to 3 as a one dish meal
you'll need;
6 good quality sausages, poached until cooked, drained and set aside
4 to 6 rashes of bacon, rinds removed and cut into large pieces
3 tomatoes, cut into wedges
4 to 6 soft boiled eggs (4.5 minutes), peeled
a large handful of mixed salad leaves

for the dressing;
1 tbs of red wine vinegar
3 tbs of olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Prepare the tomatoes, bacon and sausages.

Fry bacon with a little oil until golden, remove and drain well.

Fry sausage in the same pan until golden all over. Remove and drain well, when they are cool enough to handle, slice each sausage at an angle into 4 to 5 pieces.

Peel eggs and set aside.

Dress salad leaves and tomato wedges with dressing, top with bacon, sausage and egg wedges. Serve with some chutney, tomato ketchup and mustard on the side.

Roast Hoisin Pork With Asian Slaw

Our next installment of carbless salad is a very versatile dish that can be easily altered to suit everyone's  taste.

Feel free to use shop bought char siu for an equally delicious cheat version or add some mung bean noodles to the slaw for a more substantial meal.

P.S substitute pork neck with chicken breast or beef rump for a halal version.

recipe from the tummies' kitchen
oven preheated at 200 C (conventional)
serves 3 to 4 as a one dish meal
you'll need;
600 g of pork neck, cut into 2 strips
2 garlic cloves, grated
2 cm piece of ginger, grated
4 tbs of hoisin sauce
2 tbs of light soy
1 tbs of Chinese cooking wine
1 tsp of sesame oil
2 tbs of honey for glazing

for the slaw;
1/2 a Chinese cabbage, finely shredded
2 carrots, peeled, halved crosswise and julienned
100 g of snow peas, topped and tailed and julienned
1 Lebanese cucumber, cut into thin strips
2 celery ribs, cut into thin strips to match the cucumber
2 spring onions, cut into strips to match the cucumber
1 bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
4 tbs of toasted sesame seeds

for the dressing;
4 tbs of light soy
4 tbs of mirin
2 tsp of sesame oil
1/2 tsp of white pepper

Prepare the marinade for pork.

Marinate pork neck for at least an hour.

Prepare the vegetables for the slaw.

Prepare the dressing.

Place marinated pork pieces onto an oven tray and cook in the pre heated oven for ~45 to 60 minutes, basting with the marinade from time to time. Glaze pork strips with honey using a brush during the last 5 minutes of cooking. Rest for 10 minutes before cutting into 2 cm slices.

Mix all slaw ingredients in a large bowl, add dressing and mix well. Serve slaw with pork slices on the side.

Baked Chicken, Chorizo, Chickpeas And Orange Salad

Too soon for another chicken salad? Well not if you are on the same no carbs diet like us.

To make our dinner more exciting and to stop the critic at home from saying "chicken salad again?" I simply have to play around with the supporting casts, that includes the salad ingredients and the dressing. Here I have embraced the flavours of Spain and North Africa, the result is a very satisfying one.

P.S substitute chorizo with pastrami for a halal version.

recipe from the tummies' kitchen
serves 3 to 4 as a one dish meal
oven preheated at 200 C (conventional)
you'll need;

2 chicken breasts

1 tbs of smoked paprika

1 tsp of cumin powder

1 tsp of coriander powder

1 tsp of sumac

1 tsp of all spice

3 tbs of olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

1 red onion, sliced

2 tomatoes, cut into wedges

2 oranges, peeled and cut into 3 cm slices

2 chorizo sausages, thickly sliced, panfried til golden and drained

1 can of chickpeas, drained

2 large handfuls of mix salad leaves

for the dressing;

1 tbs of red wine vinegar

2 tbs pomegranate molasses 

4 tbs of olive oil

salt and pepper to taste 

Slice chorizo sausages into thick slices and marinate chicken with spices, olive oil, salt and pepper for about 15 minutes or overnight if you plan ahead.

Prepare the red onion, tomatoes and oranges and set aside.

pan fry sausage slices with a little olive oil on both sides until golden, remove and drain well.

Pan fry chicken in the same pan until golden on both sides (~3 minutes/side) then transfer to the hot oven and cook for a further 12 to 15 minutes depending on the size of the chicken breast. Remove and rest at a warm spot, cut into thick slices just before serving.

Add chickpeas into the same pan and coat well with the flavoursome oil and pan juice. Remove and allow to cool.

Place mixed leaves, tomato, onion, orange slices and chickpeas and into a salad bowl, add dressing and mix well.

Divide salad into individual bowl and top with some chicken slices.

Just A Little Prettiness 13

I spotted a praying mantis outside the front garden, this little national geographic moment lightened up a rather dull moment of a not overly eventful day.

Coincidently I was reading an essay by Anna Krien tittled Us And Them, On The Importance Of Animal (Quarterly Essay QE45). A reflection followed.....

To my surprise there was another one hanging on the jasmine vine... ready to fight or mate? No sure but it was a pleasant surprise indeed. 

Snapshots From Melaka (Malacca) - "Malaysian Monday 78"

Tummy left the modern metropolis and headed for the charming town of Melaka (Malacca) for a day trip and here are some of the snapshots taken at this once thriving port city with rich and colourful history dating back to the mighty Sultanate of Melaka.

Melaka is thriving once more after being listed as a UNESCO world heritage site since 2008. Apart from its many historical sites dating back to as early as the 15th century, its rich and diverse culinary heritage is also a main drawcard for visiting tourists.

P.S I am doing some research on Melaka Portuguese food and I will be sharing some recipes with you soon.

Old shop houses are turned into charming eateries such as this chicken rice restaurant.

Another chicken rice restaurant serving chicken rice balls house in this charming Sino-Portuguese shophouse.

A printing company.

A library.

A beautiful ornate facade of one of the many historical buildings in town.

A small temple dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy (Guan Yin) on Jonker Street.

Appetizer of pickled papaya with crispy anchovies served at a Melaka Portuguese restaurant.

Stir fried wing beans with spices.

Tamarind prawns.

Portuguese curry dable chicken.

Baked otak-otak (minced fish with herbs and spices).

Trays of freshly baked pineapple tarts at a bakery.

Another variety of pineapple tart on offer.

Our friend Shannon from Just As Delish will be our host for the month of June, so please send all your entries to shannoncclim@gmail.com 

For more information about the event and on how to enter, please click HERE

Egg Noodles With Braised Osso Bucco In Hot Bean Sauce

Once again my dinner didn't turn out as planned - instead of risotto and osso bucco alla Milanese I had to come up with an alternative when I left out the aborio rice from my shopping list. 

This is what I settled for after going through both our fridge and pantry. We were both very happy with the outcome and I am very proud to share with you my  "mof mof" (mininum of fuss, maximum of flavour) dish!

P.S I might try to fit in another post over the weekend, if not please come back on Monday for a Malaysia Monday post.

recipe from the tummies' kitchen

serves 2 as a one dish meal

you'll need;

2 pieces of osso bucco

3 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

5 bird chilies, halved

1 piece of cassia bark

1 star anise

4 tbs of hot bean paste

4 cups of stock

3 tbs of light soy

2 tbs of dark soy

3 tbs of Chinese cooking wine

3 tbs of sugar

4 dried egg noodles or noodles of your choice, cooked till al dente just before serving

2 cups of bean sprouts, blanched just before serving

4 cos lettuce leaves, blanched just before serving

2 tbs light soy

2 tbs of garlic oil

1 tps of sesame oil

1 tsp of white pepper

chopped spring onion to serve

chopped chilies to serve

Brown osso bucco with a tbs of cooking oil on both sides and set aside.

Add another tbs of oil to the same pot and saute the garlic, ginger, chilies and cassia bark for 30 seconds.

Add hot bean paste and cook for a further 30 seconds before adding the stock and the rest of the seasonings.

Return osso bucco to the pot, cover and simmer on very low heat for 1.5 hours.

After 1.5 hours, remove lid and continue to cook until the sauce has reduced to half.

Cook noodles in a large pot with plenty of lightly salted water, meanwhile combine light soy, garlic oil and sesame oil in a large bowl.

Add drained noodles and blanched bean sprouts to the awaiting bowl with the soy mixture and mix well.

Divide noodles into 2 equal serves, top with some blanched lettuce (or Asian greens of your choice), osso bucco and plenty of the delicious sauce over, sprinkle with some chopped spring onions and chilies.