Pork Ribs Curry

I have an aunt who just cannot take coconut milk. Not that she doesn't like the taste, she somehow gets a tummy ache every time she takes it .... kinda like lactose intolerance,... you get the picture. But she, being a true nyonya, loves her curries and chillies too much to give up on them. I'm not too sure of my facts, but I believe she came up with this recipe all by herself and it became a great family favorite.

The die-hard nyonyas will have my head for cooking a curry in a slow cooker. Yes, I agree the aroma from the saute-ing of the ground ingredients may be lacking but I still think it tastes pretty good. You can always add in this step if you're a nyonya die-hard. Me, I'm a save-some-time

die-hard. Well, perhaps that might not be too true either, since there are periods when I'd do recipes "from-scratch". Fickle minded, that's me. But for now, it's save-some-time curry.

INGREDIENTS

500 g pork soft ribs / short ribs

8 - 10 fresh red chillies (this can be adapted to your preference)

4 onions, cut into wedges / 10 shallots (the more onions the thicker the gravy)

1/4 cup tamarind paste plus enough water to make about 1/2 cup thick juice

1/2 - 3/4 tbs shrimp paste granules / belacan granules

1/2 tbs pork stock granules (you can use chicken stock as well)

1/2 tsp sugar or to taste

1 cucumber, halved length-wise and then cut into wedges

soy sauce, to taste

METHOD

If you prefer a less spicy curry, remove the seeds and white membranes of half the amount of the red chillies.

Add these together with the onions / shallots, tamarind juice and shrimp paste granules in a blender or food processor. At this point, it's up to you if you prefer your curry to have a smooth or coarse texture. Puree the mix until the desired consistency. (We prefer it to be not overly smooth).

[Should you decide to saute the paste for that authentic nyonya-ness, heat a tablespoon or two of oil in a pan and saute the paste for a minute or so until fragrant. But you might need to add a little extra liquid (tamarind juice/water, about 1/4 cup) in the slow cooker as the paste would be drier.]

Plonk ground chillies mixture and pork ribs into a slow cooker. Add in stock granules and stir to mix. You don't need to add any additional water (unless the paste was sauteed) as the juices from the meat and eventually the cucumbers will make it just perfect. Cook on high for about 3 hours.

Taste to see how much sugar or soy sauce you need to add in and also if you need to add more tamarind juice** if it's not tart enough. Toss in the cucumber wedges and cook for another hour or 2 or until the cucumbers are soft but not mushy*.

*Note: My aunt likes to add the cucumbers right at the beginning since she likes it all soft and mushy. I like mine with a little bite.

** The tartness depends a lot on each batch of tamarind. Adjust to taste.

Serve with fluffy white rice.

Golden Passionfruit Jam

Such a lot of fruit out there these couple of months. So many varieties, so many choices. Imported and local. They all look so gorgeous, so tempting. I keep buying and then find out there's no space in my fridge ... sigh.

I mentioned about our homegrown strawberries in the earlier strawberry jam post and how amazing they turned out these days ... big, red and juicy ... good stuff.

Well, on Sunday, I visited our pasar malam (literally translated: night market. Check this out : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pasar_malam) and found some gorgeous homegrown golden passionfruits, also known as yellow passionfruits and also known as Lilikoi in Hawaiian. There were also the usual purple ones but these yellows were giving out the most beautiful, sensual fragrance ... I couldn't resist. (Apparently, the purple ones are supposed to be more fragrant and the yellow ones are the juicier but I guess the purples weren't ripe enough to seduce my senses). They aren't the prettiest looking fruits when ripe.

What I wanted to make with them, I had no idea at the time. I brought them home, stared at them for awhile, then decided I should turn them into something that will keep until I have some idea what I need to use them for. See, once you open up the fruit, the pulp and seeds don't keep too well. So, jam it is.

You may wonder why we use the pulp from under the skin. Reason being, there's tons of pectin in them! But don't overdo the amount since it does have a slight bitterness that may overpower the lovely passiony-fruity flavors :D

Oh, and if you should decide to blend the pulpy-seedy stuff, you may want to use a good blender and blade otherwise you will get some very sharp bits of seeds ... not nice. I leave them be ... nice crunch.

INGREDIENTS

10 passionfruits

juice of 1/2 lemon

2 cups sugar

METHOD

Wash the passionfruits.

Halve and scoop out the pulpy seeds. Put aside in the fridge.

Put half the quantity of the shells in a pot and fill with enough water to just cover the tops. Boil for about 30 - 40 mins or until it turns translucent and soft.

Drain & cool for easier handling. Save 1 cup of boiled liquid.

When cooled, scoop out the inner flesh and discard the papery skins.

Pulse in a food processor or blender until a smooth puree.

Add to reserved seeds together with the lemon juice, reserved liquid and sugar in a deep stainless steel pot.

Stir over medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved. Then bring to a boil.

Set timer to 15 mins and allow to boil slowly without stirring too much except for the occasional scrape or two with a wooden spoon to make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom and burn.

Skim scum. (Say that quickly 5 times :D)

Turn off heat and cool for 15 - 20 mins before ladling into clean, sterilized jars.

* Great as plain ol' jam with toast or use as a filling for pastry or a topping for cheesecakes, ice creams .... go crazy!

Red Velvet Cupcakes : An Opinion & A Recipe

Adapted from Best Cupcake Recipes

Warning: This is a very opinionated post

(Never write when grumpy)

Red Velvet ... another fad? Why not green velvet or blue velvet or some other velvet? I doubt any of those "velvets" will work for me .... I'm not into coloring. Now, maybe I should use beetroot juice to color these but will it alter the taste? I'm quite certain it will. A friend told me she had some made with beetroot juice and it was nice and she couldn't tell at all.

So why did I make these?

I had to, I was curious as to what all the fuss was about. I know it's been around for awhile now but I've never felt like I needed to make any.

I had some at a cake shop with a friend. The stained tongue, fingers and lips didn't really look too chic and the taste wasn't too out-of-this-world either. And then I tried it at another place, ho-hum. Just like any other cupcake, except the texture is nice and fine and the added buttermilk and vinegar made a slightly more interesting taste. I just had to search for a recipe and try it out ... just curious, you know.

This claimed to be one of the better ones. I tried it out. It's good ...... but ...

Nothing's wrong with the recipe. It's just me. Maybe I'm not a cup-cakey person, maybe the red color puts me off, maybe the amount of coloring used puts me off ...

Oh yeah, another thing .... ignore the frosting. I'm hopeless at piping. Practise, practise ....

On a less grumpy note, I've been wanting to feature this brilliant idea for awhile now ... cupcake wrappers. I can't remember where I'd got the template for mine but I prefer these to the ones that need glue to put together (notice the tab and slot). Just google for "cupcake wrap templates" and there are a ton of them for you to choose from. They have made my otherwise plain ol' cupcakes a little prettier.

And funnily enough, when things look good, they seem to taste a whole lot better. (Ahem)

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder

2 oz red food coloring ( I didn't use that much, I used abt 2 tbs and scared myself)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk, room temperature

1 tsp white vinegar

1 tsp baking soda

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180˚C. Line tins with cupcake liners.

Sift together cake flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste, without lumps. (Since I used less liquid coloring, I had to add a little water to make a paste). Set aside.

In another bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add in eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition.

Beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste until well mixed.

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, stir to mix well, then beat in half the buttermilk.

Stir in another 1/3 of flour then the other half of buttermilk. end with the last 1/3 of flour, mix until well combined.

In a small bowl, mix together vinegar and baking soda.

Add to cake batter and stir well.

Fill cupcake cups to slightly under 3/4 full.

Bake in preheated oven for about 20 mins or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Cool cupcakes on a wire rack completely before frosting.

Frost with your favorite topping.

* Here I used cream cheese frosting which didn't quite hold up in our humid weather and today was exceptionally hot, hot, HOT!!

Lemon Curd

Zesty, tangy, refreshing .... a great accompaniment to many desserts.

I actually had it with my toast this morning ... woke me up! :D

The people who enjoy this are surprisingly the men in my family. Funny, I've always thought men don't like sour stuff.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup sugar

225 g unsalted butter

finely grated zest and juice of 3 lemons

5 egg yolks

METHOD

In a stainless steel or heatproof bowl, put in sugar, butter, lemon juice and zest. Place bowl over a pot of simmering water until butter is melted. Beat well.

Whisk in egg yolks and continue to cook until curd has thickened ... about 15 mins.

Keep in a clean, sterilized jar.

Refrigerate.

*Note: This recipe makes a thick curd. Use half the amount of butter and 3 - 4 yolks for a less rich and runnier curd.

Plum Cobbler for July 4th

Fruit cobblers are as American as it gets. History says that it was concocted by early settlers in the USA when they couldn't get their hands on the usual ingredients for their suet puddings. And since July 4th is just around the corner .... heck, why not. I'm not pro to any country, my country's flag is also red white and blue, with 2 splashes of yellow. So where's the yellow? Umm.. how about the lemon rind in the topping?

And since I've decided to make this into individual servings, I've sort of un-cobbled the cobbler and turned into a spiral instead ... did you know it's called a "cobbler" because the original blobs of biscuits on a large dish is suppose to resemble the cobblestones on the streets?

In any case, this was delicious. We also had some lovely vanilla ice cream to go with it. That, will have to be another post.

INGREDIENTS

FILLING:

5 plums, washed, pitted and sliced

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 tbs cornstarch (you can reduce this to 1/2 tbs, I like my filling gooey)

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

TOPPING: (*Note: this makes enough dough for 2 quantities of the filling)

1 cup flour

1 1/2 tbs sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tbs baking powder

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

2 oz cold butter, diced

1 egg yolk

1/4 cup cream

1/2 - 1 tsp grated lemon peel

DUSTING:

1/2 tbs sugar

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

BRUSHING:

1 tbs cream

METHOD

FILLING:

Toss together all filling ingredients. Place in a deep dish and bake in a 180˚C oven for 30 mins.

TOPPING:

Mix together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, grated lemon peel and ground cinnamon.

Place flour mixture in to a food processor together with the diced butter.

Give a few buzzes until mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

In a small bowl, whisk together egg yolk and 1/4 cup cream.

Pour egg / cream mixture slowly through the food processor funnel and buzz a couple of times until just combined. Refrigerate until the filling is ready.

Remove filling from the oven, give it a stir and place balls of dough over the top, or in my case, I spooned the filling into individual ramekins, rolled the dough into thick ropes and coiled them around the top.

Brush with cream. Sprinkle with mixture of 1/2 tbs sugar and 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon.

Bake in oven for about 20 - 25 mins until golden browned.

Serve as is or with vanilla ice cream.

*Note: Since it's too bothersome to halve an egg yolk, feel free to double the recipe for the filling. Otherwise, refrigerate half the portion of dough until your next usage (not too long tho). Thaw well before using.

Apple Sauce & Memories

I remember when I was little, Mum used to take me to a place they called a "snack bar". It was a semi-sleaze joint where they also served great food. And when it came to good food, mum would turn a blind eye to the scantily clad girls hanging around half drunks who are trying real hard to hang on to their bar stools and not fall off. I guess I was too naive to realise what kind of "snacks" they were serving. Don't knock mom for taking a kid to places like these. She was a prim and proper lady used to champagne lunches and fancy joints, but like I said, she had a weakness for their food. And, I had a weakness for their pork chops with their homemade apple sauce. Where they'd got their chef from, I have no idea, since most of their evening customers don't even know what they're eating anyway. The lunch crowd was mostly office folks working around the area and we weren't the only family enjoying their good food during the daylight hours. Kids from the schools nearby, would be there for their superb milkshakes when school lets out. But when night came, it's forbidden for us to even be seen 100 feet from the place. What a turnaround. It was, um... educational.

Now, I was talking about the apple sauce they served with the pork chops. This was not from the can nor the baby food stuff that's bland and boring. It complimented the chops so well, and when they closed down (I wonder why?) I could not find another person who made it the same.

I'd made these to go with other pork dishes but I'd have to admit .... it's nothing like what I remembered. Sigh ... memories.

INGREDIENTS

About 1.5 kg apples (I used a mix of granny smiths and some reds)

Juice of 1 lemon

Peel of 1 lemon (large strips)

1 cinnamon stick (abt 2 - 3 inches long)

1/4 cup brown sugar (you can reduce this if you want it more tart)

1 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

METHOD

Remove core from apples, peel and cut them into wedges.

Plonk all ingredients into a large, deep pot. Stir to mix well.

Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and cook for about 20 - 30 mins.

Remove pot from heat. Discard cinnamon and peels.

Mash with a potato masher or cool a little and puree in a food processor. At this point, you can decide if you want your apple sauce chunky or smooth.

Serve hot or cold. Good with pork dishes or with vanilla ice cream. Or blend it together with your favorite smoothie.

Keeps well in freezer.

East Meets West Char Siew / BBQ Meat

I have to admit this isn't the regular Char Siew / Chinese Sweet Bbq Meat recipe. I had discovered this combination of ingredients due to a spur of the moment inspiration (also due to a lack of the proper ingredients in my pantry) and it seemed to work really well together. There is the super Chinese ingredient (Dong Quai/Chinese Angelica) and then there's the super non-Chinese ingredient, Liquid Smoke (I'm not claiming it's American, altho I was introduced to it in the States, coz I'm not too sure where this originated from).... hence, East meets West, and formed a great alliance.... world peace :D

There are many versions of this roast meat, even chicken meat have been used in place of pork for the non porky people but I'll have to say that it's just not the same. The fat in the pork belly is actually what gives the moistness and richness in the taste and of course the kind of "sweetness" that only pork fat can give.... yumminess!

Here goes ... some Chinese folks will be shaking their heads at this ... oh well....

INGREDIENTS

1/2 kg pork belly (not too fatty, skinned)

2 tbs hoisin sauce

2 tbs thick caramel soy sauce

1 tsp ground white pepper

1 tsp food grade rose water (it's suppose to be rose wine but I didn't have that)

1 tsp liquid smoke (this can be replaced with Worcestershire sauce & is optional, it's just to give it a smoky flavor)

1/2 - 1 tsp ground Dong Quai / Chinese Angelica herb (also optional)*

*(you can also substitute the Dong Quai with 5 spice powder altho it will result in a different flavor)

METHOD

Divide belly into 2 - 3 strips. (The thicker the strips the longer it takes to cook).

Put everything into a baggy, coat the meat well and leave to marinade overnight in the fridge.

When ready, preheat oven to 200˚C.

Remove strips of meat from the baggy, saving the marinade for basting. Place meat on parchment-lined baking tray. Roast for 15 mins. Turn meat over, baste with marinade and roast for another 10 - 15 mins. Remove from oven.

Heat a non stick pan or grill pan, brush the meat with the leftover marinade. Char meat a little or as much as you like, baste and char other side. Remove from pan and leave to rest for 10 mins before slicing.