MELT IN THE MOUTH BUTTER COOKIES

I love Butter Cookies

 I am very particular with the flavour/Brand

of butter

I will not bake Butter Cookies or Butter Cakes

if I cannot find the brand that I want

Christine's Recipe

is easy to follow
and Butter Cookies melt in the mouth

150g plain flour

30g corn flour

20g custard powder

1 tsp baking powder

160g butter, softened to room temp.

50g icing sugar

Method:

1) sift flours together with baking powder

2) cream butter & sugar until pale

3) fold flour into cream

4) roll dough flat 1/4" thick between 2 sheets plastic

5) chill for 15min, cut into shapes

6) bake in preheated oven of 180'C for 15min

7) remove from oven & let it sit of 5min - 

     too soft to handle!

8) let cool & keep in air tight containers

CHOW PORK RIBS

This is a simple steaming dish

'Chow' is spoken in Foochow
 It is red rice wine residue
collected after wine is extracted from the batch

Using 'Chow' or red rice wine in cooking

is authentic to the Foochow

Be it chicken, pork or even fish 

They have different ways of cooking them with 'Chow'

After a hard days' work

cooking a meal can be quite tedious

You can steam this dish while cooking your rice 

just as easy as that

6-8 Pieces of pork ribs

1/2" ginger, cut into strips

1 tsp chow (red wine residue)

2 Tbsp red rice wine

salt, sugar, soya sauce & pepper to taste

1/4 tsp corn starch 

Method:

1) combine all 

2) steam for 15-20min or until rice is cooked

Variation:

1) How about trying it out with pork belly instead?

2) I am sure you will like it if you cook with chicken

Happy Trying

ACAR

Another Nonya Dish

involves a lot of cutting

The joy is when the dish come together finally

I am not really a fan of Acar

My passion for trying my hands on cooking Nonya food 

has brought this Acar in front of you and me

Simply love the colour and the taste

with special thanks to

http://justasdelish.com/penang-acar/

Ingredients:

300g cucumber, cut lengthwise into 1"

150g Cabbage, roughly tear into pieces

50g carrots, cut into 1"

50g long beans, cut into 1"

50g pineapple, cut into 1' (optional)

1Tbsp salt

1.5 Tbsp sugar, or to taste

3 Tbsp cooking oil

50ml rice vinegar

50ml water

2 Tbsp white sesame seeds, roasted

50g roasted peanuts, ground

Spice Paste:

6 shallots

2 fresh chillies

4 dried chillies

1 tsp tumeric powder

2 candlenuts (optional)

Method:

1) mix all vegetables with 1 Tbsp salt, leave aside for 30min

2) blend spice paste in a food processor

3) heat oil in wok & fry spice paste until fragrant

4) add vinegar , water, salt & sugar to taste, bring to boil

5) off fire and add sesame seed, peanuts & vegetables & fry

6) dish out & let cool

7) acar tastes best after leaving it overnight

8) keep chilled, can last at least 4 weeks

AVOCADO YOGHURT DRINK

A Smooth and Healthy Drink

At 

Any time of the Day

1/2 avocado

1 green apple, juiced

1 Tbsp yoghurt

honey to taste

cold water

Method:

Blend all ingredients together

Thank you Ann for the idea

SIMPLE FRENCH ONION SOUP

French Onion Soup is liked by many

Ingredients are few 

and

easy to prepare

The only draw back is the long cooking time

about 2 hours

1000g big onions, sliced

1000ml stock, beef, chicken or vegetable

1/2 Tbsp butter

1 Thsp cooking oil

Freshly ground pepper & salt to taste

Method:

1) melt butter in a skillet, add cooking oil

2) add onions, sprinkle salt & pepper

3) cover & cook at medium heat 

4) stirring occasionally until onion caramelized (abt 45min)

5) when onions reach a dark brown colour, pour in the stock

6) when the broth boils, lower heat & simmer for at least 1/2 hour

Cooking in the skillet

colour gets darker

Notes:

1) Star anise or cinnamon can be added to enhance the flavour

     if beef stock is used

2) Wine or Brandy can be added to chicken stock to increase the flavour

AGAR AGAR CENGDOL

A simple dessert liked by many

especially on a hot day

The lines on top is drizzled with thick Gula Melaka syrup

10g agar agar powder

800g water

90g sugar

2 pandan leaves

200g santan

250g cengdol

Method:

1) boil water, pandan leaves, sugar & agar agar powder until dissolved

2) discard pandan leaves, add santan & cengdol

3) strain and pour into moulds

4) leave in fridge to cool

5) serve cold

STEAMED SAGO KELAPA

This is the easiest Nonyo Kuih

If you like sago

you will like this dessert

250g sago, soaked 1 hour, drained

200g grated coconut

120g sugar

30g santan

1) combine all 4 ingredients and divide into 3 portions

2) steam the 1st portion in a geased 7" pan for 10min

3) add 2 drops of colouring & 1/4 tsp salt to 2nd portion

    (can use pandan juice for colour & flavour but the colour is not as bright)

4) pour over bottom layer & steam 10min

5) 3rd portion remain white to give contrast in colour

6) when 2nd layer is ready, pour 3rd layer on top & steam 10min to cook

7) leave to cool completely before cutting

NONYA KUIH TALAM CENGDOL

This is another typical Nonya Kuih

made with santan and gula melaka

The texture is like Kuih Talam

but it has a stronger taste 

of Gula Melaka

Bottom Layer:

100g Gula Melaka

50g caster sugar

350g water & 2 knotted pandan leaves

60g rice flour

25g green pea flour

1.5 Tbsp tapioca flour

100g thick coconut milk

1/4 tsp lye water (kan sui)

Top Layer:

1.5 Tbsp tapioca flour

30g rice flour

15g green pea flour

150g thick coconut milk (sieved)

200g water

2 Tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

200g cengdol, drained

Method:

For bottom layer

1) cook sugar, gula melaka, water & pandan leaves until sugar dissolves, strain the syrup into a pot

2) combine the rest of the dry ingredients & sieve into the pot

3) cook over low heat until mixture thickens slightly

4) pour into a greased 8" pan, steam over boiling water 15min

For Top Layer

1) sieve flours into the mixture of water & coconut milk

2) add sugar & salt

3) cook over low heat until sugar dissolves & mixture thickens

4) off heat & add cengdol, do not stir too vigorously or else cengdol will break

5) pour over brown layer & steam another 15min

6) remove & cool for 5 hours before cutting

    I cut mine too early so did not get a nice cut!

Recipe adapted from:'hungrygowhere.com'

QQ KUIH

QQ is the texture

Not too soft

Just nice to hold in your fingers

150g glutinous flour
40g wheat flour

15g tapioca flour

125g sugar

200g water (from water boiled in pandan leaves)

1/2 tsp strawberry paste (for flavour)+some water

50g soya bean, toasted & ground to powder for dusting

Method:

1) sift flours into a bowl, and add sugar, mix well
2) pour water into the dry ingredients, stir to form a thick batter
3) pour batter into a 9" grease tray
4) steam for 15min
5) once removed from heat, brush with the strawberry paste
6) let cool 10min before rolling up into a cylinder
7) dust with soya bean powder & cut into bit size pieces

Special thanks to Ann
for sharing the recipe

FOOCHOW TANG YUAN ( SI YANG)

' SI YANG ' 
in Foochow dialect is 'Tang Yuan'

These are prepared during 'Deong Zai',

to mark the beginning of winter season.

How this is done according to Foochow custom?
My mom still follows very strictly.

On the night before the 22nd day of last month of the Chinese Calender,
she will gather her grandchildren,
sitting together to make these round rice balls.

These rice balls are then left in a tray overnight
and
to be cooked for breakfast the next morning.

The children will have a fun time
playing with the dough
and 
eating some of the goodies she prepared,
like oranges, biscuits and sweets.

She has been doing this every year.
Now, the grandchildren are away overseas,
she still does it with the 'youngest' daughter and daughter-in-law
who stay with her!

As she makes the rice balls
she will sing this olden childhood song in Foochow:

A simple song
but full of meaning, she says.

If you are a Foochow
you may know how to sing this song too.

Tang Yuan or Si Yang are little round rice balls
which signify complete & togetherness.

As such, these are also cooked for special occasions 
like Weddings or New Year Re-union too.

My mom
is among the older generation 
who believes that
it is a way of showing filial piety by giving the parents 
these little glutinous balls
called Si Yang

Instead of serving these glutinous rice ball in sweet ginger/pandan syrup,

Foochow people like to serve them DRY

Soya bean is first fried and then ground into powder
with sugar being added to give sweetness.

This is used as a dusting powder for the glutinous rice balls

to prevent them from sticking together

Soya Bean powder (SI HOON) Recipe

200g soya bean fried in a kuali

                           or baked in oven for 30min @150'C turning at least twice

When the beans are cooled, ground to powder

& kept in an airtight container to be used later
Sugar is then added to give sweetness

SI YANG Recipe

100g glutinous flour

90g water

1) make a well in the flour

2) slowly mix in water to form a soft dough, not sticky dough!

3) form into a ball, cover & left aside for 2 hours or refrigerate overnight

4) roll into small balls

5) cook in boiling water until the SI YANG floats

6) mix 10 Tbsp soya bean flour & 10 Tbsp castor sugar

7) drain the glutinous ball & pour into the soya bean mixture to coat

8) serve hot