No-Frills Recipes ... cooking, baking & excerpts on travel

Other than fried egg or omelette, this is my to go recipe when I'm pressed for time to prepare dinner.  With only a few simple ingredients at hand, one can whip up this healthy tofu dish topped with savoury and fragrant dried shrimps and crispy garlic.  A highly recommended dish for busy on-the- go mothers!



Garlicky shrimp steamed tofu ~  蒜蓉蝦米蒸豆腐 Ingredients 1 packet silky tofu 3 tsp dried shrimps 4 pips garlic, chopped Dark and light soya sauce to taste sesame oil chopped chilli to garnish
Method Saute the chopped garlic with some oil Add in the dried shrimps and stir-fry till fragrant Add in the dark and light soya sauce, dish out Place the tofu onto a heatproof plate Steam over medium heat for 5 mins. Remove excess water from the plate Pour the garlic dried shrimp mixture on top of the tofu Drizzle on some sesame oil Garnish with choppoed chillies Serve

I had always wanted to make a Swiss Roll but have been procrastinating for a long time as I doubt whether I can master the art of rolling the cake.  After seeing so many pretty Hurricane Swiss Roll posts on Facebook  and blogs, the temptation was too great to resist.  So here's my first attempt at a roll cake.


Hurricane Swiss Roll with Strawberry jam ~  飓风蛋糕卷
 (adapted from 'here' .  Please visit this site for illustrated pictures on how to achieve the 'Hurricane' pattern)
Ingredients (A)
4 egg yolks60 gm caster sugar30 ml milk30 ml canola oil1 tsp vanilla70 gm plain flour, sifted1 Tbsp cocoa powderStrawberry jam or any other jam of your choice(B)  4 egg whites, 50 gm caster sugar
Method Line a 10" x 10" square pan with parchment paper, set aside.In a bowl, mix egg yolks, sugar, milk, oil, vanilla with a ball whisk.  Mix well and add in sifted flour.  Mix till well incorporated.Divide into 2 portions.  Add one portion with sifted cocoa powder, mix well.  Leav…

The tamarind juice in this recipe adds a sweet and sour flavour to the meat along with the aromatic kaffir lime leaves.  Besides adding flavour, the natural acidity of tamarind helps to tenderise the meat and makes the pork fillet more succulent and tender.  The marinade makes a delicious sauce when reduced and this goes very well with plain white rice.



Tangy tamarind pork fillet ~  亚参猪肉片
Ingredients

500 gm pork fillet, cut into bite size 5 Tbsp tamarind juice 1 Tbsp brown sugar 1 Tbsp dark soya sauce 2 tsp light soya sauce 1 onion, sliced 1.1/2 tsp cornflour + 1 Tbsp water to thicken Kaffir lime leaves, cut thinly Salt to taste
Method
Season the pork fillet with the tamarind juice, brown sugar, salt, dark and light soya sauce for a few hours. Pour all the above into a wok and add 3/4 cup water Cook on high heat, then switch to medium to simmer till meat is cooked through. Add in the sliced onions Add in cornflour mixture, fine tune to taste. Toss in the kaffir lime leaves. Dish out and…

I  have not baked this Ogura cake for quite a while.  There was so much buzz about this cake amongst the fellow bloggers at one time but looks like the craze has sobered somewhat.  Nonetheless I like the texture of this cake and it's not oily and wholesome.  The texture is more or less like the chiffon  cake but it's more moist.  My cake is a bit short because I used an 8 inch pan as opposed to an 7 inch pan which I do not have.




Orange Ogura Cake ~  香橙相思蛋糕
(adapted from 'here')


Ingredients
4 egg yolks + 1 whole egg
70 ml orange juice
40 ml vegetable oil
1/4 tsp salt
55 gm plain flour
zest from 2 oranges

4 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
60 gm caster sugar

Method
Line the bottom of an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper, set aside.  Do not grease the sides.With a hand whisk, whisk the egg yolks and oil till  frothy, add in the orange juice and mix well.Add in sifted flour and zest, mix well.With an electric mixer, whisk the egg whites till foamy, add in the cream of t…

Steaming is a very popular method of cooking in Chinese households.  It's fuss free and no oily pots or wok to clean up.   Adding cornstarch to the marinade before steaming helps to give the chicken a smooth texture and the brothy sauce goes very well with white rice.


Ginger bean paste steamed chicken ~  姜豆酱蒸鸡
Ingredients 500 gm kampong/free range chicken, cut into bite size 50 gm ginger, chopped 3 shallots chopped 2 tsp preserved bean paste 2 tsp light soya sauce 1/2 tsp sugar, 1/4 tsp dark soya sauce 3 tsp cornflour 1/4 cup water  Spring onions and chillies to garnish

Method Blend the chopped ginger, shallots with 1/4 cup water Pour out and mix in the bean paste, sugar, light & dark soya sauces Mix in the cornflour Season the chicken with the above marinade for a few hours,  preferably overnight Arrange on a plate and steam till chicken is cooked and tender Garnish with spring onions and chopped chillies Serve

What's for tea?  A soft, light and non-greasy Marble Castella ~  Kasutera cake.  I didn't line the pan with foil this time, only with parchment paper and was very pleased that the bottom of the cake didn't stick onto the paper and yielded a perfect brown base.  Indeed a delicious cake to be enjoyed at any time of the day.




Marble Castella Cake  ~    长崎蛋糕

Ingredients
120 gm high protein flour, sift twice5 egg whites5 egg yolks100 gm caster sugar20 ml honey4 tsp Cointreau1/2 Tbsp cocoa powder + 1/2 Tbsp hot waterMethod Line an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper, set aside.Mix honey with Cointreau, set aside.Beat egg whites till foamy, add in sugar gradually and beat till firm but not dry.Add in egg yolks one @ a time, on low speed and combine till creamy.Add in sifted high protein flour in 3 batches, mix on low speed till no traces of flour are visible.Add in honey Cointreau mixture on low speed.Pour batter through a sieve into a large bowl, weigh out 120 gm and in cocoa mix…

This pumpkin pancake is soft and delicate and not too sweet as the sweetness is only from the red bean paste filling.   For a crispy pancake you can deep-fry them but I chose to just shallow pan-fry them in a non-stick pan.   This is great to serve as a tea-time snack over a cup of brimming hot Chinese tea.


Chinese Pumpkin Pancake ~ 金瓜饼(adapted from  'here' )

Ingredients
150 gm pumpkin, steamed (should get around 350 gm raw pumpkin))100 gm glutinous rice flour100 gm red bean pasteSesame seeds (optional)Method Peel the pumpkin, remove the seeds and steam the pumpkin.  Once soft, drain off water and mash it up.  Weigh out 150 gm.Add in half glutinous rice flour and mix well.  Continue to mix in the glutinous rice flour and lightly knead till the dough does not stick to your hands.Wrap the pumpkin dough with some red bean paste, roll and shape it into a round ball.  Gently flatten it to a round disc on your palm or with a rolling pin between plastic sheet.  Sprinkle on some sesame …