Baked Teriyaki Chicken Thighs

Was busy baking cookies yesterday and didn't have much time to prepare dinner so I baked teriyaki Chicken thighs in my smaller oven while the bigger oven was baking the cookies. So easy to prepare, and simply yummy...

Baked Teriyaki Chicken Thigh

Baked Teriyaki Chicken Thighs (Serve 2)

2 chicken thighs (I used 3, cos it's so yummy, 1 is not enough for Jerome)

Marinade for a few hours (best overnight) in

3 tbsp light soya sauce

3 tbsp mirin

1 tbsp brown sugar

1) Preheat oven to 160C.

2) Put chicken thighs on a baking tray with skin face down. 

3) Bake for 20 minutes. Brush additional marinade in between baking. 

4) Turn the thighs over to bake the other side of the chicken. Brush on additional marinade as well. 

5) Bake for another 15-20 minutes. 

6) Serve with boiled vegetables and baked potato.

Baked Potatoes

I used Holland (they're really from China) potatoes yesterday and they're so sweet that I didn't have to add any other dressing, like sour cream or bacon bits. We enjoyed them plain. 

Wash the potatoes clean and rub some vegetable oil all over the potatoes.  

Use a skewer to prick a few holes all over the potatoes to release steam in the potato and aid in the baking process.

Preheat oven to 200C and bake the potatoes for 15 minutes before turning down the temperature to 160C to bake the chicken together. This give the potatoes a head start to bake. 

Phad Thai Again

Just prepared Phad Thai for lunch today. Think it looked and tasted better than the first time I tried them. This time round, I added a little more tamarind water to make the sauce a little more tangy.

But honestly, I've forgotten how the original Phad Thai should taste like. The last time I tried an authentic one was last Dec when we visited Bangkok. I loved it so much that I had it for almost every meal :P

Well, we'll be going to Phuket this Saturday so it's a great time to catch up on my Phad Thai again :P

Double Lotus Soup

Double Lotus: Lotus root and lotus seeds :)

Double Lotus Soup (Serves 2 to 3)

Ingredients: 

300g of meat (pork or chicken)

lotus root

red dates

lotus seeds

a carrot

1 litre of water 

a pinch of salt (optional)

Method: 

1. Parboil the meat to remove the scum.

2. Put all the ingredients into a pot. 

3. Bring to a boil on low heat. (Meat will be tender if cooked using low heat).

4. If using a thermal pot, boil for 20 minutes before transferring to thermal pot. 

(The residual heat and the thermal action will ensure further cooking)

5. Add salt to taste before serving. 

Benefits:

Lotus roots help to release fatigue & improve imbalance of the nervous system.

Lotus seeds nourish the spleen, improve digestion, prevents diarrhea, strengthens the kidneys and have astringent properties. 

Red dates help to release anesthetic toxins, protect the liver, reduce pain after surgery, improve pale complexion and coldness of the limbs. 

Parboiling

Parboiling - the partial boiling of food in order to finish cooking it later.

This helps to remove the scum from the meat for soups. 

Your soup will remain clear and free from scum...

A layer of scum on top of the water...

To parboil the meat for cooking soup:

Boil a pot of water. Put the meat in and cook for 5-10 minutes. 

Remove it from the pot and do a quick rinse with water from tap.

Parboiled meat is now ready for use to cook your soup.

3C Soup

I must admit that I'm quite a lazy cook, resorting to stock cubes most of the time. But last week, decided to get some meat and cook a vegetable soup. I bought a packet of celery and used 2 stalks for chicken pies. Hence, I decided to make this soup in my thermal pot. I call it the 3C soup- celery, carrot and corn. The natural sweetness of the vegetables meant that I didn't have to add any other seasoning.

Serves 2-3
Ingredients:
300-400g of soupbone, parboiled to remove scum
6-8 stalks of celery, cut into short chunks
1 corn, cut into parts
1 carrot, cut into parts
1.5 litre of water or just enough water to cover all the ingredients

Boil water and add all the ingredients. Bring the soup to a boil.
Let it boil for 15 minutes before transferring into the thermal pot.
The thermal pot will further cook the meat and meat will be tender after a few hours.
You can serve the soup straight from the thermal pot or bring it to a boil again.

* Thermal pot retains the heat and further cook the soup without using more electricity or gas.
I view it as a magic pot. 

Stir Fry Nai Bai Cai

Bought a packet of Nai Bai Cai from the supermarket. It's a smaller version of the bai cai and it's softer and sweeter. I don't often see this available as it's seasonal. So when I saw the last packet ($0.60) there on the shelf, I grabbed it.  This batch of nai bai was small so there was no need to cut them at all. I just stir fry them in garlic and added a pinch of salt for seasoning. Yap, they're so 'good' you can really eat it on its own.

Spinach Soup with Century Egg

This is one of the easiest soups (ready in 15 minutes) to prepare and Jerome loves it.

Ingredients:

a bundle of chinese spinach (I prefer the baby spinach with pointed leaves)

1 tbsp wolfberries

1 ikan bilis stock cube

1 egg, beaten

1 century egg, cut into smaller bits

some small fried ikan bilis

Method:
Boil 1 litre of water with wolfberries and add the ikan bilis stock cube.
Add the chinese spinach and cook till soft.
Add in the beaten egg, stirring the soup at the same time.
Add in the century egg into the soup.
Serve the soup by sprinkling some fried ikan bilis on the top for that extra crunch and flavour.

Sweet & Sour Fish Slices

Tried to cook this sweet & sour fish slices dish for dinner. I used the same sweet & sour sauce recipe for Ku Low Yok. Jerome said this was better than Ku Low Yok. I've tried the chicken version as well and that was good as well. I'll probably just make more of the sweet & sour sauce and keep them ready in the fridge for use anytime.

Sweet & Sour Sauce:

100ml water

1 tbsp plum sauce

3 tbps Maggie tomato sauce

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp rice vinegar

Fry the mixed vegetables. Pour in the sauce, boil and add in your fried fish slices.