Made With Love

MEESIAM  Nonya - serves 6-8

1 packet dried beehoon (soak with water till soft & drain)

500gm beansprouts (remove roots)

30 dried chillies (soak with hot water and squeeze dry)

40 shallots (peeled)

4 table spoons taucheo

Sugar to taste

100gm dried prawns ( haybee)

1 cup assam ( add 1 litre water to make assam juice)

2 pieces belachan

300gm koochye( cut into 1cm strips)

4 taupok (grilled and cut into cubes)

500gm prawns

fresh cut lemau kasturi (small lime)

 Method

Pound chilli with shallots and belachan.   When mixture is fine remove half and set aside ( this is for the sambal)

Add dried prawns and continue pounding till fine , and add taucheo, just pounding slightly and set aside.

Boil 1.5 litres of water in a deep pot and blanche prawns, leave aside to cool, before removing shells and de-veining prawns Keep the liquid for stock

pound prawn shells and put it back into the pot and bring to a boil before turning down to a simmer and using a strainer to remove the shells.

Generously drizzle oil into a wok, and heat till you see a little smoke before frying the sambal. When fragrant, add about two spoons of assam juice and a sprinkle of sugar to taste. Push the sambal to the side of the wok so the excess oil flows down to the centre of the pan

Remove the dry sambal, leaving about a spoon behind.  You may add a little more oil before you add beehoon to stirfry for a minute before adding beansprouts and fry till evenly coated with sambal and coloured. (don't add water because beansprouts produce water when cooked)

Put beehoon in a large serving dish and garnish with prawns, taupok, koochye and cut limes

Stirfry the taucheo sambal mixture till fragrant and add to the prawn stock,  Bring to a boil and add the rest of the assam juice, and sugar to taste and you;re ready to serve.

Tip: you have to taste everything you cook as you go along that way you can adjust the flavours by adding salt or sugar.. if you enjoy a stronger taucheo or blachan taste then you may add alittle more and you should not need any salt... but sugar balances the taste, it's a must in peranakan cooking (my family anyway haah).

Recipes are only a guide... cooking needs a lot of commonsense , so use you own judgement.

  Szechuan Hot Pot

4 Tbsp peanut oil (or other vegetable oil)
2 Tablespoons Pounded garlic
1 TableSpoon Pounded ginger root (Pounded)
5 Dried Chillies (Pounded)
1 tablespoon white pepper
salt and more pepper (to taste)
2 Litres chicken broth (canned or homemade)
1 Tbsp hua tiao rice wine
4 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp sesame oil

Method
Stirfry all the dry Ingredients in oil till fragrant
add chicken stock and boil
Pour in vinegar, wine and sesame Oil last...
Ready to add in you meats and vegetables

QUICK COOKING CHICKEN RICE

serves  4-6

3 cups rice

1tablespoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground garlic

1 tablesp sesame oil

A pinch of  salt

3 cups chicken stock

2 pandan leaves

3 boneless chicken thighs cut into chunky cubes marinated with  1 teasp ground ginger, 1 teasp ground garlic, 1 tablesp light soya sauce, 1 tablesp huateow chiew, 1teasp sesame oil

Method

heat a deep wide pan, add sesame oil , ginger and garlic and stirfry till fragrant.

add rice and mix, add pandan leaves and chicken stock.

allow to boil briskly till stock is reduced to half.

If you wish , you may transfer into a rice cooker before you add chicken(then leave it to auto).. or just

place  marinated chicken evenly on top of the rice, pour the remaining marinade over the chicken.

Cover and simmer till rice is dry and chicken cubes are cooked.

Turn off heat and keep covered for 15 minutes before serving

Serve with cucumber coriander leaves, dark soya sauce and chilli sauce.

 Chilli Sauce

7 fresh chilli ( you may add 2 chilli padi if you like extra spicy)

2 tablesp chopped ginger

1 tablesp chopped garlic

6 limes

sugar & salt to taste

Method

pound chilli with ginger and garlic

cut limes and squeeze out juice

add to mixture

chop the skin of 2  limes and add to mixure, add salt and sugar to taste