Chinese Yacon with Red Dates Soup

Chinese Yacon with Red Dates Soup

Ingredients

1. 6 pieces of Pork Ribs
2. 1 medium Yacon (Peeled and Cut into big chunks)
3. 6 cups of Water
4. 8 to 10 big Red Dates (Washed)

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Pork Ribs into pot filled with approx 4 cups of water
3. Add all Ingredients into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes with medium heat and boil with low heat for another 40 mins

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Chinese White Radish Soup with Dried Oysters

Chinese White Radish Soup with Dried Oysters

Ingredients

1. 6 pieces or 250g of Pork Ribs
2. 5 cups of Water
3. 1 White Radish (Peeled and Cut into big chunks)
4. 12 Medium Red Dates (Washed)
5. 8 Dried Oysters (Washed)

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Pork Ribs into pot filled with approx 5 cups of water
3. Add all Ingredients into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes
5. Turn to low heat and boil for another 30 minutes

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Chinese Arrowroot (Ge Gen/Fen Gen) and Red Dates Soup

Chinese Arrowroot and Red Dates Soup

Ingredients

1. 6 pieces of Pork Ribs
2. 500g of Arrowroot (Peeled and Cut into big chunks)
3. 6 cups of Water
4. 8 to 10 big Red Dates (Washed)

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Pork Ribs into pot filled with approx 4 cups of water
3. Add all Ingredients into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes with medium heat and boil with low heat for another 40 mins

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Chinese Clear Vegetable and Beancurd (Tofu) Soup

Chinese Clear Vegetable and Beancurd (Tofu) Soup

Sharing a simple, healthy vegetable soup!

Ingredients (Serve 3 to 4 pax)

1. 1 packet of White, Soft Beancurds (Tofu eg. Brand Unicurd) (Slices into 8 to 10 pieces)
2. Half Carrot (Cut into thin slices)
3. 1 Tomatoes (Cut into slices)
4. 10 leaves of Lettuces (Cut into 2 to 3 parts per leaves)
5. 3 stalks of Spring Onions (Cut into 0.5cm, separate the white and green parts)
6. 8 Button Mushroom (Cut into 3 to 4 slices per mushroom)
7. 4 cups of Water
8. 1 tablespoon of Cooking Oil
9. 1.5 tablespoon of Sesame Oil
10. Salts
11. White Fine Pepper

Steps

1. Add oil into hot pan/pot (use a pan/pot that can hold all the ingredients)
2. Add the white part of Spring Onion and stir-fry for approx 1 minutes
3. Add Water and bring it to boil
4. Add Beancurds, Carrots and bring it to boil for approx 10 minutes
5. Add Tomatoes, Mushroom and bring it to boil for approx 5 minutes
6. Add Lettuces and boil for approx 2 minutes
7. Add Sesame Oil, Green parts of Spring Oil and sprinkle Pepper and Salts to taste

And you are good to serve!

Good to go with Rice and two to three Chinese Dishes.

Chinese Potatoes and Onions Soup

Chinese Potatoes and Onions Soup

Ingredients

1. 1 Chicken Bone
2. 4 cups of Water
3. 2 Russet Potatoes (Peeled and Cut into big chunks)
4. 2 Yellow Onions (Peeled and Cut into Big Chunks)

Steps

1. Boil Chicken Bone for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Chicken Bone into pot filled with approx 4 cups of water
3. Add all Ingredients into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Chinese Watercrest (Xi Yang Cai) Soup

Chinese Watercrest (Xi Yang Cai) Soup

Sharing a cooling soup that is really good for your body if you are feeling heaty.

Ingredients (Serve 3 to 4 pax)

1. 6 pieces of Pork Ribs
2. Watercrest (Xi Yang Cai)

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs with 2 cups of water for a few minutes and drain it
2. Add Pork Ribs and Watercrest into a pot with approx 4 Cups of water
3. Boils it for 30 minutes and turn to slow heat for at least another 15 minutes.

And you are good to serve!

Good to go with Rice and two to three Chinese Dishes.

Chinese Shark's fin Melon Soup

Chinese Sharkfin Melon Soup

Don't be mistaken, this recipe is not using shark's fin as an ingredients, it is actually using <Shark's fin melon>. I believe the melon is named as Shark's fin Melon due to the resemblance of Shark's fin when it is cooked.

I have added some chinese herbal to increase the flavour of the soup.

Ingredients

1. 6 pieces or 250g of Pork Ribs
2. 5 cups of Water
3. 1/4 or approx 350g Sharkfin Melon (Cut into big chunks)
4. 6 Medium Red Dates (Washed)
5. 4 pieces of Yu Zhu (Washed)
6. 4 piece of Dang Shen(Codonopsis Root) - (Washed)
7. 3 pieces of Yu Zhu(Solomon's Seal Rhizome) - (Washed)
8. 1 tablespoon of Gou Qi Zi(Wolfberry) - (Washed)
9. 3 tablespoon of Light Soya Sauce (eg. Brand Tai Hua)

 Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Pork Ribs into pot filled with approx 5 cups of water
3. Add Ingredients no. 3 to7 into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes
5. Turn to low heat and boil for another 30 minutes
6. Add Wolfberry and boil for 10 minutes
7. Add Light Soya Sauce to taste (you can increase or reduce the quantity to your taste) 

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Aluminium Foil

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Aluminium Foil

This is a similar as Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot except that I have used an Aluminium Foil instead.

Ingredients

1. 1 Chicken Thigh
2. 2 tablespoon of Water
3. 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoon of Hua Diao Jiu/ Chinese Rice Wine
4. 3 Medium Red Dates (Washed)
5. 4 pieces of Dan Gui (Washed)
6. 4 piece of Dang Shen(Codonopsis Root) - (Washed)
7. 3 pieces of Yu Zhu(Solomon's Seal Rhizome) - (Washed)
8. 1 tablespoon of Gou Qi Zi(Wolfberry) - (Washed)
9. 1 tablespoon of Light Soya Sauce (eg. Brand Tai Hua)
10. 2 Dried Chinese Mushrooms (Washed)

Preparation

1. Marinate all ingredients, except for water and mushroom for 30 minutes

Steps

1. Add Ingredient No. 4 to No. 8 and Mushroom into Aluminium Foil, then add chicken, add pour marinating sauce onto chicken and add water
2. Place the Aluminium Oil into a steamer or rice cooker and steam for approx 20 minutes/ until the chicken is cooked.

Chicken Hot Pot with Celery and Green Pepper

I am sure many of you will know the famous Chicken Hot Pot Restaurant in Singapore. Everytime when I dine there, I have to queue for at least 15 minutes.

Chicken Hot Pot is like a steamboat, except that it is not using clear soup. Chicken is marinated intensively and the soup base is dark in color. It looked like the commonly known stir-fry chicken with oyster sauce, except that it comes with a lot of gravy.

In the recipe below, it is my 1st try to experience to cook Chicken Hot Pot and it tastes pretty good, though not 100% similar.

Marinating:

Ingredients

1. 1/2 Chicken (Cut into small pieces)
2. 4 tablespoon of Oyster Sauce
3. 3 tablespoon of Dark Soya Sauce
4. 3 Cinnamon
5. 4 Anise
6. 1 tablespoon of 5 Spices Powder
7. 8 Cloves of Garlic (Peeled and Lightly Smashed)

Steps

1. Mix all ingredients and marinate overnight

Soup Based:

Ingredients

1. Chicken Bone
2. 4 Cup of Water
3. Salts

Steps

1. Boil Chicken for 15 minutes. Turn to low heat and boil for at least 30 minutes
2. Add Salts to taste

Cooking:

Ingredients

1. 3 Stalks of Celery (Cut into 1.5cm length)
2. 1 Green Pepper (Cut into 1.5cm length, or into cube-like)
3. 1 big Yellow Onion (Cut into cube)
4. 2 Stalks of Chinese Parsley (Cut into small stalks)

Steps

1. Add Oil in hot pan
2. Add Onions and stir-fry until fragrant
3. Add Garlic (from marinate) and stir-fry until fragrant
4. Add Cinnamon and Anise (from marinate) and stir-fry for 1 minutes
5. Add Chicken and stir-fry for approx 3 to 4 minutes
6. Add Green Pepper and Celery and stir-fry for approx 2 minutes
7. Add Marinating sauce (from marinate) and stir-fry for 1 minutes
8.  Add 1 cup of Chicken Soup Base and simmer until chicken is cooked
9. Transfer to steamboat pot
10. Add Chinese Parsley

You can dine it like how you enjoy your steamboat.
Prepare some raw ingredients, eg. vegetables, noodles, mushroom and cook it in the steamboat.
Refill soup with Chicken soup when necessary.

Good to with Rice.

Comments and Tips:

• If the taste is too bland, you can add more oyster sauce and five spices powder at steps 8. And if it is too salty, you can add more Chicken Soup.

Chinese Potato Soup

Chinese Potato Soup

I have the craving of having a bowl of clear chinese soup for my dinner tonight. Looking all over my kitchen, I only have a few Russet Potatoes and a chicken bone in my fridge. I decided that I should just use these 2 ingredients to make a simple soup.

This recipe requires less than 10 minutes preparation and 30 minutes cooking time. It is a very simple, fast, economical, but yet, a very light and healthy soup. The natural flavour of the potatoes and chicken bone are all you need for the soup to taste good!

Ingredients (Serve 2 Pax)

1. 3 Russet Potatoes (Cut into Big Chunks)
2. 1 Chicken Bones
3. Salt (Optional, as the natural flavour is good enough if you prefer something light)

Steps

1. Boil Chicken Bone for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Chicken Bone into pot filled with approx 4 to 5 cups of water
3. Add Potatoes into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes
5. Add Salt to taste

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Chinese Sweet Corn and Carrot Soup

Chinese Sweet Corn and Carrot Soup

Another simple chinese soup recipe for sharing...

Ingredients (Serve 2 Pax)

1. 1 Sweet Corn (Cut into Big Chunk)
2. 1 Big Carrot (Cut into Big Chunk)
3. 1 Chicken Bones or 5 pieces  of Pork Ribs
4. Salt (Optional, as the natural flavour is good enough if you prefer something light)

Steps

1. Boil Chicken Bone/ Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Chicken Bone into pot filled with approx 4 cups of water
3. Add Sweet Corn and Carrot into pot
4. Boil it for 30 to 45 minutes
5. Add Salt to taste

Good to go with Rice and 2 to 3 more Chinese dishes.

Chinese Pear and Apple with Pork Ribs Soup

Chinese Pear and Apple with Pork Ribs Soup

I am surprised with the outcome of this recipe. It is very delicious and sweet, and there is no need to add any salts or soya sauce to increase the flavor.

Great for sweet tooth! =)

Ingredients (Serve 4 pax)

1. 6 pieces of Pork Ribs
2. 2 Pears (Cut into big chunks and deseed)
3. 2 Apples (Cut into big chunks and deseed)
4. 2 Dried Honey Dates (Washed)

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Add Pork Ribs and all ingredients into a pot with approx 5 Cups of water
3. Boils it for 30 minutes and turn to slow heat for at least another 45 to 60 minutes.

And you are good to serve!

Good to go with Rice and two to three Chinese Dishes.

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot

Steamed Herbal Chicken in Mini Porcelain Pot

One year back, when I was shopping for my new home, I walked into Daiso (A shop in Singapore that sells every item at $2) and saw this mini porcelain pot. I fall in love with it as it is so cute. It stands at a height of approx 12cm and with a diameter of 8cm, with a cover. Not knowing what to do with it, I still bought 2 sets as it is too cheap and cute to resist.

It is until today when I am cracking my brain what to cook for the night and I happened to see these 2 cutie pots in my kitchen cabinet. I decided that I should use them today!

I used the mini pots to steam herbal chicken. One pot to serve a person. And the recipe that I have shared below is meant for a person.

Do not hestitate to try this recipe, even if you do not have the same mini pot. You can simply use an Aluminium foil and wrapping it up for the same effect. Remember to multiple the quantity of the ingredients according to the number of person you are cooking for.

Ingredients (Serve 1 pax)

1. 3 Medium Pieces of Chicken/ 1/6 of a Medium Chicken Cut into smaller pieces
2. 1 tablespoon of Water
3. 2 teaspoon of Hua Diao Jiu/ Chinese Rice Wine
4. 2 Medium Red Dates (Washed)
5. 2 pieces of Dan Gui (Washed)
6. 1/2 piece of Dang Shen(Codonopsis Root) - (Washed)
7. 2 pieces of Yu Zhu(Solomon's Seal Rhizome) - (Washed)
8. 1/2 tablespoon of Gou Qi Zi(Wolfberry) - (Washed)
9. 1 tablespoon of Light Soya Sauce (eg. Brand Tai Hua)

Preparation

1. Add Ingredient No. 4 to No. 8 into a mini porcelain pot, then add chicken, add Hua Diao Jiu, Light Soya Sauce. Leave it for minimum 15 minutes.

Steps

1. Add 1 tablespoon of Water into the preparation. And place the mini pot into a steamer or rice cooker and steam for approx 15 minutes/ until the chicken is cooked.

Chinese Wongbok (Cabbage), Fishball, Fish Maw Soup

Chinese Wongbok (Cabbage), Fishball, Fish Maw Soup

Previously, I have shared a simplified version of Wongbok Soup recipe. This is the version with more ingredients and of course, it tastes a lot better too.

Ingredients (Serve 4 to 6 pax)

1. 6 pieces of Pork Ribs
2. 1 Wongbok (Cut into big slices)
3. 1 Fish Maw (Approx 20cm x 8cm) (Washed)
4. 1/2 Big Can of Button Mushroom (approx 10 button mushroom - you can add more or less)
5. 10 Fishball (you can add more or less) 
6. Meat Ball (Optional)
7. Light Soya Sauce

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Pork Ribs into 1.5 litres of water
3. Add Wongbok and Fish Maw 
4. Boils it for 30 minutes and turn to slow heat for at least another 45 to 60 minutes
5. Add Button Mushroom and Fishballs and boil for another 10 minutes before serving

Add Salts or Light Soya Sauce to taste.

Serve while Hot!

Good to go with Rice and another 2 to 3 more Chinese Dishes.

Chinese New Year Reunion Steamboat Dinner

This year is the first time when I have my steamboat dinner at my new house with my boyfriend. Initially this is not planned as we do not want to buy a steamboat pot as it take up too much space in our tiny kitchen. But when we are shopping at Fairprice to stock up some grocery before Chinese New Year, we saw this mini steamboat pot that is deep enough, but yet, it does not take up much space. In addition, it comes with grilling pan too. Hence, we decided that we should have steamboat this year or as and when we feel like eating steamboat. =) 

We are seafood lovers, hence, our steamboat ingredients don't come with a large variety, but rather, food that we like to eat. Hence, you will see that majority of the ingredients comprises of seafood. We have Scallops, Prawns, Abalone, Baby Clams, Beef, Baby Kailan, Dried Chinese Mushroom, White Beancurd, Button Mushroom, Tomatoes, and the most importantly, the soup for the steamboat - Bai Cai Soup (Wongbok Soup) - some refer it as Chinese Cabbage.

I have mentioned before how much I love this soup in the previous post on Chinese Wongbok (China Cabbage, Bai Cai) Soup (a simplified version) and Chinese Wongbok, Fish Maw, Fishball and Button Mushroom (a tastier version with more ingredients) as this soup has been a "tradition" in my family to have it for our steamboat reunion dinner.

Steamboat can be very easy to prepare, but for some, it may be harder as some families prefer to have a lot of homemade ingredients. eg. dumpling etc. For mine, it inclined towards the easy preparation as all you need is the raw ingredients, slices the meat and place it nicely on the plate. =)

P.S. The ingredients from the photo is for 2 pax.

Chinese New Year Recommendation

Just an hour ago, one of my secondary classmates, Geraldine, prompted me on MSN, asking if I have any recipes recommendation for Chinese New Year. Hence, I decided that I should write a post on some recipes from Shan's Recipes that will be suitable for Chinese New Year Reunion Dinner. Thanks Gerli for the inspiration!

It is quite tricky to choose from my list of recipes as most of them are very simple homecooked food. But, I still managed to find a few choices that I think that it will look great and taste good for a warm and cosy Chinese New Year Reunion Dinner.

I have chosen 1 soup, 4 dishes and 1 main course, good for a family of 4 to 6 person. For smaller family, you can choose 3 dishes instead of 4. 

My selection are:

Chinese Wongbok (China Cabbage, Bai Cai) Soup (Simplified Version)

Chinese Wongbok (Cabbage), Fishball, Fish Maw Soup (Full Version, better taste)

The reason for choosing this soup is because this is a Chinese New Year soup to me, at least. Every year, without fail, my mum will cook this soup for Chinese New Year, be it as a steamboat soup base or simply a bowl of soup on the dining table. Chinese Wongbok (China Cabbage, Bai Cai) Soup has always be my favorite soup and can never be replaced. You can add fish maw and some fishballs into the soup for a better taste - Chinese Wongbok (Cabbage), Fishball, Fish Maw Soup.

Chinese New Year, without fail, it's all about a big feast with the few commonly found "Chinese New Year" ingredients, like, Prawns, Abalone, Scallops, Chinese Mushroom, Dried Oysters and hence, this give me the thoughts that the following dishes will be great to be serve on that warmly night.

Braised Chicken with Dried Oyster and Mushroom

Scallops with Bean Vermicelli (Glass Noodle)

Stir-fry Prawns with Oyster Sauce and Black Pepper

The following 2 dishes are my vegetable selections. For people who do not like broccolli, you can choose baby kai lan. Add slices of Abalone to make it a wonderful Chinese New Year dish! =)

Stir-fry Broccolli and Scallops with Garlic

Stir-fry Baby Kai lan with Garlic (Qing Cao)

For families who prefer a main course than rice, I will recommend Ee  Fu Mian!

 Braised Ee Fu Mian (Noodle) with Chinese Mushroom

 The above are my selections, hope that it is close to your liking! =)

Taiwan Sesame Oil Chicken Mee Sua with Chinese Herbs

Taiwan Sesame Oil Chicken with Mee Sua

Taiwan Sesame Oil Chicken

Mee Sua with Sesame Oil Chicken Broth

Early this year, I went to Taiwan for a 11 days free and easy tour. I have tried a lot of food over there and Sesame Oil Chicken Mee Sua is one of the food that I have tried in Taiwan that I cannot forget the taste. Hence, I took the chance to experience to cook this dish based on my memory of the taste. This is the 1st time I tried and it really taste not bad. This recipe is catered for mee sua hence it may not taste as good if it is to go with rice. The best way to eat this dish is to scoop some chicken broth into the mee sua to savour the taste of the sesame oil chicken broth mee sua.

Ingredients (Serve 2 pax)

1. 6 rolls of Mee Sua
2. 1/3 Chicken (Cut into small pieces)
3. 1 Litre of Water
4. 6 Slices of Ginger (Peeled)
5. 250 ml of Hua Diao Jiu/ Chinese Rice Wine
6. 120 ml of Sesame Oil
7. 4 Medium Red Dates (Washed)
8. 4 pieces of Dan Gui (Washed)
9. 2 pieces of Dang Shen(Codonopsis Root) - (Washed)
10. 4 pieces of Yu Zhu(Solomon's Seal Rhizome) - (Washed)
11. 2 tablespoon of Gou Qi Zi(Wolfberry) - (Washed)
12. 1/2 teaspoon of Salt

Steps

1. Add Water in pot and Boil Chicken for approx 15 minutes. Turn off heat. Take out the Chicken, leave it aside. Scoop up approx 3/4 Chicken Broth in a bowl and leave the remaining in the pot.
2. Add 80 ml of Sesame Oil in hot pan
3. When Sesame Oil is hot, Add Ginger and fry until fragrant
4. Add Chicken and stir-fry for approx 2 minutes
5. Add Ingredients 7 to 10 and stir-fry for approx 1 minutes
6. Lower to medium heat, add Rice Wine, 3/4 Chicken Broth (from step 1), 40 ml of Sesame Oil and stir to mix well. Once boiling, add Wolfberry and turn to low heat. Cover the pan and simmer for approx 10 minutes. Add Salt and stir to mix well. Serve in a big bowl.
7. Turn on heat to boil the remaining Chicken Broth in the pot (from step 1). Once boiling, add Mee Sua and cook for approx 2 minutes. Once soften to your liking, turn off heat.
8. Drain Mee Sua and serve in a small bowl

Serve and eat while Hot as the Sesame Oil Chicken Broth may taste bitter once it is cold.

Chinese Wongbok (China Cabbage, Bai Cai) Soup

Chinese Wongbok (China Cabbage, Bai Cai) Soup

This is my favorite soup!

During Chinese New Year, without fail, my mum will cook this soup for our steamboat soup base. With all the steamboat ingredients, this soup become heavenly delicious. Everytime, we will keep the leftover soup overnight and reboiling it the next morning and the soup become invincible! I can't use any word to describe how tasty it is.  I can simply add some white rice into the soup and it become my full meal. I can never get tired drinking this soup, regardless how many times I have it.

This recipe is a simplified version with lesser ingredients and it is cheaper too -> More economical, but of course it can't compare to my mum's version at all.

I will be trying out my mum's version and I will post it up once I cooked and took the photo. =)

Ingredients (Serve 4 pax)

1. 1 Chicken Bone (approx 250g) / 6 pieces of Pork Ribs
2. 1 Wongbok (Cut into big slices)
3. 1 1/2 Big or 5 small Dried Scallops (Washed)
4. 2 to 3 tablespoons of Light Soya Sauce

Steps

1. Boil Chicken Bone or Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Chicken Bone or Pork Ribs into approx 6 Cups of water and Boiled it
3. Add Wongbok and Scallops
4. Boils it for 30 minutes and turn to slow heat for at least another 45 to 60 minutes.

Add Salts or Light Soya Sauce to taste.

Serve while Hot!

Good to go with Rice and another 2 to 3 more Chinese Dishes.

Chinese Lotus Roots with Pork Ribs Soup

Chinese Lotus Roots with Pork Ribs Soup

This is another Soup of the day that I believe most Chinese would have try it before, especially for Singaporean. It is not easy to cook a tasty lotus roots soup just with pork ribs only as lotus roots do not have a strong flavor, hence, some others may add carrots or peanuts to add on more flavor to this soup. I will try it next time, but this time round, I am sharing a simple version of lotus root with pork ribs soup recipe.

Ingredients (Serve 4 pax)

1. 6 pieces of Pork Ribs Approx 250g
2. Approx 400g of Lotus Roots (Washed and Cut into Sliced - 0.5 cm thickness)
3. Salt

Steps

1. Boil Pork Ribs for a few minutes and drain it
2. Put Pork Ribs into approx 5 Cups of water and Boiled it
3. Add Lotus roots
4. Boils it for 30 minutes and turn to slow heat for at least another 45 to 60 minutes

Add Salts to taste.

Good to go with Rice, 3 more Chinese Dishes.