Caramelized Onion Purée

Onion Purée, some would say it goes great with a lot of different foods and I will not disagree with that. Personally though, I love it with well seared beef or pork chops.

Seared Beef with Onion Purée

Caramelizing the onions bring out a sweet nutty flavour from the onions. This is a sweet and savoury side that I really like. Its really simple to make, but does take a little time to get done.

Here is what you'll need to serve 4.
2-3 large yellow onions - Thinly sliced or diced.
1/2 cup of beef stock
1/2 teaspoon mustard
2-3 tablespoons butter.

Steps:
1. In a medium large saucepan or deep-sided sauté plan, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Then add in all the sliced onions. Stir well to incorporate the butter with all the onions. Stir frequently to help the onions brown at relatively the same rate and to prevent burning. Might be difficult in the beginning due to the quantity and size of your pan. The onions will shrink alot as they cook. Do this until the onions soften and get to a nice golden brown. Should take about 10-15 mins.

2. At this point add the beef stock a little bit at a time. Cook until all the liquids have greatly reduced. This step also serves to de-glaze the pan, incorporating the browned goodness from the base or sides of the plan. Continue stirring frequently until the onions reach a nice brown colour. Probably another 3-5 minutes or so.

3. Turn off the heat and put all the onions in the food processor and blend till smooth. Remove and place in a large bowl.

4. Add the mustard and remaining butter, season with salt and pepper to taste.

Can be served warm or cold.

Pan Seared Salmon with Carrot mash and Leek Cream sauce.

I was at a nearby supermarket and the salmon fillets and leeks looked really good that day. I decided to use them both for dinner so I bought both, together with some cream and carrots and went home and made dinner.

Very enjoyable dinner. The leek infused sauce really brought the dish together. I thought the highlight was the crispy skin on the Salmon. Getting that skin nice and crispy is so crucial to the enjoyment factor of this meal.

Pan Seared Salmon with Carrot mash and Leek Cream

Here is what you'll need for 4 servings.
4 Salmon fillets - About 200 grams each.
200ml whipping cream
1 leek - sliced (White and light green parts only. Discard the dark green and leafy parts)
3-4 large carrots - peeled and cut into large chunks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2-3 sprigs of Italian Parsley - Leaves only, roughly chopped
1/4 Milk (For when the puree is too dry to blend)
Chopped chives for garnish (Optional)

Steps
For the Carrot Mash
1. Boil the carrots for about 40 mins in salted water, until they are soft enough for a fork to go through them easily. Strain and set aside. (alternatively, you could bake them wrapped in foil for about 45-60 minutes in an oven at 160 degrees Celsius).

2. Let them cool for a while then puree in a food processor or blender. To ease the blending use some milk if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Mix in 1 tablespoon of butter. Set aside.

Leek Cream Sauce
1. In a frying pan over medium heat, melt some butter. When butter starts to heat up and bubble, add in the leeks. Fry the leeks until they soften and start to give off a nutty aroma, just before they brown. Should take 3-5 minutes. Then add the cream and parsley. Turn of the heat when cream is heated up or boiling. Set aside.

For the Salmon Fillets:
1. Season the fillet with salt and pepper. Heat some oil over medium heat in a frying pan. When oil is heated up, lay in the salmon, skin side down. Cook for about 3 minutes and turn over and cook for about 1-2 minutes. You want the skin nice and crispy. Cooking times may vary based on the thickness of your fillets. If your skillet/pan is not big enough to cook 4 at the same time, you may need to cook in batches. When done, remove the fillets from pan and set aside.

Serve the Carrots and Salmon together and pour the sauce over the fish and carrot. Garnish with chives if using and serve immediately. 
Enjoy!

Red Wine Sauce

Been rather busy this month with little opportunity to cook at home. My second post this month/year is a sauce recipe. This is a great sauce to go with your meats for your home cooked meals. It can keep a while in a fridge too. It does require some time but its rather simple to do. 

Beef Tenderloin with Mash and Red Wine Sauce

Makes about 2-3 cups of sauce.

Ingredients:
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced onions
1 cup diced celery
2 sprigs of fresh thyme

2 sprigs of fresh Italian parsely
1 litre beef stock (Store bought is fine)
1 1/2 cups dry red wine
1 cup port
2 tablespoons tomato paste

1/2 teaspoon of black peppercorns

Butter/cooking oil for frying

Salt to taste

Ingredients for the Roux
1.5 tablespoon plain flour

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Steps:

1. In a large saucepan, heat cooking oil/butter over medium heat. When oil/butter is hot enough, add the carrots, onions and celery. Fry until the vegetables start to soften and the onions start to become translucent, about 3-5 minutes. then add in the tomato paste and fry for another 3-5 minutes, mixing well. (This is to remove the tartness from the tomato paste)

2. At this point, add the wine and port. Mix well and allow to simmer over low heat until the liquid is reduced by about a third.

3. Then add the stock, thyme, peppercorns and parsley. Mix well and allow to simmer very gently over low heat for about 30 - 45 minutes. Then strain and discard the solids. Then allow the liquid to simmer over medium for about 45 minutes. until reduced by half.

(Note: the further you reduce, the more intense the flavour will be and you will get a fuller texture but do note, if you use store bought stock, there is most probably salt in it, so taste as you reduce.)

4. During the reduction, you can start with the roux. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat, when its fully melted and starts to froth, add in the flour and stir well. with a wooden spoon or whisk, keep stirring gently. You should get a thick paste. When the raw taste of the flour is cooked out, you have what is call white roux. We want a brown roux for this sauce so you want to cook it further, stirring frequently until the paste becomes brown with a nutty flavour.

5. Add the roux to the pot of reducing sauce and mix well. Allow to simmer for another 5 minutes and it should be ready to serve. Season with salt to taste, although I am of the opinion that salt is not required if the store bought stock has salt in it.

Goes great with beef and pork. Especially if you are serving roast beef.

The Basic Onion Tomato Sauce

The emphasis of this recipe is the basic tomato sauce that I like to use in alot of the dishes I cook at home. On its own, it makes a great pasta dish!. It keeps quite well in the fridge and can be used as a base for many variations for several different of dishes. If you look through some of the other recipes in this site, you'll probably come across a variation of this sauce in use. So I thought I would create an entry for this sauce so that I can just refer readers back to this page when I use this sauce. Saves me the typing.

Cauldron of Onion Tomato Sauce bubbling away

This sauce uses canned tomatoes and bottled Passata, both of which can be easily found in most Cold Storage or and at Fairprice.

Here is what you'll need for the sauce. Makes about 1 litre of sauce.

2 cans diced tomatoes. (I like to use the ones that say Plum or Romano. You can get whole canned ones and dice them yourself as well)
1 700g Jar of Passata.
2 yellow onions - diced
4 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
few teaspoons of sugar to taste

Steps:
1. Prep the diced/chopped tomatoes. Remove from the can and strain them. discard the liquids. Set aside

2. Over medium heat, heat about 2-4 tablespoons of cooking oil in a large saucepan or large deep sided saute pan. When oil is heated up (Rolls around easily in the pan) add in the onions and fry for 1 minute, then add in the garlic. Fry for a few more minutes until the onions become soft and translucent (Not brown).

3. Add in the tomatoes and fry for another 3-4 minutes. Then add in the passata. Mix well and allow to simmer for about 10 minutes over low heat.

4. Add in the thyme and rosemary. You can tie the herbs together so that they are easier to fish out later. Allow to simmer over low heat for at least 45 minutes. Stirring occasionally, to prevent the bottom of the sauce from burning.

5. After the sauce is allowed to simmer and cook down, allow to cool and store. Use as needed.

Chicken Thighs with Scallion and Ginger Sauce

Chicken Thigh with Scallion and Ginger Sauce

This is a great tasting savoury dish to go with any East Asian meal. The aroma just hits you when the plate of chicken lands on the dinner table. Makes you just wanna dive right in. This sauce goes great with chicken wings as well. Just adjust the cooking times accordingly. Both the wife and I enjoyed this dish. I will definitely make this again sometime soon. 

Ingredients:
2 Chicken Thighs - cut into large chunks
4-5 stalks scallion/spring onion - roughly cut up
2-3 tablespoons ginger - skinned and roughly cut up
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1 tablespoon corn flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Sesame oil
Soya Sauce
White pepper

Steps:
1. Marinate chicken thighs with 1 tablespoon of soya sauce, dash of white pepper, 1 tablespoon corn flour and 2 teaspoons sesame oil. Mix well and leave in the fridge for at least an hour.

2. To make the sauce, put all the scallion, ginger, 2 teaspoons soya sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, with some white pepper in a food processor and blitz till you get a paste. Its alright if the texture is slightly grainy. Set aside in a large bowl.

3. Pre-heat your oven to 190 degrees celsius. Cook chicken on the oven for about 25 minutes. (Cooking time may vary depending on the size of your chicken chunks)

4. Remove the cooked chicken from the oven. Toss the chicken with the sauce in the large bowl and put it back in the oven for another 7-10 minutes. Just for the sauce to dry up a little and stick to the chicken.

5. Dish on the serving plates and serve immediately.

Note: for step 3, you stir fry instead of cooking in an oven if you prefer.

Baked Chicken Breast with Leek and Mushroom Cream Sauce

Chicken Breast with Leek and Mushroom Cream Sauce

Leek, mushrooms and cream are a great combo anytime. Together with a succulent chicken breast, this makes for a great meal. Baked Chicken Breasts soaked in a rich, creamy and fragrant sauce, what's not to like?

Ingredients for 2:
2 Chicken breast portions - boneless (About 200 grams or so per person)
Paprika
Thyme

For the Sauce
100 grams Swiss brown mushrooms - cut into quarters. (You can use white buttons as well)
1 leek - quartered lengthwise and then sliced
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar (optional)
200ml cream

Salt and pepper to taste
cooking oil for frying


Steps:

1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Season the chicken breasts assertively with salt pepper and some paprika and thyme.

2. Place chicken in oven and cook for about 20 minutes. (cooking times may vary depending on the size and thickness of your chicken meat) Chicken breast can overcook rather easily, so know your oven. =)

3. To make the sauce, heat some oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. When oil is heated up, add in the leeks and saute for 2 minutes and then add in the mushrooms. Saute until the the moisture released by the mushroom are almost evaporated and mushroom start to brown lightly. About 6-8 minutes

4. De-glaze the pan with white wine and white wine vinegar. Allow to simmer for a minute. Then add in the cream and lower the heat. Turn off the heat just before the cream starts to boil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Serve warm together with the cooked chicken breasts, garnished with fresh parsley.

To have it child friendly, you can omit the white wine, vinegar and paprika.

Enjoy! Leave a comment on how yours went!

Baked Garlic Onion and Anchovy Cheese Dip

Here’s an easy to make dip that easily impresses. It’s awesome with chips, crackers, vegetable sticks (Asparagus, Carrot Sticks etc..) Its also great used as a spread over bagels and/or bread. 

 

Ingredients:

250gm cream cheese (That’s the whole tub)

1 cup whipping cream
2 heads baked garlic - cooled to room temperature (See note below on baking garlic)
2 stalks spring onion, very finely chopped
1 x 80gm Tin of anchovies (minced in a food processor or finely chopped with a knife)

Steps:
1. If the cream cheese is hard (just out of the fridge) leave it out of the fridge for a while to let it soften.

2. Empty out the tub of cheese into a larger mixing bowl. Squeeze out the baked garlic into the cheese. (Remember to remove the hard roots). Add in the spring onions and anchovies as well. Fold in the garlic and onions into the cheese, ensure they mix well. Season with pepper.
 
3. Gradually add in the cream and fold it into the cheese mixture.

4. Serve immediately, or refrigerate and serve cold later.

Note: Baking Garlic:- Pre-heat oven at 180 degrees Celsius. Warp a whole head of garlic in aluminum foil (single layer will do) and bake for 40 mins.

Sambal Udang (Prawn)

Sambal is a chilli based condiment or sauce with its origins in Java Indonesia. Sambal usually comes in a paste-like form. It is also usually very very spicy. Traditional way of making Sambal is with a mortar and pestle, grinding the herbs and spices by hand.

This is a super spicy, super shiok Sambal prawn recipe I stole from my mum. Sorry mum, and erm oh, Happy Mother's Day Mum.

Sambal Udang

I adapted it a little, as the one my mom makes is often unbearably spicy when served to those outside our family. The wife ever called my family's need for this heat, shocking. Initially, I found it shocking that she found it shocking. I wonder if I can say that 5 times really fast.

Anyway, I adapted the use of tomato puree and more sugar. I have even made the effort to de-seed the chillies. I think I have managed to take it from my mum's "set your mouth ablaze" level of heat down to a more bearable level of "oh more water please!".

Here's what I used:

50 grams dried chillies - de-seeded and washed
2 purple onions (150 grams or so) - roughly chopped
2 yellow onions - sliced (you can use purple onions too, but I ran out of purples at this point)
4 tablespoons of sugar
1 can tomato puree (400 grams)
600 grams prawns - peeled and deveined (lightly seasoned with salt and pepper)

1/4 cup water
Juice of 1 large lime (or 2-3 small ones)

Oil for frying

Peri Peri Chicken Chop

This really spicy tangy sauce originated in Portugal I think. The name Peri Peri (or Piri Piri) actually means "pepper pepper" in a North African dialect or language. The Peri Peri Pepper is a type of chilli found in parts of Africa (aka African Bird's Eye Chilli). It resembles the chilli padi we get here locally in Singapore (aka Bird's Eye Chilli).

Peri Peri Chicken Chop

Peri Peri Sauce
Here is what you'll need for the Sauce:

1 1/2 head of garlic, peeled (You can use up to 2 heads for a really strong garlic flavored sauce)
8 stalks of chilli padi
2 stalks of regular large chillies
1/2 - 3/4 cup of Light Olive Oil
Juice of 1 Lemon
Zest of 1 Lemon
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 bunch of coriander with roots cleaned

1. Add all the herbs and spices (including the lemon zest) into a blender and blend.

2. Add the oil gradually and continue to blend. Stop adding oil when you get the consistency you want.

3. Add in half of the sugar and half of the lemon juice, blend and taste. Continue to add remaining lemon juice and sugar gradually till you get the taste you want for the sauce.

4. Store in a jar or container and refrigerate. Flavor will develop further overnight.

Mushroom Cream Sauce

This simple mushroom sauce recipe was taught to me by an old friend James a while ago. Former chef at an Italian Restaurant.

Mushroom Cream Sauce

I cannot remember the exact proportions he taught me at that time, it was years ago. I have made this several time and its always a hit with guests though. This recipe results in a smooth, rich and earthy sauce.

Here's what I used:

1-2 tablespoons of butter
1 yellow/white onion - Diced
200-250 grams Swiss browns or white button mushrooms - thinly sliced
1/3 - 1/2 cup of white wine (you can "cooking white wine" or any cheap dry white will do)
1 teaspoon of fresh thyme leaves
200ml thickened cream
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese.

Will yield about 3 cups of sauce or 6-8 servings.


Steps.

1. Heat butter in a pan over medium heat. (You can add a little oil to prevent the butter from burning too quickly)

2. Add onions and fry for 3 mins, stirring occasionally

3. When the onions begin to soften, add mushrooms and thyme to the pan and continue frying. As the mushrooms cook, they will release the water content from within. Just continue frying until most of the liquid has evaporated. You want to mushrooms to caramelize slightly, to release their deep nutty flavor. Do not add the wine before that. The cold liquid will hinder that from happening. Also, the wine is used to mop up all the wonderful brown goodness that is stuck to the pan when the shrooms and onions caramelize.

4. Add the white wine to the pan and simmer for a about 2-3 mins or until most of liquid as evaporated. Make sure to mop up the wonderful brown bits that are stuck to the base of the pan.

5. Add the cream and mix well. Lower the heat to low, to prevent cream from going into a rolling boil. Then add in the Parmesan. Mix well.

6. Turn off heat, add salt and pepper to taste. You are now ready to serve the mushroom sauce.