Simple Sautéed Shitake Mushrooms with Shishito Peppers

I was inspired by the mushroom side dish I had a Cut a couple months back. Decided try my own rendition of it when I saw a pack of Shishito peppers while walking around Isetan Orchard with the wife.

Sautéed Shitake Mushrooms with Shishito Peppers

Shishito peppers is a thin skinned pepper that is not very spicy but lends a very nice fragrance to this dish. Not as tart or fruity are other more fleshy peppers that we usually find in our local supermarkets. This is a very simple and easy dish to prepare and a great complement to almost any meal.

Ingredients:

1 shallot - sliced
250 grams shitake mushrooms - half them if they are very large

6 Shishito peppers - stalks removed
Soya sauce and ground black pepper for seasoning

Handful of bonito flakes for garnish

Steps:

1. Heat some cooking oil in a saute pan over medium heat.

2. When oil is heated, add in the peppers and fry for about 2 minutes.

3. Add in the shallots and fry until the shallots soften and the peppers start to wrinkle and brown slightly on the edges.

4. Add in the mushrooms and continue to fry for another 3-5 minutes. When mushrooms are almost done, turn of the heat and add in the soya sauce and ground black pepper to taste.

5. Dish onto plates and garnish with bonito flakes.

That's all there is to it. Simplicity at its best! Hope you'll enjoy this recipe.

Spicy Dry Ramen Tossed with Sesame Oil and Soya.

Had a dry noodle craving at home so I tossed this together. Beats having to eat instant noodles. The fresh vegetables add a refreshing textural element. I used Bonito flavoured soya (cause I happened to have it in the fridge) but you can use regular Soya, or even Yuzu Soya for a fruity dimension.

Spicy Dry Ramen with all the garnish

Served Warm, tossed in Soya, Chilli Oil (Layu), Sesame Oil, Garlic oil, Sugar, Cayenne Pepper and Rice Wine Vinegar. Served with fresh veg and a 6 minute egg. Its deceptively addictive.

Here's what I used for 2:

160 grams egg noodles/ramen

Garnish
1/2 cup shredded romaine lettuce (About 3-4 leaves)
1 Large chilli - thinly sliced
Handful of bonito flakes
Handful of shredded Nori
2 stalks of spring onions - sliced
3 tablespoons Dried Sakura Ebi - Toasted in a oven at 190c for 5 mins.
2 eggs - Boiled for 5-6 minutes in boiling water then placed in cold water.

You can mix and match your favourite vegetables for the garnish, or based on what you have in the fridge at that time.

Sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons - Bonito Soya
2 teaspoons Chilli Oil (Layu)
1 tablespoon Sesame Oil
1 tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Sugar1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper (omit if you are not into spicy)
2 teaspoons Rice Wine Vinegar
1 tablespoon Garlic oil

(You can prepare garlic oil by frying 2 cloves of sliced garlic in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil until they turn golden brown)

Steps:

1. Mix all sauce ingredients together in large mixing bowl.

2. Boil ramen/noodles according to package instructions. When done, toss noodles in the sauce mix. When noodles are well coated with sauce, dish into separate bowls.

3. Remove shell from eggs and place on noodles.

4. Top with all other prepared garnish and serve immediately.

It require a little effort in prep, well worth it. Just be sure you prepared all your garnish before you cook you noodles. Once you start to cook your noodles, everything will happen quickly.

Grilled Corn Salsa

A refreshing side dish to have with a meal. Goes great with Asian dishes too.

Grilled Corn Salsa

The sweetcorn and red pepper complement each other well, with lime and coriander cutting through the sweetness. Grilling or roasting the corn brings out a slight hint of nutty flavour. Highly enjoyable. Really easy to do as well.

Ingredients:
2 sweetcorns - with husks peeled.
1 red bell pepper - diced
1 shallot - sliced
1 clove of garlic - sliced
Handful of corriander leaves - roughly chopped.
1 tablespoon spring onion - sliced (optional)
Juice of 1/2 a large lime.
1/2 teaspoon of sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Steps:
1. Grill sweetcorn over an open flame in an oven set to grill, until the corn just starts to char on the outside. The Kernel should still be moist on the inside, you do not want to dry them out.

2. When corn is grilled, removed the kernels from the cob. You can do this by cutting the cob in half, then stand it vertically on the chopping board. Use a spoon or blade to scrape the kernels down. Place the kernels in the bowl, discard the core.

3. Heat some oil in a saute pan over medium heat. When oil is heated, add in the diced red peppers, garlic and shallots. Fry for about 3-5 minutes, to get the tartness out of the peppers. Fry until the peppers start to soften. Remove the the pan and set aside and allow to cool.

4. In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together, season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Oven Grilled Chicken Thighs

This is an easy-to-do grilled chicken dish. Just season the chicken, chop the veg and into the oven. Ready in 40 minutes but actual work done is about 15-20 minutes. 

Oven grilled Chicken Thighs

The juices of the chicken, flavoured with the seasoning will mix in with the veg below, adding flavour and also acting like a dressing for the veg. I adjusted the height of the baking dish to be closer to the top heating element, for a crispy finish on the skin.

Ingredients:
2 boneless chicken thighs (You can get them at most Cold Storage outlets at S$4.99 for 2)

Seasoning:
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cyanne pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
(You can mix and match the herbs to your liking)

Other ingredients:
300 grams brussel sprouts - halved
2 large carrots - chopped into chunks and blanched in boiling salted water for about 5 mins.
1 large yellow onion - roughly sliced
2 sprigs fresh thyme
5 cloves of garlic - peeled
1 Teaspoon duck fat (optional, you can use olive oil instead)

Shrimp and Scallops with White Wine, Garlic and Butter Sauce

I got this idea a while back when there was left over Chadonnay, Garlic butter/spread and shrimp at a friends BBQ. I improvised by using the pan that belonged to the chalet. It was a hit. After that, I get requests to do this at a bbq, but now I bring my own pan, herbs etc...

Shrimp and Scallops with White Wine, Garlic and Butter Sauce

 Here is what I did for my most recent rendition at home.

300 grams tiger prawns - peeled and deveined
6 scallops

4 cloves garlic - sliced
2 sprigs of thyme
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup chicken stock (optional)

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste

Steps:

1. In a saute pan, heat some cooking oil over a medium heat. When oil is heated, add in the shrimp and scallops and fry for about 20 seconds each side. Remove them from the pan and set aside.

2. Add the garlic into the pan and cook for about 1 minute, till they just start to brown on the edges.(Add a little more oil if pan is too dry)

3. At this point add in the wine and deglaze the pan. (Using a spatula something similar, scrape the brown bits off the base of the pan) Allow to simmer for about 1 minute and then add the chicken stock. Simmer for another 2 minutes over low heat, or so, allow the liquid to reduce by about 1/3.

4. Then add butter and thyme. Mix well and simmer for another minute.

5. Add in the shrimp and scallops, turn off the heat and mix well. Serve in the deep sided dish.

Recommend to serve with crusty bread, to mop up the sauce.

Its actually very easy to do. Just have to watch out, not to over cook the seafood.

Enjoy!

Tagliatelle with Meatballs and Tomato Sauce

Gotta love meatballs with pasta. They freeze well, so you can make them beforehand.

Beef Meatballs

 I like to make larger quantities of the meatballs and sauce and keep them for later use.

Here is what I used to serve 4:

For the meatballs
500gms minced beef
1 yellow onion - finely diced
5 cloves garlic - finely diced
2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons dried chilli flakes

1/2 cup bread crumbs

1/4 milk

For the tomato sauce
400 gms diced tomatoes (about 1 can)
1 can tomato puree
1 yellow onion - diced
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary
2 sprigs of fresh thyme

Rest of the stuff
350 grams of dried tagliatelle (or your favourite pasta)
Handful of fresh basil for garnish - roughly chopped

Homemade Burger with Portobello and Bacon

Burger with Portobello, Bacon and Rocket

I'm back from Reservist In Camp Training. Finally! Hence the lack of posts over the past few weeks.
I had a hankering for a burger... So this is what I did...

Ingredients for 4 burgers:

For the Patties
700 grams minced beef
2 eggs
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 yellow onion - diced
4 tablespoons tomato ketchup
4 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons Worcester sauce
1 teaspoon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Other Stuff:
1 cup rocket or lettuce
150 grams Portobello mushrooms - sliced
2-3 shallots - chopped
8 pieces bacon rashers
4 slices cheese (I used cheddar but you can use your favorite kind)
4 store bought burger buns (I like to use those by "Swiss bake" from cold storage)
Butter for spreading on the buns.

Thai style Crispy Pork Lettuce wraps.

This dish is inspired by what I saw on Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery course.

Thai style Crispy Pork Lettuce Wraps with chilli Corriander dressing

Here is what you'll need

For the mince stirfry:
300 Grams minced pork
4-6 garlic cloves - chopped
2 stalks spring onion - sliced
juice of half a large lime
lime zest
drizzle of Thai fish sauce
1 teaspoon sesame seed oil
cooking oil for frying
1-2 stalks of large chillies - sliced
1 bunch Baby romaine lettuce

For the dressing:
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon light soya sauce
2 teaspoons Thai fish sauce
2 teaspoons brown sugar (regular sugar works too)
Juice of the other half of the lime
1 bunch coriander - roughly chopped
1 stalk of large chilli - sliced

Tiger Shrimp Tagliatelle

I was thinking, bacon works with shrimp, bacon works with asparagus, why not put all 3 in a pasta dish? So I went out and got some shrimp, bacon and asparagus and made dinner for 2 =).

Tiger Shrimp Tagliatelle

We enjoyed the end result. This works with almost any store bought pasta. I just happened to have some tagliatelle at home.

Here's what you'll need to serve 2:

180 grams Tagliatelle
300-350 grams Tiger Prawns (I used king tiger prawns.) - shelled, keep the heads aside
2-3 rashers streaky bacon
150 grams asparagus - cut into 1 inch lengths, separate the tips from the rest.
2 cups chicken stock (you can use water if not available)
1/2 cup white wine
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
4 garlic cloves - sliced
1 sprig of thyme - leaves only
Parsley for garnish

Bacon & Egg Breakfast Ciabatta Sandwich

I found some Ciabatta bread in the supermarket one day, thought I'd try a breakfast sandwich. It was rather satisfying and most importantly, a joy to eat.

The Breakfast Ciabatta

Here’s what you’ll need for 4 sandwiches

For the spread:

4-5 tablespoons mayonnaise

2 cloves garlic - Finely minced or grated into a mince

1 stalk spring onion - finely chopped.

 Salt and pepper to taste

The rest of the stuff:

4 Ciabatta Buns (Or you can get a whole loaf and cut it up)

4 eggs - Beaten

8 rashers of streaky bacon - Cooked on a fry pan or in the oven till cripsy

4 sliced of cheddar cheese (halved, so that they fit better)

1 tomato – sliced

½ red onion, sliced

Handful of rocket

Steps:

1. In a bowl, mix the mayonnaise, minced garlic and spring onion. Add salt and pepper to taste.

2. Cut the Ciabatta across lengthwise and lightly toast the Ciabatta in an oven or on a pan and set aside.

3. Heat a frying pan over medium low heat with some oil/butter. Scramble eggs in the pan. When eggs are one, dish eggs into a bowl/plate and aside.

4. Spread the mayo mix onto the cut sides of the buns.

5. Now for the assembly. For each sandwich, place in this order (I find it more stable in this order). 2 rashers of bacon, 1 halved cheese slices, couple spoonfuls of scramble egg, tomatoes, onion, rocket, and the other half of the bun.

6. Enjoy! 

Who needs Egg McMuffins anymore? Who am I kidding, I'll probably still grab a McMuffin every now and then.

Open Faced Ham and Cheese Sandwich with Mushrooms and Poached Egg

Made this a couple of weekends ago for breakkie. Its similar to the previous eggs benedict recipe. Differences are the addition of mushrooms on the ham & cheese and just plain bread instead of French toasts.

Poached eggs on Shooms and Ham & Cheese

This combo makes for a rich, hearty and earthy breakfast dish.

Here is what I used to serve 2

4 slices of bread
4 slices of ham (I used honey baked, you can use your preferred type)
4 slices of cheese (Cheddar was used here)
4 poached eggs (poached eggs video by an instructor from CIA)
150 - 200 grams white button mushrooms - sliced
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic finely sliced
1/2 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves (or replace with your favorite herb)
Oil for frying
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mushroom, Red Pepper and Spinach Fritatta

We really enjoyed the last time we had Fritatta at home, so I decided to do it again. This time changing around the ingredients I used a little. By the time I was done, I realized that I made a vegetarian Fritatta.

Mushroom, Red Pepper and Spinach Fritatta

Ingredients:
200 grams white button mushrooms - sliced
0.5 - 1 cup baby spinach
1 medium sized red pepper - diced
1 medium sized yellow/white onion - diced
150-200 grams cheddar cheese
6-7 eggs
50 grams mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
1 stalk spring onion - sliced (optional for garnish)