One Pot Meal #2 - Minced pork Tofu 肉碎香菇豆腐煲

Every full time working mom wish they have 8 pairs of hands so that they can multitask better and spend more time with their kids. I am one of them! Even when comes to weekend, we have dozen and dozen of house chores to do, (cannot close one eye, we already close one eye on weekday, no more eye close on weekend!), we have laundry to wash, we have activities to involve with our loves one, we need to do marketing, we need to pay visit to grandparents.... etc etc! Oh gosh! (OK, enough for the ranting!)

So one pot meal is a time and life saver to us at times! It uses the least ingredient and minimal preparation time for a hot warming food to be ready. But it is not so healthy to feed my kids one pot meal all days! Now, they have grown up a little (yes, just a little, =P), mummy can be lazy a little at times! (Oops!)

Minced pork Tofu pot is a good choice of one pot meal that suits young kids as they still require lots of proteins (from meat) and calcium (from tofu!) which the 2 main ingredients provide very good source of them.

Just simple ingredients to make a delicious dish!

One Pot Dish #2–Minced Pork Tofu

(enough for 2 adults to go with rice!)

Ingredient:

1 box of Silken Tofu

100gm of Minced Pork (quantity can be adjust according to your preference)

2 – 3 Chinese Dried Mushroom (omit if you don’t like)

2 tsp chopped garlic (abt. 2 cloves)

Chopped Spring Onion (for garnish)

Seasoning:

1 tsp light soy sauce

A few drop sesame oil

A few dashes white pepper powder (omit if you don’t like)

½ tsp corn flour

Sauce:

½ tsp cooking oil

1 TBSP Oyster Sauce

½ TBSP light soy sauce

Pinch of sugar

Water for stewing (Water leftover from soaked mushroom, add hot water if you need more)

Pre-preparation:

1. Soak Chinese dried mushroom in room temp water, drained the water and cut into small cube. This step has to be done at least 3-4 hours in advanced depends on the thickness of your dried mushroom.

2. Marinate minced pork with seasoning for about 10-15mins.

3. Cut silken tofu into 6 or 8 small pieces and soak them in a bowl of salt water (tap water mixed with ½ tsp salt)

Method:

1.  Heat cooking oil in a wok and stir fry garlic till brown.

2. Add in soaked mushroom and stir fry till fragrant.

3. Add in minced pork and stir fry till fragrant. Keep stirring to prevent the minced pork form into big cube. Break them into smaller piece with your spatula if the minced pork cube is big.

4. Add in water, Oyster Sauce and light soy sauce and bring to boil.

5. Add in tofu and gently stir a few times, lower the flame and simmer for 10 minutes.

6. Garnish with chopped spring onion and serve.

Mini notes from hippo:

1. Water used to soak dried mushroom should always room temperature water as hot water destroys natural flavors in dried mushrooms.

2. Request the butcher to grind the minced pork twice if you are using the minced pork for steaming/stewing for smoother/finer texture.

3. Always taste your finished cook before scoop them out from your wok. Adjust the taste to suit individual palate.

One Pot Meal #1 - Hippo Grandma’s Stew Mui Choy Pork Belly 梅菜扣肉

My grandma is a good teochew and Hokkien cuisine cook. But she passed away too young before I have the chance to learn all her skills.

Luckily my mom learnt a few dishes from her, and this is one of my favourite dish. I have bad cravings for Mui Choy Kou Yok so I gate crash my mom house to learn about this dish on last weekend afternoon. Haha!

To prepare this dish is not tough, this is a very easy and simple dish to prepare especially when you are too busy to prepare a proper 3 dish 1 soup meal, this will be a very good choice. Just a bowl of rice, tadah! Gao dim!

Hippo Grandma’s Stew Mui Choy Pork Belly (Stew Preserved Green mustard with Pork Belly)

Ingredient:

(Served about 6-8 person)

Mui Choy 500g

Pork Belly 300g

Garlic 2-3 cloves (chopped) + half a bulb for stewing.

Dark Soy Sauce 1 TBSP

Cooking oil 3 TBSP

Hot water enough to cover mui choy for stewing purpose.

Method:

1. Rinse, wash and clean Mui Choy thoroughly and soak for at least 30 mins to 1 hour.

(Remarks: Soaking is to reduce the saltiness of mui choy, soaking time will depends on the saltiness of mui choy you get.)

2. Clean the pork belly and cut into big cube.

3. Wring out the excess water from mui choy and cut them into about 1cm length.

4. Heat up cooking oil in a wok and fry the chopped garlic till fragrant (pic 1), put in the pork belly and stir fry till the surface is cooked. (pic 2), now put in the garlic bulb and mui choy, stir fry for awhile (pic 3 & 4). Pour in the dark soy sauce and stir fry till all mui choy is coated with dark soy sauce, (Pic 5, this step is also to fry till the dark soy sauce is fragrant.) Pour in hot water to cover the mui choy for stew. (pic 6)

5. Bring the pot of mui choy to boil for 20-30mins then lower the flame to small medium and stew till the pork and mui choy is soft. In a normal pot/earth pot, it should takes about 1.5-2hrs for the stewing process. Now, it’s ready to serve.

Notes from Hippomama:

1. Make sure you wash and rinse thoroughly to remove the tiny sand or dirt leave in the mui choy.

2. For unfinished mui choy, you can heat up and leave it in pot for next day consume. The longer the mui choy is boil, the tastier it is!

Bread-Straight Dough #2 面包-直接法#2

I was recommended to try this recipe by my baking kakis Ivy & Yen Ni last week. Just in time as I am getting bored with the bread recipe I am using for quite some times. I prefer straight dough than any other recipe although TangZhong & 5c low temp method sounds interesting and yield soft bread too. Straight dough is more suitable to my lifestyle and timing as I have 2 active toddlers to handle at home. As and when I feel like making bread, I can just do it. =P

My tasters rave about this simple recipe. It's simply taste good on it's own or you just need a simple spread to go with it if you want to!

Mini bun in egg tart mold~ =)

Butter Buns

(By Christine's Recipes)

Ingredients:

(Yield about 14 mini buns)

250 gm bread flour

25 gm cake flour

5 gm instant dry yeast

15 gm milk powder

40 gm caster sugar

1/2 tsp salt

100 ml water, about 36C/97F

80 ml milk, about 36C/97F

40 gm butter, softened at room temperature

Whisked egg, for egg wash

Method:

1. Mix all ingredients (except butter) in a mixer/breadmaker or knead by hand. When all the ingredients come together, knead in butter until the dough passes the thin membrane test.

2. Roll it into a ball. Place into a lightly greased bowl, cling wrap. Let it proof until it's doubled in size, about 30mins – 45mins.

3. Grease the cupcake holder. (or any desire holder or even just a baking tray!)

4. On a clean table top, deflate the dough and cut into 30-35g dough each. Roll  each into a ball shape. Place them in the middle of cupcake holder. Clig wrap loosely and let it proof until doubled in size, took about 30-45mins.

5. 15 mins before the dough is ready for bake, preheat oven to 170c. Egg wash the doughs. Bake in preheated oven for about 10 to 12 minutes or till golden. Remove the buns from the oven and let it stand for 2 to 3 minutes. Turn them out from the tin onto a wire rack.

Notes from Christine：

1. The texture of these butter buns is wonderfully soft and fluffy. The leftovers can be kept soft overnight. Just reheat them with your oven and they taste like those fresh from oven.

2. Don’t have time to knead the dough but you still want fresh buns for breakfast? Here’s a workaround. Make the buns the night before, up to the point where they're shaped and put in the tin for the 2nd round of proofing. Wait until the dough has risen halfway, almost touching one another. Yet don’t wait until they are fully risen. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap, and refrigerate. The next morning, remove the buns from the fridge, and let warm and rise, keeping them covered, for an hour or so. Remove the plastic wrap and bake the buns as instructed in step 3.

Notes from Hippomama:

1. If you find the dough is sticky to handle, floured your table top as per Christine’s recipe. Do not add too much as the bread may turn out too dry/hard.

2.  The proofing time stated in Christine’s and mine are different due to the temperature and humidity in the air in our country. Use “proof till double in size” as guideline. You can see here on how to test if the dough is done proofing. 

Bread-Straight Dough #1 面包-直接法#1

最近爱上手做面包.每隔一天就弄一批面包.因为一批的量只能够让一家大小吃两天.呵呵~不过这样也不错,至少面包都是新鲜的,不枉费我手做的意义.

看着面包发酵是很快乐的事~ 看着面团慢慢发胀.就好似看着自己的慢慢小孩长大.那个过程是手做者最大的满足!

这款热狗面包是我灵光一现的杰作。我每一次都只会用面团绕热狗圈圈，而且又丑得要命。看到这款的成品顿时让我有很了不起的感觉。（也没多了不起就是了，这一款随便一家邻里面包店应该都有吧？呵呵~）

食谱我用了英文，因为刚好翻译给一位朋友，就直接用了。

Recipe:

(Adapted from FB's friend Ms. Soh Pin Tee)

Ingredient:

(Yield about 10-12 standard size bread)

340g bread flour

50g sugar

½ TBsp instant yeast

½ tsp salt

210g milk

40g cold butter (cut into small cube)

Method:

1. Put in yeast and sugar, then half of the bread flour, salt, and balance of the bread flour.

** This is to separate the salt to contact with yeast. Salt can kill yeast if they are mixing together for long. While sugar help the activeness in yeast.

2. Mix the dry ingredient in the mixing bowl with a knead hood. (Just a few turn) Pour in milk slowly; knead until it forms dough.

3. Slowly add in butter, knead until membrane stage.

4. Grease a clean bowl, shift the dough into the bowl, lightly spray water on the surface of dough and cling wrap/cover with wet clean towel (omit the water spray if wet towel is use).

5. Leave it to proof for 40mins (up to 1.5hrs) or until the dough is double the size.

** Tips: on your oven for 1 mins and off the heat, leave your dough in the oven to proof. Works wonder for me!

** How to check if your dough is ready. Grease your finger with butter or oil. Poke your finger into your dough, the dough remains its’ shape. The hole that your finger poke in should not bounce back (bounce back means not done), no obvious shrink down in size. (Shrink down means over proof, but it’s ok, just go ahead with the 2^nd proof. Still edible!)

6. Line your baking trays with parchment paper.

7. On a clean table top, take out the dough from the bowl. Punch out the excess air in the dough.

8. Cut and weight the individual dough.

** Suggestion: adult: 50-55g dough. Kids: 30g dough.

9. Flatten the dough into flat oval shape. Place your hotdog at the middle. Leave on the baking tray for 2^nd proof. Cling wrap loosely and leave them proof until the dough risen double of the size, about 30-45mins.

10. Preheat oven 15-20mins before your bread is ready for bake.

11. Lightly milk wash/egg wash the dough thinly. Squeeze mayonnaise and sweet chili sauce on buns, sprinkle some parsley if desire.

12. Baked in preheated oven for 12-15mins or till the top is golden.

** Adjust your baking time according to your oven temperature. My oven is hotter therefore my bake time always shorter than original recipe.

13. Take out the bread from oven and move them to cooling rack till cold before you store them into air tight container.

** This recipe can remain soft for up to 3 days under room temp. Or you can fridge the bread and microwave for 15secs before consume. The bread will return it softness once microwave.

For reference, can visit Carol Jay's blog:

http://tw.myblog.yahoo.com/carol-jay/article?mid=8938&prev=15550&l=f&fid=23

Additional remarks from hippomama:

1. This dough is good for simply bread without much shaping. Like sugar roll, Cheese buns, simple roll bun & whole loft due to its non stickiness nature.

2. This recipe is very forgiving. Even if you under or over proof, the bread will still okay to consume. So no worry about the over/under proof, go ahead to try!

3. If hand kneads, the steps basically are the same. Put all ingredients into a bowl and knead till the dough forms, add in butter and knead till window stage. This recipe is good for hand knead also as it is non sticky once the dough forms. Very encouraging recipe! Haha~

Orange Slice Swissroll 鲜橙蛋糕卷

I was attracted by its vibrant color when a fellow member in the baking group I join posted this. This is too pretty to resist! Given to this little fellow has been on my to-bake list for the longest time, I decided I shall make a swissroll soon. LOL~

So happen that I attend this cake decorating class on the following week and thanks to the kind and generous teacher to demo a Swiss roll to us. The demo do helps in boosting confident. keke~ Here I come little fellow!

Recipe:

(Adapted from Ms. Pheony Chua from Baking Wonderland)

Ingredient:

(Make a 12” x 12” square cake tray)

Orange 2 nos (1 for slice and cook; 1 for juicing)

Egg Yolks 4 nos

Orange juice 70g

Orange rind 1 TBsp

Vegetable oil 40g

Cake flour 70g (sifted)

Egg whites 4nos

Castor sugar 60g

Method:

1. Preheat oven 180c . Line the cake tray with parchment paper.

2. Wash orange throughly, slice thinly, boil in the sugar syrup till the white flesh become transparent. Pat dry and arrange them on baking paper in baking pan.

* Note: Do not arrange the oranges slice too near to each other or the cake might be a bit difficult to roll/break during roll.

3. In a bowl, whisk egg yolk, orange juice, orange rind and vegetable oil till well combine. Add in flour, mix well.

4. In another bowl, beat egg whites till foamy, add sugar in 3 additions. Beat till stiff.

5. Fold in 1/3 of the meringue into egg yolk mixture, then pour this mixture into the balance of egg white and fold till well corporate.

6. Pour the mixture into cake tray and spread evenly. Knock a few times on table top to get rid big bubbles in the batter.

7. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15mins or till golden.

8. Remove the cake from cake tray once it is out from oven. Inverted the cake and tear out the baking paper but leave the baking paper remains cover on the cake to prevent the cake from drying.

To roll: the side with orange slices faces down, spread desire flavor of jam and roll. Leave the roll in fridge for 1 hour before serve.

Hippomama's mini Note:

1. Adjust sugar level in the recipe against the sweetness of the oranges you have. My oranges is sour and 60g of sugar is just nice to yield a not too sweet cake base.
2. Please adjust the temperature according to your oven. My oven is hotter than usual oven, I only use 170c for 11mins for the cake to cook throughly.
2. Using 60g eggs.