Cze Char at Jurong West Blk 651

Not limiting ourselves to home-cooked food and being staying in the west zone, we have to dig food that are somewhat tasty & not-so-boring.

Located at Jurong west Blk 651, this open till late bustling coffeeshop sells many delicacies. I used to packet food from the cze char, its Fried Bee Hoon ('sin chow mi fen' 星州米粉) is excellent, however I didn't know if its still as tasty as before after its reno.

Hence, its a revisit for cze char craves that day.

Looking at the eye-catching yummy looking pics, 3 dishes were ordered to fill the hungry stomach.

The spring chicken does not fail to surprise with its flavour. Its tinted sauce is made with sweet shrimp paste. But of course due to the texture of the chicken & its skin that makes it works. Crispy yet tender, thumbs up! I would definitely love to make this on my own someday. But its has got to be 'spring chicken' to be yummy.

Next up was Japanese prawns with broccoli. Basically Japanese prawn here means flour coated fried prawns and wasabi. The prawns were not succulent, so leave no imagination to it, the wasabi was fine and not heavily dosed for this dish, but the broccoli was disappointing for its dryness (the texture was crunchy, so too dry doesn't taste yummy), at least some sauces or dippings for the broccoli will do fine.

The first 2 dish looks dry to me, hence the fish maw & crabmeat soup was ordered. Its soup tasted so-so. Hmm...

This 3 dishes cost slightly lesser than $50. Overall was neutral and good. Don't be too picky about food if we have to eat somewhere nearby. Will still go back again to 'da bao' food. :)
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Best regards,

Appetizing Curry Vegetables

Weekends coming..and we all love cooking those heavy flavourings. Very appetizing and goes slurping one bowl after another. Loves it!

Best selection of key ingredients

Cabbage: Select China Cabbage (bigger in size).

Potato: Choose Yellow Potato. Another type of darker potato is better served for cooking soup, and the ligher and fairer kinds of potato is the australian potato.

Ladyfinger: Choose where the end-edge is harder (able to pinch off the edge easily using fingers). This kind of ladyfinger is fresher.

Brinjal: The stem of the brinjal should preferably be greener instead of darkish brown colour, and the outer skin in strong deep purple colour. When press, the texture should be firm.

Recipe (Serve 8)

Cooking Tools:

• Wok
  
• Pot
  

Ingredients:

• Vegetable curry paste - 2 pkts (400g: est. $4.40)
• Lemon grass - 1 stalk (approx. 50 or 60 cents for 3 stalks)
• Lime leaves - 6 pcs ($0.50 for a pack)
• Cabbage (wash & cut)- 1/2 ($1.30)
• Brinjal (wash & cut) - 1 whole (220g: est. $0.60)
• Potato (skinned and cut) - 6 wholes (620g: est $1.30 for 8 wholes)
• Ladyfinger (wash) - 8 stalks (approx. $0.60) [Note: Keep as a whole, cut ladyfinger soften easily]
• Tau Pok (Cut) - 10 pcs ($1.10)
• Quail Egg - 15
• Coconut milk - 1 pkt (500g: $1.70)

• Oil - 3 tablespoon
• Water - 1.3 litre
• Sugar - 1/2 teaspoon
• Salt
  

Preparation

• Split Coconut Milk into 2 bowls. Add the first bowl of coconut milk with 300ml of water. Leave the other bowl as it is.
• Boil Quail Egg over medium heat. Remove after 10 mins, peeled shells and leave aside.

Method

1. Heat wok and Oil. Add Vegetable curry paste to fry. Add lemon grass and lime leaves as well. (Medium heat)

2. Add potato to wok & fry.

3. Add a pinch of salt. Fry evenly.

4. Pour ingredients from wok into pot.

5. Pour the bowl of coconut and water mixture. (Note: 1st half bowl)

6. Set 1 litre of water into pot and boil for a min (High  heat).

7. Add sugar and stir.

8. Add a pinch of salt and stir.

9. Add brinjal & ladyfinger. Mix well.

10. Taste gravy (add condiments to taste if needed), cover lid to boil for another min.

11. Check gravy and stir, cover up to heat for half a min.

12. Add cabbage, mix well and cover lid for 5 mins.

13. Add taupok & quail egg. Mix well and cover lid for 5 mins.

14. Add the bowl of coconut milk (without water mix). (Note: 2nd half bowl)

15. Cook for a min and is ready to serve.
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Best regards,

Char Siew Fried Rice & Cabbage

Hungry for fried rice?!?! Select the best char siew for the golden fried rice...

Char Siew is a common traditional ingredient use for adding taste and meaty content bites out of a boring plate of fried rice. It can be stored and kept in a fridge for at most 2 to 3 days.

Selecting good char siew for the cooking can enhance the flavour in the food, and this common ingredient will soon be transform into an admirable lead ingredient.

Selection

Char Siew:
1) Select 'fatty' Char Siew. On a fatty char siew, the outer reddish part of its texture should be softer than a non-fatty one. (A non-fatty Char Siew's meat looks tough and hard) And when cut, there is a transparent whitish layer in between the inner meat & the outer meat (reddish part). - this reveals that it belongs to the fatty Char Siew.

2)  Select Char Siew that are charbroiled instead of fried. Char siew that is charbroiled has black burnt patches on its outer reddish skin, whereas fried Char Siew has a deeper red colour than the fatties one and without those dark charcoaled-burnt black patches.

Cabbage:
Choose Beijing cabbage (smaller in size) for cooking. The China cabbage (bigger in size) is most suitable for cooking with soup or using as the main ingredient for making popiah. [Note: China cabbage is harder and will takes longer time to smother]


Recipe (Serves 5)

Preparation:

• Store leftover rice / or prepare cooked rice a day before and store in fridge. Overnight rice tends to look and taste better as each grain of rice will be separated well (most individually), and does not result in sticky clumps, thus performance in taste will be raised.
  
  
  

Ingredients:

• Rice (Uncooked - 3 1/2 plastic cups) / Overnight rice

[Note: personal selection is Pagoda Rice (皇族安培娜香米)
$13.80 - 5kgs, $24.80 - 10kgs]

[Note: cooked rice (sealed or covered) can be kept in fridge for 2-3 days]

• Char Siew ($3)

• Cabbage ($1 / 1 whole)

• Eggs (5, beaten added with 1 1/2 teaspoons of light soy sauce and tiny pinch of ajinomoto)

Frying Rice

• Oil (4 tablespoons) [Note: When frying rice, it should not be over oily]
• Garlic (5 cloves)
• Fine Salt (1 tablespoon)
• Ajinomoto (1/3 teaspoon)

Frying Cabbage

• Oil (3 tablespoons)
• Garlic (4 cloves)
• Fine Salt (1 teaspoon)
• Ajinomoto (1/3 teaspoon)

Method

Prepare wok for frying rice:

1. Heat wok and oil (small heat), fry garlic until fragrance / semi-golden.

2. Add Cooked Rice into the wok and fry. (Use high heat)

3. Add eggs and stir-fried until even golden yellow. (Usually the rice will form small clumps after adding eggs, press and flatten the rice using the turner)

4. Add Char Siew.

5. Add Salt and ajinomoto. Taste.

6. The rice is ready when it is jumping/popping on the wok (by the side, or in the middle of the wok).

7. Ladled rice and place into cooker to keep warm.

Prepare wok for frying vegetables:

1. Heat oil and wok and fry garlic. (Small heat)

2. Fry vegetables until soften. (Medium Heat) Turn off fire at approx. 15 mins.

Ready to serve.

Note: The cabbage is a good complement to the fried rice.

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Best regards,