Honey Pecan Shrimps

This is a crispy on the outside and soft and moist inside shrimps that is perfected with the enhance by the creaminess of the mayo and sweetness of the honey with a hint of tangy from the lemon juice. It one of those dish that just melts in your mouth and you can’t help but have more than one. I for one love this rich dish even though I feel very guilty stuffing my face in it. For this very reason I tried not to make it too often. In fact, I made only twice a year. One for Chinese New Year and another time around my eldest son birthday, because he just love it. He said that he can never have enough of it! Now that he moved out, I will have to make this more often to lure him to visit me. lol There not much preparation to this dish, only to coat it in flour, fry and coat it with real mayo and honey. A very simple dish to make, yet bursting with flavor that still linger even after you swallow it. It will leave a great impression if you aim to press your guest or your family once in awhile. It always did for me!

Ingredients:

1 Lb jumbo shrimps, peel and devein
½ Cup corn starch or rice flour or all purposed flour
2 Egg beaten
1 Tbsp of fresh squeezed lemon juice
3 Tbsp of real mayo
Salt to taste
1 Tbsp of condensed milk
1 Tbsp of honey or to sweetness taste
5 Tbsp of water
¼ Cup of sugar
½ Pecan (originally walnut is used)
Water

Methods:

1. Heat the flyer to hot or if using pot, heat enough oil to hot. About 2 cups of oil.
2. Bring a little water to boil and add the pecan. Cook for a minute remove. Strain out the water and set aside.
3. Peel and devein shrimps then clean it and set aside.
4. In a mixing bowl beat egg together to blend.
5. In another bowl place the corn starch flour and set aside.
6. Dip the shrimp into the egg and let it sit for ten minutes.
7. Now drain the eggs out and dip the shrimps into the flour and coat well. Divided it into three to four batches.
8. Place in the hot oil and cook until shrimp turn pink and fully cook. About 3-5 minutes. Remove and set on towel to take the oil out and makes it crispy.
9. Do this to until all the shrimps is cook.
10. Now while your last batch of shrimps is being cook, mix all the ingredients together such as the mayo, lemon juice, honey and condensed milk and salt to taste. Set aside.
11. In a small non stick pot, heat the water and sugar until boil. When it boil lower the heat to medium and stir until it turn amber and slightly thicken.
12. Remove from the heat add the pecan to sugar coat it.
13. Now add the cook shrimps to the mayo sauce and toss a couple of time to couple it completely.
14. Serve hot and garnish with the sweet pecan.

Sa lor Ma Chiu Karung

I am not going to write a lot about this soup only that it is an exceptional Cambodian dish that I have ever learn to make. In the Khmer culture if you can cook this soup, then it meant you can cook! The reason being that it require some time to prepared the herbs and spices to get ready for this soup. Of course, once you got the basic herbs and spices down, you can most certainly cook most Khmer dishes due to it similar ingredients and methods.
Also I would like to add that even though the taste should be very sharp with it perfect harmony of sweet and sour, every family will have their version of meat and vegetable preferences. I do mine version by observing and trying many different kind before deciding that this is the flavor I set out to accomplished.
Overall, I like mine thick and with lots of chewy texture meat and tendon. Sometime I would add beef tripe too, to make it taste super yummy. Mostly importantly bold and sharp is the word to best describe the flavor of this soup.



Ingredients:

1 Lb beef stew meat cut into cube
½ Lb beef tendon cut into thumb size pieces
½ Cup grind lemon grass (about 6 to 8 whole)
½ Tsp of turemic powder or small thumb size fresh one, grind
¼ Cup fish sauce
1 Tbsp of vegetable oil
1 Tsp kosher salt
1 Tbsp of oyster sauce
2 Tbsp of chicken soup flavor powder
4 Clove garlic
4 Jalapeno
1 Handful of morning glory cut three time.
1/2 Cup kaffir lime leaves grind
2 Tbsp of tamarind soup flavor powder
1 Winter melon gourd
6 Round Asian egg plants
1 Cup celery sliced diagonally
Water

Methods:

1. Clean and cut the beef and tendon, set aside in refrigerator.
2. Finely cut the lemon grass, lime leaves, fresh galaga, garlic, fresh termine and put in the grinder and grind until fine and almost paste like. If using the dry version, put in the grinder to blend too.
3. Heat a 5 quarts pot to hot. Add the vegetable oil to hot. Add the herb mixture, oyster sauce, fish sauce, salt and stir until lightly golden.
4. Add the meat and tendon and enough water to cover the meat.
5. Bring it to boil and turn to heat to medium and let it shimmer until tender. I let mine sit for 1 hour and 20 minutes, because you want the tendon to tender but not over cook the meat.
6. Ten minutes before it done, add the whole jalapeno, slice celery, melon and egg plant and shimmer.
7. When the vegetable is semi, add the morning glory and turn off and remove from the stove. Don’t overcooked the vegetable, because it will continue to cook even if remove from heat when it in soup form.

Duran Cake

I made this cake for my daughter 2nd birthday awhile back. Although, it was a very rich cake, but it very good because it light in sweetness. I love that in Asian cake, everything is very fluffy and light making it feels like you're eating cotton candy just with very little sugar. I can never get enough of this cake, especially
with whipped cream and duran filling! This cake recipe is not for the fainted heart that doesn't like the taste or the smell of duran. So thread with caution!

Ingredients:

Duran Whip Filling

1 Cup heavy whipping cream
½ Cup mash frozen duran
1 Cup powder sugar
1 Tbsp of clear gelatin
3 Tsp of hot water

Methods:

1. In a cool metal bowl whip the egg to foam.
2. While the heavy cream is whipping, dissolve the gelatin and powder sugar into hot water until melt.
3. Pour the mixture into the whip cream and beat until almost whip cream stage.
4. Add the duran.
5. Place in the refrigerator to set, about 45 minutes.

Whip Cream Icing

2 Cup of heavy cream
1 Cup sugar
1 Tbsp of clear gelatin
3 Tbsp of hot water

The method is the same as the above just without the duran being added.

Asian Chiffon Cake

1 ½ Cup of cake flour ( for 1 Cup of flour used only 6 to 7 eggs)
½ Tsp of baking powder
½ Cup of Sugar + 2 Tbsp
¼ Tsp cream of tartar
½ Cup of water
¼ Cup of oil
1 Tsp of vanilla extract
9 Eggs separated

Methods:

1. Preheat over to bake at 350 F.
2. Shift the cake flour and baking powder.
3. In a blender, blend the oil, sugar and water.
4. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract, blend on medium for a couple of minutes.
5. Slowly pour the flour and blend well or until pale yellow and fluffy, about 1 minutes or so.
6. In another cold metal bowl, whip the eggs white to foamy, add the cream of tartar and sugar to stiff. When you turn the bowl upside down, the egg would stay in shape and not off.
7. Now slowly fold the flour into the eggs white. Do not over mix or it will deflated.
8. Grease two 8 inches round pan and lined with parchment paper on the side. Slowly pour the batter into it.
9. Bake for 35- 45 minutes or until golden amber and a toothpick is clean when poke in the center.
10. Remove from oven and let it cool for 5 minutes. Then move to a cake rake to cool for at least a couple of hours or more.
11. When the duran cooled, spread the duran icing between the two or four layers.
12. Ice the outside and top of the cake with the whip cream icing.
13. Using the ready made fondant, color and decorated as desired.

My pineapple Tart

I have made this sometime at the beginning of Spring. I was inspired by the beautiful bloom in my garden, so I decided to make a flower shape version. Even though it is Summer now, I feel that I should post this anyway, just because it so yummy! This pineapple tart is so good, that you can’t have just one. The flaky melts in your mouth pastry is a perfect combination with the sweet and tangy pineapple jam. Taste great with a cup of coffee or tea. I tried not to make this yummy tart too often, for a have a tendency to eat too much in one sitting. Luckily, my oldest son loves it too and he would be the one that usually help me finish it.

This cookies is not hard to make, but is does require the right amount of ingredients and right oven temperature.


Ingredients:

Pineapple Jam

2 Pineapple
2 Tbsp corn syrup
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tsp ground cinnamon
½ Cup of granulated sugar

Methods:

1. Cut and clean pineapple. Remove all the seeds. And put it in the food processor and pulse three to four time. You want it chunky not well blend.
2. Remove from the processor and strain it until really well until dry.
3. In a non-stick pot set on medium, pour the pineapple, both sugar, cinnamon, corn syrup and stir constantly so that it won’t burn or stick on the bottom of the pot.
4. Repeat this for about 30 minutes or until thicken.
5. Remove from heat and let it cool. Then place it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours or overnight to harden it up a little more.
6. After the cooling and harden process, scope into small ball to desire size and set aside.

Pastry Dough:

250 g butter
100 g powder sugar
4 egg yolks
350 g all purpose flour
1 Tbsp corn starch
2 Tsp baking powder
2 Tsp vanilla essence

Egg wash:
1 Egg
A Pinch of salt
1 Tbsp of water
Beat well

Methods:

1. Preheat oven to 325 F on bake.
2. Blend in the butter and sugar until it nice and fluffy and white.
3. Add the egg yolks one by one and blend at slow for 1 minute.
4. Gradually add the flour and mix well.
5. Put the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to harden a bit.
6. Remove roll out and cut into desire shapes.
7. Brush the egg wash on it evenly.
8. Place the pineapple jam on the top and place in the oven.
9. Bake for 30 minutes or until it is light golden amber.
10. Remove and cool.

Sesame Sticky Rice Square

If you anything that is love sticky rice likes I do and I can’t seem to get enough of it, then here another dessert snack for you. This one the method is exactly the same as the Mango Sticky Rice and Durian Sticky rice. Well maybe a slight difference. You will need roasted sesame instead of the other fruit topping.

If you don’t want to make it a dessert, just don’t put too much sugar and it will be a great and filling snack for the kid to put in their lunch box. That is another recipe all together.
As always make sure to soak your sticky rice in advance.

Ingredients:

2 Cup sticky rice
1 Big can of coconut cream (maploy brand is best)
1 ½ Cup of sugar
½ Tsp of salt
½ Cup of roasted sesame
2 Tbsp vanilla extract
Bamboo dim sum basket or it original Thai bamboo steamer

Methods:


1. Drain the rice the rice. If you using the dim sum bamboo basket, place a cheese clothe on top of it and pour the rice over it, cover. If you’re using the original Thai steamer, just pour the rice in it and cover with a ceramic plate. Fill bottom pot with water half way to the rice, do not touch the rice. Cook for 35- 40 minutes. Make sure to flip and turn it half way so that it will fully cook.
2. When the rice is done, stir it to separate it.
3. Now in a medium sauce pan, pour the coconut cream, sugar and salt and bring to boil.
4. Stir the coconut sauce on the rice and mix well over medium heat until coconut milk is completely absorb and turn clear and shinny texture.
5. Next, sprinkle half the sesame on the rice and mix well again.
6. Now pour the whole mixture on a square pan or glass pan and spread and level.
7. Lastly, sprinkle the sesame on top and press down.
8. Let it sit for half a day to harden then cut into 3 x 3 squares.
9. If you need to cool fast, place it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

Serve cool.

Mee Ka La (Dried Noodle)

This is one of my all time favorite noodle snack. It is just dried noodle with eggs and dried shrimp and pickle shredded carrot and green papaya. The combination of the vegetable pickle and sweet and sour sauce is very complimentary. And the eggs gives it the creaminess, that just melt in your mouth. Of course, I would have to say that this is a preference dish. It neither you love it or just plain hate it. In a way, you have to enjoy the simple taste in order to enjoy this noodle.

The plus part is that there no cooking require, well maybe just a little on the eggs part. In my opinions, the taste is all about preference. If you like simple yet tasty dishes, then this one might just do it for you. Now if you like noodle soup and more fancy type dishes, then this one might just be too simple for you. This is what you would call a poor man noodle or country noodle in the native South East Asia, mainly Cambodia.



Ingredients:

6 Eggs, cook and sliced into four pieces
Dark soy sauce
½ Cup dried shrimp, grind
2 Tbsp preserved turnip (in a plastic or ceramic jar for noodle soup)
Bean sprouts
Cilantro
Chopped peanuts (optional)
A couple dash of white pepper
Hot chilies paste sauce
1 Bag fresh noodle

Garlic oil:

2 Garlic gloves, minced
3 Tbsp of vegetable oil

Pickle Vegetable:

1 Tbsp of vinegar
¼ Cup water
3 Tbsp of fish sauce
3 Carrot, shredded
1 Cup papaya, shredded
1 Cucumber cut into small pieces.

* Place the cucumber and shredded carrot and papaya in a plastic container and pour the vinegar, water, fish sauce and set in refrigerator a day or two in advance.

Sauce:

2 Garlic glove, minced
2 Tbsp sugar
½ Tsp salt
½ Cup water
1/4 Cup of fish sauce
1 Tbsp of vinegar

Methods:

1. Prepare pickle overnight.
2. Making the garlic oil, by bring the oil to hot and add the minced garlic until amber.
3. The next day, prepared the garnish by boiling the eggs and then cutting into small pieces.
4. Next grind the dried shrimp into small flakes.
5. Then make the sauce by bringing the water to boil.
6. Add the minced garlic, fish sauce, sugar and vinegar. When it shimmer pull away from the heat and set aside.
7. To make the noodle. In a noodle strainer, place the noodle over hot boiling water for 5 seconds.
8. Pull out of the pot and let it drip until dry. Place in a serving bowl and add the garlic oil to prevent it from sticking together. Add a dash of dark soy sauce for coloring and mix well.
9. Now add all garnish such egg, bean sprout, preserved turnip, pickle vegetable and dried shrimp.
10. Lastly, top it off with a couple of spoon of the sauce or to desire taste. Enjoy!

Sweet and Sour Shrimp Salad

This salad is a Cambodian country style version. With this salad style, many versions are made from it. The most common one are the beef, shrimp, chicken and pork. There are also other exotic version such as the beef tripe and chicken feet. I seen it made, where both are add and it actually pretty tasty. This is considered as an appetizer or a starter salad that often accompany with another meaty dish. It is often a dish that to be accompany with beer or alcohol for those whom like to snack while drinking, generally it the men in the Asian culture.



Ingredients:

1 Lb shrimps, devien, peel, cook then split in half
2 Tbsp fish sauce or to taste
½ Kosher salt
¼ Cup tamarind juice (soak 1 tbsp in hot water for 15 minutes, then strain for the juice only)
2 Tbsp of sugar
¼ Cup of water
8 Thai chilies, minced
½ Cup of sa dao (bitter leave/ flower vegetable, frozen)
1Garlic minced
3 Cups of cabbage, shredded
1 Small onion, shredded
1 Handful of mint
1 Handful of basil
1 Handful of cilantro, cut into small pieces
2 Cups bean sprouts
1 Cucumber, sliced into small pieces
1 Small bell pepper cut into small thin pieces

Methods:

1. Clean, peel and devien the shrimp. Cook the shrimps in some water for 5 minutes or until it turn pink. Remove split in halves and set aside.
2. Clean the cabbage, sa dao, onion, bell pepper, herbs, Thai chilies, cilantro and bean sprout.
3. Cut all the vegetable and place in a big mixing bowl.
4. Now add all the vegetable together with shrimps, leaving the bean sprout and herbs last.
5. Mix in the tamarind juice, fish sauce, salt, sugar, minced garlic, Thai chilies. Mix well.
6. Lastly add the herbs and bean sprout and toss a couple of time.

Serve as is.

Hai Nam Chicken Rice

Here another dishes that is widely enough and enjoy in many Asian culture. Even though there were some changes that were made passing down from generation to generation and culture to culture, but we can all agreed that it was originated from a region in China call Hai Nam. Or at least this is what it is called in most restaurant and people that I know that makes this dish. Simple as it is, yet the chicken is burst with flavors that compliment the chicken very nicely. My guess is that this is Asian comforting food, or at least it is for our house.

The taste though is very similar, but the ingredients and the sauce might be a bit different. I noticed the Vietnamese and Cambodian version they used broken rice. It actually very good this way too! And they would accompany this dish with some pickle carrot and diakon. As for the sauce they would use the sweet and sour fish sauce.

My version is the Chinese version, the one that you can find in Chinese restaurant.
Although it is easy to make, but it is time consuming. The longest would be steaming the chicken and then cooking the rice. Too bad there no way to shorten the process, unless you used the can chicken broth to cook the rice and steam the chicken at the same time, but it will defeat the whole purpose of this awesome dish. So take the long way, and I guarantee you that you will appreciate it more. So will your family and their health! I know my kids did, because once in awhile they would ask me to make it for them.


Ingredients:

1 Whole chicken 4-6 lb (organic best flavor)
1 Cup finely chopped scallion
1 Tbsp powder or cube chicken soup based
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
3 Garlic glove, minced
1 Tsp of ginger minced
1 Tbsp kosher salt + ½ Tsp of salt
½ Tsp black pepper
4 Cup of jasmine rice uncooked, clean

Dipping sauce:

1 Tbsp of vegetable oil
1 Tbsp of ginger, minced
1 Tbsp of scallion, minced
1 Tbsp of cilantro, minced (optional, can used whole to eat as a vegetable)
1 Tsp of sugar

Mix everything together and set aside

Methods:

1. Clean and towel dried the chicken.
2. Take the minced ½ Tbsp of the salt, ginger, scallion, and garlic and spread it evenly under the chicken skin. Let it sit for 30 minutes or more.
3. In a steamer, add the rest of the salt in enough (10 cups or more) water to steam the chicken. Put it in top tray and steam for 45 minutes.
4. When the chicken is cooked. Remove the water or juice from the chicken steam bottom part and pour it on top of the clean rice in the rice cooker. With your index finger, measure up to the first notch on your finger for nice firm rice. If you like it soft then go past that a little.
5. Press cook and wait.
6. Meanwhile, when the rice is almost done. Sautee the finely chopped scallion in the 2 tbsp of vegetable oil by heating the oil to hot, add the scallion and remove from the stove.
7. Pour the hot oil and scallion on the cook rice with the ½ tsp of salt and mix well.
8. Serve by chopping the chicken to desire size and arrange it around the rice with some cucumber and cilantro. And the dipping sauce on a side.
9. If you still have some juice left, make it into soup by adding some cilantro and white pepper.

Serve hot.