Garlic soy meatballs

Menu planning may sound boring to some but I've found it to be an opportunity to get creative with ingredients on hand. I bought a variety of meats on Saturday and decided to use the portion of minced pork on meatballs. I remember the deep fried meatballs grandmother always served at her dinner parties and mom would also make them as treats once in a while.

Here's a recipe that's first pan fried, then simmered with garlicky soy sauce for glaze. I made it into a fusion meal on salad greens.

Summary of recipe:

1. Prepare the mince:

Mix the below ingredients in a bowl:

• 200gm minced pork or chicken
• 50gm chopped shrimps
• 1/4 cup chopped water chestnuts
• 1 spring onion (white parts only), minced
• 1/2 tsp grated ginger
• 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• 1 Tbsp light soy
• 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
• dash of white pepper
• dash of Chinese cooking wine
• 1/2 an egg, lightly beaten*
• about 2 or 3 Tbsp corn flour*

2. Prepare the sauce:

Mix the below in a bowl:

• 1/2 cup of chicken stock
• 1 1/2 Tbsp light soy
• 1 Tbsp dark soy
• 3 Tbsp sugar or honey
• dash of sesame oil

Separately:

- 1 garlic, chopped

Cook:

1. Shape the mince into meatballs or patties**.
2. Pan fry the meatballs or patties with just enough oil for meat to not stick on pan. Remove from pan when golden on both sides.
3. With remaining oil in pan, sauté chopped garlic for a minute.
4. Add the sauce and cook for another minute.
5. Return the meatballs or patties to the pan and simmer until sauce is reduced; turn meatballs or patties to glaze.
   
   Optional:
6. Arrange a bed of salad greens and place the meatballs or patties on top.
7. Garnish with toasted almond flakes.

*I used 1 egg and 4 Tbsp of corn flour.

**I spooned the mince mix directly into the pan.

Adapted from recipe source: http://3hungrytummies.blogspot.co.nz/2011/12/sticky-soy-and-garlic-meatballs.html

Ginger wine chicken 黄酒薑雞

I've recently started menu planning for the entire week and found that it's a really good way to ensure produce and meats don't go to waste. In a way, this helps save money too as I optimize my cooking ingredients to make the best meals out of them. Yesterday, this effort 'rewarded' me to a nice comfort food just as I was feeling the winter blues.

This chicken dish is fragrant with ginger, rice wine and sesame oil. I think you'd either love it or hate it.

Summary of recipe:

Sautè for a few minutes after each addition:

1. Aromatics - 2 Tbsp sesame oil + sliced ginger (2") + chopped half garlic.
2. Main - Half a free range chicken (chopped into medium size pieces) + wood ear strips
3. Seasoning - 3 Tbsp oyster sauce + large splash of Chinese cooking wine + Shaoxing wine + sprinkle of sugar + dash of light soy + dark soy + pepper. 
4. Water - half to one cup (depending on how much gravy you want)

Let it simmer for 30 minutes until chicken is cooked and gravy is reduced to desired thickness.

Top with spring onions.

Source of recipe: http://3hungrytummies.blogspot.co.nz/2009/10/braised-chicken-with-ginger-and-chinese.html

Mushroom chicken

Part of a quick meal. 

Summary of recipe:

Preparation:

1. Soak 4 dried Chinese or Shitake mushrooms + 1 piece of dried wood ear. When soften, remove from water and cut into strips when soften.

2. Peel and chop half a garlic.

3. Cut 1 chicken breast into bite-size pieces and marinate with 1 swirl each of soy, shaoxing wine, sesame oil and two dashes of white pepper, ginger powder and corn flour. 

Cook:

4. In a pan, add two swirl of oil.

5. When the oil is very hot, pan fry the chicken pieces till 80% brown. Remove chicken from pan.

6. Discard half or more of the oil.

7. Stir fry the garlic for 30 secs, add in mushroom and wood ear strips. Stir fry until fragrant. 

8. Add in the earlier chicken and stir fry for another minute. 

(Optional) 9. Top with toasted sesame seeds. 

燴饭 (Brocolli chicken in silky egg on rice)

This is quite a versatile dish and can be served with rice, flat noodles, or deep fried vermicelli (my favorite!). If it is served on noodles, it is called 滑蛋河, or Cantonese noodles.

Summary of recipe for two:

1. Marinate 1 chicken breast (sliced) with a swirl each of soy, oyster sauce, shaoxing wine, few dashes of pepper and corn flour.

Optional: marinate 8 shrimps with dash of salt and pepper.

2. In a wok,

- brown the chicken in hot oil and remove from wok when almost cooked

- stirfry half a garlic (chopped) in existing oil in wok

- add half a broccoli (cut to bite size)

- season with a swirl each of oyster sauce, soy, shaoxing wine

- add 2 cups of chicken stock

- add shrimps and/or sliced fish cake (optional)

- add browned chicken

- add corn flour mixture (mix half tsp corn flour with 1 Tbsp of water) to thicken

- beat 2 eggs and slowly swirl into the wok, stirring it slowly.

3. Serve on jasmine rice with chopped chili in soy on the side.

Healthy & quick chicken rice

Another favorite hawker food of ours is the chicken rice. I usually fix this as a quick but balanced meal.

Summary of recipe for two:

1. Boil 1.3l of water in a pot.

2. Exfoliate 450gm of free range chicken (one drumstick and one breast; skin on, bone in) with salt - on the skin only.

3. Prepare 1 carrot (cut into bite chunks), 5 spring onions (use only the white part) and one inch of ginger (sliced). 

4. Rinse chicken from salt and together with the carrot, spring onions and ginger, place into boiling pot and cook for 25-30 mins. Skim off impurities. Chicken temperature should be 77°C (or 170°F) when cooked. 

5. Take chicken out of the broth, throw away the spring onions and ginger. Slice chicken when it's slightly cooled. Garnish with chopped parsley and soy sauce.

6. Add cabbage and later optional 1 tomato (sliced) to make a clear vegetable soup. Salt to season.

7. Garnish soup with chopped spring onions and parsley.

As this is a quick meal, I did not make the special chicken oil rice nor chilli dip. We usually do with jasmine rice and Tabasco sauce!