Butter Chicken

I thought cooking butter chicken from scratch was not an easy feat. I suppose ever since Jimmy became one of the Masterchef contestants, some people's opinion of curries has changed. This recipe is from him. There were no long cooking processes or long cooking times. Quite a number of ingredients and spices go into it. You decide if it is worthwhile making this from scratch but I reckon this is a healthier option to the pre-prepared sauce in the jars.

I have substituted some ingredients. I am not sure if the final result differs greatly from that of the original recipe, but you know what? I am very happy with the result and so were my 'guinea pigs' (my in-law family).
1) Coriander powder instead of coriander.
2) Dried mint instead of fresh mint.
3) Low fat greek yoghurt
4) Light thickened cream
5) Butter instead of clarified butter
6) Chilli powder instead of chillies
7) Accidentally added 1/2 cup more passata

The only thing I will do differently in my next attempt is to dice the onions finely.

Recipe is taken here.

Cola-Glazed Chicken Wings

This recipe only requires a couple of ingredients and a couple of simple steps to cook. I did not add the jalapeno chillies. The result was very sastifying. You cannot tell that the chicken wings were cooked with cola. They were simply sweet and tasty. This is certainly a recipe to keep and try again.

Recipe can be found here. Substitute lemon juice for lime juice if you cannot find limes.

Chicken, Mushroom & Pumpkin Risotto

1.25L (5 cups) chicken stock

20g butter

1/4 cup olive oil
1 brown onion, finely chopped
500g pumpkin, peeled and diced
440g (2 cups) arborio rice
1/2 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 chicken thigh fillets, cut into 1cm pieces
100g button mushrooms, cut into 1cm pieces
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3/4 cup finely grated parmesan

Bring the stock just to the boil in a large saucepan. Reduce heat and hold at a gentle simmer.

Preheat oven at 180C. Place the diced pumpkin onto a tray lined with baking paper. Spray lightly with oil. Bake for about 20 minutes or until they are soft.

Heat butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in a heavy-based stockpot or large flameproof casserole dish over medium heat. Add the onion. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until soft and translucent but not coloured. Add the rice and 1 tablespoon of thyme. Cook, agitating but not stirring, for 1 minute or until the grains appear slightly glassy.

Add the wine to the rice mixture and cook, stirring, until the liquid is absorbed. Add a ladleful (about 125ml or 1/2 cup) of the simmering stock to the rice and stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the liquid is absorbed. Continue adding the stock mixture, a ladleful at a time, stirring constantly and allowing the liquid to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful, for 20-30 minutes or until the rice is tender yet firm to the bite and the risotto is creamy.

Heat remaining oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Add the chicken and stir-fry for 5 minutes or until chicken just starts to brown. Add the mushroom and garlic. Cook for 2 minutes.

Add pumpkin, chicken mixture, parmesan and remaining thyme to the risotto and combine. Season with salt and pepper to serve.


Quop has not really liked risotto in the past but he loved this so much that he licked everything off the pot and could not stop complimenting me on how good it was :)

Sesame Oil Chicken

This is one of the simpliest chicken dish I have made - don't need pre-marinating, just cook it in the frying pan or saucepan with ginger, seasoning (rice wine, soya sauce, sesame oil, salt and oyster sauce) and of course, the chicken.

Recipe found here.

Do note that you might have to add some salt to it. Add an amount according to your taste.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

My grandparents were born in Hainan (pronounced 'hi naan') Island, a small island south of the main part of China. When people from the Hainan island (Hainanese) arrived in Singapore/Malaysia, they made "Hainanese chicken rice" - hence its name. Even though it has its origins from Hainan island, it is now a very popular Singaporean dish :)

I have attempted making this a few times in the past 2 years. I have tried making this from scratch and it took quite a bit of time, effort and ingredients. If you are interested, check out the full recipe - marinating the chicken, cooking the chicken, cooking the rice and making the chilli.

However, if you are short of time or getting lazy (like me :p), this is my shortcut method (this still takes about 1.5 hours for prep and cooking):

Chicken:
1 whole chicken (I usually buy corn-fed or free range chicken when they are on sale, ~A$5.99/kg)
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp light soya sauce
1 tsp rice wine
2 pcs of 1-inch thick ginger, lightly bruised
1 garlic clove, peeled and lightly bruised
a small bunch of spring onion
1 tsp sesame oil

Prepare the chicken by removing extra fat (save this fat for the rice if you want to follow the original method of cooking the rice. Otherwise, you may discard the fat). Rub the chicken and its cavity with salt and then with rice wine and 1/2 tbsp soya sauce. Stuff the cavity with garlic, ginger and spring onion. Set aside for 1 hour (not in the fridge).

In a stockpot with sufficient water to cover the chicken, bring the water to boil. Lower the chicken into the pot and ensure that it is entirely immersed. Turn off heat immediately, cover the pot and allow to stand for 1 hour. At 15-min intervals, lift the chicken and drain water from the cavity so that the chicken will cook through. At the 30-min mark, reheat the water to almost boiling point then turn off the heat. Never allow the water to boil. At the end of the hour, remove the chicken and immediately put it into a large bowl with ice and water to arrest further cooking.

Once the chicken is cooled (about 15-20 mins), drain it thoroughly. Rub it down with 1/2 tbsp soya sauce and sesame oil. Set chicken aside, covered, until it is ready to serve. To serve, chop the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place on a serving platter over sliced cucumbers/tomatoes. Garnish with sprigs of coriander.

Rice:
1 jar of Hainanese chicken rice mix (available at Asian grocery stores. Lee Kum Kee, Wor Hup, Chng Kee's)
4 cups of rice (or however much you want to cook)

Wash the rice. Cook the rice in the rice cooker according to the instructions on the chicken rice mix. If you are able to get hold of some pandan leaf, add one leaf (tied into a knot) for extra flavour.

Serve rice with chicken pieces and with special chicken rice dark soya sauce (or just the normal one will do), and Lee Kum Kee chicken rice chilli (in a jar, available at Asian grocery stores).

To the chicken stock left behind from cooking the chicken, remove any impurities and bring it up to a boil and add carrots or other veggies. Cook the veggies and serve them with soup with the chicken rice. Add salt to taste. Most of the time, I will reserve the majority of the stock and store it for future consumption. I like to use the stock to make rice porridge or cook instant noodles as a soup base for extra flavour. Never NEVER throw this precious stock away! You may also freeze the excess by using clean yoghurt containers.

Using the chicken rice mix means that I need not wait for the chicken to be cooked and use the stock to cook the rice. I save on the time and effort needed to fry the uncooked rice with chicken fat, ginger and garlic. The mix has oil, ginger, garlic, etc, that will add fragrance to the rice. You usually require quite an amount of chicken fat to make the rice fragrant and tasty.

If you would like it easier, pop down to your nearest Asian grocery store and buy the Prima Taste Hainanese chicken rice mix that comes in a box with the full works - fragrant oil for the rice, mix for cooking chicken, sesame soya sauce for the cooked chicken, authentic dark soya sauce, chilli and ginger sauce. All you really need is chicken, rice and water!

Enjoy! :)

Chicken rice served with soup and omelette

(Cheats) Tandoori Chicken

This is the easiest Indian dish that I have cooked from scratch :) In fact, I have never cooked an Indian dish from scratch! I have tried a few store-bought sauces that are ready to cook with raw meat but most of them have preservatives and flavour enhancers to make it tastier. However this recipe is tasty in itself :)

(Woolworths "fresh food mums")
1kg chicken thigh fillets, slices or diced
1.5 cups thick Greek yoghurt
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp fresh ginger
1/2 cup mint leaves (or dried mint leaves)
juice of 1/2 lime
1 tbsp paprika
2 tsp tumeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp salt
Coriander leaves
Cooked basmati rice

Marinate chicken with yoghurt, garlic, ginger, mint, lime juice, spices and salt. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.

Cook marinated chicken in a hot frying pan for 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and marinade has thickened. Serve with basmati rice and top with coriander leaves.

Chicken & Creamed Corn Rice

(contributed by kk)
2 skin-free chicken breasts, diced (or 500g of chicken thigh fillets)
425g can of creamed corn
Frozen peas or mixed diced vegetables (optional, add for colour or to bulk up your meal)
1 clove garlic, crushed (or 1 tsp of store-bought minced garlic)

Season diced chicken with 1/2 tbsp light soya sauce, 1/2 tsp sugar and 1tsp cornflour. (it’s just a guesstimate!)

Heat oil in a fry pan, add crushed garlic, stir until just fragrant (don’t burn it or the whole sauce mixture will turn acrid). Add diced chicken, stir fry until all browned. Add the can of creamed corn, use 1/3 can of water to rinse down the sides and add that to the pot too. Bring mixture to the boil, then lower the heat to simmer for 10 minutes. Follow microwave instructions to defrost the frozen vegetables, add to the pot and again bring to the boil. Season to taste and serve with rice.

This is my weeknight standby recipe – so fast and simple! I always keep a can of creamed corn in the pantry, and when I buy chicken fillets in bulk, I will put aside 500g, dice and season it before freezing, so it’s ready to use once thawed. If your sauce mixture is too runny, thicken with cornflour and water. If you don’t have creamed corn, use a can of condensed chicken and corn, or chicken and mushroom soup. You can add chopped carrot, onion and celery to this recipe, but you’ll have to stir fry and soften them first before cooking the chicken.


My comments: I steamed some broccoli and carrot separately and had it with the dish and rice. I cooked 2 pieces of chicken breast but used double of the seasoning to marinate the chicken. That was my 'guesstimate' too! I reckon you could also use basa fish fillet in place of chicken. You will also have to cut the fillet into small pieces. I shall try it one day....

Quop decided that it was yummy when he was helping to stir fry (before he tasted it). He liked it :)

Star Anise Chicken

This recipe torn off a magazine and filed into my recipe folder so that I will give it a go one day. It looks really yum and was supposed to be served with gingered red cabbage, which I did not attempt.

1 cup "ABC" kecap manis
1 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 star anise
2 tbsp chinese rice wine (or chinese cooking Hua Diao wine)
2 garlic cloves, bruised
2-3cm pc ginger, thickly sliced
8 chicken thigh cutlets, with skin on and bone in (I use chicken thigh fillets without skin and bone)

Original method
Preheat oven to 180C. Place kecap manis, soy, sugar, star anise, rice wine, garlic, ginger and 1 cup (250ml) of water in a large flame-proof casserole. Bring it to the boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the chicken pieces, skin-side down. As soon as it boils again, cover and place in oven for 30 mins or until chicken is cooked*.

Remove from oven and leave to cool for 20 mins, then transfer onto a plate. If you like, you can put a little of the braising liquid in a small pan and boil it over hight heat until it forms a syrupy glaze to brush over chicken.

In my fry pan... garlic, ginger, star anise in the sauce

My method - how I did it today

I do not have a flame-proof casserole and so I used a Pyrex glass oven-proof casserole dish.

Preheat oven to 180C and place the empty casserole dish in the oven to warm it up. Place half the amount (I only cooked 5 pieces of chicken thigh fillets) of kecap manis, soy, sugar, star anise, rice wine, garlic, ginger and 1/2 cup of water in a fry pan. Bring to the boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the chicken thigh fillets into the pan. When it returns to the boil, transfer the chicken and sauce into the warmed glass casserole, cover it with al foil and place in oven for 15 mins (my oven is hotter than usual hence a shorter time) or until chicken is cooked.

Remove from oven and leave to cool for 10-15 mins and dig in! Yums!

On hindsight, I might not need to cook the chicken in the oven. I will try to either cook it over the stove and simmer and then bathe the chicken with the braising liquid often. Alternatively I might use the thermal cooker to cook it further for another 20 mins or so.

You can keep the remaining braising liquid (leave out the garlic, ginger and star anise) for future use. You just need to braise a new batch of meat in the liquid. Place it in the fridge for up to a week, or freeze it for no longer than a month to use. Scoop out the excess fat on top before you.

I will definitely try this recipe again. Quop really love this and I think this has a good chance of making it to our "all-time favourites" list. He happily ate a huge bowl of rice for dinner tonight because of this dish! :)

RECOMMENDED: Easy Roast Chicken

I thought roast chicken in a bag is easy and convenient enough. However little teochew has 2 simplier recipes!

1. Salt roasted chicken
2. Pandan roasted chicken

Cream Chicken Casserole

I bought Paul's light thickened cream a week ago at A$0.99 for 300ml. It was on sale but not reduced price (which means it is near expiry). Then on Saturday when I went to Coles to get something, I saw the 600ml light thickened cream for 40cents, but it was expiring the next day. I bought it anyway... and hence thought I will try this dish which requires cream.

The recipe is found here. This must be one of the simpliest casserole dish I have cooked. I did not put the dish/casserole in the oven. The pot I used could be put into the oven but I was lazy and hence I cooked it on the stove for 1 hour on high heat to boil and then on small heat. I turned it off as I had to leave the house. I came home with mushrooms (I didn't have them earlier and I reckon I could add them later anyway), sliced them up and put into the pot and continue to cook for another 30 minutes or so. Before I put the mushrooms in, the meat chicken drumsticks are just near the "fall off the bone" stage. Yum!

Also, for me to cover all the 8 chicken drumsticks (just slightly over 1kg), I made 3x the cream/wine/stock mixture. Quop and I love gravy anyway :) However, on hindsight, that might have made the gravy too watery as more moisture gets into the food as I cover the pot when I cook. So I guess you could actually do with less mixture for a start.

First step: brown the chicken

How it looked like before I covered with the lid and cook for 1 hour (before adding mushrooms)

The pot that I used (I love the glass lid which allows me to see the contents)

The final result served on rice and gravy. The chicken was so tender it falls off the bone. The garlic was so soft and mushy and healthy to eat! (I only ate one as I don't usually like garlic. But I know it helps with cold/flu)

Of course I am still left with some cream... of which I will make a cream sauce marinara pasta tonight!

Postscript: I only just watched the movie "Julie and Julia" and just realised that this recipe is by Julia Child! 

Roti Jala - A Dish that Impresses

At the first Australia Masterchef last year, one of the contestant Poh made a chicken rendang and lacy pancakes/crepes (which is actually roti jala).

I found the recipe (before I was given the Masterchef cookbook in Dec) in a Peranakan cookbook in Nov and I tried making it for my BIL's birthday. It worked out quite well! My 3yo niece loves just eating the plain pancakes.

On Saturday, I had to bring a dish to a friend's place for lunch. I decided to make roti jala again and used the leftover Singapore chicken curry gravy that I freezed earlier. I cooked 2-3 pieces of chicken thigh fillets in boiling water. When the chicken is cooked, leave it aside to cool. I used my fingers to tear it into shreds of meat and place them into the frozen gravy into a saucepan. Let it boil and then simmer for a few minutes. Turn off the heat and the gravy is good to go. Alternatively, cook up some curry gravy (from instant packets) will do.

Roti jala recipe (makes about 10-12 pancakes)

2 eggs

1 cup plain flour

1 cup coconut milk (I used the lite version)

1 cup milk

Mix everything a mixing bowl until lumps disappear. Sieve the mixture so that it will be a smooth batter.

Now, you probably do not have the roti jala funnel. However you can always improvise. Poh used the paper carton from milk or cream. Simply cut off one corner of the carton. For me, I used a disposable piping bag which I have in my pantry. Hold the bag on top of the fry pan and turn it as in a pendulum movement and draw circles, z's, up and down, left and right.... random ones will do. When you are happy with the lacy design, stop the batter flow. Leave the pancake for another 40 seconds. Then, use your fingers to fold the round pancake into half and then a quarter. Place the pancake on a plate. Continue until all the batter is used up.

This is really simple and fun to make! I am sure your parents and friends will be impressed. This dish will be a conversation topic at gatherings if you bring this :)

Japanese egg and chicken on rice

Simple, nice and healthy meal :)

Click here for recipe!

Learn how to make Japanese rice on a video here.

Chicken and Sweet Corn Soup

I had sweet corn in my fridge to use up... and some frozen bread rolls to eat up. Hence I thought of sweet corn and chicken soup! The version I ended up cooking is a different to the original recipe, only because I added real corn and thickened cream and not creamed can corn. I think I added too much thickened cream that it looked whiter than what the soup should be - light yellow.

Original recipe is found here. I have substituted creamed corn with real corn kernels of 3 half cobs and thickened cream. Add 200ml of cream will do. If you don't like cream, add in 1-2 lightly beaten egg and it will become an asian style corn and chicken soup. Remember to add some salt and pepper (black if western style and white if asian style) to taste!

Stir-Fry Chicken with Veggies and Cashew Nuts

First try on cooking this dish and turned out quite good! You may make a bigger batch and freeze them away for future meals when you are lazy to cook. I had some leftovers to go with some noodles for my lunch today :)

Recipe is found here.

Braised Soy Chicken

This recipe is available on cyberspot's old blog. Her recipes are not difficult to follow :)

Try this braised soy chicken. I am sure you can cook extra and freeze for future meals.

See more of cyberspot's collection of recipes here.

Easy Roast Chicken in a Bag

Trust me, this is gonna be the easiest and juiciest roast chicken you will ever make. I have since passed this recipe to 2 other girlfriends and they love the taste and the ease of cooking!

Recipe found here.

Use leftovers for wraps, sandwiches, pasta, couscous, fried rice, rice porridge.

Grilled & Yummy Chicken Wings

I know there are many ways to marinade chicken wings to grill or bbq them. This is one really yummy recipe that I got from my cousin G and has since been a success each time I make them. Made this last night and was such a crowd pleaser :)

I usually use my turbo broiler to cook them. But to save time and cook all of them at a go, I used my oven and it was as good too! I reckon cooking in the oven makes it juicer (read: OIL) as the wings are soaked in the marinade the whole time. Whilst using the turbo broiler means they are put on a rack and the juices/oil are drained. Only the marinade on the chicken would stay. That means that is slightly drier but healthier! :)

However this time I don't have ground garlic and I decided to use ground ginger. It worked out well too! Maybe has a slightly different taste but like I say, everyone was happy!

See recipe here. If you have lots of chicken wings to spare, you may marinade all of them, place the extras in a holeproof zipper plastic bag. Place the bag in the freezer and ready to be defrosted for the next year. Wooo... by then the flavours would be so rich and tasty!

Basic Chicken Soup/Stock

(Donna Hay Jun/Jul 2009)

This is the recipe for basic chicken soup. You can use this basic recipe to come up with other soups.

Stock
1.5kg whole chicken
1 brown onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
4 bay leaves
1 tsp black peppercorns
2.5L water or enough to cover

2 stalks celery, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 cup small pasta
salt and papper
chopped flat-leaf parsley to serve

Place chicken, onion, garlic, celery, carrot, bay leaves, peppercorns and water in a large saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil, cover and reduce heat to low. Cook for 1 hour or until chicken is cooked through*. Occasionally skim foam from the surface*. Remove chicken from stock and allow to cool slightly. Remove skin and discard. Shred chicken meat from the bones and set aside. Stain the stock, discarding veggies.

Return stock to the pan with celery, carrot, pasta, shredded chicken and salt and pepper. Cook over high heat for 10-15 mins or until veggies are tender. Top with parsley to serve. Serves 6.

*Skimming the foam from the surface removes impurities so it will have a cleaner, sweeter flavour and look clear instead of cloudy.
To check if chicken is cooked through, remove chicken from pot and insert a small knife in between the leg and breast. If juices run clear, then chicken is ready.

Tips
1. Freezer the strained chicken stock for up to 6 months and use in soups. Make sure you cool the stock completely before you place in the freezer.
2. Measure out the stock to exact quantities for freezing so all you need to do is defrost and use. Freeze any leftover amount in ice-cube trays and use to thicken sauces and flavour stir-fries.
3. Freeze the stock with shredded chicken meat up to 2 months. Just defrost, heat up and add veggies for an instant comforting dinner.
4. For an Asian flavour, add white peppercorns instead of black, a knob of peeled ginger and washed coriander root, parsely stalks and omit the bay leaves when making the stock.


This may seem a bit tedious with quite a few ingredients but the result is worth it! Real stock cooked from scratch is so different to those store-bought ones.