Sar Hor Fun ( Fried Noodles)

There is a saying in Penang about Sar Hor Fun, which I used to hear my mum teasing her friends when their daughter started dating, " you will never short of Sar Hor Fun every night"...one that is only Penang's I am sure--
Sar Hor Fun in Penang is called differently in Kuala Lumpur. When I was working in KL, I found out that the dish is called "Wat Tan Hor" there. The concept of the dish is the same, but it has a slightly different presentation and eggs are used in the gravy, hence the words "wat tan" which literally means "smooth eggs" in Cantonese.

Ingredients:

• ½  pack hor fun or flat rice noodles
• ½ pack mee hoon or vermicelli
• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 15 shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 12-15pcs thin pieces of pork meat
• 15 thin pieces of fish cake
• 7 stalks chinese mustard green/choy sum, cut into 2-inch length
•  ¼ cup water
• 3 cloves garlic, minced

Starch: 2 tablespoons corn flour mixed with ¼  cup water

Seasoning:

• 1 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce (nampla)
• ½ teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 dashes white pepper powder
• Salt to taste

Method:

Soak the vermicelli in warm water for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain the water and set aside.

Break the flat rice noodles off by peeling the layers. Set aside.

Heat up a wok and add 1½  tablespoon of cooking oil. Toss in the vermicelli and do a quick stir. Add ½ tablespoon of dark soy sauce and ½ tablespoon of light soy sauce and continue to stir the vermicelli until the soy sauce and kecap manis are well blended with the vermicelli. Continue to stir until the vermicelli are lightly burned or charred. Dish up and set aside.

Repeat the same for the flat rice noodles. Dish up and set aside.

Add some oil in a wok and stir-fry the minced garlic until fragrant.

Add in the pork, shrimp and fish cake and do a quick stir.
Add 1¼  cup of water immediately.
Add in all the seasoning and bring it to boil.
Add in the starch mixture to thicken the gravy.
Add in the mustard green, do a quick stir and turn off the heat.
On a plate, place the fried vermicelli and flat rice noodles equally.
Pour the gravy and toppings on the noodles and vermicelli. Serve hot.

Carrot Cake

The cream cheese frosting adds richness

Use 3 medium carrots for this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup corn oil
• 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 3 eggs
• 3 cups coarsely grated carrot
• 1 cup (120g) chopped walnuts or pecans
• ½ cup chopped raisins
• 2½ cups self-raising flour
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 2 tsp mixed spice

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 30g butter
• 80g cream cheese, softened
• 1 tsp grated lemon rind
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1½ cups icing sugar

Method:

Grease 15cm x 25 cm loaf pan, line base with paper; grease paper.

Beat oil, sugar and eggs in a small bowl with electric mixer until thick and creamy. Transfer mixture to large bowl, stir in carrots, nuts, raisins, then sifted dry ingredients.

Pour mixture into prepared pan, bake in oven at 190 degrees Celsius for 40 minutes. Cover loosely with foil, bake about further 45 minutes. Stand a few minutes before turning onto wire rack to cool. Top cool cake with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese frosting: Beat butter, cream cheese, rind and juice in a small bowl with electric mixer, beat until light and fluffy; gradually beat in sifted icing sugar.

Chocolate cheese & walnut cake

Ingredients:

• 90g butter
• 185g cream cheese
• 2/3 cup castor sugar
• 2/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 3/4 cup plain flour
• 3/4 cup self-raising flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 3/4 cup milk

Method:

Grease a 20 cm baba pan.

Crean butter, cream cheese and sugars in a bowl with eletric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beat until combined. Transfer mixture to large bowl, stir in walnuts, then half the sifted flours and cocoa with half the mik, then stir in the remaining flours and milk.

Spread into prepared pan. Bake in oven at 190 degree Celsius for about 40 minutes. Stand for 5 minutes before turning on to wire rack to cool. Dust with sifted icing sugar before serving.

California Roll

Step 1

Step 2














Step 3

















Step 4














Step 5
















Step 6



















Step 7

You need:

• some crab sticks, pull it into strings
• avocado, sliced into strip
• 5 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

For the rice, please refer to the sushi roll method.

http://yummymummyrecipes.blogspot.com/2007/09/sushi-roll.html

Method:

Cover the mat with plastic wrap. Here I use the cling film. (Refer to step 1)

Put a sheet of dried seaweed on top of the mat. Face the gloss side down as shown in Step 2.

Spread sushi rice on top of the seaweed and press firmly. (Step 3)

Sprinkle the sesame seeds over the sushi rice as in Step 4

Turn the sushi layer over so that the seaweed is on top (Step 5)

Place avocado and crab meat lengthwise on the seaweed as shown in Step 6.

Roll the bamboo mat forward, pressing the ingredients inside the cylinder-shaped sushi. Press firmly the bamboo mat with hands. (Step 7)

Remove the rolled sushi from the bamboo mat. Cut the California roll into bite-sized pieces.

Chicken curry

Ingredients:

• 750g chicken, cut into bite-size pieces
• 200g potatoes, cut into wedges
• 2 tomatoes, quartered
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• 1 small can of coconut milk
• 4-5 tbsp oil

Ground ingredients (combine):

• 5 dried chillies, soaked (reduce if you do not want it too spicy)
• 1 stalk lemon grass, sliced finely
• 6 shallots
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder ( jintan putih )
• 1/2 tsp fennel powder ( jintan manis )
• 1 star anise ( bunga lawang )
• 2 cloves ( bunga cengkih )
• 2cm piece cinnamon stick ( kulit kayu manis )
• 2 tbsp curry powder, make into a paste with a little thin coconut milk**

Seasoning:

• 1 tbsp salt or to taste
• 1/2 tsp sugar

Method:

Heat oil and saute cinnamon stick, star anise and cloves. Add in combined ground ingredients and stir-fry well. Add 2 to 3 tbsp coconut milk (if it is too dry) and fry over low heat until fragrant and oil separates. Add chicken and curry leaves and fry for a few minutes until meat is firm. Add potatoes and pour in the coconut milk. Simmer until chicken is tender and potatoes are cooked. Add in tomatoes and mix in curry powder paste. Stir well to mix. Add in seasoning and continue to cook until gravy is slightly thick. Served hot

**dilute 1 tbsp coconut milk with 11/2 tbsp water