Pickled Cherry Tomatoes

Pickled cherry tomatoes are quick to make and ready in a few minutes. Very flavourful and topping for sandwiches, salads or pizzas. This recipe for preserving cherry tomatoes is very easy, you can fix it in no time and enjoy it. My cherry tomato plants produce lots of tomatoes this year and what can be better than pickling these tomatoes, which you won't stop snacking on!

The flavour of these pickled cherry tomatoes is delightful when the tomatoes are marinated for some time. Ideally, refrigerated the tomatoes for at least 2 days to get the best flavours.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups fresh cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 green chili, sliced
• salt to taste
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• ½ tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• fresh basil, chopped
• fresh coriander, chopped
• freshly grind black pepper, to taste

Method:

Wash and dry the tomatoes. 

Quarter the cherry tomatoes and thinly sliced the onion.

With a garlic press, smash the garlic or finely chopped the garlic on a chopping board.

In a bowl, add tomatoes with juices, onions, garlic, olive oil balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, green chili, sugar, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, basil and cilantro.

Mix well and keep aside for 1-2 hours until the flavours are released.

Pour this in a glass jar, close the lid and refrigerate. Keep refrigerated for at least 2 days before enjoying the pickled tomatoes.

Enjoy by adding to salad, topping of pita bread or make a bruschetta or crostini

 

Vegan Beetroot Bourguignon

The Beef Bourguignon is made of beef and bacon, so not the most appropriate dish for vegans or vegetarians. But I reckoned that there must be a way to transform that rich, wine oozing hot pot into something more in my taste. After a few experiments and research, it turns out that I was only one letter away! I turned beef to beet.!!! I also added large chunks of mushrooms to give the stew the right texture and flavour.

So what is the results??? Simply fantastic, if I may say so. It has got those deep and rich thyme and wine flavours, different sort of textures and a hint of sweetness. 

Ingredients:

• 6-8 small beetroot, peeled and halved if small or quartered if larger
• 1 onions, cut into wedges
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 3 carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
• 3 celery sticks, chopped
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tin green lentils, drained
• 2 tbsp tomato puree
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 120ml red wine
• 500ml vegetable stock
• 300g chestnut mushrooms, quartered
• 2 bay leaves
• some fresh parsley, roughly chopped
• some crusty or sourdough bread to serve

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200ºC or 180ºC for fan assist oven. 

Put the beetroot wedges in a roasting tray with 1 tbsp oil, fennel seeds and some seasoning. Toss to coat, then roast for 30 minutes, shaking halfway or until golden and starting to caramelise. Reduce the oven to 170ºC or 150ºC for fan assist oven.

Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a lidded ovenproof casserole dish over a medium heat and fry the onion, carrots, thyme and celery for 10 minutes or until softened. Add the mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes.

Stir in the garlic and tomatoes purees and fry for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Pour in the red wine and vinegar, and allow to bubble and reduce for 3 minutes. Add the lentils, stock and roasted beetroot, and bring everything to a simmer.

Cover, then transfer to the oven for 35 minutes, stirring halfway, until the beetroot is tender and the sauce has thickened. Scatter the chopped parsley and serve with crusty bread or mashed potatoes

 

Asam Pedas Ayam (Spicy Tamarind Chicken) Curry

Asam Pedas or spicy tamarind gravy is one of the favourite dishes mong the Malays in Singapore and Malaysia. A dish so understated and yet complex in its taste. Like most other Malay and Asian dishes , it's the trick of getting the balance of flavours right which is the hardest skill to master. 

The versatility of this dish definitely gets my vote. A minor tweak to the recipe and you can add fish or prawns instead of chicken. The spicy gravy is highly addictive. Before you know it, you will be slurping it like soup!! Paired with warm white rice and have the perfect marriage. In this household, we waste none of it, leftover gravy will be savoured with warm Indian roti the next morning.

Ingredients:

To blend fine:

• 1 medium red onions, roughly chopped
• 10-20 dried chillies, de-seeded & soak in hot water for 10 minutes (depends on the heat you referred)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 inch ginger
• ½ tbsp turmeric powder
• ½ tbsp shrimp paste
• ½ tbsp whole black pepper

Others ingredients:

• 800-1000g chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces or you can use chicken on bone
• ½ cup cooking oil
• ½ tsp fenugreek seeds
• 1 lemongrass, bruised
• 2 tomatoes, quartered
• 2-3 kaffir lime leaves
• ½ cup tamarind juice
• 1 wild ginger flower, optional
• 1 aubergine, quartered
• 6 okra, half (optional)
• 500ml water
• 1 tbsp kerisik*
• handful of daun kesum (Vietnamese mint), optional
• salt & sugar to taste

Method:

De-seeded the chillies and soak the chillies in hot water while you prepared the rest of the ingredients.

To get the tamarind juice, mix 1 tbsp tamarind paste with ½ cup water and mix it well and soak for 10-15 minutes. As the tamarind soak, the water gets darker. Use your finger & mix the tamarind with the water to squeeze all the goodness from the tamarind. Set aside while you preparing the rest of the ingredients.

In  a blender put together the onion, garlic, shrimp paste, black pepper, ginger and dried chillies. Blend into a fine paste with some water.

Heat up the oil in a medium pot big enough to fit the chicken. Add in the fenugreek seeds.

Add in the chilli paste on medium heat and fry until fragrant, cooked through and it has begun to dry up but be careful not to burn it. Add the bruised lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and the chicken pieces. Continue cooking until the spices nearly dried up and the chicken is half cook. 

Add in the tamarind juice, aubergine, tomatoes, Vietnamese mint and wild ginger flower. Mix well and simmer until the chicken is cook and tender and the vegetables is soft. Add some water in between if it looks too dry. Then add in the kerisik.

Add in sugar & salt to taste. At this point you can add a bit more water if you like more gravy for the curry. Also add in the okra. Cooked until the okra is soft.

Serve immediately. 

Jemput makan!!!

 Notes:

• When adding water, make sure is not too watery, The gravy should be nice & thick not soupy.
• Lessen the chillies if you wish for something milder
• Kerisik is a condiment made of grated coconut which us toasted. It is a secret to the nutty caramelized flavour of a curry. If you can't find fresh coconut, you can replaced with desiccated coconut. Toast the coconut on a medium heat until deep golden brown but not burnt.  Once ready add the toasted coconut to a pestle and mortar. Pound until the oils are released and a paste form. Alternatively, you can add this to a food processor. Once you have a dark paste, the kerisik is ready to use