Kimchi Fried Rice with Smoked Ham

 

If I have to name one dish that I must eat before I die, this must be the dish! Kimchi is a national dish of South Korea. It's a pickle made of Chinese cabbage, garlic, ginger, hot pepper flakes and fish sauce. It is then fermented and can last indefinitely.

At my house, we frequently have leftover cooked rice in the fridge and chances are, we also never run out of kimchi. This is a dish that I whip up quickly for a busy weeknight family dinner. You can either use a homemade kimchi or store bought kimchi for this dish. The rice is perfectly seasoned with gochujang, a Korean fermented hot pepper paste, which you can find easily in Asian grocery stores.

Skill Level: Easy 

Serves: 5-6

INGREDIENTS: 

• 5 cups cooked long grain white rice, overnight in fridge 
• 1 cup chopped smoked ham 
• 1.5 cups kimchi
• 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, corn, green beans, lima beans) 
• 2 tbsp light soy sauce
• 2 tbsp gochujang (Korean fermented hot pepper paste)
• 2 springs of green onions, finely chopped
• 1 onion, halved and sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced 
• 5 tbsp cooking oil
• black pepper, to tast

METHODS: 

1. In a wok or cooking pan, heat up cooking oil till medium hot
2. Add in sliced onions and garlic. Saute till translucent
3. Stir in chopped ham, cook over high heat till slightly brown
4. Add in frozen mixed vegetables and kimchi. Cook for 2 minutes
5. Add in cooked rice, gochujang paste, soy sauce and black pepper
6. Stir all ingredients till the rice is uniformly coated with all wet ingredients with no white granules left. Cook under high heat for another 5 minutes or until you hear some "toasted popping" sounds
7. Stir in chopped green onions, saute for another minute and turn off the heat
8. Serve hot with sunny side-up eggs

Spicy Thai Noodle

Thailand, a country located in South East Asia, is known for its beautiful white sand beaches, sacred Buddhist temples and its flavourful cuisine. Thai cooking puts a lot of emphasis on fresh and strong aromatic ingredients. Its cuisine is known for its balance of sweet, sour, spicy and saltiness. Needless to say, I have not met anyone who doesn't love Thai food.

Whenever I visit my family and friends in Indonesia and Malaysia, I make sure that I do not miss visiting Thailand as well. Instead of visiting Thai beaches, I put food adventure as my top priority. My family and I will make trips to Thai fresh markets every morning for local breakfasts. We then indulge ourselves with traditional Thai desserts, local fruits and cakes. Nevertheless, I will return to Canada with a few extra pounds of weight (not extra pounds of luggage!).

My craving for Thai food hit me the other day and I couldn't think of any better idea but to cook a Spicy Thai Noodle. I stir fry fresh rice noodles with several ingredients and incorporate in Thai basil for a sweet, peppery flavour. Like any stir fries, you will need to cook this dish in high heat, thus I recommend you spreading out all ingredients on kitchen counter. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do.

Skill Level: Easy 

Serves: 4 - 5 

INGREDIENTS:

• 400 g of fresh rice noodles (if not available, you can substitute with dried rice noodles and follow instructions on package)
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced 
• 3 green onions, cut into 1.5 inch length
• 1 crown of broccoli, cut into bite sized
• 5 Thai bird chillies, sliced
• 1 onion, thinly sliced 
• 10 to 12 Thai basil leaves
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 eggs
• Cooking oil 
• Ground white pepper to taste
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

Seasoning for the Noodle (A):

• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tbsp dark soy sauce
• Dash of white pepper

Marinade Ingredients (B):

• 12 to 15 shrimps
• 12 to 15 thinly sliced pork
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp oyster sauce
• Black pepper, to taste

Gravy:

• 1 tbsp cooking oil
• 2 cups water
• 3 tbsp corn starch 
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp dark soy sauce
• 1/4 tsp chicken flavoured powder (bouillon)

 METHOD: 

1. Microwave the fresh rice noodles for a minute or if you use dried rice noodles, cook according to instructions on package 
2. In a bowl, beat eggs lightly with a fork 
3. Heat up a wok, add in 2 tbsp of cooking oil and scramble the eggs till well done. Scoop and place on a plate
4. In the same wok, heat up 4 tbsp of cooking oil. Stir in sliced onions and garlic and cook until fragrant 
5. Add in item (B), cook under high heat for 3 minutes. Mix in green onions, Thai chillies, red bell peppers and broccoli. Cook for another 2 minutes
6. Add in the rice noodle and seasoning (A). Stir and cook for another 4 minutes. Add a dash of white pepper and mix in the scrambled eggs as well as Thai basil 
7. Scoop up the noodle onto serving plates 
8. In the same wok, heat up 1 tbsp of cooking oil and pour in 2 cups of water. Let it boil and mix in salt, dark soy sauce as well as chicken bouillon 
9. Mix corn starch with water to make a slurry. Pour into the sauce until thicken
10. Pour the gravy over the noodle, serve with lime wedges and enjoy!
    

A Perfect -10 Chinese Fried Rice!

Ever wonder why the fried rice that you cook is mushy while the one that you get from Chinese take-out across the street is so light and fluffy? Well, look no further because I have a Perfect-10 Chinese Fried Rice recipe. My recipe gives a light, fluffy and flavourful rice that I am confident you and your guests will go for a second helping without being shy. Let me share some secrets of making the perfect fried rice:

• You must use overnight cooked long grain rice (preferably Thai Jasmine). I repeat: overnight cooked rice is a MUST. So, if you think you want to have a plate of fried rice right away to satisfy your craving...I'm afraid that will not happen unless if you happen to have leftover cooked rice in your fridge
• If you want to add eggs in this dish, you need to make sure that you scramble the eggs until well done before you add in the rice. Adding in rice while your eggs are not fully cooked will give you mushy rice. PATIENCE is the key
• You must use enough cooking oil for fried rice. This will glisten your fried rice without burning them
• Lastly, you need to make sure your pan is really really hot when you cook fried rice. This will give you light and toasty fried rice. If you are not comfortable cooking with high heat, I recommend that you prepare all ingredients ahead and lay them out on your kitchen counter

Skill Level: Easy 

Serves: 4-5

INGREDIENTS: 

• 5 cups cooked Thai jasmine rice, overnight in fridge 
• 1 Chinese sausage (optional) 
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten 
• 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, corn, green beans, lima beans) 
• 2 tbsp fish sauce 
• 1 tbsp dark soy sauce 
• 1.5 tbsp light soy sauce 
• 6 tbsp cooking oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced 
• 2 dashes of white or black pepper

METHODS: 

1. In a wok or cooking pan, add in cooking oil and Chinese sausages and cook under high heat
2. Once hot, add in garlic and saute until fragrant 
3. Pour in the eggs, let sit for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir until cooked and dry 
4. Add in the frozen vegetables and cook for another 3 minutes
5. Pour in the cooked rice, stir 
6. Add in fish sauce, light soy sauce and dark soy sauce. Stir until rice is uniformly coated with the wet ingredients
7. If you like it hot, you can add in Sriracha hot sauce, black/white peppers
8. Cook for another 5 minutes or until you hear some "toasted popping" sounds from your pan. That tells you that your rice is toasted and it's time to turn off the pan 
9. Serves hot with cucumbers if you like

Mamak Style Mee Goreng (Malaysian-Indian Fried Noodles)

“Mamak” is a term commonly used in Malaysia and Singapore that refers to Indian-Muslim culture. Unlike traditional Malaysian dishes which require hours of cooking, this recipe is quick and easy. It has a good balance of heat with a kick of curry flavour. An excellent choice for fright nights and equally good to grace your table for an elegant meal.

  
Skill Level: Easy 
Serves: 3 - 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 eggs
• 400 g (14 oz.) yellow (yau-mein) noodles
• 1 medium-sized boiled potatoes, cubed
• 6 fried tofu puffs, quartered
• 2 bok-choy, cut into thumb sizes
• 8 shrimps (cooked/uncooked)
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Salt and white pepper (if not available, use black pepper), to taste
• 1 tsp dark soy sauce (for colour)
• Cooking oil
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

SAUCE

• 2 tbsp tomato ketchup
• 1 tbsp Maggi seasoning sauce (if not available, substitute with soy sauce)
• 2 tbsp Sriracha chili sauce
• 1 tbsp kecap (ketjap) manis (if not available, substitute with dark soy sauce)
• 1 tbsp oyster sauce
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 1/2 heaping tbsp Baba's curry powder

METHOD:

1. Combine sauce ingredients in a bowl, mix well
2. Heat up a wok, add 1 tbsp of cooking oil. Add in cubed potatoes and tofu. Add in 3 tbsp of sauce and stir for about 3-4 minutes
3. Scoop up the cooked ingredients in a plate and leave aside
4. Add 3 tbsp of cooking oil into the same wok. Add in onions and garlic
5. Once the garlic turns golden brown, crack in 2 eggs and stir until dry
6. Stir in bok choy, shrimps and a pinch of salt to taste. Cook for another 3-4 minutes
7. Rinse the noodles in hot water for a minute to hydrate (noodles do not need to be cooked)
8. Add the noodles to the wok and pour in the remaining sauce and dark soy sauce
9. Stir the noodles and other ingredients well, add a dash of white pepper
10. Add in cooked potatoes and tofu, stir
11. Cook for an additional 5-10 minutes or until the noodles are dry and toasted
12. Serve with lime wedges