Chinese New Year Celebration! Year of Tiger!

Happy Chinese New Year! Everybody I know that cares for this special time of the year just indulges themselves with lots of laughter, surrounding themselves with rich food and festive activities with their loved ones. I, of course, am one of them. Following a wonderful new year performance at the Washington University, Ping, my friend invited us over to her house for some wonderful food. I also cooked some of our favorite dishes to kick off the Chinese New Year with my family. Here're some of the pictures:

Crispy Shrimp with sweet and spicy ginger sauce (Mun's)

This is not hard to make but the quality of the shrimp is pretty important. They need to be fresh and relatively large so it'll be easier to peel. Keeping the heads on is also important, that's where all the flavor comes from. When the shrimp is cooked through with the hot, sizzling spicy sauce, the soaked-up heads taste really, really good! Peeled shrimp was also pan-fried with soy bean and egg to go with rice. It's my kid-friendly dish on the table!

Shrimp with egg and soybean (Mun's)

Here're our double fish dish this year. Cooking them double symbolizes prosperity in the new year inChinese beliefs. Heads and tails have to be attached for good luck. Here are our versions of this dish.

(Left) My supervisor in the kitchen (Mun's)

Pan fried Red Snappers - Cantonese style  (Mun's)

Baked Tilapia (Ping's)

Ah, here comes my favorite! It's my famous Eggplant again. It's a must-have for me for any special occasion! (recipe is listed on my older post this year)

Crispy stuffed Eggplant Bites (Mun's)

 I also baked up some chicken breasts in a "creative" tangerine marinade. It has a nice citrus flavor that is a bit sweet and sour. I keep the tangerine peel with the chicken while baking at around 400 degrees in the oven. It keeps the chicken nice and tender when chopping up later for platting.

Baked Tangerine Chicken (Mun's)

Ping made a meat dish with pork ribs using the pressure cooker. Not sure what her secret was, the meat was so juicy that it fell right off the bone. It had some smoky flavor with a hint of sweet soy sauce. I swore I devoured a whole bowl of rice with it. So gooood!!!

Short pork ribs in soy sauce (Ping's)

 By now, you might be wondering where the vegetables were. Well, they were definitely not to be forgotten. They were beautifully green and fresh as ever. Noodles and soup were also served.

Chinese broccoli with pork (Ping's)

Stir fried A-choy with oyster sauce (Mun's)

 

Vegetable with tofu and scallops (Ping's)

Trey's chicken soup (Ping's)

 

Spicy Chinese noodle (Ping's)

For desserts, we have fresh fruit salad, mochi with sesame filling and ice-cream. Yum, what a feast! I think it's time for a nap!

Sesame mochi (Mun's) 

 

HAVE A GREAT YEAR EVERYBODY!

Chinese Crab Rangoon with Mango Chutney Sauce (Bake or Fry!)

Ah, crab rangoon! It's not originally from China, but somehow, it has become one of the biggest symbols of Chinese food in America. I love the idea of fried wontons, but the way they serve it in the restaurant here is a bit too sweet for me. I've decided to put a few personal touches into this interesting dish.
Ok, I've gathered some basic ingredients and here we go:

Ingredients:
Wonton Wrapper (1 pack)
Fresh Crab Lump Meat
Philly Cream Cheese (the onion and chive kind-1 pack)
1 Large Egg
Spring Onion (a few stalks)

Dipping Sauce: (Mix all together and set side in a small bowl)

Mango Chutney (5 tablespoons. Available in most asian supermarkets. I bought mine at a local grocery store)
Sesame Oil (2 teaspoons)
Tabasco Sauce or Sriracha Chilli Sauce (1 teaspoon)
Rice vinegar (3 tablespoons)

Step 1: Wash and chop up some green onion.

Step 2: Mix onion, cream cheese and crab meat together. Season with a bit of salt and pepper.

Step 3: Fill a wonton wrapper with crab filling as shown below. Squeeze gently around the edges with a bit of cold water to seal the dumplings. Now, they are ready to bake or fry, your choice (see options below):

Option A: To bake them (a healthier choice-I personally prefer  frying them in oil):
- Brush a bit of melted butter and bake for about 10 minutes in the oven (preheated to 250 degrees)

Option B: To fry them (crispier!):
- Fry them in hot oil (medium heat) for about 3-5 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve immediately with dipping sauce!

 

Happy Chinese New Year!

"Cafe World" comes to LIFE: Triple Berry Cheesecake!

4th dish from facebook game CAFE WORLD! This recipe is easy! The cheesecake part is light and fluffy, yet with a lot of sweet and tangy berries (blueberries, strawberries and cherries) - not bad for a tasty dessert. This is how I made mine last night with my favorite girl, Rice :)

Ingredients:

1 Vanilla Pie Crust (Graham cracker type - it is GOOD!)
Blueberries (1 pint)
Strawberries (1 pint)
Whole Cherry Pie Filling (1 can - 13oz or so)
Philly Cream Cheese (softened -1 lb)
Sugar (1 cup)
All Purpose Flour (2 teaspoons)
Large Eggs (2)
Vanilla Extract ( 2 teaspoons)
Heavy Cream (1 cup)

Preheat oven to 450 degree
Step 1: Rinse blueberries and strawberries. Let dry and chop strawberries into small pieces.
Step 2: Blend sugar, cream cheese and flour in a mixer. Mix well.
Step 3: Add eggs, vanilla extract and heavy cream. Mix until it's smooth.

Step 5: Layer fresh berries in the bottom of the pie crust.
Step 6: Pour filling over the berries.

Step 7: Put pie into the preheated oven for about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 225 degrees and bake for another 30 minutes.

Step 8: Take pie out. Cool it on a rack and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Step 9: Open can and pour cherries over cheesecake before serving!
That is it, done! Sweet! Enjoy my friend!!

"Cafe World" comes to LIFE: French Onion Soup!

 

Third dish from Facebook's "Cafe World" menu! This dish is classy and a bit romantic in my opinion. Not only is the soup obviously gorgeous, the beautiful fragrance just fills the whole house! 

Just in time for Valentine's Day, my friend!

OK, lets get cooking!

Ingredients:
- Balsamic Vinegar (1 tablespoon)
- Butter (4 tablespoons)
- Swiss Gruyere Cheese (10 slices)
- Mozzarella Cheese (1/2 cup)
- 1 Large or 2 Small Red Onions
- 2-3 Medium Sweet Yellow Onions
- Beef Broth (about 24 oz)
- Chicken Broth (about 48 oz)
- White Wine (1 cup)
- French Bread (4 thick slices-toasted and cut a little smaller to fit the crock's opening) 

"Flavor" Pack (use a tea infuser if using dry herbs. see picture below)
- Fresh Parsley (use dried if not available - 3 tablespoons)
- Fresh Thyme Leaves (use dried if not available - 2 tablespoons)
- 1 Dried Bay Leaf

Step 1: Chop up the onions into thin strips. Watch out for the fingers!

Step 2: Over medium heat, melt butter in a pot and dump in onions. Sprinkle a bit of salt and let the onions caramelize. Keep stirring for about 25 mins. It is ok to let it go brown.

Step 3: Slowly add in beef broth, chicken broth and white wine. Put in "Flavor" Pack or bundle up fresh herbs into the pot for about 20 mins. Keep stirring gently.

Step 4: Turn heat to low, remove herbs. Add vinegar, a bit of salt and pepper to taste. By now, the kichen should smell pretty good!

Step 5: Preheat oven to broil. Scoop soup into large oven-safe crocks with a ladle. Arrange bread on top (toasty side up) and add the cheeses. Sprinkle a bit of paprika on top.

Step 6: Broil for about 5 minutes until it's golden brown and forms a melty seal on top. Serve immediately!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

BIG Wontons (Cantonese Style with Crab Meat, Shrimp & Pork )

Wontons are little pockets of joy! Growing up in Hong Kong, I chowed down on these guys all the time. They are not that hard to make BUT as there is a lot of preparation, it takes quite a bit of time to get them ready for the whole family. Most people make them on the weekend with the kids while having lots of laughter. It is kinda like making cookies here with little kids, lots of fun! I especially enjoy making them during Chinese New Year. It's a very welcoming dish to serve to the guests!

The fillings for the wontons are a little bit different every time I make them, depending on my mood. Basic ingredients would be the ground pork and wonton skin.  Tonight, I felt like having seafood, so I added crab meat and shrimp to the filling as well.

Ingredients:

Ground Pork (1 lb - half lean, half regular)

Minced Ginger (1 teaspoon - minced and mashed, use a food processor if necessary)

Medium Shrimp (1/4-1/2 lb - peeled, chopped and mashed. Set aside in a separate bowl)

Crab Meat (1/4 lb - chopped)

Wonton Wrapper - Cantonese style (1 pack, about 50 square sheets)
Silken Tofu (mashed-1/2 a block)

Cabbage (1/8 lb - washed and chopped)

A-Choy/Lettuce (1/4 lb - washed and separated)-see picture below for "A-Choy" available in most Asian supermarkets

Marinade:

Light Soy Sauce (8 tablespoons)
Dark Soy Sauce (5 tablespoons) 

Rice vinegar (2 tablespoons)

Rice wine/Sherry (2 tablespoons)

Sugar (1 tablespoon)

Sesame oil (2 tablespoons)
Dipping for wontons: red rice vinegar

Dipping for A-Choy/lettuce: a bit of hot vegetable oil and oyster sauce

Step 1: Mix marinade, tofu and crab meat with ground pork in a large bowl.

Step 2: Have a small bowl of cool water on the side for sealing the edges of the wonton. Start wrapping as shown below (Tips: do not over-stuff, it will burst and break the wonton skin!)

 

(a) Put a little filling in the middle of a wonton wrapper (leave a little room at corners)

 

(b) Fold the wonton wrapper over to form a triangle. Press around the edge with a bit of water.

(c) Pull the left and right corners together. Press the corners with a little water to seal the wonton.

Step 3: Repeat the same steps until you make enough for everyone. (Tips: wontons freeze well. Put them in 2 zip-lock sandwich bags. No need to thaw out, just boil them in hot broth)

Step 4: Boil up some chicken broth and water (half and half). Dump in some wontons gently over high heat. Make sure wontons are completely immersed into the liquid. When wontons are done, they will float to the top. Let them boil 5 more minutes.Test one to make sure it's completely cooked through.

Step 5: Add A-Choy/Lettuce and boil for about 3 minutes.

Step 6: Turn off heat. Scoop and drain wontons and A-Choy/lettuce. Plating as shown in picture below. Sprinkle spring onions on wontons and pour a little Chinese oyster sauce onto the A-choy/lettuce. Serve immediately!

Enjoy!!