Childhood Memories: Stir-fried Seafood Udon (Yaki-Don)

Something you might not know about me. I grew up in Hong Kong and I went to a Catholic Girls School from Grade 4 through to Grade 10. That's why I also use British words like "compulsory", the "lift" or the "cinema" from time to time when I don't catch myself quick enough. =D

find me? Hint: one of the taller ones in class

I remember those days as a Catholic schoolgirl (haha) fondly. I remember the mornings when we said our morning blessings and prayers and also the days when the teachers measured our skirts to make sure they're not to short. Lunch was always my favorite time of the day. I remember opening my little pink thermal lunchbox that our Philipino helper helped prepare in the morning with anticipation. There was always one dish that I hoped she made for us that day --- Stir-Fried Seafood Udon, Japanese- style. 

 The chewiness of the udon, the crunchiness of the shrimp and the sweet-saltiness of the soy-mirin based sauce makes this a simple but yummy meal, whether it's lunch or dinner. (I've even had it for breakfast on some days, hell ya :D). I was hoping to measure out the exact measurements for the sauce this time but alas, I improvised. The recipe below is a good estimate of what the amounts of the sauce. Adjust as needed!

Recipe for Stir-Fried Seafood Udon:

Serve: 2 people (4-5 servings)

Ingredients:
200g fresh shanghai style udon (1 packet) - already cooked and available at most asian markets. 
~15 shrimps, peeled and devined

1 bag of frozen tiny scallops, rinsed and dried.
1 carrot, julienned 

5 bak choy, cleaned and separated into leaves.

1/2 onion, sliced
3 cloves garlic (minced)

ginger, minced 

Seasonings:
1 tbsp black bean sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
½ tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tsp Chinese cooking rice wine (shao xing hua tiao)
1 tsp of Japanese Mirin
½ tsp sugar
Dash of black pepper
80ml water

2tsp of cornstarch

1 tsp of sesame oil

Seasonings for prawns:
Dash of salt, sugar and cornflour

Methods:

1. For prawns, peel, devein and rinse under a running water. I used frozen shrimps by Artica, devined and EZ peel. Pat dry. Season with prawn seasoning, cover with clingwrap and refrigerate for 1/2 hour.
2. Blanch (烫一烫) udon lightly over boiling water ~3 min and drain. Set aside.
3. Heat up some oil under high heat. Layout all the prawns and let them fry untouched until they turn pink. Flip over the other side and continue frying until they turn pink and curl up. Add scallops, cook for another 2 min and set aside.
4. Heat up some oil again. Stir-fry half of the ginger/garlic, onions, carrots and bak choy. set aside.
5. Heat up some oil again. Sautee remaining garlic/ginger and pour in seasonings. Stir till it boils. Add in blanched udon. Stir fry for 2-3 min until al-dante.
6. Add in ingredients from (3) and (4). Toss all the ingredients until well combined. Turn heat off. Add pepper to taste. Enjoy!

Note: Other ingredient substitutions include fishballs, fish, baby corn, snow peas, shitake mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, chicken, beef, egg, or just plain vegetarian :D

We also paired the meal with this 2009 German Riesling from Wholefoods for $6.99. It was sweet and tangy and according to the bottle, " an ideal match for Asian cuisine". I'm going to try to include a wine pairing with my posts now when available. Any thoughts about that?

P.S. Stay tune for tomorrow's brunch post on The Rachel (Turkey Reuben) Sandwich! 

P.P.S. Did you find me in the photo? Second on the left, last row. =P


Thanks for reading! What are some of your favorite childhood recipes? 

What's for Dinner Tonight? A Peek into my Childhood

No time for a long post so here's a  quick little peek into some basic Cantonese dishes I made for dinner  the other night. Enjoy :) 

 Steamed Egg with Pork and Mushrooms 

Chinese Chives with Sliced Beancurd and Mushroom

 Ingredients:  

1 pack of Chinese Chives (flower buds cut off)

1 pack of Five Spice Bean Curd (sliced)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 small red chili pepper, deseeded and dsliced

1 green spring onion, sliced
4/5 chinese mushrooms, soaked till soft and sliced

Seasoning: 

2 tbsp of canola oil

1tbsp Chinese Shaoxing Wine

1 tsp of salt

1 tsp soy sauce

Heat up frying pan with oil. Add garlic, green onions, ginger and chili pepper until sizzling. Slide the chives, mushrooms in and stirfry. Add wine and keep stirfrying. Put beancurd in and add salt and soysauce to taste.

Wonton Soup the Taiwanese Way

You guys might not know the distinction but Wontons comes in many different forms. Growing up in HK, my favorite dish to order was Wonton Noodle Soup. The wontons contain shrimp and ground pork wrapped in a thin yellow wrapper and were served with yellow thin noodles in soup. Having been exposed to the Taiwanese cuisine :), I have discovered a whole new way of making Wontons that are equally delicious. The crunch of the celery gives a whole new dimension to eating Wontons. Not only is it a great meal for cold rainy days, you can also save time by whipping a big batch and freezing them for later use.

Recipe (adapted from Jerry's homemade recipe)( makes about 60)
Filling:
1.5 lb of ground pork (fattier the juicer :P)
2 stalks of chinese celery (finely chopped)
Green scallions 2 stalks (finely chopped)
Ginger, minced
White pepper, 1 tsp
Salt
Sesame Oil, 1-2 tbsp
Soy sauce 4 tbsp
1 pack of Wonton Wrapper, square shaped, defrost in room temperature

Soup:
Dashi- Bonito Fish Stock. Follow directions on packaging.
Celery, finely chopped
Green scallions, chopped
Fried shallots 
Salt and white pepper to taste.

Directions:
1. Prepare filling ingredients. If you are worried about taste, you can microwave some of the filling until cooked. Adjust taste accordingly.
2. Place a tsp of filling in the center of the the wrapper and fold as you like *.
3. Serve with hot soup. ENJOY!

I can eat about 15 in a row. How many can you eat????

* There are many ways to wrap wontons and there is no "right" way. Different cultures have different ways of wrapping wontons as well.  Here is a good link to different methods of wrapping wontons. I pretty much use something similar to Style 7 (the lazy man's way :P)

Welcoming the Year Of The Tiger RAWR!

lCNY is all about the reunion, the "hong bao" $$$, the candy, the flowers, the atmosphere, the firecrackers but most important of all, Chinese New Year is all about the FOOD. It is one week of the year when you can eat whatever you want, as much as you want and it's all for good luck! I invited some good friends over and had our own mini CNY feast in the middle of Richmond. For 2 hrs, it kinda felt like home :)

Spicy Beef Tendon (麻辣牛筋)

Turnip Cake 

Scallop Blossoms 花開富貴

 

 Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetables (梅菜扣肉)

 

Braised Mushrooms with Vegetables 

Taiwanese Style Clams

Wishing you all a Happy New Year of Good Health, Prosperity and Happiness :)

Simple Stir-fry: Green Beans with Chinese Mushrooms and Garlic

Another simple but delicious Chinese stir-fry dish for the busy students, tired moms and plain lazy bums like me :p. Back from a great reunion in NY for MLK weekend means I have to work doubly hard to catch up on our Cardiology course this week. I will still stay true to my New Year resolution and blog as much as possible!

Ingredients
Green beans with the tips chopped off
4 Chinese Mushrooms, soaked till soft & sliced
3 cloves garlic, mashed and diced
Vegetable oil ~ 2 tbsps
Dash of Rice Vinegar/Chinese Cooking Wine
1tsp of soy sauce
Salt to taste

Directions
Once you've prepared your ingredients, heat up the pan with the oil. Add garlic and fry till fragrant. Throw in the green beans and add a dash of rice vinegar or Chinese Cooking Wine. This brings out the flavor of the dish more. Add salt and soy sauce to taste. Turn heat to medium and add mushrooms. Cover and cook for another 5 min or so, until green beans are slightly soft but still crunchy.

Feeling Lazy? Baked Cream Corn and Chicken Rice （粟米肉粒饭）

 There are always days when we feel too tired and lazy to cook. On these days, a simple dish of comfort food won't hurt us. My idea of comfort food always comes from a chapter of my childhood in HK. I remember when our nanny Aleli (A-Lolli) would cook this for my sister and I when our parents were out on a date. The sweetness of creamed corn against chunks of chicken over rice while my sister and I watched Disney movie after movie never failed to satisfy my appetite.

Recipe for Baked Cream Corn and Chicken over Rice
3 pieces of bonless chicken thighgs (or breasts), cubed
2 cans of cream corn
half a bell pepper (diced)
half an onion (diced)
2 cloves of garlic (diced)
Jasmine Rice ( brown rice)

Marinade for chicken thighs:
3 tbls of soysauce
2 tabls of chinese cooking wine
half a tsp of salt
white pepper, dash
2 tbps of sugar
1 tbsp of corn starch

1. Marinate the cubed chicken in the marinade and leave in the fridge for 20-30 min.
2. Add some oil to the heated pan and add garlic.
3. When garlic is fragrant, add diced onion and fry on medium heat until slightly browned.
4. Add chicken and cook for 2-3 min.
5. Add bell peppers and cook. Taste and adjust with salt.
6. Add the two cans of cream corn and cook on medium-low heat for 5 min until slightly reduced.
7. Serve over white/brown rice.

Enjoy!

Baked Pork Chops with Fried Rice (焗豬扒飯）

Finally done with the Respiratory module before Xmas and it's FREEDOM!!!! I am now almost halfway done with med school!! I was all ready to spend Christmas back in Singapore with my parents until the blizzard hit yesterday. Of course, being in the South did not bode well for traveling since nobody can deal with the snow and ice. All flights are canceled and I won't be able to fly out till Tuesday =(

 

Meanwhile, if you're looking for a cozy meal in this chilly weather, try this delicious Baked Pork Chops over Fried Rice recipe from Hong Kong. It was one of my favorite meals to order as a child at any HK Cafes ( 茶餐厅）and since there are no good Chinese food in the area, my kitchen has become my #1 Chinese Restaurant in Richmond. :) My favorite part of this dish is the melted mozzarella spread over finely baked loin chops and tomato sauce.

Ingredients: 
4 pieces of pork loin/pork chops (flattened with the back of your knife, makes it softer)
1/2 yellow onion
1 bell pepper
1 tomato, sliced coarsely
6-7 fresh mushrooms (sliced)
2 cups of rice (leftover rice even better)
2 eggs, beaten
2 garlic cloves, diced
mozzarella cheese + any cheese you like ( I used some colby and monterey cheese as well)

Marinade for Pork Chops:
3 tbsp of light soy sauce
2 tbsp of shaoxing wine (chinese cooking wine)
1 tbsp of sugar
1 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp salt
dash of white pepper
dash of sesame oil

Seasoning/sauce:
5 tbsp tomato paste ( you can also use tomato sauce
3/4 C of chicken stock
salt and sugar to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Rinse and wipe dry pork chops. Use the back of a chopper to tenderize them. Mix well with marinade and leave for 30 minutes. Put pork chops in a frying pan over high heat until both sides are brown. Set aside.
3. Add oil in frying pan,  toss in white rice, stir well. Sprinkle salt and pepper and a dash of soy sauce. Cook for about 3 minutes, then make a hole in the middle and pour in the beaten eggs. When the eggs are almost cooked, stir the rice and eggs around. It's like making scrambled eggs in rice! Arrange on an oven proof ceramic plate.
   
4. Add 2 tablespoons of cooking oil to sauté onion & minced garlic. Toss in mushrooms and leave them to cook until dry. Add green peppers, tomatoes, add a dash of cooking wine & liberally sprinkle salt.  Add tomato paste, chicken broth gradually. Adjust consistency of sauce accordingly with flour and add salt and sugar to taste. Toss in pork chops. Place sauce mixture over fried rice. Sprinkle cheese generously on top.
5. Bake in the oven at 400F for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until cheese turns golden.
6. Enjoy!