Candy Peanut Rice Dumpling (Zongzi)

This sweet candy peanut rice dumpling recipe makes about 12 small dumplings (1/2 size of those from the grocery). There are two separate fillings to prepare before getting into the fun - art of wrapping!



24 pcs bamboo leaves, soak in water overnight.


Rice filling:
2 cups Glutinous Rice, soak in water overnight.
1/2 cup red bean, soak in water overnight.
1/2 cup coconut milk.
1/2 cup fresh

Cucumber Kimchi

I paid $5 for a carton of pickling cucumber at farmer's market. No doubt 1/3 are rotten, but I still got to deal with the 2/3 - 100++ of them! So, I made Cucumber Kimchi with this recipe.



1/2 bowl of thick slice cucumber (I use a 4 liter mixing bowl here)
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp salt
1 tsp mince garlic
2 tbsp hot pepper paste
1 tbsp sugar

Marinate cucumber in vinegar and salt for an

Chill Spinach Salad

A convenient dish. Precooked a bunch of spinach, save them in the refrigerator and use them as needed.





Ingredients:
5 tbsp cooked spinach.
1 tbsp Ing-Katsuwo Fish Slices.
1/2 tbsp sesame oil.
1 tbsp Memmi sauce.

Place 5 tbsp of cooked spinach in a side dish plate, add sesame oil and sauce.
Garnish with fish slices and serve.

How to pre-cook the spinach?
Buy spinach that come in whole with

Green Bean Carrots

By looking at this picture, I think you can guess the easy recipes for this dish!





Ingredients:
1 handfull of green bean, remove ends and slice diagonally.
1 carrot, remove skin and thinly slice.
1/2 tsp mince garlic.
5 shrimps, remove shell and half (optional)

Heat pan and add oil when hot.

Spice Chicken Roll

This spice chicken roll recipe is a variation of the traditional five-spice meat roll (loh bak).





Ingredients:
500g (1lb) mince chicken, marinate with
1 tbsp chinese five-spice powder
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp oyster sauce
1/2 tsp pepper
1 egg
2 tbsp corn starch

1 can (8oz) water chestnut, chop
2 tbsp diced spring onion
4 fresh soybean dumpling crusts, wipe over with

Coconut Rice (Nasi Lemak)

This original coconut rice (nasi lemak) was cooked with freshly harvest brown rice. Those days, we used solely coconut milk without much concerning of the amount of cholesterol we are consuming. Well, that's the JOY of eating - It does taste better that way! For us with a little health conscious mind, try this recipe, enjoy it with a little peace of mind ...



2 cups basmati rice, wash and drain

Prosperity Cupcakes (Fa Gao)

These are Chinese Prosperity Cupcakes, known as Fa Gao (mandarin), Fa Koh (Cantonese) or Huat Kuih (Hokkien). Everyone should find an opportunity to eat this cupcake, particularly on New Year day, birthday... to enhance his/her luck. This recipe make about 30 baby cupcakes, they are about an inch diameter.





Ingredients:
100g (4oz) brown sugar (taste better if you can use palm sugar)
120ml (

Korean Tofu Soup (Soon Dubu)

We have never thought we'd ever like it - Tofu Soup. Somehow, it has become our regular order at Korean Restaurant. And finally, I learn the tricks! Thanks again EJ.





Ingredients:
1 tsp mince garlic
1 tbsp fine chili pepper
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup water
1/2 cube silken tofu
1 cup mixed seafood (shrimp, scallops, mussels, squids, etc)
3 leaves napa cabbage, cut into inch slices
3 shitaki

Cream Puffs

This cream puffs recipe makes about 20 puffs. Very easy recipe... It never cross my mind that making cream puff is that FAST until I tried this!






Ingredients
115g (4oz) salted butter
1 cup water
1/2 tsp salt
4 eggs
150g (5oz or 1 cup) all purpose flour

Put butter and water in a saucepan and bring to boil slowly.
Add flour and salt, stir quickly until a ball is form, dough comes off from the

Taro Rice

An all time favorite convenient meal. The fragrance of shallots will make you crave for more…



Ingredients:
1 cup long grain rice, rinse and set aside.
1 cup diced taro.
1/2 cup coarsely chopped shiitake mushroom.
1/4 cup dried prawns, soak in water and coarsely chop.
1 cup thinly sliced shallots.
2 stalks spring onion, finely chop.
1 stalk cilantro, finely chop.
1/2 tsp sea salt.
1/2 tsp dark

Captain Curry (Kapitan Curry)

There's a cute story behind this name - Captain Curry (Kapitan Curry)... Let me find out more before I say it. Anyway, this is another peranakan recipe which enjoyed by the south east asian for many decades. Serve with steam rice or bread.






Ingredients:
1kg (2lb) chicken (I normally use chicken thighs)
1/2 can coconut milk
1 cup fresh milk
4 stalks lemon grass, cut into 3 inch length and

Otak-Otak Fish Cake

If you hate to wrap the Otak-Otak in banana leave, or not able to buy banana leaves... try these quick easy ways! Have fun and these make great party menu.



This one here... I scoop 3-4 tbsp fish gravy into individual aluminum cupcake liner.



Alternatively, you can use cupcake trays. These trays are usually non-stick and allow you to remove off cooked Otak neat and nice.




Ingredients:

Korean Stir Fry Beef (Bulgulgi)

There are two chapters in making Korean Stir Fry Beef. We cannot skip to chapter 2 without passing through chapter one! Thanks EJ for sharing this secret recipe. It's perfect!



1. Bulgulgi Marinate Sauce



Ingredients:
½ cup white cooking wine
½ cup mirin
½ cup juice of pineapple, Korean pear or kiwi
½ cup water
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced spring onion
1 tsp pepper

Chinese Herbal Soup

Yes, it does take a long time to simmer a pot of Chinese Herbal Soup. To ease our life, try this foolproof crock pot recipe or slow cooker recipe. A 3-quarts crock pot or slow cooker in the kitchen will definitely save your day.




Ingredients:
1 packet of Chinese herbs (Just any kind that sold at the Asian Grocery)
10 dry red dates
1 honey dates
2 pounds chicken carcasses; Remove as much fat

Greek Parsley Salad (Tabbouleh)

This Healthy Salad is known as Tabbouleh, Tabouleh, Tabouli or Taboleh at Greek Restaurant. Great side dish for Hainanese Chicken Rice. No cooking is required, just mix them up and enjoy.





Ingredients:
2 tbsp bulgur cracked wheat, soak in water overnight, drain and squeeze out excess water
1/4 large bunches English parsley, discard stems and finely chop
1/4 onion, dice
1/2 cucumber, dice
1/2

Turmeric Chicken

If you like Thai food, give this Turmeric Chicken a try. Serve well with steam rice and cucumber slices.






Ingredients:
2 chicken thigh, remove bone and cut into strips
1 tsp lemon grass powder
2 dashes of white pepper
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp fine chili pepper
1/2 tsp salt

3 sprigs curry leaves
3-4 tbsp cooking oil

Mix all spices together and marinade chicken.
Heat pan, add oil when

Peranakan Style Fried Chicken

Kids love this Peranakan Style Fried Chicken. Keep it simple, serve them with steam rice and cucumber slices.






Ingredients:
2 chicken thigh, remove bone and cut into strips
2 dashes of white pepper
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp sesame oil

Mix all ingredients together and marinade chicken.
Heat pan, add in marinated chicken when hot.
Stir fry

Mushroom Pea Pot

Real simple and easy recipe. You can get them cook within 15 minutes!





Ingredients
300g (8oz) sugar snap peas, remove ends
8 button mushroom, slice
1 tsp mince garlic
2 tbsp oyster sauce (use vegetarian oyster sauce if necessary)

Heat pan, add oil when hot.
Stir fry garlic for 30s, add mushrooms and peas and continue stirring for about 2 minutes.
Dish out and serve hot.


From Mushroom Pea

Fish Noodle Soup (Penang Asam Laksa)

This is a signature food of Penang. It is spicy and sour like Tomyam but the use of shrimp paste has made it stand out from the rest. I have use this recipe outside Penang and I believe you can give it a try!






Ingredients

1-2 bags Vietnamese fresh rice noodles (enough to serve 4)
1kg (2lb) mackerel fish
3 stalks lemon grass, smashed
10 stalks curry leaves (better still if you can use kesom

Mushroom Chicken Dumpling (Shaomai)

They are commonly known as Shaomai or Siewmai at Chinese Restaurants. You can make them too with this mushroom chicken dumpling recipe. I can assure you they taste better than many of those you had before.





Ingredients
500g(1lb) mince chicken meat
500g(1lb) shrimps, remove shell and dice
5 big dry shitaki mushroom, soak in water, squeeze dry and finely chop
1 can (8oz) whole water chestnut,

Sauces and Spices

If you are wondering which particular sauce and spice, or gadgets that I use, let me introduce you some goodies...


Fresh chili is uncommon and expensive in our area. So I use Korean Chili Pepper. It works GREAT! Pick those with bright red color and store them in freezer after opened.

Oyster Sauce - I use Lee Kum Kee Premium Oyster Sauce all the time. This is by far most flavorful oyster sauce

Mussels in Soy Bean Sauce

A traditional Peranakan Food. You can use any kind of mussels for this recipe.






Ingredients
500g (1lb) mussels, soak in water for at least 15 minutes
1 tbsp soy bean paste
1 tbsp fine chili pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
Thumb-sized ginger, thinly shred
10 shallots, thinly slice

Heat pan, add oil when hot.
Stir fry garlic, ginger and onion till soft.
Add soy bean paste, chili powder and a

Indian Crepes (Apom Manis)

Indian Crepes, they are more well known as Apom Manis. They are cooked in the same way as Indian Appam, but Apom Manis are sweet and you don't need to served them with curry.

They were my childhood favorite. My Mom has never made them though. She doesn't need to because we can conveniently buy them from the Indian hawkers for 10 cents a piece.

My children are craving for them now but we don't

Banana Cake

I have shared this banana cake recipes at many tea parties and the responses are overwhelmed. If you're thinking of banana bread, try this out as it's definitely much easier and faster to make one.



Ingredients
250g (8oz) butter
100g (4oz) sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
250g(8oz) pre-sift self rising flour OR (250g(8oz) pre-sift all purpose flour + 3 tsp baking powder + 1 tsp salt)
1 tsp

Free Easy Recipes

These Free Easy Recipes in Recipes-Talk are very much less salty than those you had at the American Bistro, very much less sweet compare to those grocery's deli. As for the extend of spiciness, they are mild, very rarely I hit the medium bench mark. Double the chilies portion if you want them hot and sharp!

I use organic sugar, unbleached flour, sea salt, apple cider vinegar... as many healthy