I had a small quarter of pumpkin the other day and we all know how sweet pumpkins are. But I was bored of stir-frying pumpkin with dried prawns and needed a change. After rummaging through my kitchen cabinet, I found a can of luncheon meat and I thought “why not?”. The sweetness from the pumpkin would complement the slightly saltish luncheon meat and that could be a good combo. So, what I did was to cut both ingredients into equal sized cubes and stir-fried them to make this pumpkin and luncheon meat combo. It turned out quite alright

For this recipe, I cut the pumpkin and luncheon meat into cubes. You can cut them into slivers if you prefer it that way. Somehow, I could not resist the use of dried prawns to give it a slight seafood bite. If you are unable to get hold of dried prawns, I would recommend just omitting it altogether. Do take care with the seasoning as the taste depends on how sweet your pumpkin is and how salty your brand of luncheon meat is. So, use salt judiciously. Otherwise you will have to take extra helpings of steamed white rice and a double dose of water to flush them out

This is my recipe for Pumpkin and Luncheon Meat Combo Read the rest of this entry »

I once ate something similar from a chinese take-away and decided to give it a try. The Napa Cabbage used in this dish is also known as Chinese White Cabbage (大白菜) or similar to Kimchi. It is longish and sweet in taste and widely used in East Asia. Though I usually stir fry this dish or use them in soups, this is my first attempt at steaming them after rolling them up like popiah.

There are 3 main steps to this dish. Preparing the stuffing, softening the cabbage and steaming the cabbage rolls. This recipe makes about 10 to 12 rolls with each roll using a single napa cabbage leaf. Actually, the stuffing can be left to your creativity. I used pork and prawns here. You can use fish paste, chicken meat or even beef or lamb mince depending on the seasoning applied.

The result was good and I was happy with how it turned out. The stuffing was nice and firm (and does not crumble) whilst the napa cabbage leafs were not overcooked and retained a slight resistance when bitten. Rather healthy dish, I must say. Tasted great with steaming white rice and a favourite with the kids. I should cook this for Chinese New Year Eve Dinner

This is my recipe for Napa Cabbage Rolls Read the rest of this entry »

If you are looking for a delicious pork recipe which tastes sweet and hot, Chilli Pork might just be what you are looking for. Using dried chillis for a fiery taste and dark soya sauce, this dish is guaranteed to whet your appetite and make you ask for second helpings of rice. Best of all, it is a simple dish to cook and can be attempted by a beginner.

I use pork belly for this recipe due to the texture of this part of the meat. Containing layers of fat and meat, each bite will give you a nice blend of slightly chewy meat in contrast with the smooth fat. No, it is not that healthy to be consuming this dish but once a fortnight or month should be fine. LOL! Again, just like the other recipes on this site, you don’t have to follow all the measurements of ingredients to the dot. If you like it more spicy, add more dried chillis or vice versa. Most of all, cook this and be blown away by its tastiness! Highly recommended!

This is my recipe for Chilli Pork Read the rest of this entry »

Ngor Hiang is also known as 5 spices in Hokkien. Ground into powder, you get the 5-spice powder. However, the funny thing is that Ngor Hiang also refers to this dish – which is essentially prawn and pork rolled in a soya skin. In Penang, they call it Lor Bak or Lobak whilst for us from Johor, we call it Heh Chor. There are many variants for the ingredients used but the main ingredients are prawns, pork and of course, the 5-spice powder. The 5 spice powder is popularly used for dishes like Chinese Stewed Duck and Kong Bak.

This Ngor Hiang recipe makes about 13 rolls using 1 piece of soya skin (fuchok). The soft soya skin is used rather than the usual hard-type which is commonly used for other dishes like Ginkgo Barley Dessert. It is not an easy dish to prepare as it can be a bit labourious preparing the ingredients, rolling them up and finally, frying them. However, this tasty Ngor Hiang is bound to make you eat non-stop. It is delicious on its own or a great accompaniment to steamed white rice. For added taste, give it a dip into chilli or tomato sauce.

This is my wife’s recipe for Ngor Hiang / Prawn and Pork Roll Read the rest of this entry »