STIR FRY OKRA WITH VEGETARIAN SAMBAL

Always thankful to a neighbor during this pandemic. Whenever there is an over supply of food ingredients such as fresh vegetables of all sorts from their farm, they will bring to our neighborhood to distribute to neighbors which at times could last for several days needs. This time, we had Okra, long beans, spinach [bayam], water convolvulus [kangkong] and even stink beans [buah petai]. 

If you have been following my posts on vegetables, some of them are from them.

These Lady's Fingers are fresh from her farm. With these supplies from her, I don't have to be out marketing that often. I had simply fried the vegetables with the multi purpose vegetarian sambal [recipe here] and it tastes good. This pre-prepared sambal is spicy hot, advisable to use sparingly if you can't withstand the spiciness. 

Ingredients

10-12 lady's fingers - wash and sliced

1 tbsp multi purpose vegetarian sambal

1 piece red fermented beancurd

1 tbsp fried mock dried prawns [optional]

some cooking oil

some mushroom stock granules and salt to taste

a squeeze of calamansi juice [optional]

1. Dry fry sliced Okra in wok until slightly charred or greenish in colour.  Dish out.
2. Using the same wok, add in sambal, red fermented beancurd and some oil.  Fry over medium heat to combine.   Add in some water, then return fried Okra to wok.  Stir fry to mix well.  
3. Drizzle in some water, add mushroom stock granules, salt to taste.
4. Bring to boil.  Dish up to serve.
5. Garnish with some fried mock dried prawns.

STEAMED TUMERIC WITH CORN RICE

A lovely steamed tumeric rice with corn which I prepared. It goes so well with any curries that you like. I have prepared a simple curry with an assortment of vegetables with some mock chicken meat. The curry is very easy to prepare with the use of my Multi Purpose Vegetable Sambal paste [Here].

Here, I will be sharing the recipe in detail. I will roughly list the ingredients and you may create a near similar dish to go with the tumeric rice. This tumeric rice is seasoned with some salt and tastes good with the sweet corn kernels. You may add some black pepper if you like. The curry is flavoured with salt, sugar and lime juice.

Tumeric With Corn Rice Ingredients 

[serves 2]

150 gm plain white rice - washed and drained

1/2 cup corn kernel

juice of 1 calamansi lime

1/2 tsp tumeric powder

1/4 tsp salt

about 230 ml water

1. Combined lime juice, tumeric powder, salt and water in a cup.  Mix well.
2. Wash and drain rice.
3. Transfer to a steaming tray.  Pour in water.  Stir to mix well.
4. Steamed over boiling water for 20 minutes, give it a good stir to mix well.  Turn to low heat and continue to cook for 5-10 minutes.  Off heat.
5. Leave rice for a further 10 minutes before fluffing.
6. Serve with curry.

Ingredients For Mixed Vegetable Curry  

Some cauliflower florets - cut small bits

Some French beans - cut small sections

Some red carrots - cut small bits

1 tomato - cut small bits [keep a few slices for garnishing]

1 red onion - chopped coarsely

some curry leaves

some mock chicken meat pieces - cut cubes 

juice of 2 calamansi lime

1 tbsp Multi Purpose Vegetarian Sambal paste

1 tbsp meat curry powder

Seasoning - salt and sugar

1. Stir fry cauliflower and carrots with some oil for 1-2 minutes. Add in onions and tomatoes.  Continue to stir fry.
2. Mix sambal paste and curry powder with some water into a paste.  Add to fried vegetables and mock chicken.  Continue to stir fry, drizzle in some water in between frying.
3. Add in enough water to cover the ingredients.  Bring to boil until cauliflower is soft.  Add in French beans, then seasoning to taste.
4. Stir fry until all ingredients are cooked and gravy is almost thick.
5. Add in lime juice.  Off heat.
6. Scoop curry over steamed rice.  Serve immediately.

CHOC CHIPS WALNUT OATMEAL COOKIES

Another oatmeal cookies baked for snacks during Movement Control Order. It is always much economical to bake your own cookies instead of grabbing some packets at the stores.

These cookies are with walnuts, choc chips, oatmeal and flour.  I made them in a bigger size compared to those I baked for Chinese New Year because there is only this variety available.

They are crunchy, crispy and not too sweet which you can munch and chew over a cup of hot beverage in the afternoons.  Usually, I enjoyed it with Chinese tea.

Ingredients

[makes 2 medium size canister]

150 gm quick cook oatmeal

100 gm choc chips

50 gm toasted walnuts - coarsely chopped

120 gm plain flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

110 gm butter [room temperature]

30 gm castor sugar

90 gm brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 large egg [60-65 gm

1. In a bowl, combine flour with salt and baking soda.  Then add in oatmeal, choc chips and walnuts.  Set aside.
2. Place butter, both sugars in a mixing bowl.  Beat ingredients until creamy and light.  Add in vanilla essence and egg.  Continue to beat until creamy, light and fluffy.
3. Mix dry ingredients.  Fold in dry ingredients in 2-3 batches until well combined.
4. Scoop a small portion [a heaped tablespoon or ice cream scoop] of the dough.  Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper leaving some space in between.  Flatten slightly with a spatula.
5. Doing the same until the dough is finished.
6. Bake dough in a preheated oven on the middle rack at 160 degrees C for 18 minutes or edges are crispy.  Remove to cool on wire rack before storing in airtight containers.  You can bake cookies at 180 degrees C for 10-12 minutes [all depends on individual oven heat].

MEATLESS STIR FRY CAULIFLOWER

Praise yourself if you can gradually switch to preparing more meatless dishes in your daily meals.  It is a great healthy step ahead especially if you are all along a 'carnivore'.  Not easy to change but gradually, I believe you can slowly reduce the your intake of meat, seafood etc. 

This is a cauliflower dish cooked with an assortment of other ingredients except meat or chicken and prawns.  Not necessary to follow exactly all the items and portion.  Just make use of what you have in your pantry, little bits of leftover ingredients can be used to prepare this healthy dish.   For example, if you don't have dried red chillies, use fresh ones or omit if you don't have any.  You can substitute the spiciness and heat with pepper.  No taufu puff, is alright to add fried firm beancurd or taufu etc.  Sweet beans can be substituted with celery stems.  There is nothing wrong at all.   This dish can be served as One Dish Meal with rice and it is a complete meal.

Adding dried chillies makes this dish a bit spicy and appetising.  

Ingredients

[serves 3]

100-150 gm cauliflower - washed cut into florets

30 gm red carrots - peeled and sliced

6-7 sweet beans - peel the sides and cut into half

2 dried mushroons - soak and plumb up

2 black fungus [boknee] - soak to plumb

4-5 taufu puff  

2-3 dried red chillies - cut into small sections, soaked and drained

some chopped ginger

1 tsp sesame seed oil

1 tbsp oil

some water

some cornstarch water for thickening

Seasoning

mushroom flavoured sauce, mushroom stock granules, salt and pepper to taste

1. Prepare the ingredients as stated above.
2. Add oil to a non stick wok, add in chopped ginger, dried chillies and mushrooms.  Stir fry over medium heat until aromatic. 
3. Add in carrots and taufu puffs.  Stir to mix well, add in water to braise ingredients.  Add in seasoning to taste.  Bring to boil for an extra minute.
4. Add in black fungus followed by cauliflower [you may blanch cauliflower, black fungus and carrots before frying ginger and dried chillies].
5. Cook until cauliflower is soft.  Add in sweet beans, stir fry until cooked through.  Thicken with cornstarch water.  Drizzle in sesame seed oil.
6. Dish up to serve with rice.

EGGLESS WHEAT BRAN BREAD LOAF

This bread loaf can be made without a mixer.  If you have the energy, it is easy.  You can prepare the dough in just a few steps and it is ready for baking. 

• Just mix the liquid ingredients
• Add flour and butter, add raisins if using
• Knead until window pane stage
• Proof until double in size
• Punch down and roll to shape proof until double
• It is ready for baking

I reserve my energy for other chores, so my choice is using the mixer for the initial kneading.

This homemade bread loaf is suitable for vegetarians.  It is eggless and butter can be replaced by using Daisy margarine.  The bread slices are soft and fluffy.  Great to serve with preserves, butter, cheese and hot beverages for breakfast.

Liquid Ingredients

210 water + 20 ml water

1.5 tsp yeast

2 tbsp sugar [I used Jaggery sugar]

1 tsp salt

30 gm butter [soft butter]

Dry Ingredients

350 gm bread flour or high protein flour

2-3 tbsp wheat bran [omit if making plain white bread]

2-3 tbsp raisins [optional]

1. Combine liquid ingredients in a mixing bowl.  Add in the flour in 3 batches.  Mix with a spatula into a rough dough.  Cover to rest dough for 10 minutes.
2. Knead the rough dough together with butter for a further 6-10 minutes until window pane stage.
3. Shape into a round ball.  Leave in mixing bowl to proof until double in size.
4. Punch down to release trapped air.  Roll out dough into an oblong shape.  Fold into thirds, then roll out into a Swiss roll log.
5. Place dough into a greased loaf pan [I used a Pullman's tin].  Cover to proof until double in size [takes about an hour].  I leave dough to proof in the oven.  Remove dough from oven after proofing.
6. Heat up oven for 5-10 minutes at 150-160 degrees C.  Bake bread loaf for 37-40 minutes [depends on individual oven].
7. Remove to cool in a wire rack.  Lightly brush bread with some butter, cool before storing or slicing.