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.

VEGETARIAN SAMBAL KANGKONG

This recipe is Stir Fry Kangkong with Multi Purpose Vegetarian Sambal.  A very quick and easy to create vegetable dish if you have this home-made vegetarian sambal.  It is worthy to make a portion and store in the fridge for use.  Earlier, I have used this  sambal to fry rice with Petai.  It is awesome.  In fact you can use it to prepare non vegetarian dishes too. 

For this Stir Fry Kangkong with Sambal, I had added some fried vegetarian dried prawns [made from dried Okara [dried soya pulps] bits]. You can omit if you don't have it, it is okay. Isn't this vegetable dish lovely. During pandemic time, when market visits are not as frequent, we may be short of fresh cooking ingredients. So we should be grateful, we can still get to enjoy such yummy vegetable dishes.

For non-vegetarian version, you can add some chopped garlic, red chillies, dried or fresh prawns [according to own preference].

Ingredients

300 gm kangkong [water convolvulus] - washed and cut sections

1-2 tbsp pre-prepared vegetarian sambal paste

1-2 tbsp fried Okara bits [optional]

2 tbsp oil or more

Seasoning

salt and mushroom stock granules to taste

1. Wash and drain dry the vegetable in a colander.
2. Add some oil to a wok,  add in okara bits.  Turn on medium heat and stir fry until okara bits are golden brown and crispy.  Off heat, dish up 1/2 portion.  Set aside for garnishing.
3. Turn on to high heat, immediately add in the vegetables.  Stir fry quickly to mix well the ingredients.  Add in vegetarian sambal.  Continue to stir fry over high heat until kangkong are cooked through and bright greenish colour.  Tips:  Frying kangkong with more oil can prevent vegetable from turning dark.
4. Add seasoning to taste.  Dish up.  Top with fried okara bits.
5. Serve immediately.

MULTI PURPOSE VEGETARIAN SAMBAL

My appreciation to Vegepapa Youtube video sharing this lovely vegetarian sambal chilli that is not difficult to prepare if you follow his step by step instructions.  This chilli paste is for multi purpose use according to his information and your own creative idea to cook up vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes delicious, tasty and yummy-licious.  With this pre-prepared chilli paste, you can create any spicy dishes in a jiffy.

I have use it to prepare several non-vegetarian dishes such as Sambal Petai Ikan Bilis, Fried Rice with Petai and Prawns.  For  vegetarian dishes, just replace the anchovies and prawns with vegetarian ones which I will be preparing for meatless diet.

Recipe adapted from Vegepapa Youtube with slight modifications

Ingredients For Sambal Chilli Paste

100 gm dried red chillies - rinsed several times and soak to plump up, drain

50 gm ginger - scrape off skin

50 gm fresh tumeric - scrape off skin

50 gm buah keras - rinsed

50 gm lemongrass - use white part only

50 gm lengkuas [galangal root] - scrape off skin

200 gm chilli boh [store bought chilli paste]

1- 2 cups oil [may not need to use all]

1 tsp each salt and sugar

1. Cut dried red chillies into small sections and rinsed several times, then soak to plump up.  Rinsed again and drained in a colander.
2. Scrape the skin of ginger, tumeric and galangal.  Rinsed, cut into small bits.
3. Cut lemongrass into small bits.
4. Mash buah keras.
5. Blend dried chillies and other ingredients in several batches with some oil until fine.
6. Pour blended ingredients into a wok, fry over medium heat, constantly stirring for about 15 minutes.  Add in chilli boh and continue to fry until oil separates.  Add extra oil if necessary.  Add in salt and sugar.
7. Fry till paste is aromatic.
8. Off heat and scoop paste into several glass containers.  Leave to cool for awhile before capping.
9. Store in freezer for later use [keep for at least several months] or in the refrigerator shelf for regular use.

QUICK AND EASY BLACK PEPPER SAUCE RECIPE

My previous post is a recipe on how to prepare an Easy Oriental Sauce for chicken or pork chops.  

Here is another recipe on how to prepare an Easy Black Pepper Sauce for fried chicken or pork chops. 

There are many variations to this classic sauce that is simple and more close to home.  You know what you have added into the sauce compared to store bought ones.  You can make variations to adjust the spiciness, saltiness and sweetness of the sauce according to your preference.

Ingredients

4 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tbsp light soya sauce

1 tsp dark soy sauce [for colour]

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp chicken stock granules or 1/2 tsp msg

1/2 tbsp ground black pepper

1/2 tbsp ground white pepper

100 ml water

2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tbsp water

1. Mixed all the ingredients [except cornstarch water] in a non stick pan.
2. Stir the mixture and bring to boil, simmer over medium low heat until sugar dissolves.
3. Thicken the sauce with cornstarch mix.
4. Serve with chicken or pork chops or cool sauce before storing in glass containers for later use.  Refrigerate if not using immediately.