Sunday, May 10, 2015

Chinese Apple Herbal Soup

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Do you have a favorite soup to order in a Chinese restaurant? For the longest time, my parents always get Apple Soup (???) whenever we go to one. The restaurant version almost always have fried fish with it instead of chicken, but I never really like the fish, so I use chicken when I make the soup at home. For that matter, I am not even sure what fish they use LOL ??

Chinese Apple Herbal Soup IngredientsChinese Apple Herbal Soup Ingredients

Since this soup is not as common as Chinese chicken herbal soup or Chinese six herbs soup, I never find pre-packaged soup packets for this. I hope the ingredients photo gives a good idea on what each ingredient look like in case you are interested to hunt them down on your next visit to Asian grocers or Chinatown :)

Chinese Apple Herbal SoupChinese Apple Herbal Soup 2 liter (8 cups) water1 small chicken (Indonesian: ayam kampung), skinless is better, cut into 4-8 pieces15 gram solomon seal rhizome (Chinese: yu zhu)10 gram Chinese yam (Chinese: huai shan)10 gram dried longan (Chinese: gui yuan)10 gram American ginseng4 red dates/jujube (Chinese: hong zao)5 figs (*)2 Fuji apples, peeled, cored, and quartered5 gram goji berries/wolfberries (Chinese: gou gi zi)1 teaspoon salt, or to tastePlace water, chicken, solomon seal rhizome, Chinese yam, dried longan, American ginseng, red dates, and figs in a pot. Cover, bring to a boil, lower heat, then simmer for 1 hour.Add apples, and simmer for another 45 minutes.Add goji berries, and simmer for another 15 minutes.Add salt, adjust to suit your taste.Turn off the heat, transfer to serving bowls, and serve hot or warm.(*) The Chinese usually use the dried version for making soup, but you can use fresh figs as well.

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Chinese Spareribs with Shallots

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April 13, 2015 Anita 9 Comments

Finger licking spareribs with minimum effort! This is seriously one of the easiest and most delicious dish I can imagine, precisely how a comfort food should be. Plus, the recipe is so easy it is almost impossible to mess up. There are simply so many pluses to this dish that I am going to keep making this from time to time :)

Chinese Spareribs with ShallotsChinese Spareribs with Shallots Chinese Spareribs with Shallots1 kilogram pork spareribs? cup soy sauce1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine3 tablespoon oil150 gram shallot, peeled and sliced2 star anise1 inch ginger, peeled and sliced1 tablespoon dark soy sauce2 cup water2 tablespoon rock sugar, or to tastesalt, to tasteIn a mixing bowl, marinate spareribs with soy sauce and Shaoxing wine. Cover with a saran wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight is okay too).Heat oil in a frying pan, and sauté shallot until brown and fragrant.Add the spare ribs, reserve the marinating sauce, and fry until both sides are golden brown.Add the reserved marinating sauce, star anise, ginger, dark soy sauce, and water. Bring to a boil.Reduce heat, cover with a lid, and simmer for 1 hour, or until the meat is fork tender. Stir every so often.Add rock sugar. Adjust the taste by adding more rock sugar and/or salt to taste.Turn the heat to high, then cook until the sauce thickens and glaze the spareribs.Turn off heat, transfer to a serving plate, and garnish with the chopped shallots. Serve with steamed white rice.
Filed Under: Chinese, Main Dish, Pork

Ayam Cabai Hijau – Chicken with Jalapeno Chilies

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April 6, 2015 Anita Leave a Comment

Ayam cabai hijau is an easy sweet an spicy chicken recipe. I used cabe besar hijau (jalapeno chilies, or you can use anaheim chilies too) for this, which to Indonesian is not spicy at all :) For lovers of all thing spicy, try adding some cabe rawit (bird eye chilies) to suit your preference.

Ayam Cabai Hijau - Chicken with Jalapeno ChiliesAyam Cabai Hijau – Chicken with Jalapeno Chilies Ayam Cabai Hijau - Chicken with Jalapeno Chilies3 tablespoon oil100 gram shallot, thinly sliced4 cloves garlic, minced2½ kilogram of chicken (about 8 pieces bone-in chicken)1 inch galangal (Indonesian: lengkuas), bruised1 inch ginger (Indonesian: jahe), bruised2 bay leaves (Indonesian: daun salam)1 tablespoon palm sugar (Indonesian: gula Jawa)1 teaspoon salt1 tablespoon tamarind + 2 tablespoon water, remove pits and pulps3 tablespoon sweet soy sauce (Indonesian: kecap manis)1 liter (4 cups) water15-20 green jalapeno chilies (Indonesian: cabe hijau besar), juliennedHeat oil in a wok and sauté shallot and garlic until fragrant, about 3 minutes.Add chicken and stir until the surface starts to change color.Add galangal, ginger, bay leaves, palm sugar, salt, tamarind solution, sweet soy sauce, and water.Bring to a boil, then cover the wok, lower the heat, and simmer until the chicken are fully cooked and the sauce has somewhat reduced.Remove the lid, add jalapeno chilies and cook until the chilies start to wilt.Turn off heat, transfer to a serving bowl, and serve with steamed white rice.
Filed Under: Chicken, Indonesian, Main Dish

Gulai Nangka dan Kacang Panjang Padang – Padang Young Jackfruit and Snake Bean Stew

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This is the closest gulai Padang recipe that I have, and yes it tastes amazing, and yes, the spice list is going to probably include almost everything your grocery store carries. But please try not to skip any of the spices, since they make this such an awesome gulai dish, I am guaranteeing you are going to need at least a couple bowl of steamed white rice to go with it. ?

Gulai Nangka dan Kacang Panjang Padang - Padang Young Jackfruit and Snake Bean StewGulai Nangka dan Kacang Panjang Padang – Padang Young Jackfruit and Snake Bean Stew

By the way, I am using canned young jackfruit to make this. If you want to use fresh one, you will need to pre-boil them separately until soft before using them. It is not such a big hassle, but finding fresh one outside of South East Asia might be problematic, and you will need to be ready to deal with the stickiness of young jackfruit (make that any jackfruit, actually). So, for convenience sake, better to stick with canned one. :)
Gulai Nangka dan Kacang Panjang Padang - Padang Young Jackfruit and Snake Bean Stew3 tablespoon oil4 cloves (Indonesian: cengkeh)5 bay leaves (Indonesian: daun salam)5 kaffir lime leaves (Indonesian: daun jeruk)500 gram beef, choose the cuts for stewing, cut into 1 inch cubes2 can of young jackfruit, net weight should be around 500gram1 bunch of snake beans (about 500 gram), cut into 2 inch lengths2 liter water400 ml (1 can) coconut milk (Indonesian: santan)3 tablespoon palm sugar (Indonesian: gula Jawa), or to taste1½ tablespoon salt, or to tasteGrind the following into spice paste5 red anaheim chilies (Indonesian: cabe besar merah)5 red cayenne chilies (Indonesian: cabe keriting merah)2-10 red bird eye chilies (Indonesian: cabe rawit merah)100 gram shallots (Indonesian: bawang merah)6 cloves garlic (Indonesian: bawang putih)2 inch ginger (Indonesian: jahe)2 inch galangal (Indonesian: lengkuas)2 lemongrass (Indonesian: sereh), white parts only1½ tablespoon coriander powder (Indonesian: bubuk ketumbar)½ teaspoon turmeric powder (Indonesian: bubuk kunyit)½ teaspoon cinnamon powder (Indonesian: bubuk kayu manis)½ teaspoon nutmeg powder (Indonesian: bubuk pala)½ teaspoon ground white pepper (Indonesian: bubuk merica putih)½ teaspoon cardamom seeds (Indonesian: biji kapulaga)¼ teaspoon cumin powder (Indonesian: bubuk jinten)Heat oil in a pot and sauté spice paste, cloves, bay leaves, and kaffir lime leaves until fragrant. About 5 minutes.Add beef and half of the water (1 liter), bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until beef is tender. About 45 minutes to 1 hour. Add more water as necessary.Pour in another 1 liter of the water and bring to a boil. Add young jackfruit, cover, and simmer until soft, about 30 minutes. Add more water as necessary.Add snake beans, cover, and simmer until soft, about 15 minutes.Pour in the coconut milk, season with palm sugar and salt. Adjust taste as needed. Stir every so often to avoid the coconut milk from curdling. Once it boils, reduce heat, and simmer for another 5 minutes.Turn off heat, and transfer to serving bowl. Serve with steamed white rice.

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Saturday, May 9, 2015

Sambal Berambang Asem dan Bola Bayam – Chili and Tamarind Sambal with Spinach Balls

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If Lombok has sambal plecing, then Java has sambal berambang asem. They are both always paired with simply boiled greens. In the case of sambal plecing, the traditional pairing would be kankung (morning glory). For sambal berambang asem, the traditional pairing is daun ubi jalar (cassava leaves). Fresh cassava leaves are hard to find when you live outside of Indonesia, so I tend to substitute cassava leaves with spinach :) You can use any greens of your choice, like kale, or even broccoli would be good.

Sambal Berambang Asem dan Bola Bayam - Chili and Tamarind Sambal with Spinach BallsSambal Berambang Asem dan Bola Bayam – Chili and Tamarind Sambal with Spinach Balls Sambal Berambang Asem dan Bola Bayam - Chili and Tamarind Sambal with Spinach Balls100 gram shallot (Indonesian: bawang merah)8 red cayenne chilies (Indonesian: cabe keriting merah) (*)2 teaspoon toasted shrimp paste (Indonesian: terasi bakar)3 tablespoon palm sugar (Indonesian: gula Jawa)½ teaspoon salttamarind solution from 2 tablespoon tamarind + 5 tablespoon hot water, remove pulps and pitsGrind shallot, chilies, shrimp paste, palm sugar, and salt together in a food processor (or a traditional mortar and pestle).Transfer the grind chili paste to a small sauce pan, along with tamarind solution. Stir together and bring to a boil. Adjust salt and sugar as needed.Turn off heat, and transfer to a serving bowl.Simply boil and blanch the spinach. Drain well, and divide into 4-6 equal portions, then make each portion into a spinach ball.(*) For less spicy sambal, use red anaheim chilies (Indonesian: cabe merah besar), or even 1 red bell pepper (Indonesian: paprika merah).
(**) Traditional pairing is with cassava leaves (Indonesian: daun ubi jalar). You can use other greens of your choice.

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Luo Han Guo and Chrysanthemum Liang Cha – Monks’ Fruit and Chrysanthemum Tea

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J'aime la nourriture épicée et frit, mais trop, et ma gorge commence à faire mal. Pour le chinois et indonésien, nous avons ce concept que, dès lors, nous avons une condition appel panas dalam (chinois : fa ré qi), je suppose que la meilleure traduction serait trop de chaleur. Pour les chinois, cela signifie qu'il est temps de consommer liang cha (ou thé de refroidissement) pour éliminer l'excès de chaleur du corps. ??

Luo Han Guo and Chrysanthemum Liang Cha - Monks' Fruit and Chrysanthemum Tea IngredientsLuo Han Guo et chrysanthème Liang Cha – des moines fruits et ingrédients de thé de chrysanthème

Il y a effectivement beaucoup de variétés dans ce qui constitue un cha liang, mais le thé j'aime le plus sont celles qui comprend au moins les luo han guo, fleur de chrysanthème et longanes séchés. Si vous allez à un herboriste chinois, ou même asiatique magasin d'alimentation, vous pouvez trouver beaucoup de variétés de liang cha au choix, donc votre favori peut être différente de la mienne. Essayez-les, puisqu'ils sont censés pour être bon pour votre corps et bien que nous les appelions « thé », il n'y a aucune feuilles de thé réel n'implique, sans aucun doute une bonne chose si vous êtes en évitant de caféine.

Luo Han Guo and Chrysanthemum Liang Cha - Monks' Fruit and Chrysanthemum TeaLuo Han Guo et chrysanthème Liang Cha – Fruit de moines et chrysanthème thé Luo Han Guo et chrysanthème Liang Cha - moines fruits et Chrysanthemum Tea10 tasse fruits d'eau1 monk (chinois : luo han guo) 25 grammes séchés longane (chinois : yuan gui) 25 grammes séchés chrysanthème flower3 tranches licorice50 gramme rock sugarBring l'eau à ébullition dans une casserole. Crack le moine de fruit ouvert, puis ajoutez à l'eau bouillante. Faire bouillir pendant 3-5 minutes, puis utiliser le dos d'une louche pour casser les pâtes charnues et les graines du fruit du moine en morceaux. Ajouter le reste des ingrédients et revenir à ébullition. Réduire la chaleur, couvrir et laisser mijoter pendant 1 heure. Éteindre le feu, louche à verres et servir chaud/tiède. Vous pouvez manger le longane, mais pas les autres ingrédients solides.

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Kare Ayam Jawa – Javanese Chicken Curry

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April 30, 2015 Anita Leave a Comment

Indonesia is a big country with varied dishes from each of the thousands of islands scattered in the archipelago. It seems that it will take me more than a life time to learn everything there is to learn about my own country’s cuisine. Until very recently, I didn’t even realize that for a Javanese, a kare is not the same as a kari! Apparently a kare is a very close cousin of an opor with the addition of turmeric so the dish should have a yellow color instead of white, and a kari is well, kari, and not a Javanese dish.

Kare Ayam Jawa - Javanese Chicken CurryKare Ayam Jawa – Javanese Chicken Curry Kare Ayam Jawa - Javanese Chicken Curry3 tablespoon oil8 pieces of bone-in chicken (I use all drumsticks)6 cups thin coconut milk (or use 5 cups water + 1 can coconut milk)3 bay leaves (Indonesian: daun salam)2 kaffir lime leaves (Indonesian: daun jeruk)2 lemongrass (Indonesian: sereh), bruised and knotted1 tablespoon palm sugar (Indonesian: gula Jawa), or to taste1 teaspoon salt, or to taste1 teaspoon tamarind juice (Indonesian: air asam Jawa)Grind the following into spice paste100 gram shallot (Indonesian: bawang merah)4 cloves garlic (Indonesian: bawang putih)6 candlenuts (Indonesian: kemiri)1 inch ginger (Indonesian: jahe)1 inch galangal (Indonesian: lengkuas)½ teaspoon turmeric powder (Indonesian: bubuk kunyit)¼ teaspoon cumin powder (Indonesian: bubuk jinten)½ teaspoon ground white pepper (Indonesian: bubuk lada)deep fried shallot flakes (Indonesian: bawang merah goreng)Heat oil in a wok and sauté spice paste until fragrant, about 3 to 5 minutes.Add chicken, and cook until no longer pink.Add thin coconut milk and the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until chicken is tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened.Turn off heat, transfer to a serving bowl, garnish with deep fried shallot flakes, and serve with steamed white rice.
Filed Under: Chicken, Indonesian, Main Dish