Spaghetti with Shrimp and Spinach - 3S's

Look at those big and juicy shrimp! I got the idea to make these Spaghetti with Shrimp and Spinach from Justin of Justcooknyc. His sauce is of course more elaborate and basically from scratch while my sauce is straight from the bottle.

Spaghetti with Shrimp and Spinach
serves 2

Spaghetti - I use whole grain
1 cup spaghetti sauce - more if you like extra sauce
10 pcs shrimp - cleaned, de-veined and de-shelled
1/2 bunch of spinach - cleaned and drained
Salt and sugar

1. Cook spaghetti as per the instruction, drain and put on 2 plates.

2. In a pot, heat the sauce on medium heat and add salt and sugar to taste.

3. Add shrimp and stir for like 30sec to 1min.

4. Turn the heat off and add in spinach. Gently fold the sauce on the spinach.

5. Pour the sauce onto the plate of spaghetti and enjoy immediately.

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Chicken and Beef Satay Recipe

As promised in my previous post of Foodbuzz May 24,24,24 here is the recipe for Chicken and Beef Satay with Peanut Sauce. Some of you may already know that I have made and posted the recipe for Satay before but since this time I used a different recipe, I thought I would post it as well. This recipe was given to me by my friend Mai, a wife, mom, doctor and student who is doing her PhD in England. Thank you Mai!

Chicken Satay Recipe

(makes around 100 sticks)

5lb boneless and skinless chicken breast, sliced and cubed into 1in sq and about 1/2cm thick

1 pack grated lemongrass (14oz)
1/3 cup cumin powder
2oz fennel seed (grind)
1 1/4 cups sugar
Salt
1/4 cup turmeric powder
1/4 cup water
Wooden skewer (soaked in water 2hrs prior to being used)
Oil + honey/sugar

1. In a big bowl, mix all the ingredients (except chicken) together and taste. Add chicken to it and mix well.

2. Transfer them into 2-3 ziplock bags and marinate overnight in the fridge.

3. A few hours before grilling, take them out and let them cool to room temperature.

4. Thread the wooden skewer with 3 pieces of chicken each.

5. Grill on a direct fire. Flip every 15-20sec so the meat don't get burned and baste with oil +honey/sugar each time you flip them.

6. Take them of the grill and serve with Rice Cake and Peanut Sauce.

**For Beef Satay, just replace chicken with beef. The marinate are all the same.

I have posted the easy peanut sauce recipe before but to make it easier for you, here they are again.

Peanut Sauce

24oz (680gm) dry-roasted peanuts, (I use store bought)

3 cups water

1/4 cup sambal oelek (less if you dont like it too spicy)

4oz palm sugar

salt

1. Grind the peanuts in a food processor. Longer if you want a finer peanuts.

2. In a large pot boil the water, sambal oelek, palm sugar and ground peanut. Stir continuously.

3. Once its boiled, turn down heat and let it simmer. Add in salt and taste. Give a good stir every 15-20min.. This will take a very long time. It took me between 2-2.5hrs to get the right consistency. The peanut and water should combined nicely.

The recipe will give you a lot of peanut sauce. Just freeze the amount that you are not using for later use.

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May Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 - Summer Party Malaysian-Style

Grilling Satay - Chicken and Beef

Summer is approaching and although we always have bbq at our place, it was never a 'full-blown' Malaysian-style bbq party. So what better way to start the summer than having a Summer Party - Malaysian Style to introduce Malaysian food to our American friends/neighbours? None of those watered-down version of 'Malaysian' food that is normally served at the restaurants here. I am so honoured that my Summer Party proposal was chosen by Foodbuzz for their May 24, 24, 24 event.

The first thing on the menu was of course Satay. Grilled on a charcoal grill (that I specifically asked my husband to get when we moved to this apartment last year!). Both chicken and beef, together with peanut sauce, rice cake and cucumber. The meat was marinated overnight so the taste infused inside the meat and also makes them tender.

Next is Grilled Jumbo Prawns with sambal dipping sauce. I just realised that I don't have pictured of my sambal but the prawn was so yummylicious. Only minimum seasoning needed to retain the taste. They are seasoned with salt, turmeric and a dash of lime juice and off they go on the grill!

Then we have Beef with Potato Murtabak and Pickled Onion on the side. I usually used spring roll skins but this time I used lumpia wrapper. They are equally good although for pictures, I would have to say that I prefer spring roll wrapper since they give that nice edges while with lumpia wrapper you would not get it since they are softer and thinner.

G and J made these droolicious Fried Chicken Wonton that are to die for! I was too busy (and too tired!) to really eat anything yesterday but I am glad I managed to eat some of these. They are crunchy and their bite-size made it easier to eat while one was going back and forth, in and out of the kitchen and patio.

For something heavier, S made these Mamak Mee Goreng with seafood. They are spicy and very flavourful. 1 of my neighbours is of American/Korean parentage and as expected, Mamak Mee Goreng is her favourite and she could not stopped for talking about how good they are.

Honey Barbeque Chicken

Among all the things that I made for the Summer Party, I would have to say that making Fried Popiah is the trickiest one. They are yummy to eat but rolling them and making sure that they are wrapped properly is a skill that I discovered I have yet to master. Thank god for K who used to worked in a chinese restaurant who helped me with wrapping them.

For dessert, I made this Malay kuih called Kuih Bakar. This pandan and coconut milk based kuih/cake is as easy to make as it easy to eat. They are usually made with a flower design mould that I could not find here until I found this disposable mould with curves that gives a little bit of that flower effect.

I would like to thank all my friends (especially S and K for helping and taking most of the pictures) and neighbours who came (and help!) to the party and also Foodbuzz for choosing my Summer Party-Malaysian Style as part of their May Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 event. My SUmmer Party that started at 4pm ended till past midnight after a game of poker. Everybody leaves happily and with a full stomach.

I hope I have managed to introduce you a little bit of how we Malaysian do our party which basically involves lots and lots of food. I will be posting the recipes in my next post.

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Crab in Spicy Plum Sauce

Seafood is plenty here in California but being Asian, there is only so much of steamed seafood with butter or seafood in creamy sauce that I can take before I am craving for that spicy, sweet and sour seafood. Not to mention that it is also very pricey to eat seafood out in the restaurant.

For our 4th anniversary last month, we went to the Joe's Crab Shack. The crab legs are pretty good but somehow it does not satisfy my crave for crabs. So later in the week, we headed off to the asian supermarket and got me 2 huge dungeness (i think!) crabs for less than $4/lb. I would normally make sweet and sour crab but this time I decided to use the plum sauce that I bought and was very happy with the result.

Crab in Spicy Plum Sauce
serves 1-2

1 crab, cleaned, separate the claws and half the body
8-10 thai chili
1in ginger
3 garlic
1 shallot
7 tbsp plum sauce
1/3 cup water
salt and sugar
1 egg, slightly whisked
2 tbsp veggie oil

1. Pound thai chili, ginger, garlic and shallot until it forms a paste.

2. In a wok or deep pan, heat the oil on medium heat and sauteed the paste until fragrant.

3. Add water, plum sauce, salt and sugar. Stir and taste to your liking.

4. Add in the crab, turn the heat to high. Flip the crab until all covered with sauce. Cover. 1min.

5. Uncover, flip the crab again and add in the egg. Turn the heat off and keep flipping the crab until they are all covered with the egg.

6. Serve immediately with white rice or toast.

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Eid Open House Menu 2 - Peanut Sauce with Rice Cake

What is Hari Raya / Eid-ul Fitri for us Malaysian without ketupat? Ketupat is rice cooked in an individual baskets of woven coconut leaves. I still remember when I was a kid and went back to my father's hometown in Johor for Hari Raya, my late grandmother and aunties would get all the kids to sit down and learn the art of weaving coconut leaves into ketupat wrapper. Unfortunately, none of us did quite get it. Not then and definitely not now. It is rather sad but thank god for instant rice cake which may not be ketupat but it serves the same purpose.

I was pretty nervous when I could not find any at the asian supermarket near our place. I asked around and check the internet and finally someone told me to check out 99 Ranch Market. I have only been to the one in Anaheim a long time before and did not like the place so I decided to check out their outlet in Irvine. It was a Saturday and the parking was full that we had to park at the 30min parking area. Yup, 30 min for me to find my instant ketupat. But luck was on my side and I found it in the 3rd aisle that I went to. Phew!

For my openhouse, I made the instant ketupat for my soto and also to go with the peanut sauce. Peanut sauce is my mom's specialty. Every Raya, she will make peanut sauce. My aunts tried to make it but somehow their's did not turn out quite like my mom's peanut sauce so they just appointed my mom as THE person responsible for peanut sauce. I never did bother to find out how she make her peanut sauce that has became somewhat a legendary until I came here. After a few times of not-quite-like-mom's peanut sauce, this year, luck was on my side and my peanut sauce turned out really well. Just as good as my mom's famous peanut sauce. There are a lot of ways and ingredients to make peanut sauce out there but my mom's peanut sauce only have 5 ingredients and peanut butter is NOT 1 of them. Do try these simple and easy peanut sauce recipe and share with me the result.

Peanut Sauce

24oz (680gm) dry-roasted peanuts, (I use store bought)

3 cups water

1/4 cup sambal oelek (less if you dont like it too spicy)

4oz palm sugar

salt

1. Grind the peanuts in a food processor. Longer if you want a finer peanuts.

2. In a large pot boil the water, sambal oelek, palm sugar and ground peanut. Stir continuosly.

3. Once its boiled, turn down heat and let it simmer. Add in salt and taste. Give a good stir every 15-20min.. This will take a very long time. It took me between 2-2.5hrs to get the right consistency. The peanut and water should combined nicely.

The recipe will give you a lot of peanut sauce. Just freeze the amount that you are not using for later use. Besides ketupat, you can also enjoy peanut sauce with satay or bread or even crackers.

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Ayam Percik Recipe / Barbequed Chicken in Spicy Coconut Milk Gravy

Another recipe from the east coast states of Malaysia courtesy of my dear friend Sue. I do have a thing for east coast's delicacies don't I? As usual, when you ask a recipe from your mom or aunt or friend, it comes it terms of ingredients only without the measurements. The same goes to ayam percik recipe when I asked her for it. If my handwriting was not ugly, I would have scanned the paper where I wrote down the recipe and put it here. But unfortunately they are so I will spare you from seeing the worst handwriting in the world. *lol*

Ayam percik is also available mostly during the month of Ramadhan but you can still get them at the pasar malam (night market). What makes Ayam Percik .... Ayam Percik, is the gravy. Its drenched with coconut milk based gravy that have everything from shallots to ginger to chili to tamarind juice. It may sounds heavy but its oh-so-heavenly! Please do not let the slightly long list of ingredients scare you since most of them goes in the blender together. Once you blend them, everything else is easy like 1-2-3.

Ayam Percik Recipe

Serves 4

8 pieces chicken drumsticks (or any other parts) - rubbed with salt and turmeric

3-4 shallots

1 red onion

4-5 garlic

3in ginger

2 stalks lemongrass

2-3 tbsp sambal oelek (more if you like it hotter)

1.5 tsp turmeric powder

1 can coconut milk (400ml)

1 can water (use the same coconut milk can)

1 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 - 1 tsp tamarind juice powder

Sugar and salt to taste

1. Start the grill.

2. In a blender, blend shallots, onion, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, sambal oelek and turmeric powder.

3. In a pot (use a big one), boil coconut milk, water and and the rest of the ingredients except the chicken on medium heat. Keep stirring until it boils. Let it simmer.

4. Steamed the chicken for 6-10min.

5. When the grill is ready, start grilling the chicken. Basting it with the gravy 3-4 times.

Ayam Percik is best enjoyed with Nasi Kerabu, rice with fish and vegetables like long beans, beansprouts and polygonum leaves or just plain white rice. I had mine with the half version of nasi kerabu. I just chopped or finely cut the vegetables, mix it with the rice and pour some gravy on top. Please do be very generous with the gravy on both your rice and chicken. It is not Ayam Percik if it is not drenched/drowned with the gravy.

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Battle of the Chili Sauce

I think by now, most of my readers would know how fanatic I am with chili sauce and sweet soy sauce. My favourite chili sauce brand is of course, Lingham while for sweet soy sauce, its got to be Habhal cap kipas udang. (shrimp fan?) The problem is that I live far away from home that I cant just walk into any supermarket and grab them off the shelves. The truth is, ever since I moved to the US, iv yet to find anybody selling Habhal brand sweet soy sauce. Not in PA, not in CA. :(

Lingham on the other hand, is easier to find. I used to get them from the World Market. Notice that I used the word "used"? Thats because on my last visit, I found out that they have stopped selling Lingham chili sauce. Cruel! Anyways, I was told that Mae Ploy (product of Thailand) sweet chili sauce is similar so I got myself some when I went to the World Market nearby. That's when I found this 'Malaysian Sweet Coconut Sauce' a product from Thailand. I know quite a variety of sauces in Malaysia but to tell you the truth, Iv never heard or seen a sweet coconut sauce before. Im very very curious but have yet to taste the sauce. Has anyone heard or tried this kinda sauce before?

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Grilled Sambal Stuffed Tilapia Recipe

Ikan bakar or grilled fish is so sinfully gorgi-licious! My favourite fish for grilling has always been stingray with sambal kicap (chili in soy sauce). Another one of my favourite is sambal stuffed scad (cencaru/jacket). My problem is tht 1). I dont know how to cut stingray and 2). I couldnt find any scad at the supermarket or maybe I just wasnt looking hard enough.

So what can an amatuer like me do? I just bought myself a tilapia, pretended that it's cencaru/scad , stuffed it with the leftover sambal, wrapped it in banana leaves and grill away! Im so smart, no? Yes I am! hahaha. And guess what? Even my husband who would make funny face when he sees the fish's face said it smells very nice once the banana leaves started to char. Banana leaves ROCKS!

This is what you will need

1 medium size tilapia, cleaned and dry-pat
A pinch of wet tamarind
Salt & Turmeric
Sambal tumis
Banana leaves, wiped clean with a damp cloth (both sides)

Preheat oven at 350-375F


1. Coat fish with salt and turmeric

2. Add about 4-5 tablespoon of hot water to wet tamarind to make juice and lather the fish with it.

3. Stuffed the fish with as much sambal tumis as you can.

4. Wrapped it with banana leaves


5. Place the fish on a round cookie sheet and put it in the oven. For about 30min, turning it once.

6. Unwrapped and continue grillingfor another 10-15 min or until the fish is completely cook and have that charred look.

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Deep-Fried Fish in Soy Sauce (Ikan Masak Kicap)

That first picture look 'alien-like' dont you think so? Hehe. That could only mean 2 things. 1, that it is really an alien or 2, that I suck big time at taking picture. Ok, ok. I admit. I suck big time at taking picture. No need to rub it in. :P

Before I lay out the recipe, let me apologise for not posting anything in a week. We have been busy with apartment hunting and on top of that, I am suffering from tooth ache. I went to the dentist yesterday and got a temporary crown for 1 of my molar and am now waiting for the permanent one to be ready in 3 weeks time. Another big hole in the pocket. I am just thankful that I didn't need a root canal. Phew!

1 fish filet

Oil for deep frying

2 garlic, thinly sliced

half onion, sliced

1 red chili, sliced

1 tablespoon think soy sauce

1 tablespoon light soy sauce

3 tablespoon sweet soy sauce

1/4 cup water

salt, pepper and sugar to taste

2 tablespoon vege oil

1. Coat the fish with salt & turmeric and deep fry until golden brown. Keep aside.

2. In a medium shallow pan, heat the oil and saute the garlic. 20-30 sec.

3. Slowly add water and all other ingredients. Keep stirring until the mix thickens. Add more water if you dont like your sauce too thick or less water if you like it thick. About 3-4 min.

4. You can either pour the sauce onto the fish or add the fish to the sauce.

Enjoy with a bowl/plate of warm white rice.

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