Prosperity Pomfret

Chinese New Year reunion dinner is celebrated in my home today n fish is a must.

Today I tried a recipe from my cookbook Gourmet of Fortune.

It is so easy to do n is so delicious!

Recipe 

Ingredients 

1 pomfret (800 gm to 1000gm)

20 gm shredded ginger

20 wolfberries 

Some chopped spring onion

3000 ml water

Seasonings

2 tbsp light soy sauce ( I replaced with Kikkoman soy sauce)

1 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp hua diao wine

1 tsp fragrant oil ( I omitted)

If your pomfret is smaller like mine I lessen the soy sauce n oyster sauce a little. My fish weighed about 550gm.

1. Clean the fish n remove entrails n rinse n make criss cross slits on it.

2. Bring water to a boil . Put the shredded ginger n wolfberries on top of fish.  ( I rubbed some oil on the plate before I placed the pomfret). Add in the oyster sauce n light soy sauce, cover n steam for 15 minutes.

3. Pour in sesame oil, hua diao wine n fragrant oil, sprinkle chopped spring onion on top n serve warm.

Koi fish jelly

This recipe is from Ann of Anncoo Journal simple ingredients to form these beautiful creations. You may check her recipe in this link

http://www.anncoojournal.com/2011/01/koi-fish.html?m=1

Ingredients 

650 ml water

100g sugar I used caster sugar

8 g agar agar

2 pandan leaves 

5 large koi fish mold 

Raisins cut till quarters

A few bottles of colouring - red green n mango colour

Cut the raisins to quarters. Roll them up if you can to form tiny nibs to use as fish eyes.

Boil water, sugar, agar agar powder n pandan leaves together. Keep stirring until water boils using medium heat. Off the heat n stir the agar agar liquid for another 2-3 minutes. 

Put agar agar liquid under double boiler or low heat to prevent agar agar from setting quickly.

Using tweezers, dip the raisin into agar after liquid then place on the fish mold eyes.

Prepare small sauce dishes. Take 2 tsp of agar agar n add a drop of colour n mix with teaspoon. Quickly use the back of teaspoon to apply colour randomly to the fish mold body. If the colour sets , add more hot agar agar liquid to dilute it.

After the coloured liquid sets, pour in the plain agar agar in the fish mold.

Chill agar agar in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours or overnight before removing from the fish mold.

Note : you will need a soup bowl to hold up the fish mold

Agar agar powder

Mixing colours

Apply colours

More fishes

Using yellow agar agar powder

Crunchy Golden Almond Balls

These are crunchy almond balls - not the melt in your mouth type which uses icing sugar.

Almond Balls recipe from 

http://breadetbutter.wordpress.com

Ingredients used

The dough 

Before baking 

After baking

Peanut Puffs (Kok Chye)

Peanut puffs, finally!! I yearned for them for so long since my mum passed away.  She made these every year for Chinese New Year and they are so good!  I remember helping my mum to pound the peanuts after she fries them in the wok. Sometimes I also help to cut out the pastry for her... these memories...

I googled for this recipe and found at least 3. One says to bake them but my mum always fries them in a wok. Mine are a bit larger than my mum so next time I shall try to make the pastry even thinner and cut out a smaller circle.

This recipe is from Malaysian Delicacies which adapted a recipe from Agnes Chang an author of cookbook and a TV host.

Ingredients

 

Filling

150 gm roasted and coarsely crushed peanuts (you may reduce as there is balance after cooking)

I used Tai Sun roasted peanuts but still I fried them slightly before use

3 tbsp fine sugar

1 tbsp oil ( I didnt use - fried without oil)

 

 

Please prepare fillings first as the pounding will take some time.

If you do not have a motar and pestle, you can place a chopping board on top of thick newspapers and use a greaseproof paper on top. Then pound your peanuts using a meat pounder.

 

 

 

 

Pastry Ingredients and steps

 

250gm Plain flour

25 gm butter/margarine ( I used 30gm slightly softened)

1 egg (beaten lightly with a pinch of salt and 2 tbsp of ice water)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sieve the flour into a big mixing bowl and mix in the butter.  Make it into crumbs.

 

 

 

Add in the beaten egg bit by bit until a dough is formed. When making the dough, if too dry can still add a little water to it.

 

Knead until pliable and a non sticky dough is formed.

Chill the dough for half an hour in the fridge or room temperature. ( I used room temp)

 

 

 

The pastry looks like prata and feels like prata after I rolled it out.

 

Flatten the dough between two plastic sheets and roll to desired thickness.

 

 

Use a tart cutter or the rim of a small cup to cut out circular shape.

 

 

 

Apply water or egg to edges of the circle and spooon about 1 teaspoon of peanut filling to centre.

 

 

Fold into half , seal well, make sure no peanut sticking out and make a pattern round the edges.

 

 

I made a tray of 26 puffs. If you roll the pastry thinner you can make more.

Fry in medium heat till golden brown.

 

I used my Meyer electric deep fryer. Set at no. 4 temp. I fried batch by batch about 7-8 pcs a time. Drain on paper towels. Cool before storing.

 

 

 

 

There you have it! Homemade kok chyes!

 

I think you can also make curry puffs with this pastry. Just have to increase the amount as curry puffs are bigger size.

 

 

 

 

 

 



Milk Tea Cookies

 Today,  I tried another batch of cookies in preparation for the Chinese New Year. The texture of the cookies quite light and sweetness just nice even though it contained condense milk.  Has a nice sweet smell to them.

 

This recipe comes from Phoon Huat bakery class and I am making this for the first time.  Though I couldn't get the dough into round shape but the texture is what I like about these cookies.

 

Ingredients

 

 

 

Butter Salted 90gm

Caster Sugar 30 gm

Condense Milk 24 gm

Salt 1/4 tsp

Egg 45gm

Red Tea Leaf ( I used Boh tea bag) 3 gm

Plain Flour 150 gm

Baking Powder 1/4 tsp

 

 

Method

 

1. Cream the butter, sugar, salt and condense milk but not till creamy and pale.

 

 

2. Add in the egg and mix well.

 

3. Lastly add in the balance dry ingredients into it and mix well. Use low speed.

 

4. Take out and roll into a 1" inch round diameter and keep in the fridge to let it semi firm. Use baking paper.

 

 

 

5. Take out and cut into 3/4 cm thick and put on the baking tray and bake at 170C  for 15-20 minutes or till golden colour.

 

 

 

You can make about 20 pcs at one time.  Enjoy them with a cup of tea!