I think this is too much for a weekend breakfast. Without a toaster, I toasted the left-over white bread over direct flame, then fried two eggs for my fiance and me.
I bought a pack of bratwurst several days ago (which was on promotion and sold at attractive price). This was the first time my fiance knew how bratwurst tasted like, though this was only one kind of many varieties of bratwursts.
July 20, 2009 by Kokotaru
Filed under Salad & Vegetable
I was very curious about the name of this egg salad. When reading Western cookbooks, I have been familiar with the name of the dishes indicating who makes them such as mother’s chicken soup, grandmother’s apple pie, etc. But this is the first time I read about a dish by a son-in-law. "What an interesting name given to this dish", I thought.
So I decided to make this salad. It is quite simple. I like cooking with tamarind paste and this is always my favorite flavor. Personally I think this dish has more typical Asian flavors. After the first trial, i definitely had to admit that I liked the taste and flavor so so much. I immediately told my fiance that he ought to make this salad for my parents one day and surely he would get good praise.
In several friends’ gatherings, I re-made this salad and it was always welcomed by my friends and was the one to be finished first and very quickly. It really worths a try.
In Vietnamese, this egg roll is called five-colored egg because there are actually five ingredients coming together in this roll. The egg therefore is not boring as the normal simple pan-fried egg or omelet. It not only has more texture: the crunchiness and juiciness of the pepper in three colors, the firmness of the prawns and the tenderness of the egg but also has a good presentation witg bright colors.
I myself do not often cook the dishes with egg. Since I started my baking hobby, I have consumed a large quantity of eggs each week. So I often avoid using eggs in other food. However, after quite a long time not making any dish with eggs, I really miss the taste of the simple pan-fried egg. So I made this egg roll to enjoy the fresh veggies added to it as well.
Tomatoes are my forever-loved veggie. Each week I always have to buy a large pack of tomatoes. In Vietnamese cuisine, tomatoes are used frequently in daily cooking, especially during hot summer, tomatoes are often indispensable in sour soups, which help relieve the heat of the summer.
However, I find tomatoes are best in winter when tomatoes are not only cheap but firm and red. The flesh of the tomatoes then is so "sweet" with less seeds. Here, I often see only two kinds of tomatoes. One kind is the normal tomatoes. The other is baby tomatoes such as grape tomatoes – which are called cherry tomatoes here in Singapore. The vine-ripen tomatoes are available at some specialty stores or some big supermarkets, however, they are not cheap and so not affordable for me.
To make this stuffed tomatoes, I used tomatoes of medium size and chose the ripe but firm ones. The soft tomatoes are vulnerable to break apart while braising. And the small ones like these also look lovelier than the large ones.
Ingredients (serves 2)
- 150g minced pork
- 10 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked to soften
- 2-3 black fungus (wood-ear), soaked to soften
- 1 egg
- 1 tbs fish sauce
- 1/4 tsp ground pepper
- 1 shallot, finely chopped
- several medium-sized ripe and firm tomatoes
- vegetable oil, as needed
- cilantro, to serve
Cooking:
- Rinse the mushrooms well. Reserve the soaking water. Chop the mushrooms finely.
- Rinse the black fungus well, then chop finely.
- Combine the pork, mushrooms, black fungus, egg, fish sauce, pepper and shallot.
- Cut out the top of the tomatoes and remove the seeds inside. Stuff the tomatoes with the pork mixture until all the fillings are used.
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan. Fry the tomatoes, concentrate on frying the tops where the pork mixture is present. Fry until the skins start to dry.
- Transfer the fried tomatoes into a saucepan. Add the reserved mushroom-soaking water. If you like, you may add some dried mushrooms and cilantro roots into the saucepan. Braise the tomatoes over medium-low heat for about 12-15 minutes.
- Serve hot or warm with cilantro.
May 26, 2009 by Kokotaru
Filed under Fish & Shellfish
I was expecting a heavy rain for a few days and it is raining heavily now. I like sitting inside the house, looking out through the windows and see the raindrops falling down, trying to catch one another. For many people, cold and rainy weather is unpleasant. For me, it may be wet but I like the mood, the feeling on rainy days.
Since the air is a bit cool down now, I am wiling to have something heavy for my lunch. (for me, anything that uses too much oil in cooking is considered heavy). For two people, I often cook with 10 large prawns or 12 medium prawns, which is also a large serving for each of us. In order to save the oil when cooking deep-fried dishes, I use a small saucepan which can fry only one or two pieces at a time. Cooking for two people is often faster too.
I like these prawns coated in parmesan and breadcrumbs as they are very crispy outside while still tender and juicy, very tasty inside with the worcestershire and lemon juice applied to them earlier. Just eating them like this without any other dipping sauce is delightful enough.
Let’s try these Vietnamese crispy prawns with the added coconut flavor.
As you may know, old coconut flesh is used in many Vietnamese dishes. These prawns are dipped in the batter mixture of flour, egg and grated coconut flesh, then they are rolled over bread crumbs and deep-fried.
So, the prawns are not only crispy outside but more especially, you can taste the coconut. The prawns are kept juicy and firm inside. Since I often cook for only two people, the amount of ingredients is often small. And I made this dish out of the habit, so I am not so sure of the exact amount of ingredients for the batter. I often made a little so that I can use up all of the batter without wasting any. So, I just write up the ingredients as reference.
I made some bread, which is enough for four breakfast until I can finish them all. So, not wanting to let the bread stay for too long or the taste and texture will be worse, I made this soup to serve with the bread.
Having bread for main meals like lunch or dinner is not a typical habit of Vietnamese people in particular and of Asian people in general. Bread is often meant for breakfast. However, changing the ordinary habit of preparing and enjoying a meal gives me more inspiration in the kitchen.
Today I made this soup, which is quite simple in cooking method yet provides many nutrients. I like the soup since it uses both meat and vegetable, so I feel that the meal is balanced. For me, it is hard to finish a meal with only meat.
Tsukimi - 月見 – in Japanese means moon-viewing. This bowl of noodle soup gots its name after the presentation of the noodle. A racked egg is arranged on top of the noodle filled with hot soup. The heat from the soup makes the white curdle a bit and turn from clear white to milky white. This creates a beautiful picture. The buckwheat noodle resembles the sky at night. The yolk is the moon surrounded with thin cloud and floating freely in the sky.
I love this noodle for its elegant yet simple presentation. The dish is also attractive for its healthines. The soup is clear and thin and offers a gentle sweetness in your mouth. Just by looking at this bowl, there is a feeling of peace in my heart. And I wish to enjoy the noodle slowly and slowly to drag on the moon-viewing time 
However, the noodles should be finished as fast as possible while they are still hot to enjoy the freshness of the egg. So, eat them the way the Japanese eat noodle.
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