Stir-fry Papaya Flower with Cassava Leaf

Have you ever cook papaya flower.  The papaya flower is obtained from the male papaya tree (which will not produce fruit) and it has very high in nutritional value. It is believed can stabilize blood sugar levels and high blood pressure. Those who have these health problems are advisable to occasionally insert this in their daily meals for it can give advantages to their health. 

 

Papaya flower has a strong bitter taste. If you love the sensation of bitter in your food, this ingredient is strongly recommended.... It can be cooked to be a delicious and advantageous cuisine. However it may not be accepted by the throat of those who are not accustomed to eat bitter food. There are various ways to get rid of the bitter taste. Some may blanch it together with tamarind or asam keping, soak it in salty water or cooking it together with Daun Gosing (Senduduk leaves). All the methods are very effective. However, lots of nutrients content in the papaya flower may be damaged due to the blanching process. Sabahan people have their own way to get rid of the bitter taste without the boiling task. Just cook it with cassava leaf and you will find the bitter taste disappears by itself.  By this way, you are not just be able to maintain the nutrients content in the papaya flower from damaged but you are also get multiple nutrients for cassava leaf are also believed to have benefits of its own.

 
Ingredients:

• 300g papaya flower
• 300g cassava leaf
• 1 can of canned mackerel in chili sauce
• 60g sliced shallot
• 400g sliced Garlic
• 2 tbsp oil
• Salt and sugar to taste
• Half cup of water

Method:

1. Pluck papaya flower from the stalk and rinse with water until the itchy latex content are thoroughly removed.
2. Wilted cassava leaves by rubbing it with both hands. Rinse.
3. Heat up 2tbsp oil in a preheated wok, saute shallot and Garlic until fragrant.
4. Add in canned mackerel, Stir briskly over high heat until aromatic.
5. Add in papaya flower and cassava leaf followed by Seasoning. Stir-fry until well combined.
6. Pour in half cup of water, Bring to boil. Toss well. Covered and allow simmering over medium heat until the gravy is nearly dry. Ready to serve.

 

 

Stir-Fry Bitter Gourd with Smoked Pig Belly

Wow... it's been a year since my last post on this blog. Longing for sharing my cooking with you all makes me feel like cannot wait to start it over again. My cooking not as good as a chef, but cooking is my passion and I really love simple cooking... easy cooking with simple ingredients.

So, this is my first recipe for the year... Stir-fry bitter gourd with smoked pig belly. I really like bitter gourd although the bitterness of this melon might turn some people away... even though it taste bitter, the nutrient content in it can really give sweetness to the health. To those who have diabetes, I advise you to try consuming this melon because it will benefit you.

 

The ingredients:

• 1 medium size bitter gourd 
• 400g smoked pig belly 
• some minced garlic and ginger

Seasoning:

• salt to taste
• 1/2 tbsp soy sauce 
• 1 tbsp lihing or shao hsing wine 
• 1/2 tbsp sesame oil 
• a pinch of MSG (optional) 
• a pinch of pepper powder  
• 1 tbsp cornstarch solution

Methods:

1. Halve lengthwise and scoop out all the seeds of the bitter gourd. Slice into 1/4-inch thick and set aside.
2. Clean and slice smoked pig belly.
3. Heat up 1 tablespoon oil in a preheated wok. Add in minced garlic and ginger.  Stir for about 15 seconds or until aromatic.
4. Add in the smoked pig belly. Pour in soy sauce and stir-fry until almost cook.
5. Then, put in the sliced bitter gourd; add in all seasoning followed by a few tablespoon of water.  Stir briskly for a few second until well combined.  Simmer for about 20 seconds or until the water almost evaporate.
6. Finally, add in the cornstarch solution. Bring to boil and then turn the fire off. Serve with hot plain rice.

Fish head with Watercress Soup

Soup is a must dish in KadazanDusun daily meal.  It is such a complementary to every meal in lunch or dinner. Even in a simple meal, there must be a sup.  Sometimes it can be served alone as a main dish and eaten with plain white rice.

My recipe for today is the fish head soup with watercress. As stated by Kitchen Flavours in his watercress soup recipe, The watercress is really nutritious and delicious as it helps to reduce heatiness and detoxifies the body. 

Watercress does have many benefits for health.  Compared to raw and boiled broccoli, raw tomato and a raw apple, Watercress is the better source of vitamins C, B1 and B6, K, E, iron, calcium, magnesium, manganese, potassium and zinc.

Everybody knows that fish is an excellent source of protein, a vital source of essential fatty acids and contains a wide variety of vitamins and minerals.  So the combination of fish head and watercress soup not only tastes delicious but also full of nutrients.

Fish Head with Watercress Soup

Ingredients:

1. 1 fish head
2. a bunch of watercress
3. some ginger (thinly sliced)
4. some white part of scallion (sliced)
5. 1 tbsp sesame oil

Seasoning:

1. 1tbsp salt
2. a pinch of anchovies granules
3. a pinch of pepper powder

Method:

• Clean the fish head and cut into medium pieces.  
• Coat with cornstarch, a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper powder. Marinate for a while. Fry until golden brown.  Set aside.
• Clean and simply pluck the leaves and the soft part of the watercress stems.
• Heat up sesame oil in a pot.  Fry ginger until aromatic and then add in sliced white part of scallion.
• Pour about 1litre of water and bring to boil.
• Add in fish head followed by seasoning ingredients. Boil in medium heat for a while.
• Add in watercress, simmer for about 30 minutes.  Stir gently occasionally for fish head is not destroyed.  
• Serve hot.
  

Stir-fry Kampung Cucumber with Canned Mackerel

Cucumbers are scientifically known as Cucumis sativus and belong to the same family as watermelon, zucchini, pumpkin, and other types of squash.  Varieties of cucumber are grown either to be eaten fresh or to be pickled. Those that are to be eaten fresh are commonly called slicing cucumbers. Cucumbers such as gherkins that are specially cultivated to make pickles are oftentimes much smaller than slicing cucumbers. There are many nutrients found in cucumber.  Visit whfoods for more info.  

Today's recipe is about the kampung cucumber.  We have plenty of this during the hill paddy plant began to bear fruits until the end of harvest season. Planted amid the paddy plants make it more fragrant with a slight paddy aroma. It is more organic because it’s free from any pesticide and herbicide. Kampung cucumber has a higher liquid content than the ordinary cucumber. It is usually eaten fresh as a thirst killer, especially by farmers who happened to find it amid the paddy plant while they are working on their farms. Also very suitable to make pickles, stir-fry and mixed in soup dishes.

Stir-fry Kampung Cucumber with Canned Mackerel

Main Ingredients:

kampung cucumber

canned mackerel in tomato sauce

• 2 garlic (sliced)
• 2 shallots (sliced)
• 1 cup of water

Seasoning Ingredients:

1. 1tbsp light soy sauce
2. 1tsp dark soy sauce
3. 1tsp anchovies granule
4. 1tsp pepper powder

Cooking Method:

• Cut cucumber into four sections. Peel skin, remove seeds and slice thinly.
• Stir -fry garlic and shallots until fragrant.  Add in canned mackerel.
• Pour in all seasoning ingredients and stir until well combined.
• Enter the sliced cucumber followed by a cup of water.  Stir briefly.
• Cook until the cucumber become slightly transparent. Done.

Stir-fry Kampung Cucumber with Canned Mackerel

Bamboo Shoots

Bamboo Shoot

Bamboo is a member of the woody grass family. Bamboo shoots are edible new growth that harvested from the bamboo plant.  Bamboo shoots are low in fat and calories, also a good source of fiber and potassium (heart-healthy mineral that helps to maintain normal blood pressure and a steady heart beat). To prepare fresh bamboo shoots for cooking, peel off the outer layers to reveal the core, which is typically slice into thin strips and then blanch in boiling water to remove its natural bitterness.  Do not eat bamboo shoots raw because it has bitter tasting and hard to digest.

Bamboo shoots can be cooked in various ways. Here I would like to share one of my favorite recipes.

Bamboo Shoot in Sambal Tuhau
(hebung miampai sambal tuhau) 


The main ingredients:

peeled & sliced bamboo shoot

tuhau, red pepper, shallot & garlic (grind)

anchovies

Seasoning ingredients:

1. 1 tbsp oyster sauce
2. some salt
3. some sugar

Cooking Method:

• Blanch bamboo shoot for about 15 minutes. Drain.
• Heat up oil in wok, deep fry anchovies until slightly crisp. Set aside.
• Stir-fry ground ingredients until fragrant. 
• Add in cooked bamboo shoot and stir briefly.
• Add in seasoning ingredients and fried anchovies.  Mix well. Serve

Bamboo Shoot in Sambal Tuhau

Stir-fried golombon with Anchovies

Actually it is a type of edible grass that grows wild and abundantly especially at the highland area. Some call it 'sakot gipun' (Japanese grass). I'm not very sure about the relevance of this grass with Japan. But according to the elderly in my village, it's found growing in this area after the arrival of Japanese colonialism in the past. Supposedly it was brought accidentally through their pillow that’s filled with the flowers of this grass.

Golombon @ sakot Gipun

I prefer to call it vegetable because it can be cooked and  eaten. I really like it because it's free from pesticides and fertilizers. Very suitable when stir-fry with salted fish, dried shrimp or anchovy. Also more appetizing when served as pickled salad(see complete recipe in my coming post).

Stir-fried golombon with anchovies
(Golombon sinamayan do bilis)

Ingredients:

1. A bunch of golombon
2. 1 red pepper
3. 1 shallot
4. 1 white onion
5. Some ginger
6. A handful of anchovies
7. Some salt
8. A little oil

Methods:

• Wash and drain golombon.  Take only the leaves and shoots. 
• Clean the anchovies, chop coarse red pepper.  Finely slice shallot, garlic and ginger.
• Heat oil in a wok and stir-fry anchovies until slightly crispy. Set aside.
• In the same pan, saute shallot, garlic and ginger until fragrant. Add in golombon and stir rapidly over high heat.
• Then add in pre-fried anchovies, red pepper and salt. Stir until well combined and the gravy turn a little dry. Ready to serve.

Stir-fried golombon with anchovies
(Golombon sinamayan do bilis)

Scallion (daun bawang)

Scallion (daun bawang)

Also known as spring onion, salad onion, onion sticks or green onion in many countries. This is a farmer's major vegetable crop in the vicinity of Mount Kinabalu apart from other highland vegetables.

Scallions are a flavorful addition to soups, stews, stir-fries, cooked rice, tomato sauces,and omelets. They also can be braised or stir-fried alone. 

Fry Spicy Sweet Pork with Scallion

Ingredients:

1. 300g pork
2. 120g scallion
3. 10g fermented black bean
4. 5g sliced garlic
5. 5g sliced red pepper

Seasoning:

1. 2 tbsp broad bean paste
2. 1 tbsp sweet soy sauce
3. ½ tbsp castor sugar
4. 1 tbsp rice wine
5. ½ tbsp sesame oil
6. ¼ tbsp monosodium glutamate

Methods:

• Slice pork.
• Clean and cut scallion diagonally.
• Preheat the pan with oil and fry the sliced pork till well done.
• Add in fermented black bean, sliced garlic and sliced red pepper.
• Put in all the seasonings except the sesame oil. Stir until well combined.
• Lastly, sprinkle scallion and sesame oil on. Done

Fry Spicy Sweet Pork with Scallion

*******************************

Fry Shredded Pork with Scallion

Ingredients:

1. 250g pork fillet
2. 150g scallion

Seasoning (a):

1. ½ egg
2. 1 tbsp soy sauce
3. 1 tbsp corn floor
4. ½ tbsp pepper powder

Seasoning (b):

1. 1 tbsp oyster sauce
2. 1 tbsp light soy sauce
3. 1 tbsp rice wine (lihing)
4. 1/ tsp monosodium glutamate
5. ½ tsp castor sugar
6. 1tbsp sesame oil
7. 1/2 tbsp corn floor

Methods:

• Clean and cut the pork fillet's sinew off, shred it by its natural line, mix well with seasoning (A) 1-3, coat by corn floor.
• Clean and shred the scallion.
• Preheat the pan with oil; fry the shredded pork till well done, drain oil up.
• Fry scallion briefly, add in seasoning (B) 1-5, and then put shredded pork in again. Stir until well combined.
• Thicken with diluted corn floor and sprinkle with sesame oil. Done.

Fry Shredded Pork with Scallion

Chayote (sangop-sangop)

Chayote is native to Mexico, Central America, and the West Indies and believed to be brought to Borneo by British colonialists in the past time. There are two types of chayote. The wild one with thorns and another one with smooth skin that is easier to peel. Some call it Japanese cucumber or Siamese cucumber. It's usually grows in highland areas such as Cameroon Highland in Peninsular Malaysia and mountainous areas in Sabah. Its can cook in a variety ways like pan-fried, soup, steam and other assorted way.
This vegetable is easily available in the market. I have many kinds of recipe to cook this vege… but cooking it with Chinese sausage is the tastiest way ever…

Chayote with Chinese Sausage

Ingredients:

1. 1 chayote
2. 2 Chinese sausages (lap cheong)
3. 3 garlic cloves (sliced)
4. ½ carrot (sliced)

Seasoning:

1. 1 tbsp oyster sauce
2. 1 tbsp light soy sauce
3. 1 tsp chicken stock granule
4. Sugar to taste
5. Rice wine to taste
6. A little oil
7. A little water

Method:

• Peel chayote and cut into triangle. Parboil into hot oil for a while to remove unpleasant taste. Keep aside.
• Slice Chinese sausages in thinly pieces and shallow-fry until fragrant. Keep aside.
• Heat up 1/2 tbsp oil in preheated wok to saute sliced garlic. Place in chayote and carrot. Add in seasoning, stir-fry until aromatic.
• Place in sliced Chinese sausages. Stirring constantly until well combined. Serve hot.

Chayote with Chinese Sausage