MARAG DIJAJ (KUWAITI CHICKEN STEW)

1.               I have tasted this for the first time in Kuwait when I was working there, a decade ago. My boss use to cook this almost everyday, just a different meat(lamb or camel?) and different types of vegetables every time  as well. I like the thick sauce that it's so good to smother on top of the rice. It is not so spicy or hot for the children to like it, my little one loves this. You can eat it with chilli sauce on the side if you want a bit of a kick to it.

                                                  Ingredients:

                                                            half a kilo chicken(I used thighs)
                                                            2 pcs. medium sized (waxy) potatoes
                                                            2 medium carrots
                                                            6 pcs. okra
                                                            1  large bell pepper or banana chillies
                                                            2 medium onions
                                                            3 cloves garlic
                                                            half teaspoon ginger powder
                                                             Half teaspoon turmeric
                                                            1 teaspoon Ras el Hanout(ready mix Lebanese spice)
                                                            3 pcs. black lime or juice of 1 lemon
                                                            handful french beans
                                                           1 cup chopped tomatoes
                                                            2 tbsp. Tomato paste
                                                            2 tbsp. olive oil
                                                            1 litre of chicken stock
                                                             Handful of coriander leaves
                                                            salt and pepper to taste



                            Here's how to cook:

               

Heat a pot, and pour the oil and sweat the onion and garlic. Add in the chicken and stir for a minute in medium to high heat. Put the spices in (ginger powder, turmeric, ras el hanout) and stir continuously until fragrant. Put a tablespoon of tomato paste and chopped tomatoes, stir, add the chicken stock and cover. Let it boil, skim the scum, stir a little, then add in the potatoes and carrots. Crack the black lime and throw in the pot and add another tablespoon of tomato paste. Cover and let it cook for 20-30 minutes in medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add in the remaining vegetables and season with salt and pepper according to your taste. Cook for another 10 minutes, lastly, spread the chopped coriander leaves on top of the stew and off the heat. Ready to serve.

Boiled basmati rice would be a nice accompanim
                                                           

                                              


              

SEAFOOD PASTA with CRAB MEAT SAUCE

                                        SEAFOOD PASTA WITH CRAB MEAT SAUCE

          
     An ideal family dinner to share. My little girl love this a lot, she is only 4 years old and she'll say ''save some for her lunch tomorrow;))''. I want to share this to all especially to all mums like me, who loves to feed their kids with a nutritious meal in one dish. This is very easy and convenient. I used crab meat in this recipe but you can use a canned tuna(I tried this before) depends on what you want best and for those allergic on shellfish.


                                                  INGREDIENTS:


                                                        100g of tiger prawns, de-veined
                                                        1 de-shelled crabs
                                                        few pieces of frozen mussels
                                                        1 cup tomato passata
                                                        1 teaspoon tomato paste
                                                        3 tablespoon olive oil
                                                        1 packet of spinach leaves(or depends how much you want)
                                                        3 cloves of garlic
                                                        1 medium sized onion
                                                        10 pcs. green or black olives
                                                        1 fresh tomato roughly sliced
                                                        1 lemon
                                                        350g spaghetti
                                                         salt and pepper to taste
                                                        wild rocket leaves for garnishing


          Here's how to cook:

                    1.) Prepare all the ingredients, chop the garlic and onions, slice the olives and tomato. Boil some water to cook the spaghetti according to the packet direction. Save about half a cup of the spaghetti water. Drain and set aside.
                     
                    2.) Heat a large pot or frying pan, pour olive oil, sauté garlic and onion until translucent then add in the chopped tomato. Stir nicely then add in the prawns, stir fry in medium fire for about 3 minutes or till the prawns are cooked. Lower the fire and take the prawns out, then add in the crab meat, season with salt and pepper according to your taste.  Stir.
           
                    3.) Pour in the tomato passatta and paste, and olives, stir nicely in medium heat. Leave it covered for 2 minutes then pour in the spaghetti water(from boiling the spaghetti, I mean). Let it boil, then add in the mussels. Once it's boiling, mix in the spaghetti, leave in very low heat. Then once it's totally incorporated to the sauce, add in the spinach on top, cover immediately and off the fire. After 5 minutes it should be ready, squeeze half of the lemon and stir nicely. Now it's ready to eat.
 
                    4.)  Serve it with lemon wedges and rocket leaves, or with parmesan cheese if you desire.

CHILLI SAMBAL

                         This is one of my favourite dipping sauce in Malaysia. It is a mixture of taste of sour, hot, sweet and tangy. It's a perfect dipping for fried fish or simply steamed veggies of your choice(okra,beans,eggplant etc.). I love it in my fried rice, it adds a bit of an oomph for it.

                                                  Ingredients:

                                                     5 pieces dried chillies, deseeded
                                                     5 pieces fresh finger chillies
                                                      2 pcs. Shallots, peeled
                                                      2 pcs. garlic cloves
                                                      1 inch of ginger, peeled
                                                      5 pcs of calamansi juice or 1 lime
                                                      1 kaffir lime leaf (optional)
                                                      inch by inch piece of belachan or shimp paste
                                                       1 medium ripe tomato
                                                       1 tsp. palm sugar(brown sugar will do)

              Here's how to make it:

                    1.)    Soak the dried cillies in a hot water for at least half an hour before you start preparing..

                    2.)     Prepare the remaining ingredients. Wrap the belachan or shimp paste in an aluminum foil and roast it in the stove (direct fire) for 3 minutes.

                    3.)     Slice the chilli, shallots, garlic, ginger and tomato. Strain the soaked dried chilli. Put all the prepared ingredients in a blender, including the belachan or shrimp paste, fresh kaffir lime leaf( if using) and the juice of the lime or calamansi and sugar. Blitz it altogether and voila! Serve with your lunch or dinner.

SOUR PRAWN SOUP

                                                          Filipino Sour Prawn Soup
                                              
                                                         (SINIGANG NA HIPON)

This soup is one of my favourite, specially on chilly winter days. Sour and tasty with a little oomph of a jalapeño chilli. Eat it with rice or on it's own, so refreshing and mood lifter. So simple and easy to prepare. Fresh prawns are recommended with this recipe.

                                    Ingredients:

                                               500g Tiger Prawns (I used thumb sized ones)
                                               2 medium tomatoes
                                               3 stalks spring onions
                                               an inch by inch fresh ginger
                                               3 finger chillies
                                               handful of beans or okra
                                               handful of napa cabbage or kangkong if you have
                                               2 tbsp. of Tamarind paste concentrate(or juice of 1 lemon)
                                               3 cups fish or chicken stock (I used 1 chicken stock cube diluted in
                                                      3cups of water)
                                               pepper and salt to taste


      Here's how to cook:

                  Clean the prawns and prepare all the vegetables, cut in the sizes you desire.In a saucepan, pour in the stock, cover and let it boil. Once it's boiling, add in the beans or okra, tomatoes, onions, ginger (or any similar vegetable you are using) (leave the leafy veggies and chillies last to cook). Leave to cook for about 7 minutes then pour in the tamarind paste or lemon juice. Add in the prawns and napa cabbage or kangkong leaves. Simmer for another 10 minutes or till the prawns cooked. Season well with salt and pepper. Serve with steam rice and enjoy.

Chicken Rice (Malaysian style)

Chicken Rice 

(Malaysian style) 

This is my version of Malaysian chicken rice. I used to eat this often in KL back when I was working there. I wasn't aware that it is quite easy to cook it on your own kitchen as long as you got all the ingredients on hand, which is not hard to find wherever you are in Europe now. 

Ingredients:                                                               

One whole medium chicken

3 lemongrass stalks             

1 pandan leaf                        

3 sprigs of spring onions      

thumb sized ginger               

1 clove of garlic                    

3 cherry tomatoes                 

              2 dried chillies soaked in hot water   

2 red finger chillies             

         2 tsp light soya sauce                   

1 tsp sesame oil                  

2 liters of water                   

 1 chicken stock cubes           

salt and pepper to taste         

                                    sliced cucumber and coriander leaves for garnishing

How to cook:                                                                                                         

1.) In a big stock pot, pour in the 2 liters of water. Smash the ginger, 2 spring onions, 2 stalk lemongrass, add all in together in the pot with a teaspoon of salt and chicken stock cubes. Bring to boil.

2.) Rub the chicken with salt until the skin looks very clean and then rinse nicely in running water. Pat dry with kitchen towels. Then once the stock boils, put the chicken in and put back the lid on. Leave for at least another 5 minutes on medium fire then off the stove. DO NOT OPEN the lid of the pot to allow the remaining heat to cook the chicken through. Leave it for 45 minutes (this is according to the 1.5 kg chicken I cooked).

3.) While the chicken is on the pot, you can prepare the sauce. Slice the remaining ginger, garlic, tomatoes and chilies and blend them altogether (I used pessel and mortar). Then season it with soya sauce, set aside. Add some chicken stock later to thin a bit and add some taste too.

4.) After 45 minutes, Prepare the rice, wash nicely in a pot, smash the lemongrass and fold the pandan leaf and add into the rice. Take some stock on the pot where you cooked the chicken and use it to cook the rice(about 4 cups of it). Cook it as usual.  (Take some half a cup and add to your sauce too.)

5.) When your rice is nearly done take your chicken out and let it rest for few minutes before cutting to serve. Slice some cucumber on the side. Use the remaining stock as a side soup by seasoning with salt and pepper, bring it to boil, then garnish with chopped coriander. Serve it as pictured, enjoy!

               

Lengua Steak (ox tongue steak)

This recipe is one of my favorite, though it's very rare to find an ox tongue in the supermarket. I go to our local butcher to order from them but it won't be available for few days. Ox tongue has a very unique and tasty if you know what/how to cook with it. It is rich in protein and fleshy(not fatty at all). Easy to clean and prepare, and it will turn out such rewarding when yummy meal when cooked. Now, here's my version of  recipe that you will love and will change your mind about (not so) offal.


                           Ingredients:


                            1 whole ox tongue (about 2kg more or less)
                             half a cup of vinegar
                            2 medium onions
                            1 lemon
                            1 tbsp. soy sauce
                            1 tsp black peppercorns
                            1 whole head of garlic
                            3 pcs bay leaves
                            1 tbs salt
                            1 1/2 litre of water

       METHOD:

                 1.) Clean the ox tongue by brushing or rubbing the rough part of it and rinse. In a basin put
                         the vinegar and rub the meat with it for 2 minutes.  Then rinse thoroughly.
                 2.) In a Pressure cooker, put the meat, 1 onion quartered, garlic(cut in half and unpeeled),                         bay leaves,
                       peppercorns, salt and water. Close it nicely locked, then boil it for about 45 minutes,                            off  the stove and leave it to cool down.
                 3.) Once it cold enough to handle, take the meat out, keep the stock. Peel the outer layer 
                       of the tongue and rise. Pat dry with kitchen towel and slice it crosswise (round).
                 4.) Slice the remaining onion, stir fry in a pan with a bit of oil until translucent, put it in a
                      bowl, save for later. Put in the same pan the meat and stir fry it for a minute, add the soy
                      sauce and about 1 cup of the stock that you used to boil the meat and juice from  the                        lemon. Let it simmer for
                       15 minutes or until the sauce is thick-ish. Then serve, garnish with the onion on top.

BON APPETITE!
                    
                  
                      

Beef and Glass Noodles, Vegetables Salad

Ingredients:

2 pieces Beef steak portion size
1 small packet of glass noodles(soaked in hot water for 5mins. then strained)
1 medium carrot
3 pcs green beans
1 cup beans sprouts
5 pieces cherry tomatoes
Half a cup chopped coriander
1stalk green shallot
5 mint leaves
1 lime (zest and squeezed)
2 tbsp fish sauce
1tsp brown sugar(palm sugar if available)
1 tbsp chopped peanuts or sesame seeds(optional)
salt and pepper to taste.
Iceberg lettuce to serve(optional)

Method:

Soak the beans sprout in a cold water (enough to cover it) with a teaspoon vinegar for a couple of minutes then rinse nicely with cold water, strain. Season the beef with salt and pepper and pan grill it for at least 2 minutes each side, set aside. Prepare the veggies, slice the carrot(I used the peeler by shaving it through repeatedly), chop the tomatoes finely, chop the coriander and green shallot,mint leaves. Now prepare the sauce, by mixing together lime zest and juice,fish sauce,sugar and salt and pepper to taste. Put the all vegetables and  the glass noodles in a big salad bowl, slice the beef into strips, add into the bowl, pour the sauce and sprinkle the chopped peanuts or sesame seeds ( if you're using). Mix altogether nicely, then serve it with a lettuce as shon on the photo.