FOODlog #290: Filipino Brinjal Omelet 'Tortang Talong'
The other day for lunch my Filipino colleague cooked a Filipino dish called 'Tortang Talong'. It's an omelet using eggs and cooked with brinjal that's roasted whole and the skin removed.
It starts with the brinjal that's roasted over fire until the skin blackens and blisters. It's then covered in a bowl with cling wrap so that the steam will help the process of removing it's skin.
In a bowl, some eggs are beaten and chilies, onions, and garlic that have been finely diced are added in together with some seasonings of salt and pepper. The brinjal is then dipped into the egg mixture then set on a flat top (or pan) to pan fry. Brown it on both sides and the brinjal omelet is done!
A simple dish but packed full of flavor and a prominent smokey aroma from the roasting of the brinjal. Super delicious and best eaten with rice.
We also bought some meat dishes from a nearby stall for our lunch and had it with the brinjal omelet and rice. Yums! ~~
FOODlog #289: My Daily Breakfasts as a Chef
Often for breakfast we get to eat whatever we have that is extra from the cafe. Like not so pretty looking smoked salmon where it'll become scrap, we use them and repurpose them for our breakfast.
Sometimes I buy myself some food for my breakfast which I normally go for something on the cheaper side and that's budget friendly.
Here are some of the breakfasts I had the past week:
1. Fried Noodles (Mee Goreng)
This one is from a small roadside stall near the train station where I take the train to work. It's going for only RM2 (<50 cents USD) and it even comes with a sweet and spicy 'sambal' to go along with the noodles.
One of my comfort meals that I've been eating since I was in primary school and it's still one of my favorites. I don't eat this too often but whenever I do, it sure does satisfy.
2. Burgers
Budget burger patties made in a factory that are apparently chicken meat of which I'm not too sure. It does taste good though and this are one of the meals that we have for breakfast sometimes at the cafe to start the day.
3. Smoked Salmon Croissant
Every now and then we have leftover unsold croissants where we'll not be selling. We take these unsold croissants and repurpose them into our breakfast.
Here I used some scrap smoked salmon and sandwiched it in between the croissant with some tartar sauce for my breakfast. Super delicious and most of all saving food from going to waste.
FOODlog #288: Korean Beef Bulgogi
've been planning to cook beef bulgogi, a Korean beef stew dish that I absolutely love and there was a week that I had the time to make it for the staff meal.
I used beef tenderloin that I sliced thinly and marinated it in a marinade I made with soy sauce, oyster sauce, brown sugar, minced garlic, and sesame oil. Originally there is blended puree of pear but I forgot to get some pear which is also fine as the end result turned out super delicious as well.
Some recipes replace the pear with apples or pineapples which you could use if you can't get your hands on pears.
After 18 hours or marinating, I dumped everything into a pot and bring it up to a boil then lower the fire for the beef to cook for at least an hour.
In the meantime, I prepped my vegetables which I'll be adding to the beef stew. I sliced up some onions and bell peppers that I added in for the final 10 minutes of cooking. At this point I turn off the fire and then add in the vegetables then covering the lid of the pot, let it cook with the residual heat.
This is so the vegetables don't over cook and it's the perfect texture where its not under cooked nor over cooked.
Sprinkle some sesame seeds and spring onions for garnish and enjoy it with rice. A super delicious meal with loads of leftovers. I even manage to takeaway for my sister in law where she brought her own containers to get some at my car after work 😄
FOODlog #287: Chicken & Vegetable Curry
Another day another staff meal to cook. This time I made chicken and vegetable curry. I used chicken wings cause I had them in the freezer and needed to use them, and for my vegetables I used long beans, brinjal, cabbage, tomatoes, onions, and carrots. You could use your favorite vegetables for this if you don't like any of the vegetables I used.
I also used some aromatics like ginger and garlic and Sautéed them with the premix curry paste that I bought.
For the chicken I marinated it a day earlier with some curry powder, salt, and black pepper. I start of the dish by stir frying the curry paste then added in the chicken to brown. Once they are browned, add in water and coconut milk and let it simmer.
After about 5 minutes, add in the vegetables and let it cook for another 4-5 minutes on low heat, season to taste and the curry is done.
Oh I also used some taufu 'pok' that I had leftover from the chicken dish I cooked the previous day. It paired perfectly with the curry and soaked up all the delicious broth nicely.
We ate the curry with simple steamed white rice and it was such a delicious meal with loads of leftovers to go around.
FOODlog #286: Tomato & Onion Chicken and Deep Fried Brinjal
For our staff meals I often take inspiration from food my Mum cooks as well as places I've been to and loved their food.
I made a chicken dish with tomatoes and taufu 'pok' which my Mum made when she was still staying with me. It's a very simple dish with just a handful of ingredients like - tomatoes, onions, garlic, soy sauce, taufu 'pok', and chicken.
For the marinade of the chicken I used soy sauce and oyster sauce but you could pick either one if that's all you have in your pantry.
Taufu 'pok' are like fluffy pillows that when you cook them with a sauce or curry, it absorbs the gravy like a sponge and makes it bursting with the gravy when you eat them.
Another dish I made for lunch was a brinjal dish that I recently had at a restaurant called 'Serai'. It's cut into discs and then battered with some corn flour and all purpose flour that I seasoned with onion powder and garlic powder.
Once everything is coated, it's deep-fried in a 170 degree for about 5 minutes and once it's our of fryer, sprinkle some salt and a little sugar and it's done. Super flavorful, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
A delicious lunch inspired by my Mum and a dish from a restaurant.
FOODlog #285: Mushroom & Chicken Ramen
Recently I've been really into noodles. I really love eating noodles nowadays which I didn't use to. Perhaps I've always loved noodles since its part of the Chinese culture and my heritage as well as I really like 'ramen' from Japanese cuisine so why not combine the two!
I've recently tried some ready made 'wantan' noodles which are egg noodles made for the 'wantan' noodle dish. I've been thinking that this noodles will be good in a other dishes and have been pondering on making different dishes with it.
So for one of the staff meals at the cafe, I made a ramen inspired dish with a mushroom brother that I added in king oyster mushrooms, chicken tenders, fishballs, and seafood tofu.
For the stock I used some chicken stock powder as well as a premix mushroom-base stock from 'Hai Di Lao' brand. Cook them for 10 minutes and they are done. Super flavorful broth cooked in 10 minutes.
I topped the bowl of ramen with garlic oil, a 63-degree egg and freshly sliced spring onions which are my favorite thing to add to a bowl of ramen.
A super delicious bowl of comforting ramen dish made with 'wantan' noodles. I will definitely be making more noodle dishes and blogging about them. Stay tune for yummy bowls of ramen!
FOODlog #284: Local Eatery 'Bungkus KAW KAW'
Recently there's a new shop that opened next to the cafe I work at called 'Bungkus Kaw Kaw'.
I've been wanting to try the food there as I've seen lines everyday since they opened but never get to as I myself am occupied serving people food at the cafe.
I managed to try their food the other day at another shopping mall where I met up with someone. We ordered a pack of 'mihun Siam' which is rice vermicelli noodles that's cooked with some Thai ingredients. It's just noodles and half a hard-boiled egg so nothing fancy but it's tasted really good.
Another item we got is their 'kuih tai tai' which is glutinous rice mixed with blue pea flower that gives it a blueish hue and topped with 'kaya' which is a sugar and eggs cooked until it becomes a spread, sort of like how you'd have jam made from fruits.
If you're on the go or want to eat something light, this is a good place to have your meal with some simple food and sweet 'kuih muih'.
FOODlog #283: 'Ayam Percik' & 'Daging Bakar'
The other day I went to get my car wrapped for an advertisement which they would pay for the service. It's a 3 month campaign and I needed to drive to the location about 30km away from where I live.
After the wrapping was done which was lunchtime, I went by a roadside 'warung' to get some lunch. The area wasn't a place I'm familiar with so I just went anywhere that was convenient. There wasn't anyone else eating at the place but the food spread looked delicious.
They even had a charcoal grill cooking up some chicken which I'm assuming all their other grilled dishes were using that charcoal grill.
I got their white rice with 'Ayam percik' a northern grilled chicken dish cooked in a coconut spiced gravy. I also got their grilled beef cooked with coconut and spices as well but on the dryer side and not saucy.
The meal was so delicious! The chicken had a smokey aroma from the charcoal grill it was grilled on and the sauce was slightly sweet and spicy but savory and full of spices and aroma from the coconut. It was such a brilliant dish which I haven't had this type of 'Ayam percik' in a long time.
The beef was also so good. It was tender and had a smokey aroma to it as well. I really loved both dishes and could've eaten another bowl of rice with them.
I ordered a cup of iced milk tea which I haven't had in probably some years now. I have palpitations drinking caffeine but this was quite mild and perfect on a hot and sunny day.
After I started eating I then saw more customers coming to the place to eat and takeaway. One of them being an ex-national badminton player which I was really surprised to see as you can't get any more random than that day being that I never travel to that area in town.
Amazing lunch and one that I'll remember. Yums! ~~
FOODlog #282: Mushroom Duxelle
Mushroom Duxelle is something we make at the cafe. It's for one of the sandwiches which we use the Duxelle as a spread on the bread before the other ingredients are added to make the sandwich.
Here's how you make mushroom Duxelle:
Use whatever fresh mushrooms you like. At the cafe we use 3 types of mushrooms - white button mushrooms, oyster mushrooms, and enoki mushrooms.
The oyster mushrooms are shredded by hand roughly and the button mushrooms are cut into quarters. The enoki stems at the bottom that has dirt are removed and all the mushrooms are ready to be roasted.
The mushrooms are mixed with minced garlic and oil then it's popped into a 180 degree oven for 5 minutes. If they aren't browned enough, add another 5 minutes and roast them longer.
Once they are browned and fragrant, remove them and blitz them in a food processor until they are finely minced.
Next comes the cooking. They are added into a pot with oil and Sautéed until they are browned and darken further. A wide shallow pan/pot would be better for this and will take lesser time to cook than a deep pot.
Once they are browned, add in milk and butter and cook for another 10 minutes.
It shouldn't be too watery and needs to be spreadable. If its too watery, just cook it longer.
The end result is an earthy and creamy spread that you can use on bread or season some meat or pimp up your eggs for breakfast. Super delicious but not without much labor of love put into it's preparation.
FOODlog #281: Thai Pandan Roasted Chicken
Another day another cuisine to cook and savor. This time I cooked a Thai dish called - Pandan Fried Chicken.
I improvised a little by baking the chicken instead of deep frying since it doesn't use as much oil and much lesser mess to clean up after.
All you need to make this dish is chicken, garlic, white pepper, black pepper (optional), oyster sauce, pandan leaves.
I first start with marinating the chicken with freshly ground white pepper and black pepper as well as garlic paste which you can use a blender or pestle and mortar to pound it into a paste. I also added some mayo to this for the oil aspect to the marinade but you could use regular cooking oil. Some oyster sauce goes in next and then mix and massage the marinade into the chicken and let it sit for 20 minutes or overnight if you prepare beforehand.
Next, wrap the chicken with the pandan leaves but for me, I didn't have enough pandan for the amount of chicken I had so I made a bed of pandan leaves then sandwiched the chicken in between another layer of pandan leaves.
I then put it into a 180 degree Celsius oven for 30-35 minutes until they are golden brown. You could add another 5 minutes at 250 degree Celsius to really brown the chicken.
I also made another dish that was Thai inspired. I stir fried carrots, long beans, and onions with fish sauce, chilies, kaffir lime leaves, and calamansi (or lime) juice and the whole thing goes into the dish as well. Stir fry for about 5-7 minutes and season to taste and the dish is done.
Both dishes turned our superb and tasted like what it supposed to taste like. The chicken was tender and juicy in the inside and the flavors from the pepper were to aromatic and fragrant.
The vegetable dish was tangy, spicy and so appetising just like how Thai dishes are. Super delicious and definitely something I will cook again in the future.
FOODlog #280: Ginger & Anchovies Pork Shoulder Stew
One of my colleagues bought some pork shoulder the other day which I used them to cook one of my comfort dishes - pork shoulder with salted fish and ginger.
Its a Chinese dish that is really delicious and also a dish that my Mum cooks. This dish is normally made with pork belly and salted fish but I improvised with the ingredients I had and used pork shoulder instead of belly and anchovies instead of salted fish.
The shoulder had some fat on it which is similar to pork belly and the anchovies were very salty but not as fishy in aroma compared to salted fish which gave it a milder aroma which I think more people would enjoy.
For my pork marinade, I use soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, and corn flour. The corn flour will help to thicken the sauce later. Mix them all together and let it sit 30 minutes to overnight, however much time you have in hand.
I start off my sautéing some ginger slices until they are slightly browned and they are fragrant. Salted fish would go in next but since anchovies are a different texture and are already soft, I added in the pork shoulder to brown. After they are browned, add in the anchovies and then some water and let everything simmer for a good 30-40 minutes.
I also cooked a simple vegetable dish. I stir fried cabbage and carrots with some turmeric powder and chicken stock powder. Add in some water after sautéing for a couple of minute and let it simmer for another 2 minutes and the dish is done. Simple, inexpensive and extremely friendly to the pocket.
A super delicious lunch that only takes a few ingredients and less than 30 minutes to prep.
FOODlog #279: Wantan Noodles with Roasted BBQ Chicken and Fried Prawn Rolls
After eating rice dishes for our lunches at the cafe, I decided to switch it up by cooking some wantan noodles for lunch. I went shopping at the supermarket located above our cafe and saw they had these ready made wantan egg noodles on sale.
I got a couple of packets and made a simple dry noodle dish with some sweet Chinese barbecue sauce chicken (Char Siew). I used a premix sauce for the sweet sauce but for the noodles I made a simple sauce using soy sauce, dark soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, and garlic oil.
After boiling in a pot some water, I steeped the noodles for about 1 minute in the boiling water then rinsed it in cold water to remove the starch and then back into the hot boiling water for 2 seconds and then it goes into the bowl with the sauce I made.
Mix it all together and the noodles are done. Garnish with some spring onions and it's ready to be served.
For the 'char siew' Chicken, I simply marinated the chicken with the sweet sauce and then roasted it in the oven at 220 degrees Celsius for 6-7 minutes. I used chicken tenders so it took this amount of time but if use chicken thighs or bone-in chicken, it'll take double the time.
I also deep fried some prawn rolls that were prawns wrapped in beancurd skin (taukan) and ate it with the noodles.
The noodles were Springy in texture and was so flavorful with the dark sweet and savory sauce I made. The garlic oil made all the difference giving it maximum aroma and flavor. A super delicious dish that's easy to prepare and cook. Yums! ~~
FOODlog #278: Oyster Meesuah & Bone-In Fried Chicken
After church on Sunday, me and my friends went for lunch to a nearby mall. My wife and younger son was down with covid so they didn't follow us and my eldest son was with me. We went to a 'kopitiam' that serves various local noodle and rice dishes.
I ordered for him 'Nasi Lemak' with fried chicken which he really enjoyed and finished the whole plate of food. The rice was a heapful and he mamsged to finish that and the whole chicken drumstick. I was really impressed and happy he liked the meal so much.
For myself, I didn't feel like eating local food so I went to a nearby Taiwanese food stall and got my lunch.
I ordered myself oyster 'meesuah' which noodles with oyster in a starch broth with chicken slices and chili paste on the side. I love this dish a lot and got myself some of their famous deep fried bone-in chicken breast.
The serving in this is huge and I really was stuffed for lunch with a bowl of the oyster noodles and a whole chicken breast. The price is getting more and more expensive but we'll worth in my opinion for the taste and portion still.
A super delicious meal that I treated myself after a brutal week of a colleague down with covid and my own family having covid. It was such a tiring week of work and helping out at home which now writing this I'm glad it's all over 🙌
FOODlog #277: Pork Bone Broth Soup
It was my turn to cook lunch for the staff. I cooked something my wife cooks at home every now and then - 'hai di lao' soup.
She normally adds in frozen food like seafood tofu, fishballs, meatballs, as well as fresh meat like shabu-shabu sliced pork belly.
I took inspiration from that and using the same soup/stock base from the 'hai di lao' brand, I made some soup with seafood tofu and chicken meatballs. I also added in some roughly chopped up cabbage which gives the soup a little more natural sweetness which makes it that more delicious.
Its a very simple dish to make as all you need to do is add the seasoning powder into a pot and add in water, bring it to a boil and add in whatever ingredients you like.
We ate this with white rice. I'm gonna try to have this with noodles the next time I cook this broth and make a ramen-type of dish. I think it'll turn out really nice as well.
The soup is such a good dish to make especially on cold and rainy days. A comforting and warming dish to feed the body and most importantly, yummy! ~~
FOODlog #276: Filipino Pork Sisig
It was my Filipino colleague's turn to cook staff meal and he cooked what is the best lunch I've ever eaten that he cooked. He cooked 3 dishes and it was really some of the best Filipino food I've eaten so far.
He cooked pork 'Sisig' a popular Filipino dish that's super delicious. It's my first time eating it and man was it a treat!
He first marinated with soy sauce and roasted the pork face in an oven. Then stir fried it with liver. After that it's removed and cooled then mixed with mayonnaise and chili that's been sliced up. It's super creamy from the mayo and earthy from the liver, savory from the Roasted pork. Such an amazing combination and absolutely delicious.
He also cooked a beef stew with black peppercorns, chilies and seasoned with soy sauce.
Another dish he cooked was ladies fingers stir fried with salt and dried red chilies. It turned out fragrant and slightly spicy. Very yummy as well.
Such an amazing lunch that took a lot of effort which I'm so privileged and grateful to be able to eat such delicious Filipino cuisine.
FOODlog #275: Beef Japanese Curry & Chive Dumplings
For our staff meals at the cafe, we get to cook different cuisines and explore different food cultures. Since we pick what to cook, it's a wonderful experience that we get to experiment and try new types of food every other week.
It was my colleagues turn to cook and he picked Japanese cuisine. He cooked some Japanese curry with beef mince and carrots. The curry was a premix that we were trying out and it turned out delicious.
The curry was thick and creamy and full of very string beefy flavors. It paired really well with rice which we ate the curry with.
He also cooked some deep fried chive dumplings. He bought some frozen dumplings which are cook-ready and simply deep fried them in a 170 degree Celsius deep fryer with palm oil. It turned out golden brown and crispy on the outside and the chives inside were perfectly tender and cooked.
A simple meal and a little taste of Japanese food at where we work. Yums ~~
FOODlog #274: Woodfire Oven Pizzeria
A friend of mine recently opened up a Pizzeria that serves woodfire oven pizzas. He even built the brick oven by himself and single-handedly built the restaurant from the ground up including water piping and electrical wiring. It's been an exceptional work especially since he's got not prior experience in F&B nor construction work and still manage to pull it off and setup this place.
This woodfire oven pizza is called Dante Carlos and located at an unassuming lot in Kepong.
We ordered 3 of their pizzas - Babi Dalam Hutan, Beef Mania, and the most unique one of them, Jack & Chic which is Jackfruit with chicken.
I know, it sounds like it wouldn't work but it was not only unique but tasted really good. It had the complex sweetness of the jackfruit that's roasted in the woodfire oven paired with chicken, the fragrance from the hot and toasted pizza dough was such a brilliant pairing.
We also tried the DaVinci Pie which was quite nice too. The mushroom soup made with fresh mushrooms was very nice and had a strong garlic taste to it.
A simple looking Pizzeria that's cozy and a chill place to hangout friends over warm and toasty woodfire oven roasted pizza.
FOODlog #273: Curry Fish Head
Last month my parents invited me and my brother and our families over to their house. My Mum was cooking some fish head curry which we all enjoy. The fish has been in her freezer for some time now and she has been wanting to cook it but I got covid so things were delayed.
Anyway, she cooked it and we finally got to go over to have a meal together.
She cooked the dish with some premix curry paste that had a lovely balance of sweet, savory, spicy, tangy, and salty. It was a thicker type of curry which I absolutely love especially having it with rice.
The fish was sweet and the curry sauce enhanced everything making it a perfect meal. She also added ladies fingers into the curry to cook as well as onions which gave the dish even more natural sweetness.
She also cooked a side dish of stir fried spinach which was also very nice. A lovely meal cooked by my Mum that's both delicious and full of love. Yummmmyy! ~~
FOODlog #272: 'Chai Bouy' Pork Shoulder & Stomach
Last day of the event and it was my turn to cook. I made one of my Mum's all-time signature dishes which recipe has been passed down from her mum and her mum's mum and God knows how many more generations before.
I made a dish called 'Chai Bouy' which is mustard greens cooked with pork. It's a fairly simple dish that anyone can make and doesn't have any particularly difficult cooking technique involved. All you need are the right ingredients and you're good to go.
I used pork should that I cut into chunks and marinated it with soy sauce, oyster sauce, and dark soy sauce. You can also use pork belly or chicken if you'd like. This dish does typically use this ingredient but I used pork stomach as well which I boiled with some black peppercorns and ginger for about 10 minutes then removed it and sliced it up into rough slices.
For the main stew dish, start by toasting some dried chilies and lemongrass with some oil. After they get fragrant, add in the pork to stir fry for about 4-5 minutes to brown. Next, add in water, slices of dried tamarind (Assam keping), and a whole bulb of unpeeled garlic.
Add in the pork stomach to the stew and let everything simmer for at least an hour. For the final 10 minutes add in your favorite leafy vegetable preferably mustard greens but I didn't have any so I added in cabbage and some other greens that I had.
One final season to taste and the dish is done. Serve with white rice and enjoy. The dish is savory, salty, slightly spicy, and slightly sour from the tamarind slices. An appetising dish that will surely satisfy.
FOODlog #271: Thai 'Pad Kra Pao'
nother day of the event and it was my Filipino colleague's turn to cook. After having some Thai food the other day, he was craving for more so he made some 'Pad Kra Pao' for our staff meal.
Instead of using minced pork, he used pieces of boneless chicken instead but every other ingredient was as authentic as it gets. Fish sauce, fresh chilies, garlic and Thai basil went in to stir fry with the chicken. Season to taste with some salt and a little more fish sauce and the dish was done.
He also cooked everyone a side of sunny fried egg that were crispy on the edges and the yolk runny and creamy. It paired to wonderfully with the 'Pad Kra Pao' and white rice that we simple cooked in a rice cooker. The savouriness from the yolk mixed with the salty, spicy and basil infused chicken was an amazing pairing.
A super delicious lunch but made with inexpensive ingredients and not to mention fast and with minimal prep. A recipe that anyone who cooks should have in their arsenal. Absolutely yums! ~~
FOODlog #270: Malaysian Thai Fusion Food at 'Seria'
It's been 4 months since our last team calibration meeting and this time after the session, we went for dinner at a restaurant called 'Serai'.
They have various cuisines on their menu like Malaysian cuisine, Thai cuisine, and some western food like fish & chips.
Since there were over 20 of us there, we ordered a variety of dishes from the menu but some highlights to mention were the Tomyam which was really nice. Its on the sour side which I like and not overly spicy that you can't enjoy spoonfuls of the delicious tomyam broth.
Another dish that was absolutely amazing and a must try if you ever visit is their fried brinjal dish. It's thinly sliced brinjal that's been battered and deep fried. It was super flavorful and I'll definitely be ordering this again when I visit.
Their dishes are typically very generous in portion especially their western dishes however if I were to compare their local and Thai dishes with their western, I would definitely recommend having their Asian dishes more. Their western dishes are decent but you can find these type of dishes elsewhere.
Overall highly recommended for their local Malaysian cuisines and their Thai food. Waiters and servers were very prompt in their service and the environment was lovely.
FOODlog #269: Ginger Soy Chicken
2nd day of the part timers working at the event and after their first meal the previous day that was super spicy, I decided to cook something much milder with 0 chilies or even pepper in sight.
I made something my Mum makes which is a simple chicken dish with ginger and soy sauce.
I used chicken tenders that I sliced up then marinated for about 15-20 minutes with soy sauce, oyster sauce, and dark soy sauce.
The ginger is sliced up roughly and Sautéed in some oil until they are fragrant. Then minced garlic goes in for a couple of seconds before the chicken is added and then wok fried. Add some water or chicken stock to the pan and let everything simmer for 5-6 minutes. A very quick and easy meal to get ready that is budget friendly and most of all delicious to eat.
We also had some leftover broccoli and cauliflower from the previous day so I made a stir fry with them together with some carrots and cabbage that I sliced up.
I start the dish by toasting in oil a mixture of spices which contains mustard seeds, fennel seeds, and some other Indian-based spices. I then added tomato paste and all the vegetables to in. Season with salt and chicken stock and simmer for about 5-6 minutes and the dish is ready!
A super delicious and simple home cook meal that I'm sure anyone will love.
FOODlog #268: New Orleans BBQ Wings
There was an event that the cafe I work at were participating at and they hired 2 part timers for the week. It was nice seeing new faces around the cafe although we didn't get to interact with them as we're busy with our work as always.
We had to prepare more lunch on those days as there were more mouths to feed. 1 of my colleague made some New Orleans wings that he oven roasted with some premix barbecue hot sauce. It had the word 'HOT' and was it ever!
He marinated the wings overnight with the sauce then oven roasted it. Every 5 minutes of roasting he baited the wings with the hot sauce adding more flavor to it as it caramelised in the oven but as well intensifying the spiciness as he did that.
It was one of the hottest meals we have ever had for our staff meal lunches. The part timers were literally taking gulps of water after every bite which we found hilarious. Wasn't a great start to their first free meal cooked by us 😅 haha
Although the wings were super spicy, it was extremely flavorful and if it really is 'New Orleans' authentic, man they really can take spicy food.
FOODlog #267: Filipino Adobo Pork Trotter
My Filipino colleague cooked some adobo the other day. He used pork trotters to make it and it was my 1st time having it. Since then he has cooked another adobo another time which I really enjoy.
Its an extremely popular Filipino dish with Spanish influence. It has dried chilies soy sauce, sugar, some vinegar if I'm not mistaken and the spices are black peppercorns and dried bay leaf. He also added potatoes to the dish and stewed it for a couple of hours. The potatoes go in last as they take a shorter amount of time than the pork trotters to soften.
It took about 1+ hours to cook this and the potatoes going in for the final 15-20 minutes. It was so delicious and had a wonderful balance of sweet, savory, spicy, and tangy. A super delicious dish that I now know why Filipinos love it so much.
He also prepared another dish to accompany the adobo which was broccoli, cauliflowers and mushrooms that he simply seasoned with salt and pepper then roasting in the oven for a couple of minutes. The broccoli and cauliflower were cooked to perfection and had a nice crunch to it yet cooked all the way through and was so sweet.
An amazing lunch that we had with rice that I'll definitely remember. Yums! ~~
FOODlog #266: Onion Fried Chicken & Curry
Went to my favorite 'mamak' restaurant again a couple of Sunday's ago after church. I love their rice and curry dishes especially my go to 'Ayam Bawang' which is onions and chicken.
The 'Ayam bawang' is fried chicken that's cooked in a thick sauce of onions that have been cooked and caramelised with loads of spices like star anise, cloves, and fennel seeds. Those are some that I can notice when eating this dish but I'm sure there are loads more spices as its extremely aromatic flavorful.
The thick gravy that's almost paste-like is sweet from the onions and so aromatic and tasty from the spices and herbs. The chicken is tender and succulent where the flavor from the gravy seeps in and flavors the chicken well.
I had this dish with rice topped with a mixture of their various and delicious curries as well as some ladies fingers for my vegetable.
Its not a pretty looking dish to most but to me this is what my comfort food looks like. If there was any dish that is the equivalent of a sloppy joe, rice and curry here in Malaysia would be it. Simply delicious! ~~
FOODlog #265: Spicy Dumplings & Rice Vermicelli Noodles
After having rice for lunch fit do many days, my Filipino colleague cooked some noodles. He made a stir fried rice vermicelli (mihun) dish that was super delicious.
It had chicken slices, cabbage, and carrots. I'm not too sure what else he added but it tasted like the seasonings had soy sauce and oyster sauce in it. There was also fresh coriander in it which I don't really like but overall the dish was so good that I ignored the coriander taste.
It was savory from the chicken and sweetness came from the cabbage and carrots. The noodles were perfectly cooked; not crunchy or mushy.
He also cooked some frozen dumplings on the flat top making it crispy and chewy at the same time. There were two flavors, shrimp dumplings and kimchi dumplings. Both were really nice. He topped it with a chili and shrimp oil and garnished it with chopped coriander giving it a nice freshness.
We had the fried rice vermicelli and dumplings together and the chili oil made the whole meal very appetising and delicious.
FOODlog #264: Homemade Chicken Pie
Planning for meals isn't always easy but part of the fun is the planning of it, at least for me it is.
The other day I made a chicken pie for the staff meal. The supermarket doesn't have any puff pastry so I needed to improvise. I bought some frozen 'paratha' which I used to substitute the puff pastry. I figured it's made with butter and flour as well so it'll be flaky and replicate that of a puff pastry.
For the filling, I cleaned and chopped up some leek and sliced some fresh mushrooms. I used king oysters and shiitaki for this dish but you could use whatever is available including canned mushrooms if that's all you have.
I Sautéed them in a pan with salt and pepper then added in 2 cans of cream of chicken soup. Add just a little water to loosen up the mixture but not too much as you want a pie filling and not chicken soup.
Next, add it into a baking dish and layer the 'paratha' or puff pastry on top. I decorated mine with some sliced up 'paratha' to make it look pretty.
Brush some egg wash on top and get it into a 180 degree oven and bake for about 10 minutes or until its golden brown.
Take it out and it's ready to be served. Super delicious and a nice comforting dish especially on cold and rainy days.
FOODlog #263: French Omelet with Portobello & Shokupan Toasties
Often for breakfast at the cafe, we the kitchen staff make something simple with the ingredients in the kitchen. It varies a lot as we use leftovers or items that we have too much of and are expiring.
We had some leftover egg wash that we use to coat the Portobello mushrooms to deep fry. The eggs had the Portobello seasoning flavor which is a garlic infused oil with Korean chili flakes. I used this and made a French-style omelet.
On the side, I used the Portobello mushrooms stems that we cut off the mushrooms we serve at the cafe and Sautéed them. The mushrooms roasted and soaked in the same garlic infused chili flakes oil so I didn't use any seasonings for this except a little salt to taste.
We also had some shokupan toast edges so I toasted them with some butter and plated it up with my omelet and mushroom stems. I then added a saucer of honey mustard which we also serve in the cafe and garnished the omelet with some microgreens which were dying and needed to be used.
A typical 'not-so-typical' chef's meal that's delicious and energising for the long day ahead of cooking and serving food.
FOODlog #262: Baked Beans Omelet
I've been missing my Mum's cooking so I decided to make a dish that she used to make for me growing up. Even when we were still staying together, she didn't cook this dish much so I was thinking it's a good time to cook this dish since its been a really long time since I've had it.
Its an inexpensive dish and fairly easy to make. It's a large omelet that has baked beans from a can topped on it. Simple enough right?
First I sauté some onions and potatoes in a pan with salt and pepper. After the potatoes soften, add in a can of baked beans to the pan and warm it up. If you like it spicy, you can add in some chili flakes at this point and let everything cook for 3-4 minutes.
In a non-stick pan, add in beaten eggs of about 5-6 eggs and make a large omelet. I like the fried omelet style for this so let it cook and set at the bottom. Then with some flipping skills, flip the egg with a toss in the air and cook on the other side. Alternatively you can transfer it to a plate and flip the egg more manually.
Add some salt to taste and plate the omelet up. Top the omelet with the baked beans and hash mixture and the dish is done!
Since I made this at the cafe, I added some gouda cheese on top and torched it to melt the cheese.
It was super delicious and had me a nostalgic moment of meals from my childhood.
FOODlog #261: Brioche French Toast
The Brioche French Toast is one of the signature items at the cafe I work at. It's one of the prettier looking dishes that we serve. It takes at least 10 minutes to make this dish as the plating takes quite a bit of time to prepare and in restaurant standards, 10 minutes is considered borderline long.
Here's how we make it:
Firstly we use a shokupan milk loaf slice that we soak in an egg wash mixture of eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. It then gets a coating of panko bread crumbs and then it goes in the deep fryer for 2 minutes on each side.
I know what you're thinking, it'll be too oily being deep fried, but it doesn't actually get submerged as it floats and fries only on the surface.
After draining for a minute, the French toast goes on a plate and is dusted with beetroot powder. 3 corners of the toast has some matcha crumble placed at the side and on the other top right corner, some scratch made blueberry jam.
Next, mascapone is piped on and then the plate is decorated with fresh strawberries and blueberries followed by edible flowers and microgreens.
Finally a saucer of caramel is placed on the side and the dish is ready to be served.
A super instragramable dish that not only looks the part but taste great too. Sweet and savory combination at its best! ~~
@drumsticks
