Rendang Chicken

Nowadays easy to cook with all these ready sauces. Although sometimes I wish I could grind my own ingredients, I always have extra fresh ingredients and spices,etc left over and dont know what to do with them lol. So these ready sauces really solves my problem.

I bought the Instant Rendang Paste (Sheen Supply Brand) from NTUC Supermarket(Cold Section), was to cook rendang chicken with it.

Was pretty easy to cook it cause the instructions behind the packet was easy to understand.

I used only half chicken (about 640 gm instead of whole chicken) cause I wanted to add some potatoes to it, 100 gm coconut milk (I used kara brand), 100 gm coconut shred (easily available in NTUC Supermarket-Cold Section)

I added some onions and tomatoes (optional)

Firstly, I dry fry the coconut shred till brown and set aside.

Heat some oil in the wok and stir fry the onion till fragrant and add the rendang paste. Stir fry till fragrant and add the chicken meat and potatoes, fry them for about 5 mintues.

Add about 500 to 600 ml of water and let it boil.

On boiling add the coconut milk and let it boil and simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes.

When the gravy is thicken and potatoes soft, I scoop a small portion of the gravy and potatoes up in a bowl, cause my sons love to have some gravy to go with his rice. (This is step is optional if you do not add potatoes.)

Add the coconut shreds and mix together with the chicken till the gravy dried up.

Served hot with rice - yummy.

Fruit agar agar in mooncake mould

Although it is Chinese New Year and not the mooncake or mid autumn festival, I still like to use the mooncake mould to make my agar agar. Simply love the shape and pattern.

Firstly, boil 12 gm agar agar powder(1 packet - white colour), 850ml of water, 200 gm caster sugar, 200 ml coconut cream(1 box of Kara Coconut Cream). Then divide into two equal portions and add one drop of different food colouring to each portion. Let it set in the fridge.

I used one can of fruit cocktail. Drain the syrup in the can and wash off the sweetness of the cocktail fruits, I dont want additional sweetness in the agar agar.

Next make the second layer of plain agar agar. Just follow the instruction behind the packet of agar agar powder.

When boiled, let it cool a while but not let it set. Pour some 2nd layer of plain agar again onto the already set 1st layer of coconut agar agar. Before pouring remember to use a fork and lightly scratch the surface of the coconut agar agar layer. Then filled the mould with some fruit cocktail and then pour more plain agar agar to cover the fruit cocktail and to fill the mould. Placed in the fridge to set.

Love the pretty two layers of agar agar with cocktail fruits.

Verdict - everyone loved the agar agar for its taste and beautiful looking agar agar. I am so pleased.

I had some remaining plain agar agar so I pour into agar agar mould. They looked transparent and cute.

Cookies for Chinese New Year

Last weekend, baked some hazelnut cookies for Chinese New Year. It tasted so good. Saw the recipe from the lovely blog of Anncoo Journal.

Baked 2nd batch of my hazel nut cookies, baked them smaller and shaped them nicer with cookie cutters.

Also deep fried some crabsticks, was so easy to made. I bought the DoDo Brand crabstick from NTUC Supermarket. Just tear them in slices and deep fried them till golden brown.

Dinner at Siam Kitchen Nex

Last weekend we had dinner at Siam Kitchen at Nex. Been to Nex many times but first time visited this restaurant, surprised the food is good and was full house on a Saturday night.

Prawn crackers

Sambal Kangkong

Chicken Satay - tasted good, the chicken was tender.

Sambal Sting Ray - goes well with rice - yummy

Combo Platter consists of sotong (Squid), chicken, beef, prawns - was good especially the beef.

Green curry - disappointed with this, portion small and too lemak (too much coconut)