A Worthy Treat!

Honghongese Chicken Tartlets 
by Madame Olivia Tai

Thinking to host a tea time occasion for your relatives and friends coming in town throughout the year? There is nothing more appropriate than to treat them with the authentic hongkongese chicken tartlets. We have tasted this recipe from our godson’s mother. It was so much lighter, fluffier and yet just as fantastically satisfactory!

Pastry Crust

230g plain flour

130g butter, diced

25g beaten eggs

15g sugar                        

½ tsp baking powder (optional)

1 egg yolk (for brushing)

a few small pastry moulds for baking

• Rub butter together with the plain flour and baking powder to become fine crumbs
• Blend in sugar and eggs into flour mixture
• Refrigerate and chill the pastry for 30 mins

The Filling
225 chicken fillet, diced
 ½ onion, diced
6-8 button mushrooms, diced
olive oil for cooking

Seasoning

1 egg white             

1tbsp water            

1tsp cornstarch

1tsp sesame oil

1tsp light soya sauce

1tsp sugar

½tsp salt

a pinch of pepper

Thickening Agents

1tsp cornstarch

1tsp oyster sauce

¼ cup water

• Marinate chicken fillet with seasonings and refrigerate for 30 mins
• Stir-fry chicken fillet in medium heat with olive oil until cooked and tender, set aside. Stir-fry onion in medium heat with olive oil to get the aroma out but not browned.
• Stir in mushrooms, season and sauté till slightly softened.
• Incorporate chicken fillet and continue to stir-fry briefly until all ingredients are well blended.
• Stir in the thickening agents for sauce till the fillings become a little starchy and moist.
• Set aside to cool down.

The Tartlets

• Preheat oven to 180C
• The pastry crust - Pat together to form small balls of dough. Gently thinner the dough by pressing onto each individual baking moulds. Trim off any excess pastry from the sides.
• The pastry wrap - Roll out a portion of the pastry to 3mm thickness. Line pastry against the mould top to give you a wrap with exact measure of the tartlet top (You may do this by pressing a rolling pin on top or to press the mould onto the pastry up-side down to get the exact shape). Prepare the same amount of wraps as the crusts.
• Fill each pastry crust with the prepared filling, followed by a pastry wrap on top. Slightly press the sides of the wraps with fingertips.
• Brush egg yolk on tartlets top. Prick the surface with a toothpick to help letting out the steam while baking.
• Bake for 25-30 mins or until golden brown.
• Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

 

Tips from Madame O

• The flour could become quite soft and wet when kneading the dough. Use butter in solid diced form and fingertips only in order to arrive in crumbs.
• Chilling the crust will help get the crisp after baked.
• The baking powder is optional. Use it if you prefer more crunchy tartlets.  

Tiger vs Dragon

鼓油皇薑葱老虎蝦/龍蝦
Sauté Soya Tiger Prawn or Lobster

Ha哈蝦! I apply this recipe to either tiger prawn or lobster, as it well unveils the full potentials of both Tiger and Dragon!

serves 6-8

1 large local lobster or 
12 large tiger prawns, “live”

lots of spring onions, cut in 1&1/2cm long


1 large piece of good ginger, flattened then cut in thick slices

vegetable or canola oil


cornstarch

sea salt to season

sauce

4 tbsp soya sauce

2-3 tbsp water

a dash of sesame oil

2-3 tsp caster sugar, adjust to taste
pinch of white pepper

• Lobster – Wash and discard the gills. Chop into large bite chunks, shell attached.

• Tiger Prawns – Wash and drain. Cut out the legs and sharp edges on the head and tail. Discard any dark vain from the prawns, if any. Butterfly the prawns by cutting them half way through from head to tail from inner side of the body but keep remain attached as a whole.

• Sprinkle cornstarch thru a sieve over the pat-dried lobster / prawns.
• Heat up a big wok in high fire with a generous amount of oil. Sauté the lobster or prawns for 2 minutes on each side until the shells turn colored and the meat turned golden browned. 
• Stir in gingers and spring onions for about ½ a minute till the aroma drawn out, then pour in the prepared sauce and toss over the lobster or prawns until they are well coated.

Wrap it Up!

Pan-seared Scallops with Celeriac Purée

If you are looking for a light appetizer that could fulfill you with the sensational sweetness of seafood, these scallops served with nice and crisped pancetta complemented with the super creamy yet fluffy celeriac will surely pump up the total enjoyment of your taste buds.

serves 4

1-2 celeriac, peeled

4-6 fresh scallops

8 rashers of pancetta

handful of fresh thyme and rosemary

juice of 2 lemons

olive oil

sea salt and freshly grounded pepper

• Cut celeriac in chunks and cook in boiling salted water till tender, then drain. Put the celeriac in a food processor and whizz until really fine. Add in splash of olive oil and season to taste.
• Bash up some thyme and mix with olive oil. Rub over the scallops then wrap each scallop in a slice of pancetta. Secure each piece with a thyme / rosemary stick.
• In a hot non-stick pan with olive oil, add in a cube of demi-sel butter (optional), pan-sear the scallops for about 2 minutes on each side until the scallops are just cooked and its pancetta is nice and crisp. Season with pepper and sprinkle the remaining thyme in the pan and sear for another 10-20 secs.
• To serve, divide the celeriac onto plates and lay scallops on top. Deglaze the pan with lemon juice and a couple spoons of olive oil. Drizzle the dressing over the scallops and serve immediately

To prepare the fresh scallops: Insert a small sharp knife into the side of the shell to pry it open. This will set one side of the shell aside, then carefully slide the knife under the meat of the scallop to remove it from the shell. Discard the dark meat and the muscle along the edge of the scallop. Rinse scallops thoroughly under cold water and set aside.

Cheriann n Conran with Carbonara!

Spaghetti Carbonara

Who can wait to gobble down the homemade creamy carbonara…

8 ranches of bacon

4 eggs, beaten
50g parmesan, grated

300ml heavy cream

500g spaghetti

sea salt and pepper

• Cut bacon in strips. Pan-fry in hot pan until crisp and lightly browned. Set aside bacon on paper towel and reserve the pan.
• Mix beaten eggs with parmesan and cream then incorporate the bacons.
• Cook the spaghetti to a large pan of boiling salted water until al dente, about 8 minutes, then drain. Reserve some of the starchy water in case we need it for the sauce. Toss the hot spaghetti over the reserved pan to coat with the bacon bits.

• Remove the pan from heat, pour the sauce over the hot spaghetti in a large pot and stir quickly to thicken the sauce. Be sure the eggs are thickened but not scrambled.  
• If the sauce looked too watery, bring the pot back over medium fire and continue to stir quickly for not more than ½ a minute. Again bring the pot away from heat and continue to stir to a desired consistency. If the sauce turned out to be too thick, splash some reserved starchy spaghetti water to bring it to the right creamy texture.
• Season with salt and pepper.

Tips: It is important to stir the sauce over the pasta on and off the heat to avoid the eggs turned into scramble.

Chill Out Ladies!

Lychee Martini

One of the favorite chill out drinks for ladies. Totally mesmerized by the perfume of seasonal lychees.

   

my buddie Anita said    
it was goooood!

150ml of quality vodka


60ml of lychee liqueur


splash of white vermouth


splash of lychee juice


fresh lychees

• Chill 2 martini glasses in freezer.
• In a cocktail mixer, put in a handful of ice cubes and all ingredients. 
• Shake until chilled, strain into the chilled martini glasses.
• Garnish with seeded lychees.

    

Chop Chop

Spiced Pork Chop


This is a Gordon Ramsey recipe n you could not imagine how these spices lift up the full flavor of the pork chops while not overpowering the sweetness of the meat. I think it works best with quality Iberico chops with bone as it could be served "à point". Balance off the spices with crushed sweet potatoes.

serves 4

4 pork loin chops with bone, about 300g each

(US or Iberico recommended)

Spices

½-1 tsp mild chilli powder

1 tsp sweet paprika

3 tbsp olive oil

A few thyme sprigs

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5-6 star anise, lightly smashed

1 tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed    

• Pre-heat the oven to 180˚C.
• Mix the chilli powder, paprika, pinch salt and pepper with the olive oil. Add the thyme, garlic, star anise and coriander seeds. 
• Coat the chops with the spices and leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes or in the fridge overnight.
• Sear the chops in a hot pan with a little olive oil until golden. Transfer to the oven and bake, uncovered, for about 15 minutes until the meat is just firm when lightly pressed. 
• When cooked, leave the chops to rest in a warm place for 10 minutes.

Crushed Sweet Potatoes

3 large sweet potatoes, about 350g ( butternut squash recommended) Chicken stock, enough to cover the potatoes

1 shallot, peeled and finely chopped

bunch of sage leaves and coriander, roughly chopped

• Bring a pot of chicken stock to the boil. 
• Peel and cut the sweet potatoes into 1½ cm slices. Add to the chicken stock and cook for 7-8 minutes until almost tender when pierced with a skewer (they should be just slightly undercooked at this stage). Drain and refresh under running cold water. Dice the par-cooked potatoes and set aside.
• Sauté briefly the shallots and chopped garlic in a pan with hot oil until they start to caramelize, then tip in the sweet potatoes and toss to mix. Season lightly and cook and stir occasionally for 5-6 minutes. 
• Lightly crush the potatoes and finish with the chopped sage and coriander.

To serve, spoon the mash onto plates and place a pork chop on top. Drizzle juice of the pork chops on top and CHOP!

Tips: It is important to rest the meat for a few minutes before cutting it to have the full juicy tenderness of the meat.

Simply Divine for a Dinner Party!

Delmarva Crab Cakes

Homemade spiced, crisped while plumped Dungeness crab cakes! Totally Speechless!

serve 6 

Crab Cakes

2 large live Dungeness crabs (1 pound lump crabmeat)

½ cup bread crumbs

¼ cup mayonnaise

1 large egg, beaten

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 scallion, finely chopped

½ tsp Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp Delmarva seasoning

vegetable oil for deep-frying

Delmarva Seasoning 

(quantity of 3 tbsp)

2 tsp salt

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp celery seed

1 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp sweet paprika

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp ground bay leaf

¼ tsp ground cloves

¼ tsp ground all spice

¼ tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp grated nutmeg

¼ tsp ground cardamom

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

Cucumber Tartar

 1 cup of cucumber cubes in small dice, peeled and seeded

pinch of sea salt

½ cup mayonnaise

1 scallion, finely chopped

2 tsp capers

1 tsp anchovy paste

• Steam the crabs as a whole for 20mins. Leave the crab cooled down then refrigerate for at least 2 -3 hours so the meat will stay firm and plump. Detach all crabmeat from the body, legs and claws as much and in big pieces as possible. Set aside.
• Mix bread crumbs, mayonnaise, egg, Dijon, scallion, Worcestershire sauce and Delmarva seasoning altogether in a bowl. Fold in the crabmeat and the roe (if preferred).
• With wet hands, form the crabmeat mixture into 3 inches wide and ¾ inch high crab cakes. Coat each crab cakes with extra bread crumbs.
• Deep-fry the crab cakes with ½ inche of vegetable oil by turning once until light golden colored. Place crab cakes onto paper towels to drain.

Serve hot with tartar and some greens with vinaigrette.