Kid Friendly: Pork or Chicken Fried Wontons

Last week I had the chance to teach the children how to make 'fried wontons' (with a simple pork and chicken filling) - from what ingredients to use, mixing and putting the mixture into wonton sheets and showing them the frying method.  This part an adult has to do - after all I was teaching children that are 3 years of age.  They enjoyed this experience and to me they have learned so much from recognizing and naming the ingredients, embracing my culture and having to taste their own food rather than picking these up from the Chinese restaurant or in frozen packets.

Now because I didn't want to overwhelm the children with too much ingredients I just used the minimal! Having the other ingredients does not really mean that the taste will be bland.  It was really good!

Kid Friendly: Pork or Chicken Fried Wontons
We made about 50 on these wontons with minimal meat inside.  If you make leftovers then freeze.  If you want to make just chicken then omit the pork and double chicken the amount and vice versa.

What will you need:

• Approx 150 grams of minced pork
• Approx 150 grams of minced chicken
• 1/2 tbs of minced garlic
• 1/2 tbs of minced ginger
• 1 - 1.5 tbs of soy sauce
• 1 tbs of rice wine vinegar
• pepper to taste
• wonton wrappers (i used the white you can also use the yellow egg wrappers)
• bit of cornflour and water to paste around the edges of the wontons to enclose the filling.
• vegetable oil for frying

Method:

• Have all the ingredients laid out and have the ginger, garlic in whole because this way the children and identify what is what and have them to smell and ask them what does this smell like.  Show them the cut up version which will be put into the mixture.

• Then divide portions up into their own mixing bowls and add all the ingredients together and have them to smell each first and get them to mix and describe how it feels and looks.  The mixture should be sticky and pasty looking.
• Next have the wonton wrappers already peeled for the children (do this beforehand) and show them how.  
• Lay the wonton wrappers on a flat surface and fill the middle of the sheet with a tiny filling of the mince mixture (just under half a teaspoon) and with water mixed with cornflour  brush the edges of the wrapper.  Enclose the filling by taking the bottom of the wrapper to the top of the wrapper and seal.

• I skipped pleating part cause it seems a bit too challenging for their little fingers.  The children showed me that they could dip the finger into the bowl and brush it around the edges and fold it up to enclose the filling.  You can really make any shape!

• With an adult, heat oil (about 1 inch in a wok) until hot.  Fry about 8 wontons at a time until brown and turn it a few times about for 2 to 3 minutes.  
• Drain on paper towel
• Serve with soy sauce and eat immediately!

I am sure you will love watching your children concentrate and focus on this easy cooking activity and that they learn that not everything comes out from frozen packets or take away from a Chinese restaurant.

Saucy Pork Spare Ribs

I love this Saucy Pork Spare Ribs dish cause it reminds me of home and it takes me back wanting more all the time!

Enjoy this with a side of greens like steamed bok choy or chinese cabbage and over a nice bowl of steamed jasmine rice.


What will you will need:

• 1kg pork spare ribs
• 1 tbs of oil
• small sized ginger sliced in thin julienne strips
• 1 tbs light soy sauce
• 2 tbs of hoisin sauce
• 1 tbs of chilli sauce
• 1 tbs of brown sugar 
• 1/2 cup water
• shallots
• steamed jasmine rice to serve 

Method:

1. Add oil into wok and let it heat.  Add the spare ribs and brown

2. Add the sauces, ginger and sugar and coat the ribs well.  Add water and stir til it becomes a thin sauce.  Taste and add more soy sauce / chilli sauce or hoisin according to your preferred taste.

3. Cover and let the ribs simmer in the sauce for about 10 minutes and then add the shallots.

4.  Serve over jasmine rice and eat immediately.

Chinese Crispy Roast Pork Belly or Siu Yuk

It has been quite a while since I last updated!  Just too busy with work and with my life at the moment!  Well I had a bit of time to whip up something gorgeous and that is really close to my heart lol...........CHINESE CRISPY ROAST PORK BELLY! or Siu Yuk 烧肉. You will see these piggys hanging next to roast ducks display windows at pretty much any chinese butcher.....and I can't resist but looking how yummy and bubbly the crispy crunchy crackle looks on the pork meat.  YUMMMMMMMMMMM.

It looks hard to make but oh my it was so easy to make!  The ingredients are already available in my pantry so all I needed was the pork belly!


What you need:
2kg of young pork belly
1TBS of rice wine vinegar
1TBS of salt

Marinade
1 TBS of salt
1 TBS of sugar
1 cube of preserved or fermented bean curd
1 TBS of Chinese five spice powder
1 TBS of chopped garlic

Method:

Boil water and mean while clean pork belly and poke holes or incisions all over the skin with a knife or anything that is sharp.   Lay pork into a deep tray/bowl and pour the boiling water over the pork belly and blanch quickly.  Take it out and submerge into water or ice to stop it from cooking.   Dry the pork with a clean towel and put in fridge to dry out even more.

Meanwhile, add all the marinade ingredients together into a mixing bowl (except for vinegar) and make sure to mix the bean curd thoroughly.

Okay now with the pork, lay skin side down onto a baking tray and rub the marinade all over the meat (not the skin....the skin has be dry).  Marinate for 1 hour or overnight.

Preheat oven to about 220c for 20 minutes.  Lay the pork skin side up.   Rub skin with some salt (not too much).   Put into oven for about 25minutes and you will see it turn brown and start to crackle and bubble.  Take out and poke more holes/incisions into the skin and brush it with rice wine vinegar.  Careful at this stage cause it will pop/bubble more.   Put the tray back into the oven and roast for another 20 to 35 minutes.

Tap the pork skin with a spoon and when you hear that 'sound' it is sure ready!   If it looks charcoal then just brush/scrape it off with a knife.  Let it rest for 15minutes or so and cut it up and eat immediately!

Pork Ribs with Chilli Garlic and Lemongrass

I love pork ribs and especially when it is made Vietnamese style.  My favourite is Pork Ribs wtih Chilli Garlic and Lemongrass which is so easy to make.     My mum usually made this for me when I lived at home and now since I moved out it has become a regular dish at mine :).   It's so satisfying with hot jasmine rice on the side and also you can add some Asian vegetables with it like bok choy or even mustard greens topped with light soy sauce.

I used a lot of chill in this dish cause I love my dishes really spicy.  If you are not a chilli fan omit it.  And don't add anymore salt cause the other sauces are pretty salty anyway.

What you will need:

1 kg of pork ribs
1 tbs fish sauce
1 tbs of light brown sugar
2 tbs ketchup manis (sweet soy sauce)
3 cloves of garlic, diced chopped finely
2 stalks of lemon grass, diced and chopped finely
2 chillis (chopped lengthways) or just use 2 tsps of already minced chilli from a jar
glug of oil (any)
coconut juice (clear not the coconut cream/milk) or you can use stock (unsalted)


Method:

Cut the pork ribs into sections and put aside
Combine fish sauce, ketchup manis, garlic and lemon grass (which is smashed flat with the outer leaves removed and slice it thinly), sugar, garlic and chilli and mix well to form a syrupy kind of paste.
Then mix the pork ribs with the mix you just made and leave to marinate for at least an hour in the fridge or better over night for deeper flavour.
Heat a wok and add oil.   Add in the marinated pork ribs and fry until brown each side.  Add in the stock or coconut juice and cover for 10 to 15 minutes or until cooked.
Serve with hot rice and vegetables.

Steamed Meatloaf / Chả Trứng Hấp

Chả Trứng Hấp

Steamed meatloaf or in Vietnamese, Chả Trứng Hấp is a simple and cheap Vietnamese dish to make when on a tight budget.  I used this recipe before in my previous post on Combination Rice but this time I put a whole boiled egg in the middle of the steamed pork.  Traditionally,  the steamed egg yolk should be on top of the dish (see below).

Traditionally with steamed egg yolk on top.

It is pretty easy to make and you eat this with a bowl of rice with a side of vegetables.  It is very good dipped into a ginger chilli soy sauce.  Or you can use the filling and add the mince into soups or filling for spring rolls.  I like to make a bit more filling so I can freeze and use for another day.

The recipe as follows to make 4.....

- need 4 ramekins or just steam it the way you would like

Steamed Meatloaf with egg in the middle

- 150 grams of pork mince
- bit of dried mushroom soaked, drained and chopped
- a cup of bean thread vermicelli noodles soaked, drained and chopped
- 1 small onion minced
- 3 stalks shallots chopped roughly
- dash of pepper
- pinch of salt
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp of cornflour
- 2 TBS fish sauce  (I did not use this cause at the end you are going to dip it into sauce anyway but sometimes I use 3 TBS of oyster sauce instead of the fish sauce.....)

- you can add additional vegetables for instance - grated carrots, grated sweet potatoes, grated chest nuts............traditionally its just the previous ingredients only but I like to have other things in it.  You can add crab meat too and also you can spread scallion oil on top after when the steamed loaf has finished cooking. 

- 4 hard boiled eggs.

Method

Mix all of the ingredients together EXCEPT for the hard boiled eggs

Lightly oil all 4 ramekins

 
Add a bit of mince on the bottom of the ramekins and make a dint in the middle so your boiled egg will snugly fit into each ramekin. 

 Then fill the whole ramekin with the mince and smooth the top with the bottom of the spoon.  Repeat with 3 other ramekins.

Then place it into your steamer.   Use any steamer...I just use my Breville Electronic Steamer.  I love it!
Steam your loaf for around 25 to 30 minutes.

When finished steaming let cool and it should easily slide out with a knife.

Cut in half and serve with jasmine rice, vegetables and your favourite dipping sauce!

Cơm tấm (broken rice): Combination Rice Plate Perfection!

Cơm tấm

Cơm tấm in Vietnamese is broken rice or fractured rice grains.  It is usually served with pork meat - caramelized grilled pork chops and bì (which is thinly shredded pork mixed with thinly shredded pork skin).  On the side it is served with sliced tomatoes, sliced cucumber, pickled carrots, fried egg, steamed meat loaf with egg custard on top/ fish cake and Vietnamese dipping sauce.  When you go to restaurants the rice plate is also usually served with a bowl of hot flavorsome broth.   I like ending this meal with a nice avocado milk shake!  

To make this delicious combination rice plate you will need the following (to serve 4):

- broken rice (I just used 1 cup - 2 cups jasmine rice ......since I could not access this.  You can use whatever rice is on hand)
- caramelised pork chops
- bì :  shredded pork and shredded pork skin.  I purchased this at one of the Inala butchers for about $5 for a takeaway container .  It is already cooked and all you have to do is microwave until slightly warm (not hot otherwise the fat will shrink).
- steamed meat loaf
- sliced cucumber, tomatoes and pickles
- you can also fry an egg to finish off your plate :)

this is bì - shredded pork and shredded pork skin

The following are recipes of:

• Grilled Pork Chops
• Steamed Meat Loaf

Grilled Pork Chops

To make these delicious grilled pork chops you will need:

- 4 pork chops
- 2 TBS of olive oil or just any oil
- 2 TBS of brown suger
- 2 TBS of fish sauce
- 2 TBS of soy sauce
- 3 TBS of lemon grass smashed / mortar and pestled or chopped up very finely.

In a bowl, mix all the ingredients together and then cover the pork chops with the marinade.  Cover and marinade in the fridge for 2 hours.  More hours will deepen the flavour.

 Marinating the pork

When it is ready, fry on a large non stick pan and cook until you see the pork caramelizing.  Don't over cook otherwise the meat will become hard.  I like it tender and a tinge of pink.

Steamed Meat Loaf (with egg on top)

These ingredients are much the same as making filling for spring rolls!  If you have left overs of the mix....wrap it in spring roll pastry and freeze for another occasion.

For the steamed meat loaf you will need:

- 150 grams of pork mince
- bit of dried mushroom soaked, drained and chopped
- a cup of bean thread vermicelli noodles soaked, drained and chopped
- 1 small onion minced
- dash of pepper
- pinch of salt
- i added in other vegetables (i added chopped water chest nuts, chives and this other vegetable I don't know the term in English lol).
- 4 egg yolks
- 4 egg whites
 

Mix up all the ingredients EXCEPT for EGG YOLKS

Place the pork mixture into oiled ramekins and smooth top with the bottom of a spoon

 In a bowl mix egg yolks and top each ramekin mixture with the yolk

I steamed 2 ramekins here.  It took about 30 to 40 minutes depending on the type of steamer (e.g bamboo steamer or electronic steamer)

Okay done.  Let the ramekins cool before you take it out.  It is easy to slide a knife around the side of the ramekin to take it out easier.  It is not the best looking but this is steamed meat loaf!

To make the Cơm tấm Platter - place rice, grilled pork, warm bi, steamed meat loaf, cucumber, tomatoes and pickles on the plate with a fried egg on top and serve with nuoc cham

This plate is huge so maybe you can share with a friend?

Of course I got the recipe by these guys!!!!!!:

• Ravenous Couple http://ravenouscouple.blogspot.com/2009/05/com-tam-suon-bi-cha.html

Banh Xeo or Vietnamese Stuffed Pancakes

Ban Xeo is also called Vietnamese Stuffed Pancakes/ Crepes or Sizzling Crepes cause they sizzle when made.  This is one of my favourite Vietnamese dishes mum makes me when I am over for dinner.  It is made out of rice flour, turmeric and coconut milk then fried.  Then layered lightly with shrimp, fatty pork mince and bean sprouts and folded to make a crescent moon shape and served immediately.   This is usually eaten with fresh herbs, lettuce and vermicilli noodles on the side or even wrapped with lettuce.  I prefer it made into a yummy soft rice paper roll.  This also is dipped into  nuoc cham. 

I am sure when you try this you will enjoy this very much when eaten with friends and family at the dinner table.  Make this crepe batter in advance so you have it ready for the next day to whip up immediately.  You should have a workstation space so you have the stuffing and crepe batter by the stove.  Have two pans ready.  My mum does this because its quicker and faster this way to serve up.  The table should be ready with garnishes or herbs and lettuce and individual small bowls of nuoc cham.


When the banh xeo is served at the table just dig in and eat any way you as I mentioned previously.  Then its followed by a beer or two :) or usually strong Vietnamese iced coffee and fresh fruit.

BANH XEO

To make this you will need:

• 3 cups of water
• 1 pack of bot banh xeo mix which is just rice flour with tumeric (find it in all asian stalls)
• 1 tsp of sugar
• 2 cans of coconut milk
• 500g of large prawns
• 250g of lean pork mince
• handful of fresh bean sprouts
• nuoc cham
• some fresh herbs (coriander, mint, lettuce)
• optional: vermicelli  noodles, cooked and well drained

Instructions 

1. To make the crepe batter place 1 cup of water in a small pan on high heat
2. blend flour with remaining 2 cups of water until completely moistened and then add the coconut milk.  put this in fridge overnight or leave for about half the day.
3. To prepare the filling, clean the prawns and cut length wise and cook til it changes colour
4. For the pork mince, cook til the pink colour is gone.  Add a dash of fish sauce and dash of white pepper to taste.
5. Then in a large fry pan, add some oil and on high heat.
6. Pour half cup of batter and quickly tilt the pan to form a large circle.  Then lay one half of the circle with prawns, pork and bean sprouts.
7. Reduce the heat to medium and cook the batter til it looks nice and crispy or solid.
8. Flip the crepe (this may be tricky!) using a spatula and cook for a further minute.
9. Serve immediately with fresh herbs and lettuce and vermicelli noodles (or make into a rice roll).
10. You can also tear off a piece of banh xeo and wrap it in a lettuce leave and dip it into nuoc cham!
11. ENJOY! 

Pork and Coriander Meat Balls

Hi guys!  Tonight I made these really easy pork and coriander meatballs with bok choy served over jasmine rice.  I remember my grandmother used to make these for my me when I stayed over her house.  I miss those days - - running around the backyard, watching her making rice crackers (over a traditional steamer) and getting up to mischief :P. 

I used very minimal ingredients.  Here is the recipe.

Pork and Coriander Meat Balls

• 2 tbs of brown sugar
• 3 tbs of fish sauce
• 2 tbs of oyster sauce
• 500g of minced pork
• 2 garlic cloves crushed 
• pepper and salt to taste
• cornflour 
• half of bunch of coriander chopped roughly (about 1/2 cup)
• cup of water

Method

1. In a saucepan add brown sugar, fish sauce and water to make a nice syrup.  Cool and then And add into the pork mixture.  Mix well.
2. In a bowl, place pork in a bowl and mix in coriander, garlic, oyster sauce, cornflour and season with tiny bit of salt and black pepper.  ADD the ABOVE SYRUP MIXTURE.
3. Now next roll the pork mixture in about 20 balls.  Roll into corn flour lightly and put balls onto a tray or a large plate.  Cover with cling wrap and chill in fridge for half an hour.
4. In a large lightly oiled fry pan, place all the balls to fry each side for 3 to 4 minutes.  Add water and cover and let simmer for half an hour.   The juice should seep out of the balls and make a sauce with the water.  
5. When done, serve over jasmine rice.  If you want to add some greens just cook them within the sauce for a couple of minutes and serve with the balls and rice.  You can also eat these balls with vermicelli noodles or even spaghetti!

Maki Sushi (Rolled Sushi)

Last night my Japanese friend and I made maki sushi.  Well technically I did all the work and he just showed me how lol. Yeah, I will not go into it further >_<. This is my very first time making anything Japanese! I had a difficult time spreading the sushi rice onto the nori (roasted seaweed paper) and had a very difficult time rolling up the sushi with the mat. It was...pathetic! lol.

My Japanese friend calls it Maki Sushi...he doesn't say sushi but "maki sushi" which is just "rolled sushi" in English. Maki Sushi is so easy to make and you can pretty much put anything in the roll! It is similar to Vietnamese Rice rolls but instead of the rice paper and rice noodles, Japanese have the nori and sushi rice flavoured with sushi vinegar.

Essentials!

The ingredients I put in the roll were fried eggs, cucumber, cooked chicken, canned tuna and loads of mayonnaise. It tasted pretty alright for the first time even my Japanese friend agreed!

Here is a simple recipe of:

MAKI SUSHI (adapted from Pandaroo Brand)

• 500g cooked sushi rice
• 1 tbsp of sushi vinegar
• 5 sheets of seaweed
• wasabi
• choice of filling:  I used cucumber, canned tuna, chicken, fried eggs and mayo.  You can also use prawns, avocado, lettuce ...whatever suits your fancy

I was suppose to leave 5cms free of rice at the end.  But hey it did turn out okay at the end :)

Method:


1.  Pour sushi vinegar over cooked sushi rice and mix thoroughly
2.  On a sushi mat, place the shiny seaweed part down
3.  Spread the vinegar flavoured rice evenly over the seaweed.  Leave 5 cms of one end of free rice.
4. Place fillings in a line
5. Starting from the end with fillings lift the bamboo mat and begin to roll the sheet.  Wet the strip end.  Apply gentle pressure to join edges of seaweed.
6. Slice with wet knife and enjoy!

Australian Sausage Roll

It was Australia Day yesterday and I spent it making lamingtons cakes and sausage rolls with my little friends from Beijing China. They are only going to be here for another few more days and I am teaching and showing them what is Aussie food. Well they certainly enjoyed making and eating the sausage rolls so much! This is because they made it all by themselves. It is great just watching them making these little rolls and how well presented the rolls looked! I am so impressed that I only pretty much taught them how to make it only two times and they picked it up quickly.


When they were processing these rolls they appeared more confident, wasn't shy trying to speak English to me and they looked so focused! The bigger boy was really focused on his rolls. You can tell which baking tray was his lol. He did also pricked holes into the pastry with the fork! lol.

Australian Sausage Roll (With Asian Twist) makes 20 rolls

• 400g of pork mince (might be a bit of left overs)
  
• 2 cups of bread crumbs
• 1 egg and 1 extra
  
• 3 green shallots chopped
• 1 onion diced
  
• 3 cloves of garlic minced
• salt and pepper to taste
• 5 sheets of store bought puff pastry
• sesame seeds

Instructions

1. Firstly separate puff pastry and thaw. Put in fridge so it won't go soft.

1. Pre heat oven at about 180 degrees and line baking tray with baking paper
2. In a big mixing bowl add the pork mince, bread crumbs, 1 egg, chopped shallots, diced onion, minced garlic and salt and pepper. Mix with clean hands and until the mixture becomes all mushy and smooth. You can do this in a processor to make it more sausage like meat if you have one.
3. Cut each pastry square into squares (4 per sheets)
4. Put the pork mixture into the middle of the pastry and make sure its leveled and consistent. Brush with some egg wash (from extra egg - whisk lightly in bowl) and fold pastry over and seal. Lift up and turn over onto the opposite direction and place onto the tray. And brush with egg wash on top and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Repeat until you have about 20 rolls.
5. When you are done prick some holes into rolls with fork and bake for 30 minutes or until golden. (Mine took 40 minutes to bake - i just wanted the meat to cook thorougly for the kids)
6. Serve with salad and dip with tomato sauce. One of my kids dipped it with soy sauce lol.
   

The kids scoffed it down like there was no tomorrow. I told them you don't eat it with fork...just eat with your hands and dunk it in with sauce. And that is what they did. The bigger kid.....oh my goodness........always eating so quickly I am scared that he might of choked. HE LOVED IT. THEY BOTH LOVED IT. Too bad Aussie food is so unhealthy but I just wanted to show them this is Aussie food!

hold your horses mate! lol

They are going to enjoy making spaghetti bolognese tonight :)

Potstickers (Chinese Dumplings)

Hello foodie friends!

Today I made one of my favourite foods - Potstickers which are simply Chinese Dumplings. They are either pan fried one side and steamed or steamed. These are so good when dipped into a ginger soy sauce. The potstickers are golden and crispy on the bottom and the top part is steamed. If it is overcooked it will be dry. Cooked properly, the dumplings will melt into your mouth because of the juiciness of the pork and the silky chewy texture of the wrapper.

I used to go to Sunnybank (Brisbane, QLD Australia - a large Chinese community) all the time to eat these yummy potstickers. It was ritual to travel 35 minutes to Sunnybank Plaza just to buy 2 chinese takeaway containers of potstickers for around $10. And then washed down with a cool milk grass jelly drink from the bubble tea bar for $5. I was satisfied after that. Now I live much too far away to get potstickers :(. So I made it myself. Surprisingly it tasted nearly the same! WOOO!

The ingredients in the recipe may look overwhelming these are so easy to prepare. I have already have everything else on hand except for the ground mince pork and the shallots! I made my own potstick dough instead of buying the white won-ton wrappers.

There are so many variations of potstickers that you can have from vegetarian, pork, prawns and seafood. I just prefer mine with pork cause its nice a juicy and fatty!

PORK AND CHESTNUT POTSTICKERS

You will need: (TO MAKE 30 to 35 dumplings)

Potsticker dough: (you can always buy white wonton wrappers at the Asian grocer instead of making these)

- 2 cups of plain flour
- 1 cup of BOILING water
- extra flour for rolling

Pork Filling:

- 400gram of ground pork
- 1 TBS of oyster sauce
- 1 - 2 TBS of soy sauce
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 tsp of white pepper
- 3 green shallots chopped
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1/2 can of chest nuts (sliced in julienne)
- 3 garlic minced
- 1 TBS of ginger (slice in julienne)

Other:
- Oil for frying
- 1/2 cup water for steaming

Dipping Sauce

- 4 TBS of soy sauce
- ginger (julienne)
- chopped chilli
- minced garlic
- sesame oil

METHOD:

Potsticker dough:

- sift plain flour into medium sized bowl and add BOILING water. This will help the dough become elastic and smooth. Mix with wooden spoon until it becomes a dough. Now knead into soft dough on a floured surface. Roll out the dough into a 60 cm log and starting from the end cut 1.5cm pieces. Make it even so the wrappers will be the same size and consistent.

Pork filling:

- in a large bowl add all the sauces, salt, pepper, sesame oil, chest nuts, minced garlic, ginger, and shallots and mix until well incorporated. The mixture should be mushy. Leave for about 5 minutes to develop flavour.



Okay now to the fun part - the wrappers. On a flour surface roll out 1 piece of dough into a 7.5 cm circle. Make sure the dough is not too thin otherwise the pork will break through. Place a spoonful of the pork mixture into the centre of the circle. Now take the ends of the circles and pinch them together to make a half moon crescent shape. Then pinch 4 pleats to make a pouch (its just for presentation and to help close the filling properly). Repeat with the pork mixture and dough pieces.

The next part is to fry them. In a large skillet, heat up some oil (1-2 tbs) and add 15 dumplings flat side down (like in the photo below). Fry these for 2 minutes. Check to see if they become crispy and brown. At this stage add 1/2 cup of water, cover and cook for only 7 minutes or under. And repeat with remaining potsticks.




To make a dipping sauce, in a small bowl, mix soy sauce, ginger (julienne), chopped chilli, minced garlic and sesame oil. Serve with dumplings!

ENJOY!!! I KNOW I DID! NOM NOM NOM

2kg Roast Pork With Crackle

This is the second time I have ever roasted pork. The first time was okay but I burnt it lol.

This time round it came out pretty good! I used meat with heaps of fat on top to keep the meat moist and delicious. Also I wanted to make a bit of crackling too (which didn't come out right but I crackled it anyway in the microwave). The roast came out moist, tender and very juicy. So thank goodness I didn't over cook it cause I hate dry meat. Yuck! I didn't over season with it with fancy herbs - just salt and olive oil. The end I just made up a gravy from the juices from the pork and roast vegies. Very rich and yummy :).


Roast Pork with Crackle

Ingredients:

• 2 kg leg of pork with fat skin on
• some salt
• some olive oil
• 4 potatoes cut in quarters,
• 1 sweet potatoes cut in quarters,
• one onion cut in quarters
• garlic skin on
• some water and corn flour (for the gravy at the end)
  

Method

First preheat your oven at about 220°C

Place the pork skin side up on a big cutting board or clean kitchen surface. With a sharp knife score the skin about half an inch apart but don't score into the meat. Then with boiling pour over the scores to whiten the fat. Pat dry, rub and massage with oil over the pork and then rub with salt. Brush any excess salt off. Then with the other side with pinches of salt.

Now place the pork fat side up into a roasting pan and put into preheated oven. Roast for about 30 minutes or until you see the fat beginning to crackle. Turn the temperature down to 170°C and roast for another 1 to 2 hours. Then at this point base the pork with the fatty juices from the tray and add the vegetables and cover with fatty juices as well. Roast until vegetables become nice and tender. This will take at least another 40 minutes.

To check if the pork is done, put a sharp knife through the centre of meat. If clear juices run out - it means it's done. If it comes out clear-red it is still not cooked through yet.

When the roast pork is done remove from the roasting pan along with vegetables. Stand for 15 to 20 minutes. This will keep the juices in.

To make the gravy deglaze the pan with water and bring to simmer. If you want a thicker consistency add some corn flour in the first instance and whisk until a nice custard like consistency. Add some butter for richer flavour.

It takes hours to make but worth at the end!

Tip: If your crackle failed like mine (above) carve some off and place it on a microwavable plate and cover with a paper towel. Put on High for about 2 minutes. Crackle is done!

Ann's Bacon & Cheese Slices/Rolls

I made these bacon and cheese rolls the other day and oh my goodness it was so so so yummy!

These bacon and cheese slices were meant to be a pull apart bread but I thought 'hmm I wanted to make something crispy not really soft' so I changed my mind and opted for this while rolling the dough. Instead of using just cheese and bacon I made garlic butter and added rosemary and thyme. My goodness it worked out very well at the end. It came out hot and crispy and so so so delicious. Fattening but who cares!

I recommend you to eat this straight away because I find it when you want to keep it for the next day it gets a bit hard. I usually pop some slices in the microwave on high for 10 secs. It goes soft again and it smells great.

Main ingredients.

Ann's Bacon and Cheese Slices/Rolls

Preparation: 1/2 hour plus 1 1/2 hours for proving
Makes: 20 slices (10 per tray)

Ingredients:

• 1 sachet dried yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• extra water
  
• 4 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 50 grams of butter
  
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
  
• 250 grams bacon rashers chopped into small pieces
• 1 cup of tasty cheese grated
• 1 tsp of rosemary
  
• 1 tsp of thyme

Instructions

1. Combine yeast and water into a small bowl. Set aside in a warm place for about 15 minutes. The mixture should go frothy. If it does not froth do it again because the frothy mixture tells us that the yeast is active. This makes sure the bread will rise.

2. Sift the flour and salt into a big bowl. Make a well in the centre and add 1 to 2 cups of warm water plus the yeast mixture. Incorporate ingredients to make a soft dough. If you find the dough is still crumbly add more water and if you find the dough too sticky add a bit more flour until you get a soft dough. Then knead on a lightly floured surface for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth.

3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel. Set aside for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.

4. Meanwhile while the dough is proving, grease 2 trays (9 x 12 inches) and lay with greaseproof paper.

5. In a microwave proof bowl, place 50grams of butter and minced garlic and microwave on high for about 30 secs or until butter is soft and nearly melted. The garlic butter mixture shouldn't melt but a pasty kind of consistency.

6. Punch dough with fist to release the air. Knead for about 1 minute until smooth. Divide the dough into 2 and roll both of them in a rectangle shape to fit the trays. Then spread the dough with the garlic butter mixture and making sure that you leave the edges for a crust.

7. Then sprinkle bacon pieces over the rolled out dough. Make sure its even and consistent. You don't want clusters! And then do the same for the grated cheese. Finally sprinkle rosemary and thyme over bacon and cheese.

8. Preheat oven to 200^oC and let bread rise for a further half hour.

9. Bake 2 trays for about 20 - 25 minutes or until cheese has melted and bread is golden brown.

10. Cut into equal slices for each tray (10 slices per tray).

How to Make Soft Rice Paper Roll (with Prawn and Pork) & Dipping Sauce

Soft Rice Paper Rolls (with Prawn and Pork)

My all time favourite Vietnamese dish would have to be Soft Rice Paper Rolls!! Why? This is because it can be used to wrap up a wide range of fillings of your choice from meat, fish, chicken, noodles or veges. It's a fun way to entertain and get family and friends together. Each person can assemble their own unique spring roll according to their taste and preferences.

The main essential fillings for the rice paper rolls are vermicelli noodles and herbs and you can add whatever meat you desire. I like either beef or pork or even those crunchy deep fried spring rolls.

Today I am going to show you have to make Prawn and Pork Rice Paper Rolls and Dipping Sauce to go with it. You can also find these at Asian Grocers already made for you for about $4 a container with their special dipping sauce! YUmmmm...


Soft Rice Paper Roll (with Prawn and Pork)

To make about 20 rolls you will need:

• 1/2 kg of pork rashers or you can use pork neck. (i used half of the pack in the photo below)
  
• approx 20 prawns cooked and peeled and cut half side ways
• fresh herbs / lettuce
• vermicelli noodles
• 20 rice paper sheets
• warm water for dipping the sheets
• dipping sauce!
  

Some of the ingredients!

Instructions:

- Place rashes in a pot of boiling water on medium heat. Cook through well. Then take out of the water and set it aside to cool. Cut up in 1 cm pieces.

- I bought my prawns already cooked. If you bought it fresh then boil it until it changes colour and let it cool. Then peel prawns. And then slice it half side ways (like the pic below).

- In another pot, cook the noodles according to instructions. Drain well and set aside.

- Lay all the ingredients out as shown below. You can have it in any order you like but the prawns must come first just for presentation wise!

In order....doesn't have to be but the rice paper and then the prawn must be first

- Fill a large bowl with warm water. Now place a sheet of rice paper and dip it into the water and take it out. Immediately lay this on a big plate. (Don't go soaking your sheet......yuckkk it will go all soggy gross! lol and then you can't even roll it properly!)

- Then place the prawns (cut side up), then noodles, herbs and pork on the botton edge of the rice paper roll near towards your body. Leave enough paper to roll the sheet over to cover the ingredients.

- Fold over the rice sheet paper until all the ingredients are covered.

- Roll until the prawn side is facing downwards onto the plate. Then fold each side to seal the two ends of the paper.

- Repeat the process until all ingredients are used up

- Place on a nice serving dish and serve with dipping sauce.

This is a slide show on How to make rice paper roll. I thought it would be easier than explaining it :)

Now make the sauce!

Vietnamese Dipping Sauce
Please adjust the ingredients to your taste

1/2 cup fish sauce
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 squeezed lime or lemon
2 garlic cloves minced
2 chilli's minced
some water

Directions:
- Get a jar that is sealable (empty jam jar) and add water and sugar. Mix to dissolve the sugar. Then add the fish sauce and lime or lemon juice.

- Then add in the garlic and chillis. Taste. Add more fish sauce or water according to your preference.
- Serve immediately. It is recommended that you store in the fridge. Lasts for a couple of months.