Memories in the Cooking

This is a lamb leg recipe that is easy, fast and delicious.  Ingredients:  - Lamb Leg (Butterflied)  - 10 cloves of garlic (crushed) - 1 can of pineapple (chopped) - 3 tablespoons soya sauce - salt, Italian herbs (amount as preferred)  Procedures: 1) Marinate butterflied lamb leg with crushed garlic, chopped pineapple and soya sauce for 24 hours, in the fridge.  2) Let the lamb leg rest at room temperature.  3) Sear the lamb leg on stove. After that place it on a baking tray. Add salt, herbs and olive oil.  3) Oven roast it at 220 degree Celsius for 10 mins (fat side up first).  4) Meanwhile reduce the pineapple garlic into a sauce.  5) Turn the lamb leg over, spread the sauce on the lamb leg. Roast for another 10-15 minutes. Let the lamb leg rest for 30 mins. 

Here is another mum's trick on hassel-free cooking. This curry recipe only requires 10 minutes of preparation and does not involve any frying at all.  Ingredients: - 1 kg of meat (mutton, chicken or beef)  - 2 tablespoons of curry powder (combination of spices, chili powder, tumeric powder)  - 1 teaspoon of salt  - 3 large onions, chopped  - 1 bulb of garlic, minced  - 1 packet of coconut milk - 1 can of tomato puree  - 4 large potatoes, cut into cubes  Procedures: 1) Place the meat, onions and garlic in the slow cooker.  2) Add curry powder, tomato puree, salt and sugar and 1 cup of water to the slow cooker pot.  3) Cook at high setting for 2-3 hours until the meat is soften.  4) Add potatoes and cook for another hour.  5) Add coconut milk and let it simmer for another 20 minutes. Serve. 

What would be a good dish to cook for Good Friday? Roasted Lamb Leg - to commemorate the Lamb of God who died for our sins. Ingredients: - 2.5kg lamb leg without bone - 2 bulbs of garlic - 1 onion, sliced - sea salt, mixed Italian herbs - 5 tablespoons of breadcrumbs  - brining solution - half a cup of sugar and half a cup of salt and water - mustard sauce  Procedures: 1) Brine the lamb leg for about 2 days in brining solution.  2) Cut a slit across the lamb leg for the stuffing later.  3) In a frying pan, add minced garlic, chopped onions and fry until fragrant. Add herbs, salt and breadcrumbs. Mix well.  4) Place the stuffing in the slit of the lamb leg. Roll up the lamb leg with the stuffing. Use a twine to hold the lamb roll in place.  5) Using a knife, make many small incisions in the lamb leg and insert garlic pieces into them. 6) Coat the lamb leg with mustard sauce. Cover the lamb with any leftover breadcrumbs stuffings.  7) Roast...

Lamb shank, my husband's favourite British/Irish pub food. One may think that lamb is too hearty to be eaten much at a time. However, this lamb shank is so off-the-bone tender that my family could easily wipe out a large portion within minutes. So, within minutes, what was left were bones and the warm satisfying contentment that one gets from having lamb. Ingredients: - 4 lamb shanks - 1 large onions, diced - 1 bulb of garlic, crushed - 1 carrot, diced - 4 sticks of celery, chopped - 2 tomatos, chopped - 1 can of pastata - 1 tablespoon of Italian mixed herbs - 1 stock cube - 2 tablespoons of sugar - pepper, salt  - 1 tablespoon of flour Procedures: 1) In a slow cooker, add lamb shank, chopped carrots, celery and onions. 2) Add pastata, stock cube, herbs, sugar, flour and pepper. 3) Add water until it just covers the ingredients.  4) Set the slow cooker at high. Cook for 6 hours. 5) Adjust the taste with salt. Serve. 

Today, we are celebrating Father's Day! We are making Grilled Lamb Rump for the meat-loving Daddy!    Ingredients: - 2 slices of lamb rump, butterflied  - 1 stock cube  - 2 tablespoons of olive oil  - 1 teaspoon of mixed herbs  - 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar  - 1 tablespoon of honey  Procedures: 1) In a bowl, mix stock cube, olive oil and mixed herbs into a paste.  2) Rub it on the lamb rump.  3) Heat up a griddle pan. Add some olive oil.  4) Grill the lamb rump on both sides for a total of 10 minutes (for well-done). Let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting.  5) Make a sauce by adding balsamic vinegar to honey. Serve. 

This is another mutton dish for the month. Since November is a wet and cold month, it will do our health some good to have more mutton during this period. Ingredients: - 500g of mutton shoulder and neck  - 6 dried chinese mushrooms  - 1 packet of taukee  - 3 pieces of fermented beancurd - 1 tablespoon of oyster sauce  - 10 slices of ginger  - spring onions and parsley  - 3 pieces of star anise  - 2 sour plums  - 2 tablespoons of sugar  Procedures: 1) Bleach the mutton in boiling water with some ginger slices. Set aside the mutton.  2) In a claypot, fry some ginger slices and spring onion stalks until fragrant. Add fermented beancurd and oyster sauce. Mix well.  3) Add mutton pieces and coat each piece with the seasoning. Add mushrooms.  4) Add star anises, sour plums, sugar and mix well.  5) Add water to just cover the mutton. Set it simmer for 1 hour.  6) Add beancurd and let...

My husband likes herbal mutton soup. Growing up, my mother was very reluctant to use ingredients that were unfamiliar to her in our home-dishes. So, we never had beef, mutton, lamb or crabs at home. So, in order to make this dish, I had to research on a few online recipes before arriving at this version. The next challenge is to find mutton ribs as it is not available in supermarket. I managed to find them from Chong Pang Wet Market. Now, I am all set to make this dish. Ingredients: - 1kg of mutton ribs - 1 bulb of garlic - 100g of ginger, sliced - 12 mixed herbs including danggui 当归， beiqi 北芪, cinnamon sticks, cloves, white peppercorn, dangsen党参, gancao甘草, red dates, chuanxiong, yuzhu玉竹, anistars and wolfberries - 1 packet of beancurd puff - 1 packet of beancurd skin - 1 tablespoon of rock sugar - 1 tablespoon of salt - rice wine - Chinese parsley, chopped - 3 tablespoons of light soya sauce - 1 tablespoons of dark soya sauce Procedures: 1) Blanch the mutton rib...

I have some lamb chop leftover from last week. So, I decided give the leftover lamb a transformation. Ingredients: - 500g lamb chops (fresh or leftover), cut into chunks  - 3 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar  - 3 tablespoons of sugar  - 1 onion, cut into slices  Procedures: 1) In a frying pan, add a little vegetable oil and fry the onions until soft and fragrant.  2) Add the lamb pieces and fry until brown/warm. 3) Add balsamic vineger, sugar and 3 tablespoons of water. Fry until the sauce thickens. Serve. 

My husband's birthday celebration traditionally lasts for a few weeks. It would comprise a few celebration meals before, during and after the actual birthday. This year, we are kick-starting the celebration with one of his favourite dishes - Mint Crust Lamb Rack! Ingredients: - 1kg of lamb rack, cut into two halves  - 2 tablespoons of mustard  - 50g of mint leaves  - 1 cup of bread crumbs  - 1 tablespoon of olive oil  - 3 cloves of garlic, crushed  - salt  - pepper  Procedures: 1) Wash and pat dry the lamb rack. Season with salt and pepper.  2) In a pan, add some olive oil. Seal all sides of the lamb rack.  3) Brush mustard on all sides of the lamb rack.  4) In a blender, blend mint leaves, bread crumbs, garlic, olive oil, some salt and pepper.  5) Coat the lamb rack with the mint and bread crumbs mixture.  6) Place the lamb rack on a baking tray. Arrange it such that the two halves...

In my opinion, Beef Bolognese, Lasagne and Shepherd Pie are cousins. The preparation of the tomato-based meat sauce are pretty similar. For Shepherd Pie, the only difference is that the meat sauce is topped with mashed potato. The last time I cooked Shepherd Pie, my elder boy asked "why is Shepherd Pie not called Lamb Pie and Fish Pie is not called Fisherman Pie?" I have no answer to the question, except "well... the world is full of inconsistencies." Ingredients: - 500g minced lamb - 4-5 stalks of celery  - 2 large tomatos  - 2 stalks of carrots  - 4-5 large russet potatos  - 1 can of tomato paste - mixed herbs, chicken cube, sugar, pepper  - mozzarella cheese, shredded  - parmesan cheese  - milk  - 1 onion, diced  Procedures: 1) Boil potatos until soft. Mash it and mix it with a quarter cup of milk. 2) Stir fry onions, celery, carrots, tomatos until soft. Add minced lamb and continue to fry.  3)...