Memories in the Cooking

This is a hassle-free recipe for mashed potatoes. Typically, one will need a few pots and a strainer to make mashed potatoes. This involves some amount of washing. For this recipe, you only need to wash one pot!  Ingredients: - 5 large Russet potatoes  - 1 packet of fresh basil  - 1 can of nestle cream  - 5 cloves of garlic, minced - suitable amount of olive oil  - salt and pepper  Procedures: 1) Cut Russet potatoes into cubes. Place it in a pot. Add enough water to just cover the potatoes.  2) Boil it until the water dries up and the potatoes are soft.  3) Mash the potatoes in the same pot.  4) Add chopped (or blended) basil, minced garlic, olive oil, cream, salt and pepper to taste. 

This is a sauteed mushrooms with a Japanese twist.  Ingredients  - mixed mushrooms (shitake, enoki, king mushrooms etc)  - vegetable oil  - butter  - light soya sauce  - black pepper  Procedures: 1) Add vegetable oil to frying pan. Add mushrooms and fry until soft.  2) Add butter, soya sauce and black pepper. Mix well. Serve. 

This Japanese Sesame Sauce goes with everything. It makes a simple vegetable so yummy!  Ingredients  - Vegetables (for example, spinach) - mayonnaise  - sushi vinegar  - crushed sesame (can cheat with peanut butter or almond butter)  - light soya sauce  - sesame oil  - sugar  - white sesame seeds  Procedures: 1) Blanch vegetables and set aside on a serving plate.  2) In a mixing bowl, mix mayonnaise, sesame oil, sushi vinegar, light soya sauce, crushed sesame and sugar.  3) Mix well with the vegetables. Sprinkle white sesame seeds on top. 

This is another Japanese side dish - Beansprouts with Sesame Sauce.  Ingredients: - beansprouts  - sesame oil  - light soya sauce  - black pepper  Procedures: 1) Blanch the beansprouts.  2) In a bowl, mix sesame oil, light soya sauce and black pepper.  3) Mix the beansprouts with the seasoning. Serve. 

This is Japanese Chilled Tofu which requires no cooking.  Ingredients: - soft silky tofu  - grated ginger  - one stalk of spring onion, chopped  - light soya sauce  - truffle oil  - mirin  Procedures: - Cut tofu into 4 pieces. Place on individual plates.  - Top tofu with spring onions and grated ginger.  - Drizzle with light soya sauce, mirin and truffle oil. 

I am planning to make an Izakaya dinner. This dish is my first attempt - a simple Miso Pickled Cucumber.  Ingredients: - 2 Japanese cucumber, sliced thinly  - 1 tablespoon of white miso paste  - 1-2 tablespoons of sushi vinegar  - 1 tablespoon of sugar  Procedures:  1) Mix all ingredients and seasoning together.  2) Let it sit in the fridge for few hours or overnight. Serve with other dishes. 

I love to have chicken cutlet with creamy coleslaw. Here is one simple recipe for coleslaw.  Ingredients: - Coleslaw mixed vegetables (e.g cabbage, carrots, corn etc)  - 3 tablespoons of mayonnaise - 3 tablespoons of Greek yogurt  - juice of 1 lemon  - 1 teaspoon of apple cinder vinegar - 2 teaspoons of sugar  - 2 teaspoons of honey  - 3 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese  - pepper  Procedures:  - Mix mayonnaise, yogurt, lemon, vinegar, sugar, honey, cheese and pepper in a mixing bowl.  - Add the coleslaw mixed vegetables. Mix well. Chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Serve. 

My husband is the baker of the house. For today's Greek Food Spread, he did the Flat Bread while I made the Greek Yogurt Dips.  Ingredients: - 1 small bottle of Greek Yogurt  - juice of a lemon - 3 pickled cucumber, chopped  - salt  - pepper  - half a teaspoon of paprika  - 4 cloves of garlic, minced  - honey  - half a teaspoon of cumin  Procedures: 1) Mix half the Greek Yogurt with lemon juice, pickled cucumber, minced garlic, salt and pepper. (optional: mint or dill) 2) Mix the other half of Greek Yogurt with paprika, minced garlic, honey, cumin, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped parsley. 

Here is an easy side dish that goes well with any mains.  Ingredients:  - 6-7 assorted potatoes  - 1 cup of Greek yogurt - 1 cup of mayonnaise  - juice of 1 lemon  - 1 teaspoon of salt - some capers  - some black olives  - some pickled cucumbers - some fresh parsley  - some fresh mint  - 100g of spinach  - 1 red onion, sliced  Procedures: 1) Cut potatoes into bite-size. Place them into a pot with tap water enough to cover it. Let it boil until it is cooked. Place the potatoes in a mixing bowl.  2) In the pot of hot water, blanch the spinach and red onions for about 1 minutes. Place them into the mixing bowl with the potatoes.  3) Add yogurt, mayonnaise, salt, lemon juice, fresh parsley, fresh mint, chopped capers, chopped picked cucumbers, chopped olives and salt. Mix well. Serve. 

This is an easy side to include in your menu.  Ingredients  - King abalone mushroom - carrots  - sweet corns  - potatoes  - zucchini - 2 tablespoons of salt  Procedures: 1) Cut the vegetable into chucks of similar sizes. Arrange them in a baking tray (see picture above)  2) Drizzle with olive oil. Season with 2 tablespoons of salt and mixed Italian herbs. Mix well.  3) Bake it at 180 degree celsius for 30 minutes. Place all vegetables except the potatoes in a serving plate.  4) Bake the potatoes further at 225 degree celsius for another 10 minutes. Add it go the serving plate. 

This mash tastes just like mashed potatoes but with lesser calories.  Ingredients: - 1 head of cauliflowers, chopped  - 3 Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into smaller pieces  - 1 teaspoon of mustard  - 1 teaspoon of mixed herbs  - 2 tablespoons of mayonnaise  - 1 teaspoon of salt  - half a cup of milk or cream  Procedures:  1) Boil cauliflowers and potatoes until soft. Blend them into a smooth paste using a hand blender.  2) Add mustard, mixed herbs, mayonnaise, salt and milk/cream. Mix well. Serve. 

I wanted to make a pretty side dish today. So, I spent three times the amount of money to bring some cherry tomatoes on vine. Ingredients: - cherry tomatoes on vine  - 200g of ricotta cheese  - 1 can of nestle cream - 1 egg - 300g of mozzarella cheese  - 1 teaspoon of sea salt  - 6 slices of roti prata  - pepper  - balsamic vinegar - olive oil - honey  Procedures: 1) Foil the roti prata until it forms a rectangular pasty.  2) In a mixing bowl, whisk ricotta cheese, nestle cream, egg, half of mozzarella cheese, sea salt and pepper.  3) Fill the pasty with the cheese mixture.  4) Place the cherry tomatoes on it.  5) Bake at 180 degree celsius at 45 minutes. 6) Drizzle some balsamic vinegar, olive oil and honey on it. Serve. 

This recipe of Potato Gratin takes a shorter time (about 30 minutes) as compared to the usual ones (about 1.5 hours) as it was first cooked in the pan rather than entirely oven-baked. I personally also feel that it is also creamier with the potatos first cooked in the cheese sauce. I have also added some smoked duck to transform this side dish to an one-dish meal. Ingredients:  - 7 Russet potatos, sliced  - 2 cups of whole milk  - 1 tablespoon of flour  - 1 large onion, sliced  - 1 bulb garlic, crushed  - 1 tablespoon of mixed Italian herbs  - 1 chicken cube  - smoked/roasted meat (smoked duck in this recipe) - pepper - parmeasan cheese - mozzarella cheese Procedures:  1) To a frying pan, add some vegetable oil. Fry onions until fragrant.  2) Add flour and fry until slight brown. Add milk to form a thick sauce.  3) Add the roasted/smoked meat, garlic, herbs, chicken cube, pepper, parmesan chee...

After a tiring day, it is really great to have a refreshing Vietnamese Salad.  Ingredients: - 1 carrot, shredded - 2 zucchini, shredded  - juice of 2-3 Thai Lime  - 1 tablespoon of fish sauce  - 1 teaspoon of sugar - crushed peanuts  Procedures: 1) Mix everything together in a mixing bowl.  2) Serve it on a serving plate. 

I have been keeping a look out for superfood (aka nutrients dense food) and sweet potato is one of them. This is a change to our usual mashed potato.  Ingredients:  - 4 sweet potatoes - half a cup of milk  - salt, pepper, mixed herbs (according to preference)  - parsley, chopped Procedures: 1) Cook sweet potatoes until soft. Mash it.  2) Add milk, salt and mixed herbs according to taste. Mix well.  3) Garnish by sprinkling with chopped parsley. 

This is a common pub food that we often ate in UK when we stayed there a few years ago. To make the dish more substantial, I will add some leftover roasted meat to the dish. With the meat, the dish can be promoted from a side dish to a satisfying one-dish meal. Ingredients: - 1 head of cauliflower - 25g of butter - 4 cloves of garlic, crushed - 1 tablespoon of Italian mixed herbs - 80g of parmesan cheese - 125g of mozzrella cheese - 1.5 cup of milk - 2 tablespoons of plain flour - sausages/leftover roasted meat Procedures: 1) Cut the cauliflower into florets. Boil it in water unil cooked. 2) Drain the cauliflowers and arrange them on a baking tray. Spread leftover meat or cooked sausages to the cauliflowers. 3) To a fry Pan, melt some butter. Add garlic and fry until fragrant. Add flour and fry it a little. Add milk and the sauce will become thick. 4) Add the 2 cheese, salt, pepper and herbs. 5) Pour the cheese sauce on the cauliflowers. Bake in the oven at 180 degr...

It is interesting how runny egg yokes always have that 'wow' factor. So, onsen eggs certainly deserve a post of its own.  Ingredients: - 5 fresh eggs - 3 tablespoons of Japanese light soya sauce - 3 tablespoons of mirin - 8 tablespoons of water Procedures: 1) Boil a pot of water. When the water is boiling, add 5 fresh eggs and cook for 7 minutes. 2) Transfer the eggs to a cold water bath to stop the cooking. 3) In a ziplock bag, add light soya sauce, mirin and water. 4) Peel the shells of the eggs and soak the eggs in seasoning for 2-3 hours. Serve with ramen.

I always like to simplify (read: cheat) my recipes. Instead of making pastries from scratch, I would use store-bought roti prata pastries, spring roll wrappers or dumpling skins for dishes like pies, puffs. These mini taco cups are made using spring roll wrappers and they give the snack a super crispy base. Ingredients:  - Spring roll wrapper, cut into quarters  - 500g of minced beef  - 1 onion, diced  - 3 stalks of celery, minced  - 1 carrot, minced  - 1 can of pastata  - 1 beef cube  - 1 tablespoon of mixed Italian herbs - salt - sugar  - pepper  - mozarella cheese  Procedures:  1) In a pan, add some vegetable oil. Stir fry onions until fragrant.  2) Add minced beef and fry until turn brown.  3) Add minced celery and carrots and fry for a minute.  4) Add a can of pastata and 1 cup of water. Let it simmer. 5) Season with beef cube and herbs. Adjust the taste with salt...

Not all canned food are bad. Canned sandines and tunas have as much omega 3 oil and protein as the fresh ones. To get my kids to eat more of these nutritious fish, I stuffed them into tiny puffs made of dumpling skins. Ingredients: - 1 small can of sandines, mashed  - 1 small can of spicy tuna, mashed  - 2 packets of dumpling skins  - vegetable oil  Procedures: 1) Using 2 layers of dumpling skins, wrap a teaspoon of fish and make into puff with twisted rope pattern.  2) Coat it with vegetable oil. Indicate the spicy one with a red dot using food dye.  2) Bake it at 180 degree for 10 minutes at each side (20 minutes in total). Serve. 

My elder boy made this dish for his dad for Father's Day. I must say, it was quite impressive for a 8.5 year old. Ingredients: - 3 large Russet potatoes, sliced - 1 onion, sliced - 6 eggs Procedures: 1) In a pan, add some vegetable oil and fry onions and potatos until soft. 2) Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl, add the soften onions, potatos, half a teaspoon of salt and pepper. 3) To the pan, add some vegetable oil. Pour the egg-potato-onion mixture into the pan. Spread the mixture to about 1 itch thick. 4) When the bottom of the tortilla is firm, flip the tortilla over using a large plate. Then slide the fliped tortilla back into the pan. 5) After 3 mins, remove from the pan and serve.