The Occasional Cook

Begedil (Potato Patties)

May 17, 2011March 3, 2021 7shasha7

Who can claim to be a Singaporean but not like begedil? Scoffs at anyone who doesn’t like them. What is not to like? Meat? Check. Potatoes? Check. Egg? Check. Oh, no offence to vegetarians. Hmmm…

Certainly with this kind of recipes, there are many variations. Today, mine was super easy. Fried potatoes whizzed. Minced meat, fried. Add them together with some breadcrumbs (as the mixture was too soft) coat them with beaten egg before frying and voila!

A few years ago I made begedil from scratch. That is to say, I fried the potatoes and then, instead of whizzing them in the blender I used a pestle and mortar and pounded them till mashed but too too fine (like you would in a blender). Added in some fried onions, finely diced Chinese celery leaves, white pepper and minced meat. It was a labour of love for a loved one. Now, after two kids, I think the blender version would do.

Also, you could boil the potatoes instead of frying them. Basically, you can do whatever you want to them as long as you dip them in egg before you fry and they look like small little flat discs.

Asian Dishes, Chinese, Seafood

Sweet and Sour Fish

May 17, 2011March 3, 2021 7shasha7

You know, with rising food prices and all, we ought to all learn to cook. Granted, my cooking is always on the so-so side with the occasional ‘good’ ratings given by the family, but I will not give up cooking. Who knows my dream to open up that book cafe will one day materialise! Anyway, we all ought to learn how to cook and to improvise the recipes as many of the recipes do call for a lot of ingredients. And ingredients mean money.

So today, I used up the other packet of sutchi fillets (they were on sale last week: 2 packs for the price of almost one!). I decided to make sweet and sour fish. The only thing I had to buy was the tinned pineapples, but I know I’ll make use of the leftover pineapples one day too. And oh, capsicum.

IMG01470-20110517-1339 — Cut the fish into bite-sized pieces and then marinade with soya sauce, white pepper and cornflour. In hindsight, I should have added some salt too. 20 minutes later, fry the pieces till cooked and crispy. Mind you, these aren't battered fish like what you find at our local hawker stalls. They'll just turn brown.

IMG01471-20110517-1428 — In a saucepan, I added a wee bit of oil and sauteed some chopped garlic. I added the red capsicums (cubed) till they were slightly soft and blackened (I love the caramelised taste of cooked capsicums) and then added pineapples (cubed. Then, I added a bit of chicken stock, followed by ketchup, vinegar, the syrup from the tinned pineapples and then gently stired in the fried fish pieces. Topped with finely chopped coriander leaves.

IMG01473-20110517-1435 — Easy Peasy Sweet and Sour Fish.

Bread and Batter

Ciabatta Sandwich

May 15, 2011 7shasha7

Be creative with leftovers.

Asian Dishes, Seafood, Singapore

Stir Fried Lala (Clams)

May 14, 2011March 3, 2021 7shasha7

I’ve always wanted to get those fresh clams at my nearby fishmongers. I mean, I know these babies are super duper fresh compared to the ones I see at NTUC because they were squirting out water still as I was pondering over whether to buy them or not. In the end, I did and the minute I got home, put them in a basin of salted water. I left them to soak for half an hour, and then cleaned them and proceeded to quickly stir fry them. I had some leftover sambal tumis- a Malay sweet chilli paste. I cooked the clams in a little bit of the sambal tumis and then some leftover pasta sauce and before I know it, the clams are cooked.

IMG01319-20110507-1909 — Added salt and black pepper.

Meat

Lamb Shank in the Oven

May 12, 2011May 12, 2011 7shasha7

Usually when cooking lamb shank, the meat ought to be braised for hours as it is a rather tough cut of meat. One day, I had only two pieces of lamb shank and instead of letting it braise for hours on the stove, I thought I’d do it in the oven.

I seasoned the meat with salt and pepper. And the in the baking tray, I added my already minced onions and garlic, and a bottle of Leggo’s ready made tomato sauce. I’ve switched alliance now. I prefer Leggo’s sauce. :p I threw in a couple of bay leaves and chicken stock. Cover the tray with foil tightly and then pop it in the oven.

An hour later, I realised that there wasn’t enough liquid to cook the top part of the meat so I turned the shanks over, added in a can of peeled tomatoes and then in the oven it goes again. What came out after the meat is tender, is this lovely lovely flavourful rich tomato sauce. I mean, of course the meat was good, but you’ve got to eat it with the sauce. Mmmmm…

I served the lamb shanks over polenta. Polenta. So Italian, so novel (for me, definitely), oh, so so bland. Maybe it’s an acquired taste but whatever it is, I won’t be cooking polenta again.