Braised Pork Knuckles with Sea Cucumber 海參豬腳, a CNY lunch

** re-post due to some error in earlier post **

Before i go back to my mom's place to celebrate the 9th day of CNY- Pai Tin Kong this evening. I would like to share with you the best Braised Pork Knuckles with Sea cucumbers ( a must have dish during CNY) from my mon (she actually learnt from my Aunt). I cooked this dish when my husband invited his brothers and sisters (around 30 peoples !!) to our house on the 6th day of CNY. I started to prepare Braised Pork knuckles on the 5th day as this dish need longer cooking time.










All guys tossed the Yee Sang ...

My mother's method of braised pork knuckles with sea cucumbers is slightly difference from the others. She start cooking pork knuckles and sea cucumbers separately as easy to control the softeness and tenderness of both pork knuckles and sea cucumbers. Later she will combine both cooked pork knuckles and sea cucumbers together, and add the very important seasonings, chopped garlic and Tiew Heng wine.

My Aunt taught my mother to add a special wood sticks that imported from China, too bad, my Aunt could not tell me the exact name of the wood sticks. I will try to find out later and update to you once the info is available..
Updated on 19th May 2012 - I finally brought the special wood sticks to a Chinese herbal shop and checked with them if they know the name of this wood stick. They told me this stick is 春根滕, this is good to remove wind from our body and good for blood circulation. But they also not that sure because every wood sticks look almost the same, and they wonder why this stick is added in this dish..

Here are the dishes that I cooked for the big lunch that feeding around 30 peoples !!

white-cut chicken

Deep-fried fish with soy sauce and onion

Stir-fried Fish Maw with Celery

ABC soup using the stock from white cut chicken

Since my 4th SIL practise full time vegetarian, thus I cooked two vegetarian dishes, this is Lor Han Chai

Braised Shiitake Mushroom,  replaced normal oyster sauce with vegetarian oyster sauce.

Here come the Braised pork knuckles with sea cucumbers ..

Braised Pork Knuckles with Sea cucumber
(recipe source : by Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover)

To braise pork knuckles
2kg pork knuckles (front pork leg)
100g ginger, crushed
10 cloves
2 star anise
10 special wood sticks, optional
1/3cup light soy sauce
3tbsp cooking oil
3tbsp sugar
water

Method
1. Blanch pork knuckles in hot water to remove scum.
2. Heat cooking oil in a wok, add in sugar and stir till sugar melted and turn brown.
3. Add in ginger, cloves, star anise, special wood sticks and pork knuckles, stir to mix well.
4. Add in light soy sauce and sufficient water to cover the pork knuckles and let it cook for about 2 hours under medium to low heat until pork tendered. ( I use pressure cooker and cook for 15mins).


To braise sea cucumbers
500g dried sea cucumber, softened and cleaned, refer steps here
2tbsp cooking oil
3tbsp oyster sauce
1tbsp light soy sauce
2 slices of ginger
water

Method
1. Heat cooking oil in a wok, sauté ginger till aroma.
2. Add in softened sea cucumbers, oyster sauce, light soy sauce and water, cook for 1hour or till sea cucumbers are soft. (Cooking time depend on the type of sea cucumbers that you use)

To prepare Braised Pork Knuckles with Sea cucumbers

1 whole garlic, chopped
2tbsp Chinese wine Tiew Heng 绍兴酒
Salt to taste , 1tbsp of dark caramel sauce

Method
1. Combine both cooked sea cucumbers and pork knuckles in a wok, cook for 10-15mins. (Cooking time depend on the tenderness of the pork knuckles and sea cucumbers)
2. Add in chopped garlic and season with Tiew Heng wine and salt.
3. Dish out and serve hot.

I am submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #15: Auspicious Dishes for CNY (January 2012) which is hosted by Wen's Delight.

Pineapple rolls (Nastar) 凤梨酥, Happy Lunar New Year

I think is time for me to "Sou Kong" and take a short break from blogging and enjoy the Dragon New Year. Yesterday i did my last batch of baking (maybe not the last, i'm not sure ^_^)of pineapple rolls. I still using back my old recipe and made little changes and resulted a very flaky and buttery pineapple rolls. So far, I have not seen a pineapple tart or rolls that same like my recipe which requires only 4 ingredients, Butter, Condensed Milk, Flour and Egg yolk, cheap and easy ! The other day Jane came over to my house, and I heard she talked to someone who asking for pineapple tart recipe, and she told her to use Sonia's condensed milk pineapple tart recipe, hahaha!

A bamboo green plant given by Jane..

Pineapple rolls (Nastar) 凤梨酥
(recipe source: by Sonia a.k.a Nasi Lemak Lover) , makes around 170pcs


350g butter
100g condensed milk (I use F&N  Sweetened creamer Vitaminised)
510g plain flour / all purpose flour
2 egg yolks


2 egg yolks, for egg wash


700g Pineapple filling (homemade or store-bought)


Method
1. Cream butter and condensed milk till light.
2. Add in egg yolk one at a time, and beat until combine.
3. Mix in flour, mix till become a soft and not sticky dough.
4. Put dough into a Nastar mould and press out into strips about 5-6cm long.
5. Place pineapple jam filling on the edge of a strip and make a small elongated roll.
6. Cut off excess dough, brush with egg glaze.
7. Bake in preheated oven at 170c for 15-18mins or till golden brown.
8. Cool on wire racks before storing.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you A Happy and Prosperous Lunar New Year. May the year of Dragon bring all of you good luck, health and happiness !!

新年快乐，万事如意，龙年行好运哦！恭喜恭喜！

German Cookies 德国酥饼

This German cookie do not need much introduction, very famous among MY & SG bloggers since last year..I also don't want to miss this boat, bought a small pack of potato flour and try out. The 1st batch was gone into rubbish bin as I was wrongly added cake flour with corn flour, totally no way i can hold the cookies after baked, LOL !!

I saw Mins' blog did it with adding green tea and cocoa. I tried with green tea, the taste is ok..still prefer original version.

** Anyway, this cookie it seem not well received by my family, a bit plain for our taste buds especially my husband dislike too fragile and melt-in-mouth cookie. I'm ok with this cookie, just feel a bit dry when the cookie melted and hit my tongue.

German Cookies 德国酥饼
(recipe source: Inspired by Vivian Pang & Mins’ Blog)


125g butter, soften at room temperature
40g icing sugar
125g potato flour (马铃薯粉)
80g cake flour (can be replaced by plain flour)


Method
1. Beat butter and icing sugar till light and fluffy. Sift in potato starch and flour, mix to form soft dough.
2. Roll into small ball, arrange on lined baking pan and press lightly with a fork.
*To prevent cookie dough from sticking on fork, dip the fork in water before each use.
3. Bake in preheated oven at 170C for 15 minutes. (do not bake till cookies turn brown).

Stir-fried Fish Maw with Celery 鱼鳔炒西芹

This is a simple stir-fried Fish Maw dish that my mom usually prepared for Chinese New Year's eve dinner. I use the ready fried Fish Maw that given by my mom..Next time i must learn from her on how to deep fry the Fish Maw till puffy . This dish is so simple to prepare but yet the taste is awesome!

ready fried Fish Maw pieces..

I am submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #15: Auspicious Dishes for CNY (January 2012) which is hosted by Wen's Delight.

Stir-fried Fish Maw with Celery 鱼鳔炒西芹
(recipe source: by Sonia a.k.a Nasi Lemak Lover)

2 stalks celery, sliced
40g fried Fish Maw, soak in water for 15mins and squeeze out the water
50g meat, sliced
40g carrot, sliced
3 mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2tsp chicken stock powder
1/2tsp salt

Water

Method
1. Heat 2tbsp cooking oil in a wok, sauté garlic.
2. Add in meat, stir fry for few seconds, add in carrot, mushroom and celery, mix well.
3. Add in water, cook for 1-2 mins.

4. Last add in fried fish maw, stir fry to combine well, add in seasonings and cook for 1-2 mins.

5. Dish out and serve hot, Enjoy!

Crunchy Almond Cookies 杏仁脆饼

I made this Crunchy Almond cookies that specially for my husband who prefer crunchy and nutty type of cookie than those flaky and melt-in-mouth cookie. After gaining the experiences from the 4 failed attempted of dragon cookies, this time, it only took me two times to succeed in making this cookie that suit my husband's taste.

One thing i want to highlight in this recipe, do not omit the salt. Because you should be able to taste the saltiness after you finished a cookie (this is the taste of what my husband wants !), and the cookie taste even better after kept it for 1-2days..

If you want more nutty aroma, you may want to add some almond nibbles...And this cookie is "Eggless' too !

Crunchy Almond Cookies杏仁脆饼
(recipe source: by Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover)


160g Butter
100g castor sugar
120g almond meal
170g corn flour
1tsp baking powder
3/4tsp salt


Method
1. Sift corn flour and baking powder, set aside.
2. Cream the butter and sugar till light and creamy.
3. Add in almond meal, mix well.
4. Add in salt and sifted corn flour and baking powder, combine to form a soft dough.
5. Flatten the dough to about 1cm thick, use a cutter to cut to desired shape.
6. Bake in preheated oven at 170c at lower rack for 20-25mins.

Dragon cookies 龙饼

Today post will be talking about dragon and dragon..The 1st dragon i want to talk about is this dragon cookie. Since this year will be a Dragon Year, and my son Lucas also born in Dragon year in year 2000, so dragon cookie is very meaningful for this Lunar New Year.

I did not success making this cookie at the 1st time, actually after i attempted for 5 times, i would said i managed to make this cookie that suit my taste, melt-in-mounth and look white. At first i tried with a recipe from the owner of the bakery ingredient shop that i usually go. But i got a crunchy and slight hard cookie (i feel this was due to adding egg white). I never give up, i saw a recipe in a cookbook and give a try again, this time i got a super hard dough and no way i can pipe it out, totally not work out..this recipe called to add too much of flour!! No choice, I made up my mind, i want to mix and match and come out my own recipe, i tried the 3rd and 4th times, and success on the 5th attempt!

This was the 1st attempted, crunchy and slight hard, and i dont like it look yellow with very strong custard taste.

This was my 3rd attempted, the cookie just melted and loose out the shape, no way you can see dragon shape, LOL!

If you not pipe properly, it will be looking like a snake, hehehe..

Success at 5th attempt !

The nozzle and piping/pastry bag that i use

Dragon cookies 龙饼
(recipe source: by Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover)


80g Butter
50g icing sugar
1 egg yolk
120g corn flour
20g cake flour
10g milk powder


Method
1. Cream the butter and icing sugar till light and creamy.
2. Add in egg yolk and mix well.
3. Fold in corn flour, milk powder and cake flour to form a soft and pliable dough.
4. Fill soft dough into piping bag (use thick bag instead of disposable bag) with nozzle tip no 20 and pipe out or press out ‘S’ patterns on baking tray lined with baking paper. Dot eyes with red colouring.
5. Bake in preheated oven at 160c at lower rack for 15-17mins or till light yellow.

The second dragon i want to talk about is this First Cover from Pos Malaysia released yesterday. The topic of the stamp issue is "The Legacy of Loom" consisting a set of 5 stamps (in format of strip) with denomination 60s each, and two miniature sheets with denominations of RM3 and RM5 (with gold imprint). I'm not a stamp or First cover collector, but i was attracted by this nice dragon stamps. I was so lucky yesterday as I am the only one who managed to buy the only two RM 5 miniature sheets contain an image of gold dragon at the mini POS office nearby my house and don't need to queue. This mini post office only have 2 of RM 5 miniature sheets from their head office. This morning i got to know from newspaper that peoples are queuing start from 4.30am in the morning for this Dragon stamp.

I also got to know from Sin Chew Daily newspaper, the dragon stamps in 2000 year of Dragon year are being auctioned in Shanghai for RM 1,500. So I need to wait for another 12 years, ^_^

I hope the stamps will bring my family with good luck in this Dragon year..

I'm going to post few new year cards using these stamps..with title of The Legacy of Loom.

A recipe that i saw in a Chinese newspaper for your reference:-