Bak Choy with Fried Dace

Bak Choy with Fried Dace

Hello Whimsical Readers,

F~ So how many of you have like having a nice meal but just couldn't be bothered to stand in the kitchen toiling away over your meal which will be gone within 15 minutes of munching, chewing and swallowing..You? You too? And yes you too in the back, well I thought so, because I can be like that too. Sometimes you think, why bother? Since its going to look like mush when it reaches my stomach anyway. Oh Ho Ho, that's where you're mistaken. Did you know you can eat with obviously your mouth, nose and also eyes?

Yes, your mouth taste the food with your tongue, your nose smells and your eyes see the food, sending signals within micro-seconds telling your brain "YUMM! Drool*" or "IEW! I'm SO not having that" and even "Sigh* This again" So I think it is important to a certain extend how our food looks like, that's why I always try to make my food as presentable and pleasing to the eye as my skills take me.

Dont's fret, its not difficult to make your food look good even if it is just a simple dish like this dish I am going to share with you, which is Bak Choy with Fried Dace. Bak Choy is easy enough to cook as well as it is to over cook. Fried Dace has never looked good when I open the can but that does not mean I can't work with it. The rule of thumb is keeping your plate keep clean and not let it be dripping with sauce and drops of oil on the side of the plate. (check back next week for more detailed tips and tricks)

Ingredients: Serves 4
Bak Choy
1 can Fried Dace with Salted Black Beans (shred fried dace)
2 Tbsp Sesame Oil
Salt & Pepper (to taste)

Method:
1. Boil some water in a Pan/ Wok, adding in a pinch of Salt and 1 Tbsp of Sesame Oil.
2. In another heated Pan of medium flame, add in 1 Tbsp of oil from the can of Fried Dace and let it heat up before adding in the shredded Fried Dace and Salted Beans. Lightly fry them for 3 minutes until the Fried Dace becomes a nice dark brown. Turn off flame. Keep Fried Dace aside warm.
3. Once the water has come to a boil, put in the Bak Choy neatly in and blanch it for 1-2 minutes. They should turn into vibrant green.
4. Drain water and place Bak Choy neatly on a plate. Place Fried Dace and Salted Black Beans on top. Pour the remaining oil from the Pan and Sesame Oil over the Bak Choy.

That should not take more that 10 minutes to make and the results would be what you see above. the Bak Choy has a fresh and vibrant colour with the dark, rich brown from the Fried Dace. If you like more taste on your vegetable, dish out the Fried Dace, leaving the oil in and toss the Bak Choy in the same Pan. Enjoy!


Yours Truly,
The Whimsical Buddies

Fried Sauce Noodle 炸醬麵 (Zha Jiang Mian)

Dear Whimsical Readers,

Hello! Thank you for dropping by to read on our homemade recipes website of ours. I would like to share something special today, and this dish is one of my favorites ~ "炸醬麵"! It's originality is from my hometown, TAIWAN! My mom is a Taiwanese, thus she always cooks the best taiwanese food for my family back home in Malaysia. Although, she said the noddle and the flavor of the pork does play a big role in her cooking. The ingredients we purchase from the local market stores, will at least I can say deliver a decent taste for this dish. Without further ado, here are the fabulous ingridients for the dish! It's simple:

Serves 4

500 grms of minced pork (season with salt and pepper)
50 grms of Mushroom (soak them in a bowl of water for 10mins at least)
1 spoon of Hoisin Sauce
1 spoon of Black Bean Sauce
1 packet of tofu/fried tofu (chopped)
3 cloves of Garlic (diced)
3 Tbs of Vegetable Oil
4 Sticks of Chinese Noodle (preferably oil)
1 Carrot (Slice them thinly, and leave it in the refrigerator)
1 Cucumber/Zuchinni (Slice them thinly, and leave it in the refrigerator)
Sesame oil and White Vinegar to Serve.
Salt and Pepper

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a flat pan while you heat up another bowl of water till boil and chuck the noodle in for about 5-10 minutes.
2. Saute the garlic till fragrant and fry the mushroom till it turns soft and tender.
3. Chuck the meat in, the sauces then the tofu. Stir fry them in medium heat, add salt and pepper to your likings.
4. Serve in a warm bowl/plate, first the noodle, the meat, and finally top them up with cucumber and carrots. To my taste, I would prefer to add a little of sesame oil and vinegar to my noodle. It's just like adding a little bit of magic in the dish.

There you go, simple and easy isn't it? Enjoy!

Yours Sincerely,
the Whimsical Buddies

New Year, New Food! (2011)

Hello Whimsical Readers,

THANK YOU! We would like to thank our family, friends and of course not forgetting out readers and the support they have given us and we are excited to tell you that we're hipped up for the many many recipes to come.

F~ So how are we all today? I was lucky enough not to suffer and hangover although I do remember myself being quite happy at one point before dozing off and 10 minutes because of the long day I've had and then rushing to the bathroom to..erm nevermind..hahaha.

Since we're on the topic of hangover, I'd like to share some tips to ensure a Hangover-Free Post-Party-Morning. It does not matter really what alcohol you drink, because as long as you ingest alcohol, your body will be dehydrated. So a good tip would be to drink plenty of water the next day or even better the night itself before you knock out in bed. Do however much you crave it, try to avoid caffeine as it merely dehydrates you instead. If you must, then just have a weak cup of coffee.

The easiest way to get drunk very fast is when you have not had a proper meal before, and by meal I do not mean heavy lunch-skipped dinner nor do I mean salad for dinner. Something with some meat or starch, I find that cheesy food like pizza and burgers the best even though they may not be the healthiest food to have because the cheese and oil help by absorbing the alcohol content in your stomach.

For those of you who can't drink water (like me) as it would only result in more rushed-trips to the bathroom, Tomato juice is your best friend. Ok ok, some of you would say yuck, but it really helps because tomatoes are rich in vitamins that your body has lost from the night's drinking. If however, you absolutely detest tomato juice, orange juice should do the trick as well.

What we do back home is to have something to eat before going to bed. You may think that it's going to make you fat but believe me, when you're loaded with alcohol, food is the best thing on earth. I would recommend something on the savoury, salty or bland side instead, like a slice of pizza, maggi mee, a plain bun. Also we would always have a hot glass of lemonade, the sourness help to wake to back to soberness.

Speaking of sour, I recently learnt a trick while having Schnapps with some Ukrainians. They would have little pickles in between drinks to avoid getting drunk too fast. This also helps if you like to take it the day after, basically something sour when you wake up.

So a summary of it all;
- have a proper meal before drinking
- drink plenty of water to replenish your body's fluids
- try to avoid caffeine in the morning
- tomato juice (recommended) or fruit juice for Hangover-Free morning
- have something (light) to eat or lemon juice before bed
- munch on pickles in between drinks or the morning after

I hope these tips helps you with you morning after's.

By the way, here are some photos found of the fireworks happening near J~ and F~, can you guess where are we?

Have fun, stay safe and NEVER drink and drive.


Yours Truly,
The Whimsical Buddies