Japanese Food-curios

One of the most interesting thing about living with a person of different nationality is the food stuff their family sent. lol. Well, actually when I was living together with 2 of my Malaysian Indian friends, their food parcels were filled with loads of stuff that I haven't seen before. But it's a whole new experience when you don't exactly know what kind of food it is because it's written in Japanese. :-P And then come in my Japanese language translator --> Yumi! Once she says out the Japanese word, I'd know it....because my Japanese language is limited to its food items only. :-) She'd tell you the same too ;-P

There's a lot of food curios in our ladder. This is one; which Yumi 'cooked' after the Karaoke Night held by my class to raise money for the Graduates' Night --> It's some sort of tradition that 4th Years have to organise it for the 6th Years... ^_^

ODEN!

Japan's really amazing with all their extremely convenient packaging [you just dunk the bag in to a boiling pot of water!] and when you remove the content, it could really pass off as something you cook yourself! 

 See? It must be great to be a student in Japan...cramming for exams and still getting a semblance of real food as opposed to my poor diet of instant noodles during exam period. =_=

 There's fish cakes filled with something. An egg. Some sort of squid-ball lookalike [but it's not squid]. Konyakku. A ribbon of seaweed. A slice of daikon. I love the soup. It's actually really nice. Even Yumi was surprised. Only the egg was, well, doesn't taste like egg....

This is pickled radish that Yumi got from the Korean-Japanese shop in Prague.....I suppose only a Japanese @ Korean would pick this up....so I'd classify it under this. :-P Don't like this....a bit too sourish pickl-ish for me.

Kangkung Belacan

Kangkung [water convolvulus] is no doubt one of my favourite GREEN vegetable [yes! there's vege that's not GREEN!!! --> brinjal! ^_^]. Anyway, when I was in Malaysia, I took it for granted cos it's so easily found. I remember when I was in Standard 4@5 and at that time, hydroponic growing was all the rage; everyone had a hydroponic set at home....and we even have those planting projects in school. Kangkung was one of the easiest to grow on the set....so super-duper easy that it was like weed! Mum used to put the set next to the washing machine in a neat, little space at the back part of the houseand when the kangkung's all grown up, it was like our washing machine landed  in a jungle.

Here in Czech Republic....so far,I could only find it in Prague's Thai Asian Food Shop...and not for a cheap price either ~45CZK a packet ~200grams[??] [I'll probably get a big bag of it for the same price in Malaysia...:-P]

I was so tempted to carry a hydroponic set from home; so that I could plant on my own. [My heavy often overweight luggage plus the fact I have to lug it back using train/ bus to HK dissuaded that idea..]

My favourite way of eating kangkung is belacan-style! Ok...though to be honest, when I have to cook it, I was kinda cursing cos the smell was so strong, it permeated the whole flat. But eating it.....mmmmmmm...^_^ heeee....!

I don't exactly know how it's usually cooked..but this is what I did...lol..

Ingredients:
Kangkung
A pinch of belacan [According to Sara, use belacan like how you use salt...:-P]
Salt
Garlic
Chillies
Pepper
Water

Methods:

1. Wash kangkung thoroughly
2. Mix belacan with some water [so that it won't get burned when you fry it first]. Crush it into small pieces
3. Heat up oil in wok. Saute the belacan. Add in the garlic and chillies.
4. Add in kangkung....and proceed with a strong heart as you watch the amount of kangkung shrinks before your eyes...:-( Add seasonings.
5. Give it a few rounds of quick wokking
6. Dish it out
7. Eat with rice :-)

Verdict:
Me and Yumi were nearly tearing up [Ok, so I did all the tearing...she's pretty resistant to chillies] over the amount of chillies I used. SO! Do use your chillies with caution! You want to enjoy your kangkung, not cry from it. But other than that, I wish I could have this dish often....

Ok, actually even in Malaysia, I don't really eat this that often. Some old Chinese advice about it causing/ increase risk of gout etc...not sure what is in kangkung that causes that. But with my luck with my joints, I best be careful about this.  :-P

Hainanese Chicken Chop

Yes yes I know....it's been a long while since I posted up anything...I actually have so many food pics from my summer break in Malaysia, China and Singapore to share but my stupid internet will lag with all the GBs. =_=

Anyway, the new study year has started for me [Hello, sweet life of a 4th year!]. Seems like 4th years will have it easy but this is like the calm before the storm...5th year is reportedly hell-ish. But hopefully, this year will mean I have more time to experiment. Hee...

I have not transferred the picture for this post yet  but thought I'll just write down the recipe lest I forget it. Cos I really like it. :-P [Ta-da! Finally got my lazy ass up to reach for the transfer cord...^_^]

Hainanese chicken chop is another dish I grew up with. My family frequently go to Yut Kee at Jalan Dang Wangi, KL and I always order the same dish. We order other dishes like fried noodles etc but for me, this is the tops. I will literally lick the plate clean; including the sauce. :-D

The dish calls for a deboned chicken thigh. I have absolutely no idea how to. Of course, I searched it up. :-)
Turns out to be really easy! [Click to learn] And my dissecting skills comes in handy too. LOL....maybe I even have the makings of an orthopedic surgeon! Hehe...for chickens.

 Although I have a rough idea of how to cook it, I needed some guides to follow. There's not that many Hainanese chicken chop recipes around so I am really thankful to have found it at Rose's Kitchen. I had to modify it as I don't have certain ingredients and I had some extra ideas.

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Ingredients:
Chicken thigh, deboned. Do not remove the skin!
Salt
Pepper
Maggi seasoning sauce
Plain flour
Corn starch
1 egg, beaten
Oil for deep frying

Method:

1. Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
2. Coat chicken with egg and dredge in corn starch. 
3. Coat chicken again with egg and this time dredge in plain flour.
4. Deep fry chicken until golden brown.  Dish out onto a serving plate.

 **I must have heard somewhere that double coating makes the chicken taste better and can maintain its crispiness and lock in moisture etc etc.....:-P

 

Ingredients for Gravy:
Potato wedges
~50g butter [I know it's ~50g cos its the same amount I cut up for my cornflake cookies ^_^]
Garlic, minced [Ooooh, I love my new garlic crusher from IKEA!]
Chicken granules [They have some thickening element so I didn't need to add cornstarch to thicken the sauce]
Onion wedges
Tomato wedges
Green peas [**]
Sweet corn [**]
Diced carrots [**]
 Salt
Pepper
Sugar
Maggi seasoning sauce
Lemon juice; adjust to taste [gives a slight tangy sour taste!]
[**I don't have these but it's good to have them...taste good and looks good]

Method:

1. Deep fry the potato wedges to half cook them.  Dish out and drain on paper towels.
2. Melt up the butter in another pan and saute the garlic.  Add the half-cooked potato wedges and the chicken granules. Add water to pan.  Cook over a low fire.
3. Add the onion and tomato wedges, green peas, sweet corn and dice carrots to gravy
4. Add seasoning to taste. 
5. Pour gravy over chicken chop and enjoy!

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Verdict:
It's surprisingly good! :-P The fried chicken has a really good and slight crispy texture to it despite being drenced in the gravy. The gravy tastes good but I am gonna experiment more with it to perfect it more...:-)

p/s: I made this again and then I realised I didn't write down lemon juice as part of the ingredients for the gravy! This is really important  for me cos I remember Yut Kee's gravy had this slight tangy-sourish taste that I couldn't place. Somehow, I managed to get that taste with lemon juice. ^_^

A comparison of Ganga's and Royal Maharajah

Before HK's own Royal Maharajah was opened, Ganga's enjoyed flocks of students from HK into their restaurant for some months and now that Royal Maharajah is opened, I think they still do as Ganga's does have lots of appeals of its own over Royal Maharajah.

Here's my few peanuts of thoughts on  these 2.

1.Value for money: For the price it asked for,we would have expected a bigger portion from Royal Maharajah..it's fair to say that the serving dish at Ganga's provide a bit of an optical illusion that its serving portion is bigger but really, my stomach don't lie...However, we were told by the manager of Royal Maharajah that the ingredients they used are imported from India and Germany whereas Ganga's use local ingredients...which explains their reason for the higher pricing-to-smaller portion. If ya asking me, I'd rather have them use local ingredients...not that I could tell the difference between a Czech chicken and German chicken.

2. Atmosphere: Don't know which restaurant owned the lot Ganga's in now but Ganga's retained some its mural that we are dead sure aren't reflective of the Indian culture...haha..Royal Maharajah on the other hand prides itself in offering a sight of Indian culture and so you do get the feeling that you have entered an Indian restaurant especially  because of the altar for Hindu gods welcoming you at the entrance.

3. Taste: I haven't been to both of these restaurants as much as I like to, but on some occasions , I do order the same dishes eg. Butter Chicken at Royal Maharajah...which was um..a bit different on the 4 different times I have eaten it. Is it too much to ask for consistency??

4. Menu range:  Both restaurants offer a wide range of dishes....so much that you are confused temporarily at what to order...but I have to go with Royal Maharajah's for this one...cos they have lady's fingers/ okra!!!!!


5. Presentation of dishes: Thumbs up to both for using serving dishes that reflects an Indian meal experience...but maybe a bit extra to Ganga's for using ones that makes us feel the portion is bigger than it really is...:-P

6. Space: Ganga's has a really small space and because it's located at the basement level, it feels even smaller. It can't sit many patrons and so, it's highly recommended to reserve before hopping on a train to Pardubice. 

7. Location: Ok, not only is Royal Maharajah is right in HK, it's also 2 shops away from my flat...how lucky is that? :-P But really, both restaurants are easy to find as they are located in each city's Old Town area.

So well, I think all things considered, it's a bit of a tie between them. But if  I have time and want to feel like I am on a little holiday, I'll head for Ganga's...heeee

Restaurace Šatlava

It's really surprising that this restaurant is just a couple of steps from my place; yet I have only been here TWICE. in my TWO years of living at Velke Namesti. Even after hearing a lot praises about the food. It's just one of those restaurants where I thought would create a hole in my pocket...so I kinda surreptitiously avoid it. :-P But really, that's not the case at all. It's definitely an upper-scale [at least it exudes that atmosphere] restaurant than Mexita, Sports Cafe but the price can be around the same.

 I first went there for my 22nd birthday and returned for a visit together with Martina, Yumi and Sara. Their menu has changed for the spring and summer. Their menu....hmm....compared to a lot of restaurant is kinda short. Even when compared to Little Creatures in Perth [previously thought by me to have the shortest menu]

Spinach cream soup with salmon pieces and cheese - 50Kc

The only other place I have had spinach soup was Cafe Popular; and compared to that, I actually like this one better. True, like what Sara and Yumi said, there's not much spinach taste to it as the cream kind of dominates over...which makes it super creamy. But the thumbs up part for me is the salmon slices they gave. :-D plus the portion. But yeah, I suppose I have to agree that they need to add more spinach to the soup. :-P
 

 

Grilled mackerel with tomaties and potatoes slices - 160Kc

This was what I had. It's really nice and all, but not really anything special?? Maybe it's all about the grilling technique. Granted, the fish flesh was rather succulent; doesn't seem to be dry from the grilling process. Oh and I shouldn't have added too much lime juice too it...too sour for me :-P

 

 Duck Breast on fresh spinach and oranges - 120Kc with potatoes slices - 35Kc

Oooh...I love the duck breast on this dish. Btw, this was actually under the 'salad' section. Really quite unlike any salad I have seen..haha, not that I have seen much. :-P Back to the duck breast...it's so so juicy, with just the right amount of fat to melt in your mouth. Yum!!!! Hehe...this was Yumi's choice btw. 

Stuffed chicken breast with parma ham and salad - 150Kc

 This was Martina's. Didn't taste it but should be nice. She did finish the whole thing. ;-D

Fried chicken wings with potatoes and blue cheese sauce - 100Kc

And the last but not least; Sara's selection. To be honest, I'd had better fried chicken wings...even done in similar style. I just feel there's not enough seasoning to it. Too much flour-y taste to it. :-P

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I'll still return to this restaurant for the food...esp. the duck breast! The place isn't that big. So if it's weekend, it's best to make a reservation...we were lucky this time there was an extra table.Sometimes, they have this DJ service thingy...it was 80's and 90's on the day we went. It was kinda a bit too loud....:-P

Btw, the toilet signs are just a tad bit confusing...just remember the 'circle with a cross' is for FEMALES and 'circle with an arrow' is for MALES!

Plus...shhhHHHH.....there's a waiter there who is really cute...really charming smile...hahahaha!!!! I think there is only one guy working there, so you'll definitely find out who!

Restaurace Šatlava

Dlouhá ul. 101,
Hradec Králové 50002

http://www.restauracesatlava.cz/index.html
+420 604 974 830


Opening hours:
Mon-Thurs 11.00 - 23.00
Fri-Sat 11.00 - 24.00
Sun 11.00 - 21.00

Mackerel Seafood Assam Pedas

While 'spring-cleaning' my cupboard of food, I found that I still have 2 packets of Assam Pedas Seafood Paste from Delichef. I knew I had to use it then for that week's cooking hangout even if it's a bit cheating...hehe! I researched a bit to confirm that people really do use mackerels for this dish. Frozen mackerels are available at Kaufland at CZK 59.90 for 1 kilogram of them. Each pack have roughly 4 fish with the head intact.

It was my first time using this fish. I had been searching for it ever since Anderson came for a visit and bought some marinated mackerel which he just microwaved. I think some people still cook this fish along with its head. But for me, I prefer to cut it off. :-P It was a funny time trying to deal with the preparation of the fish.

Ingredients: 

• Delichef Assam Pedas Seafood Paste
• Mackerel; chopped into large piece [If too small, the fish might just melt]
• Seafood mix
• Brinjal; somewhat large pieces
• Tomatoes; quartered [again, if too small, it will melt off]
• Chilli
• Lemon juice
• Egg; hard-boiled

Method:

1. Boil the eggs
2. Fry the brinjal in a pot; take it out after half cooked
3. Boil a pot of water in the same pot [reduce washing :-P] 
4. Add the paste into the pot; stirring it until it's mixed evenly
5. Add in brinjal and tomatoes
6. Add in mackerel and hard-boiled eggs
7. Lastly add in seafood mix [they are small already, so I didn't want to shrink them further....]
8. Taste and add lemon juice accordingly to how sour you like your Assam Pedas to be. :-)
9. Eat with rice. Soak the rice with the soup!  YUM!

[Note: At the point of adding the mackerel and hard-boiled eggs, I realized I put too much ingredients and we had to transfer to another pot...hehe...]

Verdict: 
Jannik like it just the way it is. But I think I would have preferred it to be a bit more sourish. Overall, it's just so, so easy to cook and really tasty. Gonna ask mum to get me more of the paste. XD Oh and I wish HK had okras. :-(

Japanese Curry with Rice

 

Japanese Curry is one of the food that just has to be on the list of every lazy student's list. 

1. It's easy to make
2. It doesn't take long
3. It's delicious regardless of what you add to it
4. It's filling
5. You usually would have leftovers, so you are pretty much settled for the next few meals! :-D

Ingredients:

1. Japanese Curry Roux [Any brand, any kind]
2. Any vegetables [I like potatoes, carrots, cauliflower and onions]
3. Meat eg. chicken, beef. Fish is not recommended because they tend to melt [For this time around, I made mine vegetarian]

 Methods:

1.  Lightly fry your meat and vegetables in a pot
2. Add water to your pot till it covers all the ingredients
3. Bring to boil; then break off a few pieces of curry roux and add to pot
4. Stir the roux around; let it melt
5. If at this point, you feel the curry is too soup-like, add more roux! :-D
6. It's done when the vegetables esp. potatoes are cooked 
7. Other than rice, it can be eaten with spaghetti, noodles, etc.

Verdict: 
There just couldn't be anything that I can imagine would go wrong in cooking this at all. 

Baked Soy-bean Paste Salmon Steak

I love salmon!!! Esp. RAWWWW! They have a distinctive taste unlike other fish. I love fish taste. quite like fishy smell too. :-P

Salmon's supposedly packed with Omega-3 that's really good for cholesterol control. Ever since I found out thru Sie Ong that TESCO sells them for a rather reasonable price [37.90 CZK per 100 grams for salmon with skin, 39.90 CZK per 100 grams for salmon without skin...and sometimes, they even have discounts :-D ], I have been buying them like crazy...at one point, I was eating salmon every week! I could even eat it everyday! But then I read from some websites that says the accumulation of toxic chemicals in salmons esp. in farmed salmons. I have no idea whether the salmons from TESCO is farmed or wild. But that stopped me from going crazy over salmon. Now I buy them maybe once a month.


Salmon's really easy to work with. Because I love the fish taste, I wouldn't want to do anything that covers it up too much. This is one of the recipe I have experimented with.

Ingredients: 

• Salmon; 200grams
• Soy Bean Paste
• Salt
• Chilli Powder
• Instant Mashed Potato Powder XD
• Peas
• Broccoli
• Crab Sticks
• Butter/ Margarine
• Pepper

 Method:

1. Preheat oven to 150 - 200 Celcius
2. Descale the salmon skin
3. Rub on soy bean paste, chilli powder and pepper. 
4. Rub salt on skin
5. Add oil into pan
6. Dump into oven and bake for roughly 10 minutes [*I don't like my salmon overcooked :-P]
7. For the sides; melt a lump of butter/ margarine on pan. Add peas, broccoli and crab sticks to it. 
8. Season with salt and pepper
9. Follow instruction on the box of your instant mashed potatoes :-P

Seasoning with chili powder, pepper, salt, soy bean pasta

All done!

With the side dishes

The foil adds a touch of finesse to the overall look, doesn't it? But it was unintentional. It's just that the salmon skin is stuck to the foil and I didn't want to waste it. So I just transfer it from the baking pan to my plate and scrape them all later. XD

Verdict: 

I am very biased when it comes to salmon dishes. Salmon just taste good as it is ie. without any seasoning ala sashimi. With this recipe, I'd say it gives a flavouring to the salmon without making the salmon lose its original salmon-ness. :-P

Soy Sauce Pork

 I prepared the long beans as a back-up dish just in case my pork dish backfired. 

How's that for Plan B? :-P

I put off  trying to experiment making these because I don't know how to make it. Then seeing this dish again in VKeong's post ignited my courage! I searched but I couldn't find the recipe anywhere on the internet. All I had was the memory of its taste. And since my guinea pig for this experiment doesn't mind eating anything, I decided to just wing it. :-D

Ingredients:

• Pork Belly, sliced thinly [0.5cm, if you can :-P]
• Light Soy Sauce
• Dark Soy Sauce
• Sweet and Sour Sauce
• Sugar 
• Corn Flour

* I added them according to 'as I like' method' :-)

Method:

1. Slice the pork belly into thin pieces
2. Marinade with mixture of light soy sauce and dark soy sauce [for about 10 minutes]
3. Just before frying, coat the pork slices with corn flour evenly
4. Heat oil and fry them till crisp. At this point, it can already be eaten :-D
5. To make the sauce, add sweet and sour sauce, light soy sauce and dark soy sauce to empty pan
6. Add sugar and stir till its melted
7. Coat the fried pork with the sauce thoroughly

 

Experiment No. 1: Ready-to-be-eaten-as-it-is

 The true experiment: Coated with sauce :-D

Verdict: 
Maybe I have not eaten it for a very long time [which is true], but I felt it's the same exact stuff that I was craving for! It was, in my opinion, a success! I was so excited that I actually wing it correctly...wow! Just that we didn't cut the pork belly think enough, I think. Some pieces were a bit hard chewy-like. But it's so tough to cut them into nice thin slices. Definitely on my list of to-cook for my family when I get back home....:-) Thanks again, Jannik as the guinea pig this time.

*I need to start numbering my guinea pigs...haha :-P*

KFC Binging

Every now and then, I crave for some crispy, juicy KFC....! [about every week, actually] But on Thursday, I had such an intense craving for it...I almost skipped my Czech class for it. Luckily, that night together with my neighbour; Yumi, after painting eggs for Easter, we went for it....and thankfully, we were in a serious KFC rage!

From what I've experienced, it seems that McD in every place I've been to have more similarities than KFC does. And McD tastes the same. The weird thing is KFC is not....but aren't they all prepared using the same Colonel's secret recipe??

Anyway, here's what the KFC in the Czech Republic looks like. Taste-wise, I think Malaysia's one is spicier and we have more creative new menus...:-P There's only 2 branch of KFC in HK...this one and the one in FUTURUM; the local mall. Compare this to Malaysia; which practically has it everywhere....wonder what that say's about Malaysian's eating habits! :-P

 Hot Wings Menu [99 CZK]

I almost always had this. In my opinion, it's the best deal if you don't like burgers. 

 Yumi's Wrapstar Menu [119 CZK]

Like I  said, we were in the mood for some serious binging...

After eating up our first order, we still felt hungry...

We think and contemplate getting some other thing to eat. At last, we decided to share a bucket of Hot Wings...muahahahaha

30 pieces of Hot Wings [269 CZK]

 Happiness "r" us!

Our handwork: 20 pieces of wings. :-D

We brought the remaining 15 home. 

I think I won't be eating KFC for a while now. And I know Yumi feels the same! Hahaha...let's see how long this time's satisfaction can last us....!!!

Plus, after that, we head over to McD; just a few steps from it to get a sundae cone for me and Yumi got a blueberry muffin. *Blissful life*

KFC

Pilnáčkova 485/3a,
50003 Hradec Králové
Opening Hours:
Mo-Fri 7:30 - 22:30
Sat-Sun 8:00 - 23:00

** Near Kaufland and behind the Faculty of Medicine**

Best Birthday Cake ever: Lemon Cake

This is the first home-baked birthday cake I've gotten! So pretty and delicious!

I just have to show this off! Or actually help my friend; Jannik who baked it, show it off....haha. I could hardly believe that he really, really BAKED it! I don't know how many times I actually voice my disbelief to him....:-P Never thought that he could bake. In truth, I am really very touched by his effort. :-)

The cute little decorations! 

I actually have issues about eating figurine-shaped food. :-P Ridiculous, I know! This is my first attempt in making myself eat them. I cheated by closing my eyes when I put them in! :-P

Had it for breakfast throughout the week

The recipe he used was in German. I translated using google translator. ^_^

Ingredients:

• 200 grams Cream 
• 180 grams Sugar 
• 240 grams Flour 
• 1 packet Vanilla Sugar 
• 1 packet Baking Powder 
• 4 Eggs 
• 1 tsp Lemon Peel 
• 1 tsp Lemon Flavoring ** [1 tsp of mixed lemon peel and lemon flavoring?? or 1 tsp of each?? Clarify with him]
• 30 grams Powdered Sugar 
• 2 tsp Lemon Juice

 ** He got these decorations from Kaufland

Methods:

1. This lemon cake can be easily and quickly prepared.  
2. One need only 1 cup of cream (200 g) into a bowl.  
3. With the clean cup cream you can measure the other ingredients, if you do not have scales to weigh.  
4. In the event you are still 1 cup sugar (180 g), 2 cups flour (240 g) vanilla sugar, baking powder, eggs, lemon peel and a few drops of lemon flavor to the cream.
5. Stir well until a thin dough.  
6. Butter is not needed and only to grease the loaf pan.  
7. Pour the dough in a preheated oven at 180 degrees about 50-60 minutes on the middle rail bake.  
8. 10 minutes to cool in the mold.  
9. Then throw on a grill and allow to cool completely.  
10. Powdered sugar with lemon juice so much stir until a plump white sugar cream.  
11. Brush the cold lemon cake with it.  

** Hahaha....funny translation right? More or less understandable I think!

Verdicts:

From my experience, the cake can be stored in the fridge for nearly a week. I was slowly savoring it throughout the week. All 5 of us plus Jaysal and Sie Ong tried it and all praised its taste, texture and deco! The cake is not too dry, not too moist. Just the right bite. Tastewise, it's so rich with lemon taste. 

 

* Thumbs Up!* We have discovered a cake decorator and baker in town! 

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Thank you again, Jannik for this lovely and memorable gift! :-D

Looking forward to more of your baked goods! 

Hehehehehe...