Sher Ping Pancakes (adapted from Jamie's America)

Growing up in a Chinese family in Malaysia, I can confidently say we eat a lot of biscuits and pancakes; different forms of them. We have the sweet and we also have a wide range or savoury ones as well.

Today I am going to write about this little gem that caught my eye when I was browsing through the Jamie's America, a recipe book I manage to get my hands on during the Big Bad Wolf Sales this year. I have not had this particular one when I was growing up, but I sure did have something very similar before.

Looking at the recipe just brings out the kid in me. The reminiscence of those savoury snacks my parents used to get for us after their morning run to the market.

So I told Joanna, I really have to try this recipe. We then headed out to the market to get some ingredients for the filling and had a go at the recipe. However, we decided to change the filling to give it a twist of our own; inspired by the taste that we grew up with.

Filling

400g of mince pork

1 stalk of leek

1 spring onion

2 tablespoon or ginger and garlic paste (pound equal lengths of ginger and garlic cloves together)

3-4 leaves of Chinese Leaves

salt and pepper (to taste)

2 shot of whiskey

3 tablespoons of Shao Hsing wine

Pancake Dough

500g of bread flour

a few tablespoons of olive oil

about 15g of salt and a pinch or two of black pepper

enough water to combine the dough

Asian Spicy Sauce

1.5 tablespoons of ginger and garlic paste

5 tablespoons of fish sauce

1.5 tablespoons of honey

1 paddy chili (finely cut)

half tablespoon of Tabasco sauce

3 tablespoons of lime juice

water to dilute

Mushroom Risotto

Risotto is an Italian rice dish, usually cooked in broth to a creamy consistency. Rice was essentially introduced to Sicily, Italy and Spain by the Arabs during their rule around the Middle Ages.The flat and humid territories of Italy was found to have very favourable climate to grow these short-grain rice. Rice quickly become a staple all around Italy.

It is not very clear how did risotto came about, but a young apprentice by the name of Valerius is thought to be the creator of risotto and one that invented the famous Milan yellow risotto (Risotto alla Milanese). Valerius was supposedly tasked to work on the stained-glass windows of the Cathedral Duomo Di Milan in 1574. While he was working on the windows, the people at that time made fun of him and accredited the beautiful colours of the stained-glass to the saffron rather than Valerius himself. Valerius was furious. He devised comeback plan to play a trick on the people during his master’s wedding. He added excessive amount saffron into the rice dish during the wedding with the intention to ruin the dish and the festivities of the wedding. 

His act of retribution backed fire and everyone loved the risotto. There are also accounts that its actually Valerius team/apprentices that played a trick on him during his daughter's wedding. Whatever it is, we are glad someone played that trick. Risotto is indeed a lovely dish to have.

Now, there are a variety of risotto recipes. Just a quick search on the Internet, you will find all kind of recipes. Going back to our recipe today, here is a breakdown of it:

 Ingredients

450g Mix of Swiss Brown and White Mushrooms (sliced finely)

2 Shallots (chopped finely)

1 cup of Arborio Rice

1 cup of White Wine

5 cups of Chicken Stocks

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 tablespoon of Salted Butter

Salt and Black Pepper

Chives (chopped finely)

2 handfuls of grated Parmesan Cheese

Beef Steak with Basil Vinegrette/Vinaigrette

Beef is another meat that I love working with. It has a very unique and intense flavour to it, Jo and I like to call it the "beefiness" taste. Growing up, my family do take beef, but it was always cooked traditionally into soups and occasional into stew. My parents, like most traditional Chinese parents, they prefer beef cooked thoroughly and into soups. When growing up, I always wondered how a proper steak tasted like. To be honest, I cannot recall when exactly I had my first steak. But it was not as pleasant I thought. Haha. I think it was a cafe or some sort in Malaysia during my college times.

Because of that, I was determine make myself a good piece of steak. Over the years, watched a lot of videos/cooking show on how different chefs prepare their steaks. Tried many times over the years, maybe I think I have finally made ourselves a proper steak. Coming from a Chinese family, it is not common for us to eat our beef rare. But I grow older (even Jo agrees with me), rare beef do taste rather amazing. Love the texture, the smell and the how well a good thin slice really just melts in your mouth.

Here is my take on a classic new york strip, also known as a striploin steak. Medium rare, served with a fresh basil vinegrette.

Ingredients

Steaks

2 Grass-fed Striploin Steaks (got ours from Jaya Grocer, price is rather reasonable, vacuumed individually thus ensuring the freshness is maintained)

6 Cloves of garlic

Salt

Pepper

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Butter

Fresh thyme

Basil Vinegrette

50g Basil leaves

1 Lemon (Squeezed and seeds removed)

3 tablespoons of wholegrain mustard

1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar

4 tablespoon of Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper