Pan-fried Eggplant with Soy

Ingredients:

2 Eggplants, halved lengthwise

3 tablespoons Soy Sauce

1.5 tablespoons Sugar

3 tablespoons Ginger, grated

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

Sesame Seed for garnish (optional)

Direction:

1. In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients except the vegetable oil and eggplants.

2. Add oil in a non stick pan. Place the eggplants in the pan with skin side up.  Turn on the heat to medium. Fry them for about 5 minutes.

3. Pour the sauce over the eggplant. Continue to fry until the sauce is absorbed, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top if using. Enjoy.

Easy Cold Somen | 簡易冷素麵

Cold somen is a light dinner that my family like to enjoy in the hot days.  The noodles take only a few minutes to cook and you will spend the most preparation time on grating daikon and slicing scallion.  To make the meal even simpler, I used the store bought soba dipping sauce instead of making my own.  Within 20 minutes, this chilled somen is ready to be served.

INGREDIENTS:

3-4 bundles Somen (Soba)

3 Scallion, thinly sliced

20 gram Ginger, grated

1 Daikon, peeled and finely grated

Store bought Soba Dipping Sauce

DIRECTION:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  Add about a teaspoon of salt.  Add somen and cook according to the package; about 2 minutes.

2. Drain the somen.  Run it under cold running water until it totally cools down; drain it again.

3. To serve, combine the dipping sauce with some scallion, daikon, and ginger.

Seasonal Peach and Ginger Vinaigrette | 蜜桃薑沙拉醬汁

When you have some overly ripe peaches, this salad dressing will be a good idea to use them up.  You can always taste the peaches before adding agave syrup so that you can have a better control of the sweetness.  This dressing is best to go with bitter greens such as kale, arugula, and spinach.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Peach, pitted

Salad Green

Thumb size of Ginger, fresh, peeled

3 tablespoons Olive Oil

1 tablespoon Agave Syrup

1 tablespoon White Vinegar

1 teaspoon Poppy Seeds

Small pinch of Sea Salt

材料：

1 個  桃，去核

沙律菜

一節  薑，去皮

3 湯匙  橄欖油

1 湯匙  龍舌蘭蜜

1 湯匙  白醋

1 茶匙  罌粟籽

少撮  海鹽

DIRECTION  做法：

1. In a blender, add all ingredients.  Process until the mixture until it becomes smooth.  Drizzle on the salad before serving.

1. 在攪拌器內加入所有材料，攪拌直至其變成汁料。

Honey Garlic Pork Chop | 蜜糖蒜香豬扒

Honey Garlic Ginger Pork Chop

蜜糖蒜香豬扒  

Ingredients:

5 Pork Chops

3 tablespoons Honey

1 head Garlic, minced

1/4 cup Ginger, chopped

1 tablespoon Sugar

2 tablespoons Rice Wine

1.5 tablespoons Dark Soy Sauce

1.5 tablespoons Corn Starch

1/4 teaspoon Salt

材料：

5 塊   豬扒

3 湯匙   蜜糖

1 整棵   蒜頭

1/4 杯   薑粒

1 湯匙   白砂糖

2 湯匙   米酒

1.5 湯匙   老抽

1.5 湯匙   栗粉

1/4 茶匙 鹽

DIRECTION:

Spinach Pig Liver Soup | 菠菜豬肝湯

Spinach Pig Liver Soup | 菠菜豬肝湯  

Ingredients:

250 gram Pig Liver, rinsed and patted dried

4 cups Spinach, rinsed

1.5 tablespoons Dried Wolf Berries, rinsed

60 gram Ginger, peeled, cut into chunk

Marinade:

1 tablespoon Ground Ginger

1 tablespoon Corn Starch

1/4 cup Rice Wine

1/2 tablespoon Salt

材料：

250 克   豬肝，洗淨，抹乾

4 杯   菠菜，洗淨

1.5 湯匙   杞子，洗淨

60 克薑粒

醃料：

1 湯匙   薑蓉

1 湯匙   粟粉

1/4 杯   米酒

1/2 湯匙   鹽

DIRECTION:

Stir-fried Sweet Lime Chicken Wings | 青檸雞翼

Stir-fried Sweet Lime Chicken Wings

青檸雞翼

Ingredients:

2 pounds Chicken Wings

15 gram Ginger slices ( x 2 portions)

1/4 cup Freshly squeezed Lime Juice and Zest

3.5 tablespoons Sugar

1/2 tablespoon Salt

2.5 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

材料：

2 磅   雞翼

15 克   薑片 ( x 2 份)

1/4 杯   鮮榨青檸汁和皮

3.5 湯匙   糖

1/2 湯匙   鹽

2.5 湯匙   菜油

DIRECTION:

Honey Candied Ginger | 蜜糖薑糖

Honey Candied Ginger | 蜜糖薑糖

Ingredients:

2 pcs Young Ginger Roots, organic

1/3 cup Honey

2 cups White Sugar

Icing sugar (optional)

材料：

2 塊   有機嫩薑

1/3 杯   蜜糖

2 杯   白糖

糖霜 (隨意)

DIRECTION:

Perilla Leaf Kimchi ｜紫蘇葉泡菜

If you have ever visited a Korean supermarket, you probably have seen perilla leaves.  They are usually sold in bundles or in packages.  Perilla leaf is a common vegetable that belongs to the mint family, with a mild herby flavour somewhat similar to anise and basil; it is widely used in Korean cuisine as vegetable, kimchi, flavouring, or wrap.

Perilla leaf isn't usually found in Hong Kong cuisine, so I learnt this wonderful leaf late after I moved to downtown Toronto, where Korean cuisine is broadly embraced. 

Funny is that my first experience of perilla leaf wasn't a nice one.  I always noticed the herby note of these vivid green leaves, but I'd never realized how strong it could taste when putting the whole piece of leaf in the mouth, along with the hot rice or spicy marinade.  I remember I swallowed it down hard, followed by a full glass of water and a few bites of other side dishes.

After that, I tried to stay away from perilla leaves, but I still bought them whenever I go to the Korean supermarket, just because I was attracted to their beautiful look.  Once I have them, I have to cook them, right?  Through time, I learned to enjoy its distinct flavour and perilla leaf kimchi has become the Korean recipe I make most often and enjoy most by far.

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you enjoy this recipe.

You can buy perilla leaves at Korean supermarkets.

Perilla leaves are available all year around, but their have much better leaves in summer.

Perilla Leaf Kimchi 

紫蘇葉泡菜

Kimchi

Ingredients:

15-20 pcs Perilla Leaves

2 tablespoons Glutinous Flour

1/2 cup Water

4 tablespoons Fish Sauce

2 tablespoons Red Chile Flakes

1 tablespoon Garlic, peeled and minced

1 tablespoon Ginger, peeled and minced

How to make it:

1. Rinse the perilla leaves under cold running water.  Drain and set them aside.

2. In a glass bowl, combine the glutinous rice with 1/2 cup of water.  Mix it well.  Microwave the mixture for about 30 seconds; stir well.  Then return it back to the microwave to heat it for another 25-30 seconds, or until the mixture become gluey.

Don't over heat it, otherwise the mixture will turn lumpy or harden and it will have to start over again.

3. Combine the rest of the ingredients except the perilla leaves into the glutinous mixture.  Stir it until it becomes chilli paste.

4. Spread 1-2 teaspoons of the chilli paste on a perilla leaf.  Then, place another perilla leaf on top, and spread the chilli paste on it again.  Repeat this process until you finish all the perilla leaves.

5. Store the perilla leaves in an air-tight container.  Leave it at room temperature for two days before serving it.  Transfer the rest to the fridge and it can keep up to 4 days.

6. To serve, wrap a small bite of rice with a perilla leaf, and then put the whole thing in the mouth.

Home-brew Ginger Ale ｜ 自釀農村味薑酒

You don’t need any fancy equipment to make this delicious beverage.  All you need is a pasta container.

I started to make my own alcoholic drinks a few years ago.  I realized that to make your own wine is a big step to being more self-sufficient.  Also, it’s really awesome when you share your homebrew wine with your family and friends.

For this recipe, I used bread yeast and a pasta container as my brewing kit.

Perhaps it may sound a little absurd for many professional wine makers; however, my wine comes out crisp and gingery, and does not taste like bread or syrup after all.  I would say, it is a carbonated dry ginger ale.  The downside of this method is that the ginger ale is cloudy instead of clear.  However, you can always filter the beverage through a very fine cloth or paper towel.  I’ve never done it before.  I don’t mind the colour or the little residue on the bottom.

Home-brew Ginger Ale

Ingredients:

30 grams Ginger with skin, add more if you like stronger taste

 4 cups Water, filtered; or use spring water

1/2 Lemon of Juice

1/2 cup Sugar

1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Bakers Yeast

Equipment:

A pasta container, with lid, cleaned

How to make:

1. In a pot, add the water, sugar, and baking powder. Grate the ginger into the water. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil. Then, turn off the heat and add the lemon juice. Stir well.

2. Allow the liquid to cool down to about 23C. If you don’t have a thermometer, try to taste it with your finger. It should be slightly more than luke warm.

3. Stir in the yeast and make sure it is totally dissolved.

4. Bottle the liquid up to just more than half of the container.

*This is very important to prevent the liquid from overflowing during the fermentation process*

5. Put the lid on. DO NOT SCREW IT TIGHT!!!  You just want to put the lid on without twisting it.  It must be loose enough for the gas to escape during the fermentation.  Otherwise, the bottle will explode.  Store the bottle in a dark place and check the liquid a few times a day to monitor the process.

The ginger ale will be ready in two days. I like mine dry with higher alcohol content, so I leave it in the bottle for three days before drinking it.

To bottle the drink, just simply keep the contianer in the fridge and screw the lid tight.  However, REMEMBER TO RELEASE THE GAS EVERYDAY UNTIL YOU FINISH IT.

I hope you enjoy the drink. Cheers!