Lemony Lentil Soup

It is a wonderfully filling and delicious soup that can warm your body up in a cold weather.  It is something that I would make a big pot and bring it to work everyday for lunch.  I know the list of ingredients looks so long, but do not let that intimidates you.  Most of the items are just spices.  I hope you will enjoy this recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup Green Lentils, rinsed

1 Yellow Onion, peeled and chunked

2 Carrots, cut into bite size

2 Potatoes or green bananas, cut into bite size

1 Zucchini, cut into bite size

3 Tomatoes, cut into chunked

7-8 Garlic Cloves, peeled and minced

2 cups Canned Diced Tomatoes

1 cup Cilantro, roughly chopped

4 Limes, juiced (can be substitute for lemon)

4 cups Vegetable Broth

2 cups Water

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil (for frying)

1 teaspoon Ground Cumin

1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder

1/2 teaspoon Cayenne Power

1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

1-2 tablespoons Red Chili (optional)

Salt to taste

DIRECTION:

1. Heat up the oil over high heat.  Add onion and garlic.  Fry until they are fragrant; about 5 minutes.

2. Add lentils, zucchini, potato, tomato and carrot.  Stir fry for about 5-10 minutes.

3. Add diced tomatoes, vegetable broth, water and all the spices.  Bring it to a boil over high heat and then continuously cook for another 15 minutes.

3. Turn off the heat.  Add cilantro and lime juice.  Season the soup with salt to taste.

Simple Saag Paneer

INGREDIENTS:

1 black Paneer, cubed

6 stalks Spinach, fresh

1 Yellow Onion, small, finely chopped

1 Tomato, finely chopped

2-inches long Ginger, peeled and finely chopped

7 Garlic Cloves, peeled and finely chopped

1 tablespoon Ground Cumin

1 tablespoon Ground Turmeric

1.5 tablespoons Garam Masala

1 teaspoon Chilli Flakes

1/3 teaspoon Salt

1/2 cup Greek Yogurt, plain

DIRECTION:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat.  Add spinach.  Cook the spinach until softened; about 5 minutes.  Drain well; finely chop the spinach.  Set it aside.

2. Heat up about 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a non-stick pan.  Add cubed paneer and fry until they are golden brown over medium heat.  Transfer them to a plate; set aside.

3. Add another tablespoon of vegetable oil in the pan.  Add chopped garlic, ginger and onion.  Fry them over medium heat until fragrant.

4. Turn up the heat to high.  Add spinach, tomato, cumin, turmeric, masala, chili flakes and salt.  Continuously cook the mixture until the chopped tomato is soft and most of the liquid is gone.

5. Reduce the heat to medium again.  Stir in the yogurt and add the panner back to the spinach.  Cook until the panner heats through.  Quickly transfer the spinach mix to the serving plate.  Serve it with steamed rice.

Pan Fried Crispy Soy Skin with Lemon Sauce 自製西檸素鴨

It is a super simple recipe requiring basically tofu skins and a lemon.  The dash of turmeric is to create the bright yellow look; omit it if you don't have it on hand.  Since the tofu skins don't have a lot of flavour, the sauce is really the key here.  Try to use a real lemon instead of commercial juice, and add a generous amount of the sauce to soak through the tofu skins before serving.  Enjoy.

INGREDIENTS:

2 Large Soy Skins, frozen (thawed)

2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil 

SAUCE INGREDIENTS:

1 Lemon of zest and juice

1 tablespoon White Vinegar

4 tablespoons Sugar

1/2 teaspoon Cornstarch

3 tablespoons Water

1/4 teaspoon Turmeric

材料：

2 張  急凍腐皮，解凍

2 湯匙  菜油

汁料：

1 個  檸檬，皮和汁

1 湯匙  白醋

4 湯匙  糖

1/2 茶匙  粟粉

3 湯匙   水

1/4 茶匙  黃薑粉

DIRECTION 做法：

1. fold the tofu skin in half.

1. 腐皮對摺。

2. Fold left and right side toward centre to create an envelope shape.

2. 左邊和右邊向內對摺成信封狀。

3. From the bottom, fold the tofu skin into the centre.  The fold should be about 4 cm in height.

3. 將底部向中間對摺；摺疊部份應若4厘米高。

4. Turn the tofu skin up-side-down.  Fold the bottom part in half.

4. 將腐皮倒轉；將底部向中間對摺。

5. Fold it inward again.

5. 再對摺。

6. Stuff the bottom part into the "pocket" of the top part.

6. 將底部小心塞入上半部份的"袋"中。

7. Heat up oil over medium heat.  Add tofu skin roll.  Fried both side until crispy; about 2 minutes each side.  Be careful, it burns very quickly. Cut it into equal pieces and transfer them to a serving plate.

7. 油以中火燒熱。下素鴨；煎至兩邊金黃香脆做可；若2分鐘。把素鴨切件；上碟備用。

8. In a small pot, combine all the sauce ingredients; mix well.  Cook it over medium heat until the consistency thickens; stirring it constantly.  Pour it directly over the tofu skin once it is done.

8. 在一只小鍋內加入所有汁料；拌勻。用中火煮至濃稠；期間要不斷攪拌。完成後便可淋上素鴨。

Creamy Roasted Butternut Squash Turmeric Soup

The butternut squash is roasted until soft and nearly caramelized.  Then it is blended with carrot and mushroom broth with fresh thyme and a touch of turmeric.  It is creamy, comforting, and filling!

INGREDIENTS:

1 Butternut Squash

1 Yellow Onion

2 Carrots

 6 garlic Cloves

1/4 cup Butter 

1 Litre Mushroom Broth

1/2 cup Milk, 2%

1/2 teaspoon Turmeric

6 sprigs Thyme, fresh

Salt to taste

DIRECTION:

1. Pre heat oven to 360F.

2. Cut the butternut squash in half lengthwise.  Scoop out the seeds and cut off the hard skin.  Cut the flesh into cubes.  Add the cubes in a mixing bowl with two tablespoons of vegetable oil; mix well.

3. Pour them on a foil covered roasting pan.  Roast in the oven until they are soft and caramelized; about 25 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, cut the onion into small chunks.  Peel and smash the garlic.  Cut the carrot into small pieces.

5. When the squash is ready heat up butter in a soup pot over high heat.  Add onion, carrot, thyme and turmeric; sauté for a few minutes.   Add mushroom broth and roasted squash.  Bring it to a boil and then continue to cook until the carrot has totally softened; about 20 minutes.  Discard the thyme.

6. With a blender, process until the soup is smooth and chunk-less.  Add milk; season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.  

We love to serve the soup with injera bread.

Scrambled Egg with Zucchini ｜義大利青瓜炒蛋

Scrambled egg is amazingly easy to make. It can be put together in less than 10 minutes.  It can go with most of the vegetable or meat that's on hand, but it is also super tasty on its own.  This recipe is one of those that starts with "when you have half of a zucchini left in the fridge" ...

We love this recipe, and think the turmeric does a fantastic job adding an exotic flavour to it.  It is a pleasure to serve it as a light dish on a weeknight or a full brunch on the weekend.

INGREDIENTS:

1 Zucchini, small

6 Eggs, large

1/3 teaspoon Paprika

1/2 teaspoon Turmeric Powder

1 teaspoon Chinese Cooking Rice Wine

1/3 teaspoon Salt

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

材料：

1 條  義大利青瓜

6 隻  大雞蛋

1/3 茶匙 甜紅椒粉

1/2 茶匙  黃薑粉

1 茶匙  米酒

1/3 茶匙  鹽

2 湯匙  菜油

DIRECTION:

1. Cut the zucchini into sticks; set aside.

2. In a bowl, whisk together eggs, cooking wine, paprika, turmeric, and salt until smooth.

3. In a non-stick pan, heat up oil over high heat.  Add zucchini; stir fry until it becomes slightly softened.  Turn down the heat to medium-high.  Add egg mixture.  Continue to stir fry until the egg reaches to the desired texture; about 3-5 minutes.  Serve.

做法：

1. 青瓜切條；備用。

2. 在一只碗內，加入蛋、米酒、甜紅椒粉、黃薑粉和鹽；攪打至均勻。

3. 在易潔鍋內加入菜油，用大火加熱。下青瓜；炒至微軟。把火調低至中大火。下蛋液；繼續炒至蛋凝固。上桌。

Portuguese Chicken | 簡易葡國雞

Portuguese chicken is a common dish you can find in many cha chan teng (the fast food style restaurant) in Hong Kong.  The dish can be served with steamed rice, spaghetti, or udon.

I always thought Portuguese chicken originated from Portugal, until one day my husband asked me, "Do Portuguese really use coconut milk and turmeric? I thought these are Asian ingredients."  It is so true.  Portugal wouldn't have coconut trees and turmeric roots hundreds of years ago.  So I looked up the history about it and realized this Portuguese chicken is a signature dish that originates from Macau and it won't be found in Portugal.

A long time ago when Portuguese sailors set off to explore the seas, they did lots of spice trades with Africa and Asia before setting foot on Macau.  Many of them married and had children with the locals there.  And this Portuguese chicken was created by their descendants who combined the spices they had collected with their own cooking style.  This dish signifies the history of Macau.

This recipe contains the healthy balance of vegetables and meat. The extra bonus of it is that it is a one-pot-meal so it makes the clean up pretty easy.

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

INGREDIENTS：

5 Chicken Legs, deboned and cut into bite size

2 Carrot, peeled and cut into small chunks

2 Potatoes, cut into bite size

1 Red Onion, cut into large chunks

7-8 Garlic Cloves, sliced

1 cup Corn (I used frozen)

1 Yellow Pepper, deseeded, cut into sticks

1/3 cup Coconut Cream

2 tablespoons Cumin Powder

1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder

Cornstarch Slurry (1/3 cup Water + 1 tablespoon Cornstarch)

4 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

1 teaspoon Salt

材料：

5 隻  雞腿，去骨，肉切小塊

2 條  甘筍，去皮，切小件

2 隻  薯仔，切小塊

1 個  紅洋蔥，切大塊

7-8 瓣  蒜頭，切粒

1 杯  粟米粒 (我這兒用上急凍)

1 個  黃燈籠椒，去籽，切條

1/3 杯  椰漿

2 湯匙  小茴香粉

1 茶匙  黃薑粉

粟粉水 (1/3 杯水＋1 湯匙粟粉)

4 湯匙  菜油

1 茶匙  鹽

DIRECTION 做法：

1. Heat up vegetable oil in a non-stick pan over high heat.  Add garlic and onion and sauté until it is fragrant; about 5 minutes.

1. 菜油在不黏鍋內以大火燒熱。下蒜頭和洋蔥，炒至香氣四溢；若5分鐘。

2. Add chicken pieces until they start to turn colour.

2. 下雞件，炒至其開始轉色。

3. Add potatoes and carrots.  Continue to stir fry until potatoes become soft; about 8-10 minutes.

3. 下薯仔和甘筍，繼續炒至薯仔開始變軟；若10分鐘。

4. Add cumin, turmeric, salt; stir well.

4. 下小茴香、黃薑粉，和鹽；拌勻。

5. Reduce the heat to medium-high.  Add coconut milk and the cornstarch slurry; stirring constantly.

5. 把火調低至中大火。下椰子和拌入粟粉水；其間不斷攪拌。

6. Add bell pepper and corn.  Cook until it is heated through.  Remove the pan from the heat.

6. 下燈籠椒和粟米粒，繼續煮至其熱透便可離火。

7. Serve the chicken on rice or pasta.

7. 可配白飯或意粉食用。

Creamy Spinach with Tofu on Rice | 忌廉菠菜豆腐飯

This flavourful vegetarian dish is inspired by the Indian dish "saag paneer".  Instead of saag cheese, I used firm tofu here.  It is the healthiest and simplest plate for dinner on a weekday.

INGREDIENTS:

1 package Extra Firm Tofu

8 cups Spinach (not baby spinach), rinsed

4 Garlic Cloves, roughly chopped

1/2 cup Greek Yogurt, plain

3 tablespoons Curry Powder

2 teaspoon Turmeric

1 tablespoon Cumin Powder

1 teaspoon Ground Ginger Powder

3 tablespoons Water

3/4 teaspoon Salt

5 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

材料：

1 磚  硬豆腐

8 杯  菠菜，洗淨

4 瓣  蒜頭，切粒

1/2 杯  希臘乳酪，純味

3 湯匙  咖哩粉

2 茶匙 薑黃粉

1 湯匙  小茴香粉

1 茶匙  薑粉

3 湯匙  水

3/4 茶匙  鹽

5 湯匙  菜油

DIRECTION:

1. Put firm tofu between two plates.  Place a heavy object on top for about 20 minutes; discard the excess water and dry the tofu with paper towel.  Cut the tofu into big cubes.

1. 置豆腐於兩只碟中間；放上重物把多餘水份壓出。若20分鐘。用廚紙印乾豆腐，把其切成方塊。

2. Heat up 2 tablespoons of oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat.  Add chopped garlic and tofu cubes.  Patiently fry until all sides of the tofu turn a golden colour.  Remove the garlic from the pan if it starts to burn; reserve the garlic.  Set tofu aside.

2. 在易潔鑊中倒入兩湯匙油；用中火燒熱。下蒜蓉和豆腐粒；慢慢將豆腐煎至金黃。如蒜粒開如變焦，將其上鑊留起備用。煎好豆腐離火備用。

3. In a clean pot, combine yogurt, turmeric, curry powder, cumin, ginger powder, salt, and 3 tablespoons of water.  Stir well.  

3. 在一只深鍋內，倒入乳酪、薑黃粉、咖哩粉、小茴香粉、薑粉、鹽和好湯匙水。拌勻。

4.Add spinach.  Turn on the heat to medium-high and cook until the spinach is cooked through and becomes totally soft.  Turn off the heat.

4. 下菠菜；把火調至中大火，繼續煮至菠菜變軟。關火。

5. Process the mixture with a processor or a blender.  You will want to be easy on the processing time; otherwise, it will result in creamy spinach soup.

5. 用攪拌器把菠菜打至稍為爛身。切勿攪拌過度成了菠菜湯啊！

6. Turn the heat back on to medium.  Add the tofu and fried garlic to the spinach mixture; mix it gently.  Remove the pot from the heat.

6. 把火重開至中火；豆腐回鍋。輕輕拌勻，煮至豆腐回暖便可上桌。

7. Serve it immediately over a plate of steamed rice.

Yummy~

7. 趁熱碗上白飯便是美味～