Soup Again... Green Radish, Carrot, Pork Ribs Soup

My boy has been sick for almost a week. His appetite is not good and all he wants is soup, more soup... Few days back, he was so weak that he could not even walk straight. My soups are simple but my boy said, "Mummy makes the sweetest soup!" I usually cook soup with root vegetables and pork ribs. I don't use chicken as chicken tend to give phelgm, so it is not good for my boy who has allergies and very sensitive airway. I use the thermal pot & I really like it. I can go out once the soup is done and put into the thermal pot. There is no need to watch fire and worry the soup will dry up. It keeps the soup hot. And the meat is very tender due to being braised slowly. My pot capacity is 5 litres, so minus my generous ingredients of about 2 litres, the soup is probably 3 litres. Yesterday, my boy alone finished the 3 litres of soup for lunch & dinner!
Sharing this post with my dear friend whose daughter loves soup too.

                                                                Pic: After blanching

The key ingredient is the pork ribs. This is a must for me, to buy fresh & good quality pork ribs from a reliable pork seller in the wet market. Tell him you want to buy "排骨" for soup, the soft and tender cut. I usually have to pay close to $30 for 3 packets of 500g each.
Next important step is to wash the pork clean and blanch it. Remove any unwanted visible fats with a kitchen scissors, then wash and rid any 碎骨头.
Cover the pork with water and boil over medium fire. Once boil, off fire. Don't over boiled else the pork will lose its sweetness. Remove the pork ribs. Pour away the water, wash the pot and fill it with clean filtered water.

Green Radish, Carrot, Pork Ribs Soup
Ingredients:
- Pork ribs prime cut 500g
- Green Radish 1
- Carrot 1
- Corn bi-colour 1
- Red dates 5 to 6 (Big ones, they are really sweet & fragrant)
- Dried fig 2 to 3
- Dried scallop 5 (Japanese medium size)
- Honey date 1 (can omit)
- Wolfberries about 10 (to be added when soup is ready)
Buy the organic wolfberries, they are sweet & plump after cooking. The "not too good" ones are drier & sour.
- Sea salt (amount according to personal preference)

Method:
1) Wash and blanch pork ribs.
2) Cut green radish, carrot & corn
3) Fill pot with water to about 2/3 full. Depending also on your pot capacity and amount of ingredients.
4) Add all ingredients, except wolfberries & sea salt, to the pot.
5) Boil on high fire. When soup boils, lower to medium-low fire and boil for an hour.
6) Off fire, put inner pot into thermal pot.
7) Leave in thermal pot for at least 4 hours or as long as you want.
8) Before serving, put pot on stove, bring to boil, add salt & wolfberries. Off fire.
9) Serve, or put inner pot back into thermal pot to keep warm.

茄汁哈哈虾球 (Tomato Prawns)

My son loves to eat seafood. He has food allergies but thank God he is not allergic to seafood. I usually buy prawns from the wet market. They are fresh and reasonably priced (except CNY period). If you choose a prawn dish from the zi char stall or a restaurant, it is usually costly with "limited" numbers of prawns. This is one of my son's favourite dish - Tomato Prawns. 茄汁哈哈虾球, 儿子吃了笑哈哈!

Tomato Prawns
Ingredients:
- 10 to 12 prawns
- 1 big white onion
- 1 yellow and/or red, green capsicum
- 1 tomato
- Chopped garlic (I do not add as my son is sensitive to garlic taste.)

Sauce:
- Tomato sauce 2 tbsp
- Raw sugar 1 tbsp
- Olive oil 1 tsp
- Sea salt a pinch
- Pepper a dash
(Mix all together & set aside)

Method:
1) Deshelled the prawns, make a cut but do not cut it completely, remove the intestine.
2) Boil for 1 minute, drain.
3) Cut tomato, capsicum and onion into thin wedges.
4) Heat up wok & oil. Lightly browned the garlic.
5) Stir fry the capsicum, onion, tomato(added last) till softness according to own liking. If too dry, add a bit of water.
6) Pour sauce, bring to boil, add a bit of corn starch water to thicken the sauce.
7) Put in prawns, quick stir. Once prawns are cooked, off fire. Do not overcook the prawns.

Tip:
To get crunchy prawns, rub it with a little salt, leave it for 2 to 3 minutes, rinse it off with cold tap water.

Japanese Teriyaki Chicken Rice

This easy to prepare dish is a hit with my kids. Thanks to my dearest friend who came to my rescue when I told her one late night that I have ran out of idea what to prepare for my kids' lunch. My kids never like porridge, kway teow, macaroni soup kind of food. Tata! She sent me a video clip. With the right recipe and method, the chicken is so tender and juicy. Top it on a bowl of hot rice, this is simply delicious!

Japanese Teriyaki Chicken Rice
(Recipe adapted from C Channel Teriyaki Chicken With Egg Bowl facebook video clip)
Ingredients:
- 3 debone chicken thighs
- Sea salt a pinch
- Pepper a dash
- Plain flour 1 tsp
- Cooking oil 1 tbsp
- Sake (I use Hua Diao/Shao Xing Jiu) 1 tbsp
*- Soya Sauce 2 tbsp
*-Sugar 1/2 tbsp
*-Mirin 1 tbsp
*(The recipe uses almost double of what I have stated for the last 3 ingredients, but I personally prefer lesser sauce, less salty. You can also replace these ingredients with Kikoman Grill Japanese Teriyaki Sauce.)

Toppings:
- Soft boiled egg
- Japanese mayo
- Dried shredded seaweed
- Sesame seeds (if you like)

Method:
1) Cut chicken into approx 3cm cubes.
2) Seasoned with salt & pepper.
3) Coat chicken with 1 tsp of plain flour before cooking.
4) Heat up pan & oil.
5) On medium fire, add chicken, stir then spread them out on the pan, turn it to ensure both sides are browned.
Note: Chicken need not be fully cooked at this stage.
6) Add wine, cover the pan, steam the chicken for about 3mins.
7) Use a paper towel to dry up the excess oil.
8) Add soya sauce, sugar & mirin. Stir fry to ensure the chicken is evenly coated and cooked.
9) Just before chicken is ready, up the fire to thicken the sauce. Quick stir & off fire.
10) Serve it with a bowl of hot Japanese rice. Top with mayo, seaweed, sesame & a soft boiled egg.

The total cooking process exclude preparation should not exceed 10 mins else the chicken might be overcooked. It does depend on your chicken quantity, the type of pan used & your stove fire.

Wong Bok, Abalone & Fish Maw Soup

This is one of my favourite soup. So sumptuous & flavorful, nutritious too with collagen! While typing this, I really feel like slurping up a bowl of this soup for supper. I cooked this during the last Chinese New Year, would definitely cook it again. The soup was so sweet as I added lots of good ingredients. Homemade soup is the best, full of nutrients minus the MSG.

Wong Bok, Abalone, Fish Maw Soup
Ingredients:
- Wong Bok 1 medium size
- *Abalone 1 can (人月牌澳洲鲍鱼)
- *Fish Maw (premium) 2 big pieces
- *Wolfberries a handful
- Red dates (extra large) 10
- Dried mushroom (日本冬菇) 5 to 6
- Dried Scallop (Japanese, medium size) 5 to 6
- Carrot 1 large
- Dried Fig (无花果) 3
- Pork ribs 500g

Method:
1) Pre soaked the dried mushrooms till they are soft to touch
2) Wash, cut the Wong bok, separate the stem and leaves
3) Blanch pork ribs in boiling water. Discard the water.
4) In a new pot of water, add all the ingredients except the * and Wong bok leaves
5) Boil soup for 45 mins and put in thermal pot
(I usually prepare this in the morning and leave it in the thermal pot till evening dinner time. You can also use slow cooker or cook over the stove. This soup is nicer if you braise it longer.)
6) Approx an hour before serving soup, take the inner pot out of the thermal pot and bring to boil over stove.
7) Add Fish maw and Wong bok leaves and bring to boil for about 30 mins or more.
(The fish maw needs to be pre soaked in warm water for about half an hour or more till soft. As I have bought the premium fish maw, it does not have the fishy & oily taste, so I did not blanch it in hot water. When it is soft, wash & cut it into small pieces.)
8) Season with sea salt (if need) & pepper. Add a tsp of Chinese wine if you like it. When soup is ready and boiling, add the abalone slices and wolfberries. Off the fire immediately.
9) Put pot back into thermal pot till ready to serve.

Tips:
Good quality and generous amount of ingredients will make the soup sweet, very sweet.😊
You can use chicken to replace the pork ribs.

鸡蛋苋菜 (Spinach with Egg)

本来是三蛋(咸蛋,皮蛋,鸡蛋)苋菜, 为了吃得健康些, 我煮了鸡蛋苋菜, 加了鲜银鱼, 新鲜鲍鱼菇和枸杞子. 上汤是我自己煮的. 我爱吃菜, 一大碗热腾腾的青菜, 吃了很暖胃. 小孩们也吃了不少.

鸡蛋苋菜
材料:
- 苋菜 (圆头) 两把
- 新鲜鲍鱼菇 一包
- 鸡蛋 (大) 一粒 (打散)
- 鲜银鱼 一把
- 枸杞 十粒
- 蒜 一/两粒

调味料:
- 海盐 少许 (如果上汤够味,可免)
- 胡椒粉 少许
- 食用油 一大匙

上汤:
我用鸡胸肉, 银鱼, 红萝卜, 大葱(白的) 煮汤, 水不要太多.
你也可以选用上等的Dashi(日本的上汤调味)或无味精的鸡精块, 加水.

作法:
1) 苋菜洗干净, 拔好, 备用.
2) 热锅, 加入油, 爆香蒜.
3) 放入银鱼, 炒香.
4) 加入苋菜, 鲍鱼菇, 大火炒
5) 倒入上汤, 盖上锅盖, 中火把菜焖软 (要留意不要把汤焖干)
6) 加入盐(如需要), 胡椒粉调味
7) 汤滚时, 倒入鸡蛋, 加入枸杞子, 马上熄火

Spinach with Egg
Ingredients:
- Chinese spinach (round head) 2 bunches
- Abalone mushrooms (fresh) 1 packet
- Egg (Large) 1 beaten
- White baits (fresh) a handful
- Wolfberries 10
- Garlic 1 or 2

Seasonings:
- Sea salt a pinch (If stock is flavorful, can omit)
- White pepper a dash
- Cooking oil 1 tbsp

Stock:
I use chicken breast, white baits, carrot, big white onion to prepare stock.
Can also use Japanese Dashi or MSG free chicken cube.

Method:
1) Wash & cut spinach
2) Heat up wok, add oil, fry the garlic
3) Lightly fry the white baits
4) Stir fry the spinach and mushrooms over big fire
5) Add stock, cover the wok, use medium fire to cook the spinach (ensure the soup/stock does not dry up)
6) Add salt (if needed) & pepper
7) When soup is boiling, add beaten egg and wolfberties. Off the fire immediately.

100% Brown Sugar Chiffon

Our breakfast are mostly homemade except on days when mummy is too exhausted . The kids usually have homemade bread for breakfast. When we get a little bored with bread, I will make cakes. Chiffon is a good choice as it is a light cake. And eggs are good for my lil girl who does not consume much protein. The only concern I have is the sugar. I hardly use white sugar at home. When I came across this recipe that uses 100% brown sugar for chiffon, I can't wait to try it. At first, I was worried that a chiffon that uses brown sugar would turn out dense and heavy. But the result is a healthier, soft, and surprisngly light chiffon.
This chiffon uses a Jap method that does not require sugar to be added to the yolks. No baking powder or cream of tartar is needed.

100% Brown Sugar Chiffon

(for a 17cm tube pan)

Ingredients:

- Egg yolks 4 (60g egg)

- Grapeseed oil 50ml

- Milk 60ml (to be warmed to 36-37'c)

- Cake Flour 75g

- Egg whites 4

- Brown Sugar 60 to 65g (or a bit more if you prefer a sweeter cake)

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 180'c

2) Add oil & milk to yolks and mix with a whisk. Just mix well, need not beat.

3) Add sifted flour to yolks and mix well.

4) Beat whites till foamy. Add sugar over 2 times and beat till stiff peak.

5) Add 1/3 of white to yolk mixture and mix with a whisk.

6) Add remaining whites over 2 times to yolk mixture and fold gently with spatula till no streak of white.

7) Pour mixture into tube pan and lightly tap it on the tabletop to remove large air bubbles.

8) Baked at lowest rack at 180'c for 25mins.

9) Invert pan when remove from oven. Unmould when it is completely cold.

(Recipe adapted from a Japanese chiffon book by 青井聡子)

Oven temperature and baking time may vary for different ovens.

Tips:
I use Okinawa brown sugar and love it. 

I baked this chiffon in cuppies. Baking time is approx. 20mins at same 180'c.

I have also baked it in 15cm tube pan and mini chiffon pan. 

These are my mini chiffons for my girl to bring to school. Pic 1 is a mini chiffon with chocolate chips added.

Lemon Chiffon

If you like a cake that is light & lemony, you will love this Lemon Chiffon. This uses a Japanese method that does not require sugar to be added to the yolks unlike normal chiffon methods. No baking powder or cream of tartar is required for this recipe. Simple method but the result is a light, soft & fluffy chiffon.

Lemon Chiffon Recipe
Ingredients:
(for a 17cm chiffon tube pan)
- Egg yolks 4 (60g egg)
- Grapeseed oil  50ml
- Lemon juice + water = 60ml (use about half a lemon)
- Lemon zest from half a lemon

- Cake flour 70g
- Egg whites 4
- Caster sugar 70 to 75g (or a bit more if you prefer a sweeter cake)

Method:
1) Preheat oven to 180'c
2) Add oil, lemon juice & lemon zest to yolks and mix using a whisk (just mix well, need not beat)
3) Add sifted flour and mix well
4) Beat egg whites till foamy. Add sugar over 2 times and beat till stiff peak
5) Add 1/3 of white to yolk and mix with a whisk
6) Add remaining white over 2 times into yolk mixture. Use spatula to fold gently till no streak of white
7) Pour mixture into tube pan and lightly drop the pan on tabletop to remove large air bubbles
8) Bake at lowest rack at 180'c for 25 mins
9) Invert pan after taking it out from the oven. Unmould when it is completely cold

(Recipe adapted from a Japanese chiffon book by 青井聡子)

Baking time and temperature may vary for different ovens.

Tips:
I use 40ml juice + 20ml = 60ml and the zest of a whole small Sunkist lemon.
I use golden caster sugar about 73g.
If you prefer the lemon taste to be milder, try 30ml juice + 30ml water, lesser zest and/or add more sugar.