recipe is: stir fried beef with choy sum

Ingredients

250 gms beef, sliced thinly across the grain. make sure that the pieces are of similar sizes

250 gms choy sum (chinese flowering cabbage), wash, drained and cut or plucked to desired length

5 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

3 cm knob of ginger, cut into thin strips

1/2 tsp sesame oil

7 tbsp chinese cooking wine (can be substituted with dry sherry)

4 tbsp light soya sauce

3 tbsp oyster sauce

1 tsp chicken stock granules

3 tbsp water

vegetable oil

Method

marinade the beef with 2 tbsp light soya sauce, sesame oil and 3 tbsp of chinese cooking wine. cover with cling wrap and put in the fridge for at least 30 mins.

heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok and add in 1/3 of the garlic. fry til fragrant and add the choy sum and fry til they turn a darker green, it take a few minutes. dish up and set aside.

heat 2 tbsp oil and turn the flame up to high. before the wok starts smoking, put in the beef and stir fry quickly to prevent uneven and overcooking. fry til just cooked. dish up and add to the choy sum.

turn down the flame to medium and add 1 tbsp of oil. add the remaining garlic and the ginger. stir fry til fragrant. don't let them burn. add the oyster sauce, the chicken granules and the remaining chinese cooking wine and light soya sauce and water. let it come to a boil and turn down the flame to let it simmer for 2 mins. put the beef and the choy sum back into the wok and stir fry to mix and infuse the ingredients. dish up serve hot.

recipe is: Vegetable Parcels

Ingredients

1 head of iceberg lettuce, use whole leaves. do not shread or slice

200 gms french beans

4 pcs firm/hard tofu, known as 'tau kwa' or tau kon' in chinese

6-8 stalks of dried black mushrooms, soaked and thinly sliced

1 small carrot, skinned and finely peeled with potato peeler

6-8 strips of 'choy po' (preserved radish) thinly sliced

6 cloves garlic, finely chopped

300 gms beansprouts

1 tbsp oyster sauce (use vegetarian oyster sauce if preferred)

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp salt

2 tsp light soya sauce


Method

slice the tofu into thin strips and medium fry until lightly browned. set aside. in the same oil, fry the choy po for about 1 minute on small flame. set aside.

discard most of the oil and leave about 3 tbsp. turn the flame to medium. fry the garlic in the oil til fragrant. add the french beans, carrot and black mushrooms. stir fry til almost cooked, add the oyster sauce, sesame oil, salt and light soya sauce. stir fry to mix. add the pre-fried tofu, beansprouts and choy po. stir fry for another 2 mins and dish up.

to serve: scoop some of the vegetable into a lettuce leaf and roll it up. can be garnished with deep fried shallot slices and chilli sauce.

recipe is: cinnamon fruit crumble

Ingredients

2 apples, skinned, cored and thinly sliced. soak in water to prevent it turning brown

2 pears, skinned, cored and thinly sliced

4 tbsp brown sugar

1/2 tbsp cinnamon powder

250 gms butter, use straight from fridge. do not leave at room temperature

375 gms plain flour

3 tsp baking powder

200 gms castor sugar

10 tbsp instant oats

4 tbsp uht milk


Method

preheat the oven to 200 ℃

drain the apples, mix thoughly with pears, brown sugar and cinnamon powder. set aside

into a mixing bowl, sift the flour and baking powder. add castor sugar, oats and butter. using a butter knife, cut the butter into small pieces. then, use your fingers to mix everything together, taking care to "rub" the mixture into the butter, forming a crumbly kind of texture

line a large baking dish with half the fruits, top with half the pastry mix and sprinkle 2 tbsp of milk on to the top. put the second half of the fruits on top, and again cover with the pastry mix and sprinkle with 2 tbsp of milk

bake in the oven for 30 mins or until the top turns golden brown

* serve hot with vanilla ice cream or on its own

recipe is: stir fried pasta with prawns and garlic

Ingredients

20 tiger prawns, shelled and deveined (keep 1/2 the shells for the pasta stock, don't use the head)

1/2 pack pasta (use a type that is short and curvy to hold and absorb the seasonings better)

8 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

6 slices of ginger

3 stalks of spring onion, finely sliced

1/2 lemon, cut into halves

1/2 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tsp light soya sauce

6 tbsp chinese cooking wine/ 8 tbsp white wine

1/2 tsp sesame oil

8 tbsp olive oil

coursely grounded black pepper

salt

Method

put the prawn shells with 2 slices of ginger and 1/2 tsp of salt, fill with enough water to cook the pasta in a pot and let it come to a boil. once it's boiling, turn down the flame and let it simmer for 10 mins. use a straining scoop to remove the prawn shells and ginger. dish up about 6 tbsp of the stock and put aside. put in the pasta and let it cook, taking care to undercook it slightly as it will be stir fried later.

marinate the prawns in a bit of salt and white pepper

heat up the olive oil and put in the garlic and the ginger. stir fry quickly as not it let it burn to crisps. once it's aromatic, throw in the prawns and stir fry quickly. add the pasta and stir fry to mix with the prawns and garlic. add the oyster sauce, sesame oil, light soya sauce, cooking wine, the prawn stock, a dash black pepper, salt to taste and the spring onions. stir fry quickly over higher flame and stir fry quickly to mix throughly

serve hot with a squeeze of the lemon