This evening I made 4 dishes for my sister's family and father. As my father needs more calcium and protein - "white tiny fish (白飯魚) (photo 2), a fish tiny enough even smaller than 1.5 inch in size. So I made an egg omelette with this fish. I bought around 8 ounces of the fish. I used 6 eggs (because the fish stall was so nice to give us some free tiny oyster) since the oyster will have some juice out when cooked. Put some salt and sugar (sugar will make the egg softer, but not more than 0.5 tablespoon), white pepper powder, sesame oil, some choped scallion (chopped as tiny as possible). So then pan fry it into 4 portions. Besides, we had the routine steamed fish (this time I bought a fish called a specie of "fire spot (火點)" (the 4th photo). The fish body has a black spot close to the tail, but this one is quite rare. Again, I am so happy with browsing around the Ap Lei Chau market - lots of interesting fishes and seafood! Then photo 1 is the dried shrimp (蝦乾) with cabbage. For this one, after rinsing the dried shrimp, cut it in half or 1/3. Prepare some garlic and ginger slices. Cut the cabbage in thick slices. First pan fried the dried shrimp until you see it a bit brown. Then put the garlic and ginger slices and pan fried for 0.5-1 minute. Then put the cut cabbage. Turn to high heat, and stir fry it. Put some salt in it. Then see if the cabbage has some water out in the wok. If there is some moisture, no need to put water. If there isn't, put some water. The amount is about 4 soup spoon. Then cover it and turn the heat to medium low heat. Let it shimmer for 2-3 minutes. The 3rd photo is my father favourite spare ribs in salty plum and bean paste (酸梅麵豉). Besides, this dish is good for stimulating appetite. After the cancer therapy, my father felt not well with his appetite. So I thought of this one as far as I recalled. For about almost 1 lb of spare ribs, I used 4 small salty plums and 2.5 soup spoon bean paste. So no need to put salt, as the plum and bean paste is quite salty. Put about 1.5 table spoon of sugar to balance the sour and salty taste, garlic (chopped to paste-like), if you have some Chinese rice wine, put a few drops, and some soy sauce (not too much - around 2 table spoon), put some corn starch and oil. Then steam it for about 10-12 minutes at medium to med. low heat. Remember steam meat should be at medium heat, steam fish at high heat, steam egg at very low heat.
Then the last one is my improvised stir fried Shanghai noodle. This noon, I found out a pack of Shanghai noodle which is due to expire in a few more days. Then I got some broccoli and beef for stir frying it. I also noted there are some Chinese sausage (sun dried like Salami, but tastes sweeter) left in the fridge. So I cut one sausage in thin slices. Then cut the beef in slices too. Cut the broccoli in some tiny bites. First put the noodle in boiling water for about 2 minutes. Then drain it and rinse it with cold water. This way the noodle won't be too soft. Use some soy sauce and sugar to marinate the beef and squeeze the beef with your own hand (like massaging it), put some corn starch and oil to seal it. Pan fry the beef to 60% done. Then put the sausage slices into the pan. No need to put too much oil, as the sausage will have some oil out. Then put the brocolli in the pan. Stir fry it for about one minute, put a slight dash of rock salt. put about 3/4 bowl of water in the wok. cover it for about 20 seconds until it heats up again. Put the noodle back. Stir fry it and put the beef back. Cover the wok and let it cook for about 30 to 40 seconds or until you see some steam out. Then stir fry it and turn the heat off. get a few drops of sesame oil in it.
15 comments:
This "common dinner" is not common at all. I wonder how long did it take you? There are lots of work and lots of "heart" in it. Your father and your sisters are lucky.
I have to invite Lily to look at your blog so that she can learn more about a common Chinese dinner and impress her husband.
Thank you Stella. Maybe I am lucky to have been born in a family being knowledgeable about cooking, especially my family root is in a fishing village of Hong Kong. So lots of local culture has been told to me. Besides, when I was a kid, I often got curious about how my school mates' moms did some amazing dishes. Like the sweet and sour pork, one of the moms told me about 2 sections of deep frying. Another mom told me about using rock salt instead of the refined salt, especially for chicken. I still remember how good she made the garlic stir fried/shimmered chicken with chinese rice wine. Think next time I will make it again and post here. I was 11 then and now could still remember so deep about what she told me. So there are lots of nice people making very good dishes for dinner with their families indeed.
BTW, it took about 40 minutes to complete these 4 dishes. Also, next time I shall tell the Filipino maid not to wash the fish in running tab water. Most people made a mistake for washing meat and fish. For fish, take away some left scales (as the fish stall wouldn't take those off), then use your fingers to clean the tummy part and the head inside. After that, rinse the fish quickly. Not to put the fish in water and soak it for minutes. The chorine in the water will harm the fish meat if the fish stays too long with the tap water. If you don't eat the fish right away, don't wash the fish after the initial cleaning (scales and tummy clean up). Then put it on a plate and seal with the plastic wrap and put it the fridge. Rinse it with tap water only when you are about to steam it. For the meat, it's the same. The best is that you don't ask the butcher to cut it. Rinse the surface and then dry it and cut it in pieces.
Mr. Sea, I like this salty plum spare ribs a lot. Can I try that next time when I go to your home or if you will have a dinner with your sister and father again?
Hi Sea,
4 dishes in 40 minutes; only 10 minutes for one dish? You must be kidding. I need to do one dish with 40 minutes.
Thank you for your lesson on cleaning the fish. I learnt something new tonight. Your maid is lucky to learn so much from you. Does your maid get nervous how long you still need her there?
Actually when you do your dishes, like steamed one. You can first prepare those and then put those in the steaming wok. Meanwhile, you go and prepare the other dishes. Perhaps I just "ping ping pang pang" cut the ingredients quite quickly. I didn't know that until Jason told me I cut the food like a chopper. I simply told him that was an accumulated experience of 30 years of cooking. I needed to tell him not to try that like me. Besides, I put the salt, sugar real quick without checking "0.5 this or 0.8 that". All depends on experiences. Like I told you before, I had only 30 minutes to make 3 dishes for my younger sisters when I took the lunch break back home (1.15 hours - then taking out the 20 minutes walking back and forth between school and home - I could have 20 minutes of eating). So at that time I was already trained to cook fast. It later on was good to me because I learned about time management at that time which is good for my work now.
this is called the non-ordinary ordinary, Stella
ask in-the-sky to cook a meal in ur apartment next time la, i think Abloom has good stove right :)
Hi Sea/Sky,
Wow, what a genius cook you are. You made all those chefs look bad.
OK, next time you shall stay in our hotel so we can try your skill.
Also, if I go to HK, I want to book this Hotel of the Sea/Sky with room and board included. How much is the room rate? Ha ha ha.
My friend mother do that quite quick too, but not tasty. She put everything in the pan and then one dish of everything. Maybe sometime with a salty fish. So my friend doesn't like to go home and eat in the street a lot.
Mmh... for these 4 dishes, they are quite simple actually. For the cabbage, just chop chop chop. For spare ribs, just clean it, cut it and mix it with the sauce and steam it. Then for the fish, it's the same. I think the more complicated is the omelette, as I need to pan fry it one by one. OK, let me see what Abloom have, but I don't get used to those electronic sensoring heat, or conducting heat...etc. For those cute things, I may need some more time. In BKK, I would suggest a BBQ party, and I can just bring my rock salt and herbs from HK. OK, if you ever drop by HK, I would be happy to let you try my cooking.
Anonymous, I think your friend should appreciate his mother for cooking the food for him. If he doesn't like it, then he can help his mother. Cooking is not mandated to be a housewife's work. Just most people think so. I was once teased by my high school classmates about this girly thing when I often told them I need to rush back for cooking for my family. First, they didn't comprehend I lost my mother. Second, they didn't comprehend I needed to keep my promise with my mother. Third, they didn't respect the others. At last, they are really short-sighted and if they mind, they shouldn't eat their mother's cooked food because they have discrimination. So I was very rebellious at that time.
Fortunately your rebellion did benefit you in many ways: that made you a good cook and also that made you a independent, responsible, mature and caring person. Sometimes the same character(either weakness or strength)to different people can have different results, depending how you carry this out and how you apply. So rebellion can turn out to be beneficial and creative too if you handle it right.
Thank you Stella. There is always a thin line...
Good. Now I don't need to worry about the expensive cost of food in HK. At least I can have a free and delicious "Ba Wong Meal" at "Restaurant By-the-Sea".
Actually I think eating can be up to each person. I can take a street food stall fired noodle at just HK$8 (US$1) or go to a luxury restaurant for a meal at HK$800 (US$100). I have some friends who mind either going to cheap ones or expensive ones, but some of them are peculiar to get the most out of the cheapest, say pay $20 for $500 service and food.
Post a Comment