Labu dan Pucuk Manis Masak Lemak

Recipe :


200-300 grams of pumpkin (labu)

Pucuk Manis – 100 grams

Lemongrass (serai), red chillies/green chillies (cabai merah/hijau), chopped garlic (bawang putih), chopped onion (bawang merah)

Tumeric leave (daun kunyit) – slice finely (hiris)


Tumeric roots (kunyit) – chopped (cincang) or substitute with tumeric powder (kalau tiada kunyit, boleh guna serbuk kunyit satu sudu teh)

Anchovies or dried shrimp (ikan bilis atau udang kering)

Water one small bowl (air semangkuk)

Coconut milk one small box (santan sekotak 200ml)

Method : Boil all the ingredients except for pucuk manis and coconut milk for at least 20 mins. Add the pucuk manis and coconut milk, slow boil, turn off fire and ready to serve.

Kecuali pucuk manis dan santan, rebus kesemua bahan-bahan lain selama 20 minit. Tambah santan dan pucuk manis dan biar didih sekejap. Siap untuk dihidang.

@myheromarket
#stayathome #mealsathome
#homemadecooking
#Cookingwithhero

Discover Penang and fall in love

The sunset on Oct 1 was so breathtakingly beautiful I have to dedicate just a blog post to wax lyrical how beautiful Penang is. In these past years, many heritage buildings have been restored and turned into chic restaurants, boutique hotels and art galleries. When the gleaming, golden sun rays cast upon these old buildings, they are so beautiful.

 

So if you have not been to Penang, Malaysia, it is time you book your flight on Wego     to our beautiful island and be mesmerized by the old world charm. Try compare best hotel deals on wego.com and stay for a while. You will definitely fall in love with the city.

In fact, Penang is one place you should visit because of the magical charm that we have. I have been to Florence, Italy which I think is an old city but Penang’s old charms win my vote anytime. While Florence has many churches and cathedrals. Penang wins by having so many places of worship.

Now, the council has turned back lanes into beautiful pedestrians lanes and if you take time to explore, you will find many wall murals. Even as a Penangite, I explore my own city on a bicycle.

When you are discovering the city on a slow pace, even the ferns growing out of the cracks of the old building is noteworthy and something you do not find elsewhere.

Every turn you make on the roads will lead you to some new spots with structures that say old but gold.  This clock tower is for Queen Victoria and you can find similar looking clock tower in Singapore and Hong Kong.  Remnants of our colonial past.

Penang has received so many accolades, it will take another blog post just to mention them. Good foods, heritage charm, friendly people, natural attractions, suitable for both the active and the ones who just want to relax, we have it all.

Come and fall in love with Penang!

RECIPE FOR SAMBAL UDANG KERING (DRIED PRAWNS) and petai

 

RECIPE FOR SAMBAL UDANG KERING (DRIED PRAWNS)
300gm dried shrimps
6 red medium sized onions
cili boh/chili paste (quantity according to taste, maybe 3tblspoon)
3 stalks serai/lemongrass
1 big piece fresh kunyit/tumeric (if substitute with powder, about 1 tblspoon)
Daun limau purut/kaffir lime leaves– slice finely (this is a must)
Daun kunyit/tumeric leaves – slice finely
Tamarind juice (add minimal water)
Sugar
Salt to taste
Oil

Soak dried shrimps and pound coarsely.
Blend onion, serai and kunyit.

In a non-stick wok, heat oil and fry the blended onion/cili/leaves till dry. Add the dried shrimp and continue frying. You need to constantly stir it or they will stick to the bottom of the pan. Add tamarind juice** and sugar. Continue stirring until the whole paste is dried.

One can keep the portion in individual container and heat them up later.

This sambal hairbee taste good if used to make sandwiches, eat with rice or when cooking instant noodle, drop a tablespoon in for added flavour.

** TO ADD PETAI (some stinky beans, will blog more about it next time when I have the complete ‘tape’ of the petai)
About 200 gms of petai – Add in after adding tamarind juice, to cook.

“Around the World” Buffet dinner at Golden Sands

Golden Sands Resorts being a family and kids friendly hotel is definitely a good place to bring your family for special treats and celebrations. The short drive to scenic Batu Feringghi not only is a feast for the eyes with blue seas and green hills, the foods available at Golden Sands’s Garden Cafe daily is a feast for the family too.  You can find out Golden Sands latest F&B promotion on their Golden Sands Garden Cafe link here.

 

Parents will like the kids section which not only have cute decor but kids friendly menu and cutleries.  No longer parents have to worry about kids breaking plates nor spilling foods as the thoughtful Garden Cafe caters for children.  There are healthy fruits and snacks plus dishes which even fussy kids will gobbled up.

 

The Garden Cafe has al fresco dining and early patrons can take a walk by the beautiful white sandy beach or take some photos in the nicely kept poolside gardens.  Friends, colleagues and families have no hassles of looking for parking as the hotel provide ample carparks.  So it is a great idea for group gathering.

 

 

 

On every Thursday, Garden Cafe serves “Around the World” Buffet from 6 pm to 10 pm.  Priced at RM98 nett, kids get to eat for free while  senior citizen gets 40% off, it is definitely a great bargain for young families with small kids and parents to spend quality family time together.

 

The Oodles of Noodles station provides both local noodles and also Italian pasta.

 

 

On the menu is Roasted Beef which was roasted to perfection.  Also on the carvery table is roasted chicken with herbs from  Golden Sands own garden.  Staff from Golden Sands shared that their hotel is very concern on their ingredients sources and strive to provide the best.

 

 

 

Diners will love the wide array of smoked salmon, chilled poached prawns, mussels served with various condiments and sauces.

The Mediterranean Baked Egg Plant with Pasta and Potatoes is the show stealer.  Though rich, the egg plant provides a nice balance in flavour and texture  to the pasta dish.  Compliments to the chef.

 

The Egyption Chicken Sharwarma with condiments and Arabian Bread is cooked to suit the tastes of the Mid-Eastern guests of Golden Sands.  According the chef, they have carefully prepared the sharwarma ‘just like how it should be done’ and indeed, the healthy grilled chicken and bread has all the right crunchy vegetables without overpowering ketchup like some of what we get normally.

 

 

The dessert available is superb but the best is the banana bread & butter pudding.  There are apple strudel, French pastries, profiteroles, tiramisu, cream caramel but the humble bread and butter pudding has the nice sauce with tinge of pandan fragrance.

 

 

Location : Garden Cafe, Ground Floor, Golden Sands Resort
Phone : (60 4) 886 1911

Turkey for Christmas

It is Christmas Eve and the turkey is all ready for the oven.

Well, not really. I am only roasting it on Christmas Day. But I shall share some pics I took while seasoning the bird.

turkey2

The red dot is the timer. Hmmm…fire80, someone who commented :

still… upside down how to see the thing pop-up.. or down as the case may be?

Well, fire80 got a point. I am going to place my turkey breastside down in a pan and not a rack as there is not enough space for a rack. I suppose I have to keep checking the pop-up towards the end. Hehehe, it is not a cracker so the turkey won’t explode if the popper is pressed down, I suppose.

turkey4

I was told to prick the skin. It was errm…very nice to stab the big bird.

As can be seen from the first pic, I only season the turkey with salt, pepper and XO brandy. I had purposely hide the brand of the XO. Wouldn’t want to promote any brand.

turkey3

I had fun taking this photo using sports action programme and multi-shots. I wanted to capture the XO flowing down. It is not easy to hold a heavy camera in one hand and an expensive bottle of XO on the other hand. Then, I had to use telephoto to capture the macro shots.

Hahaha, I hope this turkey felt appreciated for all the attention I gave to it. It is even much more photographed than Miss Turkey! (I know, lame joke.)

BTW, can anyone tell me is that plastic holder meant to be thrown away? It held together the turkey while in its packaging. I am going to throw it away because it is made of plastic. Now, do I have to tie the legs? Where do I buy the strings? Sigh…so many questions, so little time to Google to find out.