Steamed Rib in (Kabocha) Squash

 The Squash I used is normally called ‘Japanese Squash’ at Asian Supermarket. It’s called Kabocha Squash offically. It tastes sweet, and is my favorite squash. 

Ingredients:

ribs, squash, egg white, corn starch, seasoning.

Methods:

1. Clean ribs with water, then put into a saucepan, add water to cover all the ribs, add some cooking wine, white vinegar, and a few slices of ginger root. Cook on medium high heat to boil. Turn off heat, then let it sit for about 5 minutes. 

When cooking meat and seafood, I love to use some ginger root. I think ginger works much better than lemon juice. 

2. Rinse ribs with warm water, then dry with paper towel. Add seasoning to ribs, set overnight in refrigerator or at least several hours. 

For seasoning, I normally use soybean sauce, vinegar, sugar, salt, ginger root, green onion and black pepper.

                   

3. Clean the squash, chop the top off, take all the seeds out.

4. Mix seasoned ribs with a little bit egg white, mix well with corn starch then. Fill ribs into squash.

5. Steam the squash for about 50 – 60 minutes.

6. You can top with chopped green onion. Serve warm. 

You can use other kind but similar squash, like acorn squash. Of course, you can use other kind of meat, too. I’m thinking of trying chicken one day. I think it would be good, too. 

To view this recipe in Chinese, please click here

Pan Fried Spam with Egg Filling

This dish is made with love, for who I know and I don’t know.

Ingredients:

spam, medium eggs, seasoning

Methods:

1. Slice spam into 4 slices.

I like the thickness of 4 slices, of course you can slice more or less.

2. Use a heart-shaped cookie cutter to cut the sliced ham.

3. Crack egg, seperate egg yolk and egg white, slightly beat egg white. Add seasoning to it, then mix well.

I uesed large eggs, then realized the egg york is too big for the space, so I picked the smalleds eggs I can find. I think medium eggs should be better sized.

         

4. Heat up skillet on medium heat, or whatever heat level you use to fry eggs. Cook spam for a minute or two, then flip.

5. Add several drops of cooking oil, then fill eggs into the hole, cook until egg is firm.

Stir Fry Bell Pepper with Onion and Spam

 

 

My mon has problem biting regular meat, so I tried to cook processed meat instead of regular meat for her. Spam is one of the kind I use often.

Ingredients:

bell pepper, onion, spam

seasoning: garlic, corn starch, vinegar, soybean sauce, sesame oil, salt, sugar.

Methods:

1. Chop bell pepper, onion and spam into sticks.

2. Chop garlic into small pieces.

3. Mix one teaspoon corn starch with little bit cold water, add vinegar and soybean sauce into mixture.

4. Heat up skillet on medium high heat, add oil. Add bell pepper, onion and spam into skillet, stir constantly.

5. When bell pepper and onion get little tender, add garlic into skillet.

6. When you can smell garlic is cooking, pour corn starch mixture into skillet, stir quickly.

7. Add several drops of sesame oil, stir well.

 

 

Steamed Ribs

Steamed Rib

I was in meat mode yesterday, and ribs was the only meat I had, so I cooked some ribs. And it turned out really good, everybody likes it!

Ingredients:

ribs, cellophane noodle (this wasn’t planned to begin with), seasoning.

Methods:

1. Chop ribs into small pieces.

I normally ask the supermarket to slice ribs into inch-wide strips, and then chop them by bones before I cook.

2. Put ribs into a sauce pan, add cold water, then cover with lid, medium high heat, bring pan to boil. Turn off the heat, let it sit for about 5 minutes.

3. Pour ribs into a drainer, raise with warm water, drain well.

4. Put ribs into a container (I used a ziploc bag), add whatever seasoning into bag, massage some, let it sit for several hours.

For seasoning, I used cooking wine, vinegar, soy bean sauce, sugar, garlic powder, ginger powder, oyster sauce, and ground pepper. If you like salty food, you can add some salt into it.

5. Meantime, soak cellophane noodle into cold water.

6. Find a deep plate (like soup plate), lay cellophane noodle at the bottom, then set ribs on top of it.

7. Fill steamer with water, high heat to bring it to boil, then put ribs in, adjust heat to medium after several minutes. Total cooking time is about 30 minutes.

Most of the time when I steam something, the plate will come out with a circle of marks of food, but this time the plate actually came out with clean edge. I think it’s because the cellophane noodle at bottom.

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean

 

This is one of my most favorite way to cook noodle. It tastes a lot better than regular stir fried noodle.

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green BeanIngredients:

fresh noodle, green bean, ribs, ginger root, seasoning (salt, sugar, cooking wine, vinegar, soybean sauce).

Methods:

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green BeanSteamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean1. Slice ginger root, take 4 slices, put into cold water in wok, add some cooking wine into water.

2. Chop ribs into small pieces, then put into cold water, set wok on high heat, bring to boil, then simmer for several minutes. Rinse with warm water.

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green BeanI had the butcher sliced ribs short when I bought it.

3. Add water into wok, just enough to cover ribs, add cooking wine, vinegar and a little bit sugar, then add ribs back into wok, high heat to boil, simmer for about 30 minutes or until ribs are done.

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean4. Meantime, tear the edge off green bean, then tear into shorter pieces, wash with water, drain.

5. Add green bean into wok when ribs are done, add salt, soybean sauce, simmer for about 10-15 minutes, or until green bean start getting soft.

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean6. Spread noodle over rib and green bean, cover with lid, simmer for about 20 minutes.

7. Turn heat off, mix noodle with rib and green bean, so noodle will be coated with leftover juice in wok.

 

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean

Steamed Noodle with Rib and Green Bean

 

Baked Egg in Ham Cup

 

Baked Egg in Ham Cup

I fell in love with the look when I saw it online. I know it’s going to taste good so I tried it. And it was good.

Baked Egg in Ham CupIngredients:

thin sliced ham, egg, green onion leaves, seasoning.

Methods:

Baked Egg in Ham Cup1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.

2. Take 2-3 slices of ham, overlap on each other, then set in muffin cup or individual baking dish.

3. Crack eggs, pour one egg in each cup.

Baked Egg in Ham Cup4. Sprinkle salt and pepper on top, then chop some green onion leaves on top.

5. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until eggs are set to your taste.

With 20-minute-baking, egg yolk should not be running.

 

Baked Egg in Ham Cup

 

Braised Wings with Coke

 

Braised Wings with Coke

This is one of my favorites way to cook wings. I think most of people like it.

Braised Wings with CokeIngredients:

Chicken Wings, Coke, seasoning.

Methods:

Braised Wings with Coke1. Clean all the wings, cut each wing into 3 pieces: drum, flat and tip.

2. Use paper towel to pat dry all the wings.

3. Heat up skillet, add cooking oil. Saute wings until wings change color and get dry.

Braised Wings with Coke4. Add pepper, sugar, salt and ginger powder into skillet, mix well. Then add some soybean sauce, keep stirring until wings are coated evenly.

5. Add coke to almost cover all the wings. Medium high heat with lid covered, cook until the juice get thicker. Flip every 5 minutes.

6. Transfer to plate to serve.

 

Braised Wings with Coke

 

Spaghetti with Meatball and Shrimp

 

Spaghetti with Meatball and Shrimp

I was never a spaghetti person, until back a while ago, I have some spaghetti at a friend’s place. He cooked the spaghetti so good, I fell in love with it. I know my spaghetti tastes nowhere close to his cooking, but I’ll keep trying.

Ingredients:

spaghetti, pasta sauce, meatball, shrimp, garlic leaves, butter, chicken broth.

Spaghetti with Meatball and ShrimpMethods:

1. Chop garlic leaves into small pieces.

2. Cook spaghetti by instructions, drain well, then mix with a little bit butter, set aside.

3. Meantime, pour some chicken broth and pasta sauce into sauce pan, bring to boil on medium heat, add meatball, bring to boil again, then add shrimp, keep cooking until shrimp change color.

4. Sprinkle garlic leaves, mix well.

5. Transfer to plate, serve when hot.

 

Spaghetti with Meatball and Shrimp

 

I decided to start a vegetable garden. After some work, now it’s almost set up and I planted some garlic about 2 month ago. It’s my first time planting garlic in soil, I noticed that the garlic is growing slow because of the temperature, but it looks much stronger, and looks very healthy. After a rainy morning, everything looks fresh and green.

 

garlic leaves

 

怎样发面(干酵母版)

 

怎样发面

 

用干酵母发面其实不是很难,只要酵母的活性还在。

干酵母保存时间长了,效果会差些,所以如果长期不用的话,建议放入冰箱冷藏。

怎样发面材料:

2 小勺/1 小袋酵母,2 小勺白糖,面粉适量

做法:

怎样发面1. 酵母和白糖混合,用温水化开。然后静置,让酵母液表面充满气泡。

可以略微搅拌一下,让酵母融化的快些。

2. 把酵母液 慢慢倒进面粉里,同时用筷子/叉子快速搅拌,让面粉变成面絮。

怎样发面3、如果还有很多干面粉,可以再加一些温水。

剩余干面粉的多少决定了面的软硬。如果基本没有干面粉剩下,面团会很软。

4、把面絮和成一个光滑的面团即可。

 

Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)

 

Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)

 

Somehow, I wanted to make some sausages for a while. I know the temperature is not low enough to make some real Chinese sausage, so I did a cheat version.

Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)Ingredients:

15 lb ground pork, 1 cup rice wine, 1/4 cup salt, 1/2 cup sugar, enough sausage casing, 1 funnel.

Smoking: some black tea, a old wok, a separate rack

Method:

Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)Make sausage:

1. Soak sausage casing in water.

2. Mix ground pork with seasoning.

The rice wine I use is not the regular cooking wine, but a homemade wine made with sweet rice. You can also use spirit drink such as vodka, whiskey.

3. Put sausage case on the funnel, then fill casing through funnel. Tie with thread or twist casing to separate.

 

Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)

 

Smoke:

Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)1. Put a sheet of foil on the bottom a old wok (old enough that you wouldn’t regret if you damage it), then put some black tea on it.

2. Lay sausage one layer on the rack, put inside of wok, cover with lid.

3. Set wok on high heat, until you see smoke full of wok. Turn off heat, let it set until the wok get clear view again.Smoked Pork Sausage (Chinese Version)

4. Repeat if needed, flip sausage upside down.

Try your best to do this smoking step outside. The smell is extremely strong.