Sotong Baker - Barbecue Squid

Barbecue Squid

My wife and the kids prepared dinner yesterday. They cooked three simple cuisines. Among them, the barbecue squid stands out as we had not had this cuisine for a long time. I would usually cook curry with the squid but this was a really large squid, not the smaller squids which I normally cook. So, with just one really huge squid, bigger than both my hands put together, it was marinated with some curry powder and salt then barbecued in the oven for about thirty minutes on four hundred degree celsius.

Malaysian Style Butter Chicken

The second cuisines was chicken nugget cooked in salted egg and buttery sauce or better known as Malaysian style fried butter chicken with salted eggs. This is a specialty cuisine. Even the Malaysian restaurants in Vancouver do not have this Malaysian cuisine listed in their restaurant's menu. But very common in Chinese restaurants in Malaysia. So, this cuisine is not only special but also popular among diners in Malaysia. We sometimes change the main ingredient from chicken nuggets to seafood like fish fillet, shrimps, or squid.

Malaysian Hut

Sarawak Laksa

I was in Surrey with my wife doing our weekly grocery shopping that we decided to drop in at Malaysian Hut on 108th Avenue for lunch. This restaurant is located in the Guildford area and is kinda hidden on a small strip mall. Most Malaysian's would know where this place is but depending on which direction you were coming from, the entrance to the strip mall is only assessable from the direction of Port Mann Bridge.

Ipoh Hor Fun

The direction I usually use to reach this restaurant is through King George Boulevard. So, coming from this direction, I will have to drive past the strip mall and find the lane way behind the restaurant to get to it. But all this effort was worth it. Malaysian Hut has a couple of really good and authentic cuisines which I find to be the most accurate representation of East Malaysian cuisines. I can't recall as to how many times I have been here.

Mee Goreng

Their signature noodle cuisine is the Sarawak Laksa which is served with a sourish curry broth. Just delightfully good and tasty. And instead of the normal shanghai noodle, the Sarawak Laksa is served with vermicelli. Anther authentic noodle cuisine is the Sarawak Kolo Mee which is only found and very popular in Sarawak among the Chinese. Then, there is the popular Mee Goreng that seems to be on the menu of every Malaysian restaurant in Vancouver. I had the Ipoh Hor Fun, which was actually really good and authentic for lunch.

Kent's Economical Kitchen

Fried Fish Fillet

My wife and I went out together in the morning for an early appointment with our tax accountant. We were with him for about an hour and had time to spare for some shopping before heading home. So, we decided to drop in at 88 Supermarket which carries a lot of Asian stuff. And from the Accountant's office to 88 Supermarket was just about ten minutes away. I was looking for curry leaves in particular.

Sweet and Sour Pork

And so happened, 88 Supermarket is on the same street with Kent's Kitchen on Victoria Drive. Kent's Kitchen is a convinient and economical food outlet that specializes in take aways. They have been serving Cantonese style cuisines to the communities in Chinatown, Victoria Drive, and Kingsway (between Fraser Street and Victoria Drive). We have not been to Kent's Kitchen for quiet a while now as we hardly travel to this part of the city of late.

Stir Fried Pak Choy

Since we were already in the vicinity, we decided to stop at Kent's Kitchen to pick up a few ready cooked cuisines for dinner tonight. We selected two different cuisines. First was fried fish fillet and the second was sweet and sour pork. And all we have to do is warm up the two cuisines using the microwave before dinner and maybe prepare another vegetable cuisine or open a canned food. Some times we just supplement with fried omelette.

Fried Shrimp Wonton and Fried Tofu

Fried Shrimp Wonton

Lunch was simply fried shrimp wonton and fried tofu today. We slept in today as it has been a long while that we have not done so. But still, we got out of bed at about ten in the morning and straight into the kitchen to start preparing for brunch. Last night before going to bed, I have already marinated some shrimps with a mix of fish paste and ground pork. I simply added oyster flavoured sauce and sesame seed oil to the paste and mixed everything evenly.

Fried Tofu Puffs

Then, I left the paste in the fridge overnight. This morning, I used the paste as stuffings for the wonton. Once I have wrapped all the wonton, I immediately fried them in a pot of hot canola cooking oil. We enjoy eating fried wonton, especially the ones we home cook because we could have more. When dine out, we only get a few in a plate. Besides that, fried wonton is not that difficult to prepare. All that are needed would be shrimps, fish paste and ground pork.

Fried Tofus

The same paste can also be used to stuff tofu puffs and vegetables. Just like making the Hakka yong tau foo. Basically using the same home blend sauce of oyster flavoured sauce and sesame seed oil. For lunch this morning, we did exactly that. We had both the fried wonton and stuffed tofu puffs because there were some leftover shrimp-fish-ground pork paste. And since we were had the pot of cooking oil, we added fried tofus to the menu.

Home Cooked Butter Prawns

Fried Butter Prawns

We cooked Butter Prawns for lunch today. In the morning I went to Save-On-Foods on Kingsway in Edmonds to buy a bag of Argentinian jumbo shrimps. I did not go just to shop for shrimps but was there because I had sent one of the kids to the dentist. So, instead of waiting at the dentist for him to get done, I went to Save-On-Foods which was just a block away. Initially, I did not have intention to buy the shrimps but the offer price caught my interest.

Fried Jumbo Shrimps

So, once we got home, I started cleaning the shrimps, and then prepare the ingredients for the butter shrimps. As, we have never cooked with this style before, we have to look up the recipe online. We have cooked the butter prawns from a pre-packed paste that we bought from T&T Supermarket but not from scratch. I am familiar with sweet and sour, ginger spring onion, and kong pao recipe but with butter recipe, it is going to be the first.

Kailan Cuisine

I had one of my kid cook the shrimps as I read and instructed him from the online video I was watching. We did really well because the butter prawns cuisine turned out to be really good, tasty and flavourful. As, I did not just buy the shrimps but bought quite a few items, we cooked a vegetable cuisine as well. I bought a bunch of really fresh kailan. We clean and then blenched them in hot boiling water and garnished with fried garlic and shallot oil. That was our lunch cuisines with steam rice. Wonderfully tasty and satisfying.

Going Out to Hons Chinatown

Clay Pot Seafood Egg Plant

We dined with some friends at Hons in Chinatown yesterday. Lately, with our busy schedule, we have not been as adventurous as before in looking for new places to dine. But yesterday, we decided to venture out of Burnaby and have some familiar Cantonese cuisines. At the same time, invited some friends to join us. The cuisines at Hons Wuntun House were satisfying like usual and nothing spectacular either. But definitely, very familiar to our taste buds.

Clay Pot Seafood Tofu

When we first arrived there were only one other table occupied but as the time progresses, the diner was nearly full. This is typical of Hons, they normally attract a good crowd of diners of different ages, professional class, and background. The ambiance has never changed, it is the same as when we first arrived in Vancouver many years ago. In fact it still looked the same when we first dined here more than ten years ago.

Spicy Rock Salt Shrimps

We ordered six different cuisines, ranging from spicy fried rock salt shrimps, fried female capelins, fried smelt fish to the two clay pot cuisines. Generally, like I mentioned, the Cantonese cuisines were satisfying and authentic. But yesterday, I liked the two clay pot cuisines which was the seafood egg plant and the seafood tofu. On a cold evening, any hot warm food is good. It was really soothing for the stomach. Both the clay pot cuisines were served with gravy and the gravy went well with steam rice. We were there for at least two hours. After dinner we just sat there drank more warm tea and chat until about closing time.

Penang Style Hokkien Noodle

Penang Style Hokkien Noodle

I cooked the Penang style Hokkein Noodle for dinner yesterday. I was actually not sure of what to cook for dinner as I did not prepare ahead. So, I looked in the fridge and took out a bag of Shanghai noodle. Therefore, the Hokkien Noodle came to mind. Next thing I did was look for the ingredients that I would need to make this meal a flavourful one. I would need vegetable, preferably yu choy but I am out of that vegetable so cabbage will do.

Penang Fried Hokkien Mee

And the other ingredients I took out from the fridge were shrimps, a piece of pork (to be thinly sliced), fish cake and spring onions. I would also need three spoons of corn starch mixed in ten spoons of water, pepper, salt, and chicken stock. Once I have all the ingredients ready I started cooking. I started to heat up the wok. I use the thirty two cm wok to fry most types of noodles which is large enough to hold up to seven portions.

Penang Hokkien Char

First would be the four spoons of cooking oil, followed with one spoon of chopped garlic. Then, the sliced pork, shrimps, and fish cakes goes into the wok. Once the slices of pork are cooked, add the chopped cabbage. Stir fry the cabbage for about a minute then add the shanghai noodle. Add three spoons of dark soy sauce, pepper, salt and chicken stock. Stir and mix until evenly colored. Add two cups of water and the corn starch mixture. Take to boil, then transfer to serving plates.

Corn Starch Coated Fried Chicken Wings

Crunchy Fried Chicken Wings

I fried chicken wings using only corn starch, pepper, and salt which turned out to be deliciously tasty and flavourful. I have earlier in the day prepared the chicken wings before I went out to work. I mixed five spoons of corn starch, a half spoon of pepper, and a pinch of salt. Then, mixed them well and poured the corn starch into a bag with about a dozen chicken wings. I zipped locked the bag, then shacked the bag to allow the corn starch to evenly coat the chicken wings.

Frying Chicken Wings

I then, left the bag in the fridge to cool. When I came home from work about five hours later, the chicken wings were still in the fridge. It was cold and ready to fry. In poured about a litre of canola cooking oil into a small ceramic pot, heat up the cooking oil. Once the cooking oil was hot enough, I started putting in the chicken wings one at a time until the pot was full. With a dozen chicken wings, I need to repeat this process at least three times.

Ready to be served Fried Chicken Wings

When the temperature of the chicken wings were really cold, the corn starch would easily stick onto the skin. There is no need to introduce any liquid to the mix. And with no moisture or liquid, the chicken wings would not cause the cooking oil to splash all over the stove and kitchen. Once the chicken wings were done, the skin was crunchy and the meat juicy. To improve on the crunchiness to the chicken wings just add two spoons of rice flour when preparing the mixture.

A Plater of Rendang Chicken

Authentic Malay Rendang Chicken

I have a great family, not only my wife but my kids as well. Anyone of us can cook a decent meal. Even better than decent. Yesterday, my youngest kid cook rendang chicken. Of cause with my wife watching over him and teaching him while he does most of the preparation and cooking. We teach our kids to be independent of us, not only in their studies but more importantly in basic life skills as well. Both me and my wife, grew up learning life skills and values from our respective parents which we would like to past on to my kids.

Fried Tofu Brick

I was in Vancouver most of the day yesterday. I went out with some friends at about noon. And we were there until later in the evening. We were attending a trade fair at the Vancouver Convention Centre, and since we were already there, we took the opportunity to explore as many exhibits as we possibly could within the allotted time frame. So, I got home after seven in the evening and dinner was ready. There were Rendang Chicken, Fried Tofu Brick Garnished with Preserved Radish and Fish Bone Soup.

Fish Bone Soup

Although the rendang chicken was cooked from pre-packed paste but still there were ingredients needed to be added into the rendang cuisine to improve on its presentation, taste and flavour. If cooked as is, it will not taste as good. The fried tofu was easy. Just fry two pieces of the tofu and garnish with fried preserved radish. As for the fish bone soup. The fish bone has to be fried first and once it is done, add water and the rest of the ingredients. Wait till boil than serve in a large bowl.

Polish Perogies, Coleslaw, and Salted Cabbage

Home Cooked Perogies

My wife and I was invited for dinner at a friend's place yesterday. This is a Polish Canadian friend with his lovely family that we have known for quite a while now. We started becoming friends way back in 2010, right before we landed in Canada. Ever since then, we have been inviting each other to our homes for dinners and lunch occasionally. Both husband and wife are great cooks and we have the privilege to share some of their fine cooking.

Preserved Cabbage

Especially, Polish and Eastern European cuisines. Not only are they wonderful host but we get to bring home some of their pickled and preserved vegetables. There were once when they gave us some home made bread and home made pork liver sausages. Yesterday, we had the chance to dine with them again and they have graciously prepared the best home made perogies for dinner. It was really flavourful and authentic. The wife took four hours to make approximately five hundred pieces of perogies.

Coleslaw

The perogies stuffings was simply potatoes and home made white cheese. Other than perogies, we had coleslaw and preserved cabbage which were also home made. After dinner we chat a bit, have a glass of wine, and a cup of tea with some home made blueberry topped cake. My wife asked for the cake recipe and the recipe for the perogies too. And before we left for home, I was given a large bottle of preserved cabbage.

Curry Cabbage and Stir Fried Cabbage

Cabbage Curry

I cooked two different cabbage cuisines for lunch today. In fact, should call it brunch as it was our late breakfast and early lunch. We did not wake up late but just being busy with chores around the home and catching up on some office work too. The kids were also busy with their school work. So, I only started cooking at around quarter after eleven and got done by about noon. Just two simple dishes, and both has lots of cabbage in them.

I put about four spoons of A1

Spicy Cabbage Treat

Asam Fish paste in a pot with about four cups of water. Once the broth started boiling, I added a handful of cabbage and carrots. Then immediate, I add a slice of fish fillet into the broth. I could have thrown in some fish balls instead but I thought the fish fillet would do just as good and as tasty. The A1 Asam Fish paste was ideal for a quick spicy cuisine. Unless I have the time to prepare from scratch, the Asam Fish paste is a good alternative.

Stir Fried Cabbage

While waiting for the Curry Cabbage to cook, I had the wok warmed up for the second dish. After adding two spoons of cooking oil, I threw in a handful of anchovies into the wok. Once the anchovies were fried, I added the cabbages and carrots. Then, half spoon of chicken essence. Stir fried for a couple of minutes and transfer the vegetables to a serving plate. By the time I was done with both the dishes, the rice were cooked too. Timing was just perfect.

Asam Fish Curry

Asam Curry Fish

I wanted to cook fish yesterday for a change as we have been having chicken for as many days as I can recall. So, took out a piece of fish to thaw in the morning. And it was the black pomfret which I bought from Foody World Supermarket. In fact, I bought like five pieces of that fish when we were shopping there last week. The black pomfret is good when cooked with curry or when fried. I often fried the fish stuffed with thick curry paste.

Stir fried Preserved Mustard

But yesterday, I decided to cook curry with it and I was going to use a pre-packed curry paste instead of preparing the paste from scratch. I had only thawed the fish and did not prepare the ingredients for the chilli paste so the next best thing to do is to use pre-packed paste. Although, it may not taste as good as fresh home made chilli paste but will do for the evening. Anyway, the fish was really fresh and it is going to be a good cuisine. I noticed the freshness of the fish when I was cleaning it.

Tomato Egg Omelette

I have also prepared two other simple dishes. I simply open a pack of preserved mustard and pan fried the vegetables to heat it up. My mum would normally sprinkle some sugar on it and add two spoons of dark soy sauce onto the vegetable but I wanted to have it as is. The other dish was tomato omelette. I sliced three medium size tomatoes into cubes and throw them into a hot wok with one spoon of cooking oil. Then, whisked up five eggs in a large bowl and poured the eggs into the wok with the tomatoes. Once cooked, transfer to a serving plate.

Belacan (Shrimp Paste) Chicken Wings

Belacan Fried Chicken Wings

At first I hesitated because I wasn't sure what to do with the chicken wings that my wife had thawed for me to cook. She has been busy with work and I happened to arrived home earlier than her yesterday. Then, I remembered that we have not had belacan fried chicken for a while now. So, I searched for the pack of belacan paste which I might have left from the last time I used it. Took me a while to find the belacan paste because my wife had moved it from the original place where I had kept it. 

Belacan Delight

And I found two packs of the belacan paste that have been opened. Both packs have its content used half. Anyway, I only needed half of the paste in the pack. So, it was just nice for me. After I have cleaned the chicken wings (about three to four pounds), I dripped them dry and poured the leftover belacan paste onto the chicken wings. Using my hands I mixed and coated the chicken wings with the belacan paste as much as I can. 

Stir Fried Chinese Spinach

I then, poured about one litre of cooking oil into a pot and fried the chicken wings (putting in one at a time) in that pot. Once the first batch was cooked, I repeated the process with the second batch of chicken wings. It took me about five rounds to complete the task. While waiting for the chicken wings to cook, I also stir fried Chinese spinach with garlic and shrimps. Once the fried chicken wings were done, I fried some pressed tofu in the same cooking oil. 

Fried Tofu with Satay Sauce

I have sliced each piece of the pressed tofu into four smaller cubes before putting them into the hot cooking oil. Once the fried tofu were done, they were garnished with satay sauce. I have some leftover satay sauce that I took back from a function at my workplace. So, I make good use of the satay sauce. My timing was really good, as I was about done washing up the kitchen utensils and the pot, everybody came home at about the same time within minutes of each other.

Dined at the DAC SFU

Pork Roast

I went to dined in the Diamond Alumni Centre (DAC) with some friends a couple of days ago. The DAC is located in Simon Fraser University's Burnaby campus right on the hill top overseeing the Barnet Marine Park. The view from the deck of the building is awesome and most beautiful when after a snow shower. I dine at the DAC a couple of times each year. Sometimes on special events with my colleagues but often with friends during lunch.

Assortment of Salads

The menu theme changes occasionally. And when I was there that day it was the Mexican Lunch Buffet. And the following week is going to be Taste of India. The one that most patrons look forward to is around Christmas when they serve their very special Christmas buffet which is usually fully reserved. So, we usually reserve early. One of the cuisines that I have always enjoyed at the DAC is their salad selections. They are never out of salad ideas. Pretty amazing variety for a place that is managed by the university's food services and staffed by mostly students.

Stir Fried Mixed Vegetables

I did not really ate too much that day as I was watching my diet. But I did not have any reservations when it came to the salads. I tried every single dish of the salads and there were also a whole tray of stir fried mixed vegetables. I also took a scoop of the rice and two slices of the pork roast. Overall, like always, I have enjoyed dining here at the Diamond Alumni Centre and loved the beautiful scenery. And when it snows on Burnaby mountain, this place is especially spectacular.

Just Ate Tofus

Tofus

I came home late from work yesterday and only had tofus for dinner. As it was already past ten in the evening, I skipped the rice but ate only the tofus. Anyway, I have already eaten some rice at work during the short break that I had at work. My wife had cooked three types of tofu cuisines which was sometimes our typical simple dinner. Especially when we are really busy with the kids' extracurricular activities, like their school band, air cadet trainings, or sport practice.

Tofu Dinner

She has fried stuffed tofu puffs with pork, fried pressed tofus, and steam soft tofu garnished with spring onions. I must have ate at least three different tofus. Tofus are just plain healthy food, they do not really have any taste or flavour. It is the sauces and the paste that is added in the cuisine that gives the tofu its taste. My family have been eating lots of tofu since we arrived here in Canada. I don't remember eating tofu that often in Malaysia. In fact, tofus are not only cheap but is available everywhere in Vancouver in different forms and types.

Taking Nasi Lemak to School for Lunch

Nasi Lemak with Curry Chicken

I woke up early this morning to prepare breakfast and lunch for the whole family. I have already gotten some of the ingredients and spices ready the night before. Except for the coconut milk fragrant rice, some of the other components of the Nasi Lemak cuisine could be prepared before hand, like the fried anchovies, roasted ground nuts, slice cucumbers and sambal. The first thing I did this morning was to cook the coconut milk fragrant rice.

Nasi Lemak Lunch

After that, I cooked the curry chicken. To save time, I used a pre-packed sauce or paste that I had bought from the grocery store a few days back. And I wanted to cook a different curry, so I used the famous Thai green curry paste for the chicken curry. The pre-packed curry paste was not as aromatic and flavourful as I hope it would have. But since it was still early in the morning and no grocery stores were opened yet, I could not add any extra spices to make it better.

My Dinner

At the same time, I also boiled a couple of eggs. And unshelled the eggs once they were cooked. Once the coconut milk fragrant rice were cooked, I started filling up the lunch containers. I started with laying the banana leaf in the bottom of the container and scooped the coconut milk fragrant rice onto the banana leaf. I continued with the curry chicken and the rest of the nasi lemak components on the rice too. As for me, this container of rice is going to be my dinner instead because I start work later today and finishes late.

Curry Beef Puff for Lunch

Curry Beef Puffs

I bought some frozen curry beef puff from Swee-Ann Confectionaries in Richmond last Saturday. So, this morning, my wife took some of the puffs out from the freezer to fry them for the kids and I to take to school and work for our lunch. At Swee-Ann, they make three types of curry puffs or curry pockets as it is called here. I think it is the chicken curry puffs, curry beef puffs, and curry potato puffs. I would usually buy half dozen of the curry beef puffs, and another half dozen of the curry chicken puffs.

Fresh Curry Puffs

Besides that they also have a wide range of egg noodles, pies, flavoured paste, and sauces that they distribute to the restaurants, confectionary suppliers, and bakeries in the metro Vancouver area. On Saturdays, Swee-Ann usually have the cooked and ready to eat Sarawak Kolo Mee too. That is the reason I like to go there on Saturdays, to pick up a few bowls of the cooked Kolo Noodles. And the owner of the establishment is pretty friendly and helpful with recipe tips.

Golden Brown Puffs

The puffs can be cooked using two different methods. One is to bake and the other is deep frying. I have done both but the fastest, if pressed for time, is frying the puffs. Just prepare a wok or pot with cooking oil on medium heat. And once the cooking oil is hot, slowly put the puffs in the cooking oil one at a time. Turn the puffs every so often to avoid the puffs from burning on one side. I would usually use a pair of chopsticks and roll the floating puffs gently. Once they turned golden brown, lift them out from the cooking oil and allow them to sit in the serving plate for a few minutes before consuming as the stuffings can be really hot inside.