Kimchi Fried Rice

Whenever I open up my fridge and see leftover rice going stale.. I smile to myself and think.. humm... Fried Rice... yay !!! :)

Although this time, I didn't have any chinese sausage, lettuce or green onions left in my fridge. So I couldn't make my grandma's signature fried rice.

I did however have a lot of kimchi that was causing my entire fridge to smell like one big kimchi !

I had opened up a bag of kimchi the previous month, but with all the travelling I've been doing lately, I haven't managed to finish it off. Resulting in my entire fridge being consumed by kimchi smell. Oh well... :)

By the way.. this Kimchi fried rice is something I will be making again and again.. its that good...(grandma will not be pleased).. :)

Kimchi Fried Rice

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of steamed white rice left in the fridge overnight
• 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
• 1 clove of garlic (finely chopped)
• 4 slices of bacon (sliced in to strips about 1cm wide)
• 1/2 onion (thinly sliced)
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup of kimchi (roughly chopped)
• 1 tablespoons of kimchi liquid
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 tablespoon of light soy sauce
• 1/4 cups of peas
• 1 spring onion (thinly sliced into small round pieces) - optional

Method:

1. Heat up the oil in a deep pan or wok and add in the onion and garlic and saute until aromatic
2. Add in bacon and then the chopped kimchi.
3. Do a few stirs, then add in the rice and use a spatula or something similar to press down on the rice. So the cold rice lumps break up.
4. Sprinkle with 3/4 of the salt, then stir to combine well.
5. Move the rice around to the sides of the pan or wok to create a well or crater in the middle
6. Add the eggs one at a time to the center of the pan, the remaining salt and scramble the eggs as they cook.
7. Fold in the rice, drizzle the soy sauce over the rice, add remaining peas and spring onions (if using) and stir to combine well.
8. Serve immediately.

Notes:

• I prefer the Chung-Ga brand uncut kimchi which is available in Asian grocery stores in sealed bags.

Oysters with Rice Wine Vinaigrette

During my recent trip back home, my Aunt decided to throw a quick dinner party together, and I was told that I'll be responsible for the Oysters.

I thought... Great. I can do Oysters. Au Naturale ... Kilpatrick .... Sorted :)

And then I found out she ordered 10 Dozen Oysters. TEN Dozen...! that's 120 Oysters!!!

My mother's oven would only be able to do 2 dozen Kilpatrick oysters at a time.

So I quickly googled around for something that would be quick and easy to put together (since I still had to whip up the Kilpatricks - my mother's favourites). This one that I came across from Not Quite Nigella stood out from the rest. It looked simple, fresh and very easy to put together.

After tasting the Vinaigrette however, I did kind of twitch the recipe a bit. I added a bit more ginger, light soy and reduced the amount of oil. So you may want to do the same and taste as you go and add or subtract as required. Basically, you want a vinaigrette that doesn't overpower the oysters, but still want to taste the vinaigrette and not just oil.

Oysters with Rice Wine Vinaigrette
As seen in Not Quite Nigella - Tetsuya's Oysters

Ingredients:

• 12 Large Oysters Shucked (I had Coffin Bays - but any large creamy tasting oyster will do)

Vinaigrette:

• 2 teaspoon ginger (finely grated)
• 4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar (Japanese brand preferred)
• 1 teaspoon castor sugar
• 2 teaspoons light soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons grape seed oil
• 2 tablespoons light olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Garnish:

• 4 stalks of Chives (finely chopped)
• 3 tablespoons Salmon Roe

Optional:

• Rock Salt for Oysters to rest on

Method:

1. If using, place rock salt on a serving plate and arrange oysters to top
2. To make the Vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together in a bowl, taste and adjust the amount of sweetness (sugar), saltiness (light soy) or tang (lemon juice) as required
3. Spoon about a tablespoon of Vinaigrette into each oyster
4. For each oyster, sprinkle a pinch of chive and divide the Salmon Roe between the oysters evenly.

Notes:

• I left the skin on the ginger, and used a lemon zester to grate the inside flesh of the ginger
• The Vinaigrette recipe from NQN was for 12 Oysters, but I found I had more than enough for about 4 dozen oysters.
  
  

Oven Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan & Lemon Juice

I've only managed to make simple things since moving into the apartment. Mostly because, every time I've looked up a new recipe, I would realise I was missing at least 2-3 ingredients. This I put down to my ridiculously small kitchen and it's non-existent pantry (read previous post on new kitchen and lack of space).

So ... its back to basics. :)

Oven Roasted Asparagus w/ Parmesan & Lemon Juice

Ingredients:

• 2 bunches of Asparagus spears (thicker spears are better for oven grilling)
• Drizzle of 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• Pinch of Salt
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
• Freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 Tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C
2. Bend a stalk of Asparagus (near the thicker end), and let it snap naturally. The ends can be frozen to be used to make chicken stock later on.
3. Line a baking tray with grease proof paper, then place Asparagus on top in a single layer
4. Drizzle olive oil over the top and sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper
5. Place tray into oven and bake for 12-15 minutes. Asparagus should be tender when done
6. Grate a couple of slices of Parmesan over the top and top with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Serve immediately

Notes:

Here is some tips on getting the most out of a bag of lemons...Using either some freezer bags or sandwich bags and an ice-cube tray:

• Peel the Lemon rind and place in bag to be frozen.
• Juice of lemon can be frozen in batches using ice-cube trays to be used later on.

New Kitchen... New Start...

After about 4 months of renovating.. my kitchen is finally done. Whooot !! :)

The only problem I now face, is that I have to re-stock my kitchen cupboards ... in a space-efficient way.

If you're not following.. I'll explain. My entire kitchen size is 3m long by 1.4m wide.

And in this 3x1.4m space... I have my fridge, oven, stove top and dish washer.

Which leaves me about 1 set of drawers and some overhead cupboard space to fit in all my pantry items.

So keeping to essentials, and yet at the same time provide a wide enough spectrum to cover most the recipes I like to make on a regular basis, here is my list of 25:

Cupboard 1 (Oils & Sauces):

• Olive Oil
• Sesame Oil
• Chilli Oil
• Light Soy Sauce
• Japanese Rice Wine Vinegar
• Chinese Cooking Rice Wine
• Mirin

Cupboard 2 (Seasoning & Dried ingredients):

• Sea Salt
• Black Peppercorns
• White Sugar
• Dried Porcini Mushrooms
• Dried Shiitake Mushrooms
• Chilli Flakes
• Plain Flour
• Baking powder (to turn Plain flour into self raising flour)
• Tapioca Starch
• Dried Pasta
• Arborio Rice (for risottos)
• Jasmine Rice (for chinese cooking)

Cupboard 3 (Tinned & Bottled Things):

• Tinned Tomatoes
• Olives

In my fridge:

• Eggs
• Parmesan Cheese

Herbs & Other Aromatics:

• Rosemary (growing from my pot in the window)
• Garlic

Can anyone else think of any other must-have items to add to this list ?

Thanks in advance.. :)