Ying and Niq’s Niche

Inspired by the popular Mee Udang Banjir from Taiping, I decided I must test my culinary imagination by preparing my very own Mee Udang or Prawn Noodle. I have not tried the actual Mee Udang Banjir and neither have I read any of the blogs out there. So this is my authentic Mee Udang, unbiased from thoughts to taste buds. Satisfies 2 big eaters or 3 small eaters. Yummy from first till last slurp!

Ingredients:

• Dried scallop (3 pieces)
• Dried cuttlefish (1” x 3”)
• Black bracket fungus/ Bok Ngee (palm size)
• Vegetable oil (2 tablespoons)
• Garlic (3 cloves)
• Onion (1 large)
• Ginger (size of 2 thumbnails)
• Prawn (6 large), separate the head
• Salt (1 teaspoon)
• Sugar (1/2 teaspoon)
• Oyster sauce (1 tablespoon)
• Plum Sauce (2 tablespoons)
• Tomato sauce (6 tablespoons)
• Corn flour (1 teaspoon), make solution with 2 tablespoon water
• Yellow noodle (450gm)
• Chinese celery and spring onion for garnishing

Method:

1. Soak dried scallop and dried cuttlefish in half a bowl of water for 2 hours.
2. Soak black bracket fungus in a separate bowl.
3. When black bracket fungus is soft, cut to shreds.
4. Heat oil in wok.
5. Stir fry garlic, onion and ginger. Remove garlic, onion and ginger when fragrant (not till brown).
6. Fry prawns with salt. Remove when prawns turn orange. Leave heads in wok.
7. Add scallop and cuttlefish to wok, together with water used for soaking.
8. Return garlic, onion and ginger to wok. Add bracket mushroom. Simmer for 15 minutes.
9. Meanwhile, add yellow noodles to salted boiling water, boil for 1 minute, then remove from water.
10. Add oyster sauce, plum sauce and tomato sauce to wok.
11. Add corn flour solution to thicken gravy.
12. Return prawns to gravy.
13. Dish prawn gravy to noodles. Add garnishing. Serve hot.

Mee Udang Mat Nik

Chawan Mushi is one of our favorite Japanese dish. Gabriel especially loves it. He first got hooked at Sakae Sushi, Queensbay Mall, Penang. I’ve done some research and experiments and have perfected my very own Chawan Mushi. Here’s the recipe that serves 3 at a cost of less than RM2.50.

Ingredients:

• 3 medium eggs
• 400ml water
• 4g Dashi granules
• 2 small Shiitake mushrooms cut to shreds

Method:

1. Crack eggs into a large bowl
2. Dissolve Dashi granules into 400ml water and add to eggs
3. Using a chopstick, gently stir eggs by drawing a ‘Z’ at the bottom of the bowl. Do not beat eggs vigorously.
4. Using a soup ladle, scoop egg mixture and filter through a sieve into 3 small bowls (rice bowls).
5. Add shredded mushroom. You may also add crabsticks or prawn to your liking.
6. Cover bowl with aluminum foil.
7. Steam in a covered wok – 2 minutes high heat then another 15 minutes low heat.

Dashi granules can be obtained from supermarkets. I found them at Jusco Queensbay Mall, GAMA, and also at Cold Storage Gurney Plaza. I use Shimaya Iriko Dashi soup stock (8g x 8 sachets) which costs about RM7.00. For the Shiitake mushroom, I use the dried ones (Chinese generally call them huagu or ‘flower mushroom’) and soak them for about 8 hours.

Shimaya Iriko Dashi No Moto

Tofu with Ham

Had Tofu with Ham for dinner yesterday, 10-Nov-08. It was taken from a cookbook which introduces dishes which promotes health. Tofu is good for the lungs. Ham improves the appetite. Gabriel is coughing and he’s a bit picky at dinner. OK, here’s the recipe.

Ingredients:

• Shelled prawn, seasoned with cooking wine and sesame oil
• 1 medium sized onion
• 1 tablespoon ginger sticks
• Soft tofu
• 1 piece ham cut to strips
• Half cup water
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• Salt and sugar to taste
• Corn flour

Method:

1. Stir fry onion and ginger.
2. Remove onion and ginger when fragrant.
3. Fry soft tofu on low heat till slightly brown.
4. Add ham and prawn.
5. Return fried onion and ginger to the wok.
6. Add half a cup of water, let simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Add oyster sauce, a pinch of salt and sugar to taste.
8. Add corn flour solution to thicken gravy.