Clear Tom Yum Soup

Serves 4

1 pot of boiling water
3 fat garlic cloves, smashed
1 white onion, cut into wedges
1-2 large stalks spring onions, chopped and whites and greens separated
4 bunches coriander, roots and stems chopped, and leaves whole
4-5 slices ginger
3-4 kaffir lime leaves, roughly bruised or torn
1-2 stalks lemongrass, bashed and chopped into large chunks
3 large red chilis (and a few small chili padis, or birds eye chili for those who can take the heat)
1 - 2 tsp sugar
Soy or fish sauce to taste
1 chicken stock cube, or 2 dessert spoons chicken stock concentrate dissolved in some water
Juice of 1 lime or half a big lime
1 bowl of assorted mushrooms - oyster, shitake, enoki, straw etc
Use whatever meat you like, e.g fish, prawns, chicken, mussels, squid, or chicken. (I used prawns and crayfish in the picture above)

1. Bring water to the boil. Add garlic, white onion, stalks & roots of coriander, white parts of spring onions, ginger, lime leaves,lemongrass and red chilis. Boil for 10 mins.

2. Add the chicken stock cubes, sugar, soy/fish sauce, and lime. Taste and make sure there are the 4 Ss - Sweet, Sour, Salty and Spicy.

3. Add the mushrooms.

4. Add the meats that take longer to cook first. E.g chicken or mussels. Prawns and squid only take a minute or two in boiling water.

5. Serve with torn pieces of coriander and chopped green onion.

*Note: If you have clear home made chicken stock, all the better. Replace that with the water and chicken stock cube/concentrate. 

Swedish Meatballs

Serves a very full 3 or small 4

minced beef (200g)
minced pork (250g)
1 egg
1 small onion, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
100g panko
pinch of nutmeg
oil for frying
200ml beef stock
200ml double cream
400g of new potatoes
fresh dill or english parsley, chopped
4 tbsp lingonberry jam


1. Mix beef & pork mince, nutmeg, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs and egg together with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.

2. Roll and shape the mixture into lots of walnut-sized meatballs. Knock each ball against the palms of your hand.

3. Peel the washed potatoes into a steamer and steam for 15 minutes.

4. Heat some oil in a non-stick pan and fry the meatballs until they brown all over.

5. Add the beef stock and cream to the pan and simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce thickens. Add pepper to the sauce and place onto plates.

6. Remove the potatoes from the steamer and toss with some butter, salt and pepper.

7. Chop the dill/parsley and garnish before serving with the potatoes and with a dollop of lingonberry jam on the side.

* Tip: If you can't find lingonberry jam (Ikea has them), use cranberry jam, or a mixed berry jam will work just as well. 

* I got this recipe From Sorted Food (with my own little tweak). Great recipe!! 

Sweet and Sour Pork

Serves 4

For the meat:
500g Sweet & sour pork cut , diced into 2 inch pieces
(the Chinese butcher will know which cut it is. If he doesn't, just use pork belly with rind removed, or pork loin that has quite a bit of fat on)
1/2 teaspoon sodium bicarbonate
2 tablespoon water
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 egg yolks
1 or 2 pinches of ground white pepper
4 tablespoons cornflour
Peanut oil for frying

Vegetables:
2 red chilies, de-seeded and cut into chunks
2 large red onions, cut into wedges
3 large cloves of garlic, chopped
1 large or 2 small green capsicum, deseeded and cut into chunks
1 cucumber, peeled and cut into chunks
2 large tomatoes, cut into wedges
6 spring onions, cut into 2 inch pieces (for garnish)

Gravy:
10 tablespoons stock or water
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Worchestershire sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
4 tablespoons tomato sauce/ketchup
4 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoon white vinegar
1 tablespoon A1 or HP sauce
1/2 tablespoon chili sauce
1 or 2 pinches of ground white pepper
11/2 tablespoons cornflour mixed with 2 tablespoons water

1. Mix all ingredients for the gravy, except the cornflour mixed with water, and set aside.

2. Prepare all vegetables and set aside.

3. Add all ingredients for the meat, except cornflour and oil, and marinade for 15 minutes.

4. Heat the oil in a wok.

5. Place cornflour on a large plate and coat all the pieces of pork.

6. When the oil is hot, fry the pork, and lower the flame to medium/high heat. Fry till crispy and brown. Remove from oil and drain on paper towel.

7. Remove the oil and leave 2 tablespoons. (If it's cloudy, use fresh oil).

8. Fry the onions and chilies till it's slightly softer, add the garlic. Fry till fragrant.

9. Add the gravy and then add the vegetables (except spring onions). Stir and lower the flame to medium, and cover for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft but still have some crunch to them.

10. Stir the cornflour and water mixture. Increase the flame to high till it's boiling, and slowly stir in the mixture little by little, until the sauce slightly thickens.

11. Add the pork and let it simmer for a minute.

12. Remove from heat and add the spring onions. Serve.

*This recipe is from my mother, who took it from an extremely old recipe book written by a famous Cantonese chef, Tham Yew Kai. She photocopied the page and gave it to me so there's no link online to the original recipe! You can see I was following the recipe as the photocopy of it is in the picture in the background on the right.

I've kept the sauce exactly as the chef has written, but changed up some of the vegetables. You can adapt it and change those too. I also omitted the vetsin or MSG. The original recipe calls for 1/2 teaspoon added to the marinaded pork. 

To be honest, Mum used a tiny tiny bit of MSG in her cooking growing up. A bit of it changes the flavour of a dish dramatically. I'm not totally opposed to it, as long as you don't use it every single day in every single dish, I'm sure it's probably OK! 

Easy Thai Pineapple Rice

Serves 4 - 6

2 cups rice

1/2 can of a 270ml coconut milk (not coconut cream!)

chunks of pineapple from can with the syrup ( I used Hosen Pineapple cubes in syrup)

water

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp turmeric

Dash of cayenne pepper

Dash of cumin

Optional: 1 chicken breast, cubed and marinated with a few drops of sesame, splash of soy and pepper

Handful of roasted cashews (just get them ready salted and roasted from a packet)

Lime wedges and Coriander leaves to garnish
* Optional
peeled whole garlic cloves
1 tied pandan leaf

1. Wash the rice in cold water until the water runs clear, at least 3 - 4 rinses. Drain.

2. Drain the can of pineapple and reserve the liquid.

3. Add the salt, turmeric, cayenne and cumin to the rice and mix.

4. In a bowl, mix the coconut milk and syrup. Add it to the rice. Put your palms flat on top of the rice, and add water till it reaches your index finger's second knuckle. *

*Note: I've never measured the water for cooking rice and have only ever done it with this method, and it never fails me. For a similar demonstration, check out Ming Tsai's YouTube video.

5. Add the pineapple chunks. 

6. Add the optional ingredients (garlic and pandan leaf). Start the cooker.

7. Optional: Marinade the chicken for at least 20 mins. Heat a fry pan with some oil and fry till browned and cooked through. 

8. Tip all the chicken into the rice cooker once the rice is cooked.

9. Add the cashews.

10. Serve with lime wedges and coriander leaves.

* I think traditional Thai pineapple rice is fried using day-old rice. This is my own cheat's version and it's just as tasty. It does however, require a rice cooker. My only advice is if you don't already own one, go buy one. It not only gives you perfectly cooked rice all the time, you can cook it in advance and keep it warm.