Recipe: Braised fish maw with mushrooms and sugar snap peas

Nowadays, you can get Chinese New Year (CNY) ingredients at the shops two months before the actual celebration. We always stock up on lots of fish maw 鱼鳔 and Chinese mushrooms as soon as we can get our hands on them.  So, we've been cooking lots of different dishes with them and our favorite combination has to be this - braised mushrooms with fish maw and sugar snap peas.

This recipe is even EASIER than my last "Easy fish maw with mushroom stew" recipe - you pre-soak them in warm water for 2 hours hence you can cut the cooking time by half. Usually we soak it before we pick the kids up from school, hence when we get back, we can quickly braise it and the dish is ready in less than 30 minutes. A complete one-pot dish with enoki mushrooms (also known as straw mushrooms), Chinese mushrooms and sugar snap peas. Super tasty!

Braised fish maw with mushrooms and sugar snap peas
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20-25 minutes
Serves 2-3


Ingredients
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 cup dried Chinese mushrooms, soaked for 2 hours and stalk removed
1 (25g) fish maw, soaked in warm water for 2 hours
2 pack enoki mushrooms, ends trimmed
130g sugar snap peas / sweet bean, topped and tailed
250ml water
2 tbsp mushroom sauce
1 tbsp ginger wine


1.  In a saucepan, heat oil over medium high heat. Add garlic and stir fry for 2 minutes until golden brown.

2. Add Chinese mushrooms and fish maw and stir fry for about a minute, then add the water and bring to the boil. Once boiling, turn down to medium low heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the fish maw's texture is cooked to your liking. Season with mushroom sauce and ginger wine, to taste.

3. Add the enoki mushrooms and sugar snap peas and cook for a further 2 minute. Taste and season with some salt, if required. Serve immediately.

Note: Soaking the fish maw in hot/warm water will shorten its cooking time, convenient especially if you are in a rush.

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I am submitting this to the "Cook & Celebrate: CNY 2015" event which I am co-hosting with Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Diana of The Domestic Goddess Wannabe. To join, simply cook or bake any Chinese New Year recipes for the whole month of February 2015.

Your post must be a current post i.e. posted in February 2015 - please do not link older posts.Please mention our "Cook & Celebrate: CNY 2015" event in your post and link back to Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Diana of The Domestic Goddess Wannabe and Baby Sumo of Eat your heart out.

Happy cooking! Do check out the other bloggers recipe below:

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Wordless Wednesday: Chinese White Mushrooms

Food styling & photography by: Baby Sumo


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Recipe: Stir fried leeks with Chinese mushrooms and king prawns

It's finally February, which means that Chinese New Year is just 18 days away! Woohooo! This month, I will be hosting Cook and Celebrate: CNY 2015 with two wonderful ladies, so do submit and share any CNY recipes you have with us.

To kick-start this event, I'm sharing an auspicious dish, fit to be served at your dinner table throughout the CNY period. Leeks 蒜 are commonly served as the name is a homophone for "calculating (money)" (算suàn), mushrooms 冬菇 mean longevity and prawn 虾 sounds like laughter "ha ha ha". Last year, we cooked a similar dish with dried shrimps , but this week we bought some really nice, fresh and juicy king prawns so it went into this dish.

Such a simple, delicious dish - the kids got their hands (and mouths) on all the prawns as soon as I finished with the photo taking.

Here's to more money, longevity and happiness in the Year of Goat. :)

Stir fried leeks with Chinese mushrooms and king prawns
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 8-9 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients
350g leeks (4 stalks), trimmed and sliced into 2" lengths at an angle
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 tbsp cooking oil
3 Chinese or shitake mushrooms, rehydrated and sliced thinly
12 king prawns, shelled and deveined with tails intact
1 tsp ginger wine
1 tsp chicken stock granules


1. In a wok, heat oil over medium high heat. Add garlic and fry for 2 minutes, until lightly browned. Add mushrooms and stir fry for a minute.

2. Add the leeks and stir fry for about 1 minute, then add the ginger wine and allow to cook for a further 2 minutes. Add the king prawns and cook for 1-2 minutes, until prawn are cooked through. Season with chicken stock granules and serve immediately.

Note: For those who cannot take alcohol, you can omit ginger wine completely or replace with ginger juice (grate and squeeze).

****************

I am submitting this to the "Cook & Celebrate: CNY 2015" event which I am co-hosting with Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Diana of The Domestic Goddess Wannabe. To join, simply cook or bake any Chinese New Year recipes for the whole month of February 2015.

Your post must be a current post i.e. posted in February 2015 - please do not link older posts.Please mention our "Cook & Celebrate: CNY 2015" event in your post and link back to Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Diana of The Domestic Goddess Wannabe and Baby Sumo of Eat your heart out.

Happy cooking! Do check out the other bloggers recipe below:

If you enjoyed reading my posts, LIKE me on Facebook! You can also follow me on Instagram (@babysumo) for more photo updates. Thanks :)

Recipe: Risotto with porcini mushrooms, seared scallops and foie gras

I promised that I would share the recipe for this risotto with porcini mushrooms, seared scallops and foie gras, so here it is!

Christmas last year was a great success. Thanks to my team of sous chefs, I had no problems in the kitchen at all although we were serving 10 guests. For lunch, we decided to do a risotto - in hindsight, a damn good dish to make if you're serving a large group of people.

I made a simple chicken stock using chicken carcass, onions and carrots earlier that morning. Then, it was all a matter of stirring the risotto until it was cooked to al dente, creamy consistency. The frozen Rougie foie gras was a pleasant discovery at our usual "meat shop", which we thought would be really nice topped on the risotto. Cooking foie gras is surprisingly very easy (expertly done by Hubby)- just sear in a hot pan from frozen, then finish it off in the oven for 6-8 minutes. The Unc did a great job cooking the Hokkaido scallops - he got such a beautiful sear on them!

Super pleased with the risotto we made - it was creamy, rich and luscious. Not to mention super luxurious as well! Everyone was singing praises for it, so that made me one very happy chef :)

Risotto with porcini mushrooms, seared scallops and foie gras
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes (+ 1 1/2 hours for stock)
Serves 8-10

Ingredients
400g arborio rice
1 medium onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 tbsp butter
2l chicken stock
20g dried porcini
50g Parmesan cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper


4 x 50g frozen foie gras
30 scallops

To garnish
Lemon cress
Parmesan / Parmigiano Reggiano

For the chicken stock
2l water
2 chicken carcasses
2 large onions, quartered
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1/2 - 1 tsp salt



1. In a large pot, place water, chicken carcasses, onions and carrots and bring to the boil over medium high heat. Once boiling, lower to low heat and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours. Skim off any oil and scum. Season with salt. Simmer on very low heat while you cook your risotto.

2. Rinse the dried porcini mushrooms in lukewarm water, then place in a small bowl and fill with hot water. Allow to soak for about 15 minutes, then drain. Roughly chop and set aside.

3. In a large non-stick pan or wok, heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, and cook until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Increase heat to high, then add the rice. Using a wooden spoon, stir the rice with the onion, making sure that the grains are coated with the olive oil/butter until slightly translucent and the rice starts to crackle, for about 2 minutes. This process is called tostatura. It helps the rice absorb the stock later.

5. Turn the heat down to medium low, and add enough stock to cover the risotto, about 1 cup. Keep stirring the risotto constantly as stirring massages the starch molecules out of the rice, hence creating a rich, creamy texture.

6. Allow the stock to be absorbed before adding more stock to the rice. Keep adding small amounts of stock (1/2 cup at a time) to the rice until the rice is soft but still has a bite to it (al dente). This will take about 20-30 minutes. Taste the risotto rice occasionally to check if it's ready. If you run out of stock before your rice is ready, you can add boiling water as a substitute for the stock.

7. When the rice is almost ready (95%), lower the heat, then add the porcini mushrooms and cook for 2-3 minutes until heated through. Take the pan off the heat and add the Parmesan into the rice (the mantecatura process) as well as 2 tablespoons of butter. Taste and adjust seasoning.

8. In the meantime, heat a frying pan until very hot over high heat. Once the pan is very hot, turn down to medium heat then add the frozen foie gras to the pan and cook without fat for 30 seconds - 1 minute each side, until golden brown. Place in a 180C (no fan) oven for 6-8 minutes. Season with salt. Cut each foie gras into half.

9. Heat a pan with 1 tbsp oil over high heat until very hot. Pat the scallops dry with kitchen towel and season with salt. Once pan is very hot, add the scallops and quickly sear, depending on the size of your scallops (about 1-2 minutes). Remove once cooked, and repeat until all scallops are cooked.

10. To serve, place risotto onto a plate, then top with scallops and half a piece of foie gras. Garnish with lemon cress and more shaved Parmesan. Serve immediately.


Note: You can start cooking the foie gras 8 minutes and the scallops 5 minutes before the risotto is ready.

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Recipe: Caramelised shallot & mushroom toasts (Gordon Ramsay)

I am loving Gordon Ramsay's "Fast Food" cookbook. So far the ones I have tried are really easy to make and taste really good. I made this caramelised shallot and mushroom toast from his book since I love these two ingredients. A simple, delicious brunch option.

I saved a few thick slices of the Champion Toast I baked the previous evening to make this. Shallots, garlic and thyme are sauteed together until the shallots are softened, then sugar is added to caramelise it slightly and finally mushrooms and butter are added to the pan. Then top it on your toasted bread and you have one healthy, delicious lunch!

I reckon a poached egg on top would work well too.

Caramelised shallot & mushroom toasts
Recipe by Baby Sumo, adapted from Gordon Ramsay's Fast Food
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 5-7 minutes
Serves 2


Ingredients
6 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 sprigs thyme, leaves only
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1/2 tsp caster sugar
200g white button mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 tbsp butter
A splash of sherry vinegar (red wine vinegar)
A small handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 thick slices rustic white bread (I used Champion Toast)



1. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add shallots, crushed garlic and thyme, and saute for 2-3 minutes, until shallots are softened. Season with salt and pepper.

2. Add sugar and increase to high heat, stirring and cooking for 1-2 minutes, until the shallots are lightly caramelised.

3. Add the mushrooms and butter, then saute for a further 2 minutes, until cooked, then add a splash of red wine vinegar and season with more salt and pepper, as necessary. Discard the garlic, then add the parsley and mix well.

4. Toast the bread and place on two plates. Divide the shallot/mushrooms on top of the toast and serve immediately.

* I am submitting this to the "Cook Like Gordon Ramsay" event which I am co-hosting with Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids and Mich of Piece of Cake. To join, simply cook or bake any recipe from any Gordon Ramsay websites or cookbooks for the whole month of August 2014. You can link your posts at one of the host's pages.

Your post must be a current post i.e. posted in August 2014 - please do not link older posts.Please mention Cook like a Star in your post and link back to Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Mich of Piece of Cake and Baby Sumo of Eat your heart out.

Happy cooking! Do check out the other bloggers recipe below:





* I am submitting this post to "Cook-Your-Books #15" hosted by Joyce.

If you enjoyed reading my posts, LIKE me on Facebook! You can also follow me on Instagram (@babysumo) for more photo updates. Thanks :)

Recipe: Spaghetti with King Prawns, Ebikko and Rocket

"Mummy, can you please cook us pasta for lunch today?" said my two little ones.

Some days, my kids will make special food requests in the mornings and I will make it for them for lunch. I usually just have a rummage through my fridge/freezer to see what ingredients I have to cook with. Luckily for them that day, I had bacon, grey oyster mushrooms, king prawns, ebikko and rocket leaves. And thus this gorgeous pasta dish was born!

Spaghetti with king prawns, ebikko and rocket

My kids choice of pasta is always spaghetti, as they love slurping every strand with gusto. I had a good feeling that they would enjoy this as it combines all their favorite ingredients together. The bacon is first cooked, set aside and sprinkled just before serving so that it remains crispy. The bacon fat/oil is then used to saute the mushrooms and king prawns (can you imagine the yumminess yet?). Once the pasta is plated, ebikko (shrimp roe) is added - I really like the texture and slight saltiness it adds to the dish. And this time, I garnished the pasta dish with some rocket leaves instead of sweet basil, and it worked out really well in terms of flavour. You can finish off the dish with a drizzle of truffle oil or grated Parmesan cheese, if desired.

I am really happy with this dish, and more so when my kids told me that they loved it and asked for seconds. :) Quick, healthy and delicious.

By the way, 2 more days to our Gordon Ramsay "Cook Like a Star" event. Do join us by cooking your favorite Gordon Ramsay recipes :)

Spaghetti with king prawns, ebikko and rocket
Recipe by Baby Sumo
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 12-14 minutes
Serves 2

Ingredients
150g spaghetti
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 streaky bacon, sliced
100g grey oyster mushroom, sliced
10 king prawns, peeled and deveined, with tails intact
2-4 tsp ebikko
15g rocket leaves, washed
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Optional topping
Truffle oil
Parmesan cheese


1. In a pot of salted water, cook the spaghetti pasta according to pack instructions, about 8-10 minutes until al dente. Remove from heat and drain, run under cold water to stop from cooking further.

2. Heat 2 tablespoon olive oil in frying pan on medium high heat. Add bacon and cook for 3-4 minutes, until crispy and golden brown. Remove and set aside.

3. In the same pan, add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the mushrooms and fry for 2-3 minutes until cooked. Add the king prawns and saute for about 30-45 seconds, until cooked, then add the cooked pasta, drizzle with remaining olive oil and mix thoroughly for about 1 minute, and then season with salt and pepper. Mix in the crispy bacon.

4. Using a two-pronged carving fork, swirl some of the pasta around the fork. Slide the pasta off the fork and mound it in the center of a plate. Repeat for each serving. Spoon 1-2 tsp of ebikko on top of each plate and garnish with rocket leaves. Drizzle with truffle oil and shave Parmesan cheese on top, as desired.

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Recipe: Chicken Georgia (Paula Deen)

Hi guys! Sorry for the lack of updates during the last few days as I was away on holiday with my kids. You'll be able read all about it on my blog soon.

Since it's the last day of June today, I better post my last recipe for "Cook like Paula Deen/Deen Bros" today. I made this Paula Deen's Chicken Georgia last week for lunch - quick and easy. I'm not quite sure how this dish got its name (a quick Google search revealed no results) but I do know Paula Deen is from Georgia (and still resides there) as well as owning a restaurant over there.

Chicken Georgia is a dish of pan-fried chicken breast, topped with melted mozzarella cheese, shallots and mushrooms. As I was cooking this for lunch, I made a small portion of chicken but with extra mushrooms. I also changed the cooking method, starting with pan frying the chicken first, sprinkling cheese on top to let it melt, then only cooked the mushrooms and shallots last and topping it on the chicken and cheese.  Be generous with the mozzarella cheese, as it makes the dish taste extra yummy.

Chicken Georgia
Recipe by Baby Sumo, adapted from Paula Deen
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 12-13 minutes
Serves 1

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil

1 skinless boneless chicken breast, about 100g
3-4 tbsp butter

100g white button mushrooms, sliced

2 shallots, finely chopped

1 garlic, finely chopped

1 - 1 1/2 tbsp grated mozzarella cheese

Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

To serve

2-3 butterhead lettuce leaves

2 cherry tomatoes



1. In a frying pan, heat oil over medium heat. Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper and place in pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes each side, then flip over and cook for a further 3-4 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Transfer chicken to serving plate, then sprinkle with grated cheese.

2. Meanwhile, melt butter over medium heat in same pan. Add garlic and shallots, and cook for about 1 minute, then add mushrooms and cook for a further 2-3 minutes, until tender. Season with salt and pepper. Top the mushrooms onto the mozzarella to help it melt further. Let stand 5 minutes before serving or just until the cheese has melted.

3. Serve with some butterhead lettuce and cherry tomatoes. 

Note: The above is a ladies portion, just nice for my lunch.

I am linking this to Cook like a Star (Paula Deen and Deen brothers theme) organised by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Joyce from Kitchen Flavours and Diana from Domestic Goddess Wannabe.


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Wood-Fired Oven Delights @ Villa Danieli, Sheraton Imperial KL

When wood-fired oven is mentioned, most people would automatically think of pizzas. The chefs at Villa Danieli of Sheraton Imperial KL prove that a wood-fired oven can do much more than that, and have whipped up a range of authentic Italian specialties for diners to enjoy.

Villa Danieli, Sheraton Imperial KL

A wood-fired oven is typically heated only once during the firing stage (the combustion of wood inside the chamber). After the coals are removed, the oven’s temperature gradually decreases over a period of hours or even days. The retained heat in the oven may be used to bake multiple batches of food.

Wood-fired oven in Villa Danieli

This Fresh from the Wood-fired Oven promotion is available for both lunch and dinner, whereby the current menu will run till 31 March 2014. A a new menu will be introduced in April for Q2 with the same concept. Diners can either choose from the specially crafted menu or create your own dish by choosing your favourite meat (duck confit, salmon, lamb rack, beef cheek and lamb rib), three side dishes of your choice to go with it (sautéed mushrooms, roast potatoes, brocolini, asparagus, grilled vegetables, steak fries and mashed potatoes) and a sauce to complete your dish (rosemary lamb jus, chicken jus, saffron butter sauce, mustard jus and lobster bisque sauce).

Our host ordered a selection of dishes from their specially crafted menu. To start, we had the cheesy portobello mushroom (RM32) and eggplant parmigiana (RM36). The portobello mushroom was stuffed with herbs and goats cheese whereas the eggplant is baked with Roma tomatoes, zucchini tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese. We enjoyed both starters, especially the latter as it was comforting and flavorful.

Cheesy portobello mushroom

Eggplant parmigiana

For mains, we tried the lasagna (RM42), which was again very comforting, cheesy and rich. My favorite dish of the afternoon goes to the lamb rib (RM118) which is served with steak fries, Coca-cola BBQ sauce and broccolini. The ribs were so tender, falling off the bone easily and full of flavour. Super yum! Also glad that we got to try the cod cartoccio (RM88) - cartoccio means to bake in paper. The fish came presented in the parcel and smelt absolutely wonderful. Very simple and clean flavours, which I really like when it comes to cod preparation. This was served with French beans, chat potato and capsicum.  Other items on their mains include baked tagliatelle, Italian sandwich, king prawns, and salt crusted whole sea bass.

Lasagna

Lamb ribs

Cod cartoccio

We sampled all three desserts from the menu -the apple strudel (RM25), chocolate lava cake (RM28), and pear tatin (RM25).The desserts cooked in the wood-fired oven (except the ice cream of cos) came out beautifully. I especially liked the pear tatin paired with the savoury ricotta mousse.

Chocolate lava cake

Apple strudel

Pear tatin

Pork-free.

Opening times: Monday - Friday, 12.00 pm - 2.30 pm; Monday-Saturday 6.30 pm - 10.30 pm. Closed on Sundays and Public Holidays.

Location: Villa Danieli, Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel, Jalan Sultan Ismail, 50250 Kuala Lumpur.

Tel: 03 -2717 9900

GPS Coordinates: 3.158813, 101.700203

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