Wah Kee Prawn Noodles: The Best of the Best Awards

Wah Kee's Jumbo Prawn Noodles $10

Over the last 4 years, I have blogged a good number of prawn noodles and after reading all the comments from the ieat community, I have to say that the one prawn mee that is consistently getting the highest praises is Wah Kee Prawn Noodle.

So, I am starting a new label called " Best of the Best" which celebrates the best of each of category of Singapore's famous hawker dishes. Some of them, like Wah Kee is quite clear cut and I am sure the majority of the ieaters would concur that they deserve the award. However, others might not be so obvious, in which case we shall call for nominations and subsequently do a poll to find the champion.



Wah Kee's prawn noodles really are a cut over the rest. The Uncle here does not use any pork bones in his soup but insists that he uses only seafood to make his sweet prawn broth. He has one big advantage in that his son-in-law happens sell seafood at Tekka Market and so he always gets first pick of the best prawns. Take the freshest prawns and mixed them with a lot of passion and pride and you get one very special and potent prawn broth which you can confidently bring any overseas friend to eat in order to show off Singapore food! 4.8/5

So if there are no objections, may I present Wah Kee as the Best of the Best Prawn Noodles in Singapore.

You can read my previous post on Wah Kee as well as our kakis' comments here.

Wah Kee Prawn Noodles
Blk 41A Cambridge Road Hawker Centre (Pek Kio)
#01-15
96883633
7.30am to 2pm
Closed on Mondays

Video Blog: Ieat learns to cook Chashu Ramen

Chashu Ramen is currently enjoying a lot of popularity in Singapore. In this video, Chef Tom shows us a simple way of making Chashu Ramen at home.

Many thanks to Sia Huat for sponsoring the videos.

Sia Huat has just celebrated their 50th anniversary and is the biggest supplier of kitchen equipment to chefs and restaurants. You can find almost everything you need in the kitchen all under one roof! This is where I bought stuff like my Tau Huay bucket, pizza stone and pizza peel. You can visit their website at www.siahuat.com.

We have just finished filming our next series: "ieat learns to cook an egg". I think you will find that there is more than one way to peel an egg. Stay tuned.

To see the rest of our videos, please click here.

Restaurant Do Do Do: Hearty Beef Soup you can't find in Singapore!

Claypot of Beef Stew

Malaysian Food really Boleh.

When it comes to beef, there are just some dishes that Singapore can never match up to Malaysia. One is the Chinese Style beef stew and the other is the Ramly Burger. These dishes really rely on the Malaysian Cow which are the ones you see eating grass along the side of the road when you are driving along the country roads. These cattle have a different taste from the Australian and American beef that we get in Singapore. Sure, these "Ang Moh" beef might be good for steaks, but when you want something with that rustic taste, your cow just has to be the one that has been chewing grass under the tropical sun!



We were on our way back to Muar from Gunong Ledang (Mt Ophir) recently when Cactuskit, whose sonar must have been fine tuned to the vibes of the stewing beef, just turned off the main road and landed us in front of this very authentic looking stall the middle of nowhere.

We had just spent most of the day playing at Mt Ophir waterfalls and it was 3pm on a sleepy Sunday afternoon. Everyone was pretty hungry because we did not pack lunch that day having had a pretty late breakfast. So finding a busy restaurant in Tongkok (yep middle of nowhere) was like finding a nice cold can of coke in the dessert.



Anyway, both Cactuskit and I knew we had stumbled upon something special when we started talking to the boss. This man is the kind of man who would have been a Gordon Ramsey if he had been born in the UK. This guy had so much self confidence that Anthony Robbins have to be washing toilets if he could spread his self confidence around.

"You cannot get a pot of stew like this in Singapore!" he said, "Because you all don't have Malaysian cow". Then he went on a round of self proclamation that would make Kim Jung Il look like a nominated MP.


Cattle Calves (A part of the cow which they don't import)

But, hey the guy has got the goods to prove it. He picked up a piece of gristle that looked like a bar of soap and proudly proclaim that this was the part near the hooves and said categorically that you will not be able to get in Singapore. I frankly can't work out the anatomy, but it looked like a very thick piece of tendon. And yes, you don't see this sort of stuff here.



Anyway when the soup came, everyone agreed that this was indeed a very special pot of stew and that the stall will be entered into the GPS as a Must Visit place whenever we are around the Muar/Malacca vicinity. 4.5/5

Conclusion

Can you imagine how many hidden gems like these are just waiting to be discovered within a few hours drive from Singapore? I am planning build up a list of places to go in Johor and indeed Malaysia. So do write in if you can help contribute to the Malaysia Boleh Makan List!

Do Do Do Restaurant
No. 1546, Jalan Hospital,
Taman Tangkok Jaya,
84900 Tangkak, Johor
Tel: 06-9789811, 016-2369298
10am to 5pm Closed on Wed

What is Singapore's Favourite Crab Dish?

Salted Egg Crab

I am going to start a poll soon on Singapore's Favourite Crab dish.

I think the de facto National Crab Dish is the Chilli Crab. But a few years ago, it was publicised that Black Pepper Crabs has become the number 1 Crab dish.

Then lately, Crab Bee Hoon seem to be making its way up the ranking. The Crab Bee Hoon was made popular by Sin Huat who was helped along by Anthony Bourdain and infamous pricing policies. Soon other Crab Bee Hoon places sprung up, notably Melben Crab and Ming Kee Live Seafood.


Salt and Pepper Crab

So let's find out once and for all which is Singapore's Favourite Crab Dish!

Write in and nominate two of your favourites!

ieatishootipost is officially Asia Pacific's Best Food Blog!

This is a most amazing week for the blog. First it was appearing in the pilot episode of "Food Specialist" on Channel U and now it is been announced that ieatishootipost has been awarded the Best Food Blog in the inaugural Nuffnang Asia Pacific Blog Awards!

In a glitsy event organized by NuffNang, 60 blogs were shortlisted from 10,000 nominees to be finalists for the first ever Asia Pacific Blog Awards. 400 Bloggers from Australia, Philippines and Malaysia specially flew here to take part in the very first Blog Awards honouring the best blogs in the Asia Pacific. Ieatishootipost was among an excellent company of food blogs from around the region. All of them representing the best in food blogging from the Asia Pacific. So from Australia, we have eatshowandtell, a whiff of lemongrass from Malaysia, Kitchencow from the Philippines and Ladyironchef from Singapore. I had the privilege of meeting all the food bloggers last night and we are already making plans to eat and blog together.

The other winners were:

• Best Blogshop: bonitochico.livejournal.com
• Best Fashion Blog: ladymelbourne.blogspot.com
• Best Parenting Blog: childhood101.blogspot.com
• Best Travel Blog: ironwulf.net
• Best Celebrity Blog: joannepeh.com
• Best Entertainment Blog: kennysia.com
• Best Geek Blog: mrgadget.com.au
• Best Hidden Gem: dedoodleblog.blogspot.com
• Best Original Blog Design: xiaxue.blogspot.com
• Most Influential Blog: xiaxue.blogspot.com
• Region’s Best Blog: xiaxue.blogspot.com

Earlier in the week, I have already expressed my appreciation to my family and parents. This award really is for all the kakis and readers of the blog. A very big THANK YOU for reading the blog, participating in the activities and especially for Voting for the Blog! We couldn't have done it without your effort!

See you all at the Crab Fest in November!

Psalm 37:4
Delight yourself in the LORD
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

The ieat Crab Fest: Registration is now Opened!

Registration is now Closed!


Registration is now opened for the ieat Crab Fest! There will be 8 courses consisting of crabs, crabs and more crabs. So it is advised that you eat plenty of vegetables for breakfast and lunch because dinner is not considered a balanced diet! The details are as follows:

Date: 13 November 2009
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: Chin Huat Live Seafood
Blk 105, #01-30
Clementi St 12 (Sunset Way)
Price: $50 (very special ieat price)

Crab Fest Menu:
1) Alaskan King Crab steamed in Chinese wine;
2) Black Pepper Dungeness Crab;
3) Butter Blue Swimmer Crab;
4) Red Flower Crab Porridge;
5) Chili Sri Lanka Crab;
6) Stir Fried Cromer Crab in Superior Broth served in pan fried Bee Hoon.
7) Salted Egg Indonesia Crab; and
8) Golden Sauce Indonesia Crab.
9) Chilled vegetables with Wasabi soya sauce - If you are vegetarian, you get this whole dish for yourself!

To Register:
Write to ieatishootipost@gmail.com. Subject: Crab Fest. In the first line of the email please write Name, Nickname (optional), Handphone no, No. of Pax (limit 4)

Registration has closed as at 24 October 2009, 3.50pm. Those with confirmed seats will be notified by email. The rest will be put on the waiting list. Thanks for your overwhelming support for the crab fest!


Please note:
1. Once you are registered, we will expect payment from you even if you don't turn up so if you cannot make it, please find a replacement.
2. You can register a maximum of 4 pax only per member
3. Please turn up on time as we will start dinner promptly
4. Please follow the format of the email because it really helps. We reserve the right not to register you if you fail to provide the information in the right format.

So far the last few makan sessions have gone really well and everyone who registered have turned up and paid promptly. This makes it easier for the organizers. If you fail to turn up, someone is liable for the shortfall since have already told the restaurant how many pax are coming. All the money is paid direct to the restaurant so we don't have any extra cash to pay for the shortfall. So I hope everyone will understand why we need to have some rules to govern our sessions.

Tung Lok Signatures: Its the season for Hairy Crabs!

It is no wonder that Hairy Crabs are a delicacy in China. If these furry little creatures where found in the West, they would simply treat them as pests because they are so difficult to eat. If you are the type who don't like to eat crabs because you find it difficult to extract the meat from them, then this hairy little bugger will drive you up the wall. But for a culture who love to nibble on fish heads and sit around cracking Melon Seeds with their teeth, these Hairy Crabs are like Manna from Heaven.



Hairy crabs have been part and parcel of Chinese culture for thousands of years and there have been poems written about them celebrating the beauty of Autumn. There is even a legend surrounding how the first person actually started eating hairy crabs:

Thousands of years ago, as legend has it, ancestors of the human race had already settled down to the south of the Yangtze River. In a low-lying area like this with abundant rainfall as well, floods frequently took place. Out of rivers and lakes, from time to time, came shelled creatures which were inclined to creep towards light. They were fiendish-featured with a pair of pincers and four pairs of claws. Not only did they eat grains in the paddy field, but they also attacked people with sharp pincers. Intimidated as if they were tigers and wolves, the forefathers called them the clamping pest. Since disturbance by these pests gravely impeded the farmer's harvest, people boiled them to death on a fire. The dead pests, bright red all over, piled up mountain-high, smelled delicious and appetizing. Out of curiosity, a man named Ba Jie took a pest and closely examined it. Then he broke off the shell and ate it fearlessly. It seemed that he was enjoying it, so others followed his example. Ever since then, the ancestors had no longer been afraid of the clamping pest and the once scary pest had become a household delicacy.

Except from: www.cultural-china.com


Male Hairy Crabs $48 in season in October. Females are in season in September

The beauty of the Hairy Crab lies in the rich golden roe which like any egg contain fat and are packed full of glutamate and other amino acids which explains why they are so tasty. There are some people who reportedly would open the crab, dig out the roe and throw out the rest of the crab.

Not every Hairy Crab is the same. The best Hairy Crabs come from the Yang Cherng Lake in Jiangsu and because of its popularity, many crabs are being produced in other regions and being passed off as Yang Cherng Lake Hairy Crabs (Yang Cheng Hu Dazha Xie). That explains why you can buy hairy crabs from the supermarkets for $8 each whereas if you ate these at reputable restaurants, they can cost 6 times the price.

I guess it is analogous to drinking Champagne as opposed to sparkling wine. The crabs from Yang Cherng Lake are supposed to be the sweetest of them all. But there are other lakes where the crabs are also quite famous. One of them is Tai Lake (Taihu) which is where our crabs where from. These crabs all come with a little lazer imprinted tag with their own serial numbers, so you can potentially keep these in a nice little record books to show people the number of Hairy Crabs you have eaten just like the number of kills on the side of the cockpit of fighter jets.


If you request, the waitress can help to extract the meat like this

The roe is fantastic and taken with a dash of vinegar, ranks up there with Uni and Foie Gras. However the flesh is as frustrating as eating melon seeds. I am the kind of guy who would put three or four pieces of pototo chips into the mouth at one time so not having a whole mouthful of crab meat is a bit annoying.

Conclusion

At $48 per crab, I am tempted just to go down to the Supermarket and buy 6 of them for the same price and have a crab feast even though they might not be as tasty. Then again it might turn out that these Taihu Hairy Crabs are really worth their price tag. Perhaps our Hairy Crab experts can tell us if the price difference is justified?

Tung Lok Signatures
Vivocity
1 Harbourfront Walk
#01-57
63759555
This was an invited review

The Bismillah Ultimate Biryani Challenge!

Arif tells me that since my first blog post about Bismullah Biryani, he has been motivated to further improve on his recipe because of the enthusiastic response of the kakis. Leading the way is our resident Biryani Buff, Cactuskit who has been the the restaurant 8 times over the last few weeks.

I had issued Arif with the Ultimate Biryani challenge for him to come up with what he would consider the best Biryani that he can make for the kakis. So today, around 50 kakis descended on his restaurant to try out his improved Biryani Recipe.

I must say that this is the first time in recent memory that I have managed to finish all my Biryani. I personally don't like curry on my Biryani, preferring to taste the rice instead. This Biryani was nicely spiced but not too oily and the lamb was tender and flavoursome. For me it is still my favourite place to eat Biryani but I shall let the rest of the kakis to add their comments.

Photos by Cactuskit

Here's Soundman's Video Report



The Crab Fest registration will be opening soon. So watch this space!

Many thanks to Soundman and Cactuskit for their photos and videos!

Ieatishootipost Channel U Feature: Thanks for the support!

Food Specialists Episode 1: Part 1

When I first started blogging, I never thought I would see the day that the blog would be featured in a documentary on TV. I have been on this hobby for four years and even though a lot of people seem to think that it is hard work, for me it's been a fun ride.

The most gratifying thing about the blog is the number of friends that I have made over the years through the blog. If you look at the makan kakis now, almost all of us have met through the blog. Apart from our usual makan sessions, some of us have even travelled overseas to makan together!

I really thank God for my family, especially for my wife, Rockett Girl, who has been my greatest fan and my harshest critic. You don't know how many times I rave about something only to get a cursory "its ok lah" from her. I couldn't have done this without her. I also thank my kids who have been really supportive and would wait patiently while I take pictures and bare the discomfort of eating at a "hot place".

I am also grateful for my parents who now live in Australia. My parents taught me the importance of excellence in all that I do. When it comes to food, I have my mother to thank. I always remembered her tenacity in getting that Pandan Chiffon cake perfectly sponge-like. Sometimes when parents say things, it goes in one ear and out the other. But a lot of life's lessons are learnt through inspiration and emulation. As a professional chef, her dream has always to run a test kitchen which she never got to do. I am hoping to get her to demo some of her recipes on video one day!

Of course, this blog would not be what it is but for the support of our kakis. They keep me on my toes and keep providing fuel for the fire through their recommendations in the forum. As you can see from the show, they are quite a bunch! If you would like to join the makan brigade, just join the forum and start bantering!

Thank YOU for reading! Writing a blog which no one reads is as good as making the perfect Tau Huay for only yourself to enjoy. So just by reading the blog, you provide fuel for the fire as well. However, you can give it a turbo boost if you would also write something in the comments! So I hope to hear from YOU soon!

Finally, Praise God who does exceedingly, abundantly above all that we can ask or think! He guides me each step of the way and gives me grace to keep pressing on. In Him, I find my purpose for being.

Roland Restaurant: History of Chilli Crabs, this is as Singaporean as it gets!

Singapore Chilli Crabs: At Uniquely Singaporean Dish

I don't think anyone disputed that Chilli Crabs is as Singaporean as the Merlion up till about a few weeks ago when the Malaysian Tourism Minister claimed Chilli Crabs as a Malaysian dish that has been highjacked by Singapore. Rather than achieving her goal, I think the Tourism Minister had inadvertently helped to cement Chilli Crabs as a Uniquely Singaporean dish rather than something that is Malaysian Truly Asian. Her glib comment invited a slew of media articles all affirming Chilli Crabs as Singaporean in origin. Before this, you might not have heard of Mdm Cher or of Roland Restaurant. But now, Chilli Crabs has suddenly been given a new lease of life after losing some of its limelight to Black Pepper Crabs for a number of years.

Today, we will add a few more paragraphs to the history of Chilli Crabs so that future generations of Singaporeans can appreciate our very own food culture.

Those of us who were around in the 70's might remember the days when Changi was the end of the world and that a trip to Changi Beach was as much an adventure as a trip to Bintan is nowadays. To get to Changi, you would have to pass by Bedok and Upper East Coast Road which at the time was still next to the sea.

It is here in the Kampungs, among the Attap houses that the story of Chilli Crabs began.

I met with the lovely Madam Cher Yam Tian recently following the controversial claims made by the Malaysian Tourism Minister. I wanted to meet the lady who invented the Chilli Crabs way back in the 1950's. At the time, she and her husband were living in an Attap House along Upper East Coast Road. Those were the days before there was the ECP and so East Coast Road was really East "COAST" road. Her husband, Mr Lim, who used to be a policeman (yes he wore shorts then), would catch crabs from the beach and bring them home for dinner. Being Teochew, they would simply steam their crabs and eat them plain. But one day Constable Lim asked his wife if she could do something a little different. That was when she stir fried the crabs in tomato sauce. Mr Lim thought the taste was good except that it was a little too sweet and suggested she add some chilli into the sauce as well. This was to be the beginning a Singaporean institution. She started serving her chilli crabs to her friends and family and soon everyone was telling her that she should start selling her Chilli Crabs. So in 1950, she started selling her Chilli Crabs from a pushcart along the road.


The original Chilli Crabs were sweeter and not as rich

At the time, Mdm Cher's version of the Chilli Crabs is not quite the same one that we are all familiar with. It did not have eggs and the sambal in the recipe. That idea came a little later when the owner of Dragon Phoenix restaurant took on the idea and made some modifications to the recipe. Incidentally, Dragon Phoenix at the time was one of the "Four Heavenly Kings" of Cantonese Cuisine along with Sin Leong, Red Star and Lai Wah restaurants.

The original Chilli Crab is a tad sweeter and less rich than the current version, but it was this version that made Mdm Cher's recipe so popular that they decided to start selling the dish along Upper East Coast Road. By 1956, they had progressed from a pushcart to a little shack that was lit by hurricane lamps. Because of the Coconut Palms along the Beach, Mr Lim called his little "shackestaurant" Palm Beach Seafood. By 1963, they expanded to the simple zinc roofed building seen in the slideshow. This is around the time that Chilli Crab was quickly becoming our National Dish. Although they installed flourescent lighting in the new premises, Mr Lim would still hang a hurricane lamp at the gate since it had become the restaurant's icon. Anyone here remember the hurricane lamp?

The restaurant was known for five dishes which everyone ordered when they went to eat there. These were the chilli crab, tau you prawns, crispy baby squid, cockles with chilli and the seafood hor fun. In case you were wondering, Mdm Cher was also the creator of the familiar Deep Fried Baby Squid and also the You Char Kway stuffed with sotong paste which was created together with their chef.

Palm Beach was sold off in the 80's when the family decided to migrate to New Zealand where they lived for 15 years before returning to Singapore. When they came back, Roland started working at Palm Beach Restaurant before joining his Godfather at Sin Leong Restaurant which at the time had shifted from Serangoon Road to the top of the Marine Parade Central Multistorey Carpark. When Mr Sin Leong decided to call it a day, he handed the restaurant over to Roland who, with the blessing of his Godfather, subsequently renamed it Roland Restaurant.


Baby Squid and You Char Kway were also creations of Mdm Cher

Eating at Roland restaurant can really be a blast from the past as they still serve the same five dishes which they have been dishing out along Upper East Coast Road. So, if you still remember eating Mdm Cher's original Chilli Crab recipe as a kid, you might like to visit the restaurant to relive some of those childhood memories. One taste of the original chilli crab and you might find yourself transported back in time ala Aton Ego in Ratatouille.

This is the first time I am tasting Mdm Cher's original recipe, not having had the privilege of visiting her restaurant as a kid. It is sweeter than the version that we all know and not as rich because no egg is added to the sauce. With this lighter sauce so you can actually appreciate the sweetness of the crab better than the modern chilli crabs.


Most of their crabs are full of roe but you can request for "Meat Crabs" if you prefer

One of the things that impressed me about the crabs at Roland is that they are all full of roe. (Maybe he should spell his restaurant "Roe-land") This is the most prized part of the crab among us Teochews. My father used to tell me that crabs with roe should be eaten plain steamed because when you fry it in a sauce you will not be able to enjoy the roe. I think that is quite true if you really want to appreciate the original taste of the roe. However, having the roe in the sauce does add an extra "Ooommph" to it and is especially shiok when you dip the fried Man Tou in it. 4.5/5

This dish is well worth a try, if not just for the sake of being able to experience a piece of our culinary heritage.


Tau You (Soy Sauce) Prawns

Mdm Cher's other dishes are very good as well. The Tau You Prawns (Soy Sauce Prawns) is made from a secret recipe which is known only to Madam Cher and her two sons, Roland and Richard. Both brothers would still stay back at the restaurant after closing time to prepare the sauces for the next day. According to them, the recipe has not changed for 50 years and their old customers still keep coming back for it. Well, we are not old customers, but Rockett Girl was rather taken with the prawns and repeatedly gave her approval. The prawns at Roland are not your everyday farmed Tiger Prawns but are ones that are specially selected to contain roe. (He really should name his restaurant Roe-land) The flavour of the prawn roe with the special Tau You sauce is one of those things that would get you slurping and licking your fingers. 4.5/5

I haven't written much about Chilli Crabs since the beginning of the blog mainly because I haven't found one that I really enjoy. Perhaps it is a matter of preference, but I don't like it when the Chilli Crabs are too spicy. And I have always had the niggling suspicion that at the larger restaurants, the Chilli Crab sauce have all been precooked and it was only a matter of cooking the crabs, adding the sauce and serving it. I say this because at certain restaurants, they can actually give you a bowl of Chilli Crab sauce as a side dish to eat your Man Tou with. That must mean that there is a whole vat of chilli crab sauce in the kitchen!

Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised that the Chilli Crab (the modern version) here is actually pretty good. It is not overly spicy or sweet and the sauce is chock full of the crab roe which makes for a deadly combination with the eggs. Both Rockett Girl and I felt it was the best Chilli Crab that we have had in years! 4.5/5


Roland and Mdm Cher, the creator of the Chilli Crabs

Conclusion

If you love Chilli Crabs, then a pilgrimage to the birth place of the Chilli Crabs is something that has to be on your list of things to do.. Honestly, I had initially thought that even though they might be the creator of the Chilli Crab, that does not necessarily mean that they will have the best Chilli Crabs around. But I was proven wrong.

If there were some sort of Cultural Medallion awarded by the Heritage Board, then I think Mdm Cher would deserve it for her contribution to our Singapore Food Culture. I mean, the lady has been responsible for quite a few of the dishes which we all recognize as being part of the Singapore Seafood Scene. We have been accused of clever marketing campaigns, so rather than denying it, why not live up to their expectations?

Roland Restaurant
Block 89, Marine Parade Central,
# 06 - 750
Singapore 440089
6440 8205
www.rolandrestaurant.com.sg

Special for ieatishootipost readers

Mention "ieatishootipost" and get a 10% discount!

Buzzing Cashier Carrot Cake Stall still going well

This stall is closed


Back in July, a group of 30 ieat kakis was involved in a Buzzing Cashier episode featuring the Carrot Cake stall from Elias Mall. I was one of the judges at the event and I wanted to find out how the stallowners are doing 2 months after their episode was aired.

I am glad to report that they are still doing quite well and the show had given their stall a new lease of life. They are still steaming their own carrot cake and have made the effort of listening to feedback from their customers in order to keep on improving their dish.

The Carrot Cake I had that day was actually better than the version they cooked on the day of the filming. Over the last two months the lady owner had honed her frying skills, so now the Carrot Cake is nice and crisp on the outside, soft on the inside and quite flavourful. It is certainly one of the better Carrot Cakes around and my feedback to them was that it could be even better if they could fry extra chye poh to top the carrot cake at the end. 4.25/5

Anyway, they are now earning more during the weekday then they used to during the weekends which is testament to the impact that the TV program had on the lives of this family!

So if you are wondering what to do this weekend, maybe you could head down to Elias Mall to try the carrot cake which is situated at the Food Court downstairs. Then head to the air-con food court upstairs to buy the Japanese Cha Shu Kong Bak Pau and Godzilla Da Pau for a picnic at Pasir Ris Park where there is a nice big playground for the kids to run around!

Have a great weekend ahead!

Julie and Julia: Nothing like a foodie film to make you want to cook again!

Advertorial


There's nothing like a film on cooking to get your cooking juices simmering!

For those of you who don't cook, you really are missing out on one of the most basic joys of life.

Cooking is as much an art as it is a science but unlike many other artforms, with cooking, you don't need a lot of space to keep your work of art since it usually ends up in your stomach. But that's not before you get everyone's praise and adoration for the work you put into making their tongues tingle which is the main reason many of us cook. I mean, cooking for yourself is just about as satisfying as hitting a hole-in-one when no one is watching.

My mother was a chef and a great cook and I would spend many hours just observing how she cooks in the kitchen. I actually remember the very first dish that I learnt to cook. I must have been about 12 years of age. It was a simple Chinese Sausage (Lup Cheong) Omelette. But it wasn't as simple as you think because the trick is to fry the sausage first and then add the cooked sausage to the beaten eggs before returning it to the pan. (It should be called a Frittata if you want to be pedantic)



Watching Julie and Julia, one can't help but want to get home and start cooking something. Lucky for me, Nuffnang not only wanted me to write about the movie but also to attend a 2 hour cooking class where I will get to cook some of the dishes from the movie.

Oh Joy!

Maybe I will get to make a Lobster Thermidor just like how Julie Powell did in the movie. Of course unlike Julie, I won't have any second thoughts about how to kill a Lobster. Knife in between the eyes and you would destroy the brain and death would be immediate and painless. Ok, we doctors are usually more adept at keeping things alive rather than putting things to sleep. That is the specialty of the Vets. But we do know a thing or two.

But seriously, the most humane way to kill a Lobster is not to just throw it into a pot of boiling water like what Julie did in the movie but to put it in the freezer first. That way, the last memory of the Lobster would be snow in Christmas before it finds itself waking up in Lobster heaven.

But I guess they did not prepare any Lobster for us that day. I wonder why?

Instead, we were to prepare Bruchetta, Poached Eggs with Hollandaise Sauce and Apple Tartin. Ok, Bruchetta isn't likely to appear on Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of FRENCH cooking" (It's Italian) but I guess it did appear in the scene just before Julie decided to focus her energy into starting a blog based on the book.


My Bruchetta

Bruchetta, which I am sure you all know, is toast with tomato salsa. Call it toast with tomato salsa and you can probably sell it for $1. Call it Bruchetta and you can sell it for $5. On the surface, it is basically chopped tomatoes, dressed with Olive Oil, garlic, salt and vinegar on toasted "Jiam Tao Loh Di" (French loaf or more fashionably, Baguette which Phua Chu Kang would purpurly pronounce BA-GU-WET).

But as with all things, the devil is in the details. Instead of raw garlic, our instructor Chef Alicia taught us to use Garlic Confit which is basically garlic that has been slow cooked in light olive oil for 2 hours at 150 degrees celcius. The cooking basically mellows the garlic so you can't really use it to ward off Dracula, or your mother-in-law, whichever is more scary.

In the movie, Julie fried her baguette in a pool of butter and when husband Eric ate it, it just made me want to go out and get a bruchetta! So when our instructor gave us the option to either toast our baguette with olive oil or fry it in butter, I obviously wanted to have a go at the real butter deal. Mine was rich but oh so good, but I must admit that for health reasons, I would go with the olive oil version next time.


My Poached Eggs with Hollandaise Sauce

The second dish we learnt was poached eggs with Hollandaise sauce. This is the building block of Eggs Benedict and Eggs Florentine. So you start with a poached egg, put it on top of your baguette and add a slice of sauteed ham and Voila! Eggs Benedict. Substitute the ham for spinach and Voila! Eggs Florentine.

Poached eggs are supposed to be healthier for you because the egg is basically cooked in water as opposed to being deep fried in artery clogging Palm Oil which is the more familiar egg that we love to eat with our Nasi Lemak or Hainanese Curry Rice (They call it Zha4 Dan4). Now, in case you are going to run to the kitchen to crack an egg into boiling water, the secret is to add vinegar to the water first. Acid helps the protein in the egg white to coagulate just like how lactone turns soymilk into tofu.

The French aren't happy with the fact that poached eggs are healthier for you, so they have to top it with a nice and creamy Hollandaise sauce which is basically butter and egg yolks whisked over a bain marie. Let's see, one egg contains 212mg of cholesterol and your daily requirement is 300mg. Hmmmm, one poached egg, plus one extra egg yolk, plus a stick of butter means you probably spent 3 days worth of your ration of cholesterol on this one dish....

But man, it was good.


Caramelizing the apples for the Apple Tartin

Our final dish was the Apple Tartin which is caramelised Granny Smith apples topped with a puff pastry that will eventually be turned over to become the base of the tart. To make this dish, you would need one of those pans with a metal handle so that once the apples are cooked, the puff pastry is simply put on top of it and the whole thing is placed in the oven.


Apple Tartin

The apple tartin made its appearance in the show when Julia Child flipped over her apple tartin during one of her cooking classes. I can't really remember what she actually said which is why I am planning to watch the movie again. It was one of those movie scene that sticks in your head for a long time.

This whole movie and cooking session has really stirred up my interest in French cooking. So that just means you might expect to see more of this subject on the blog in the near future!

Oh and btw, if you are interested to attend a cooking class, you might consider looking up Palate Sensations. They have a beautiful and cosy kitchen and both Chef Alicia and Boss Chef Lynette are excellent teachers.

As Julia Child would say: BON APPETIT!




Palate Sensations
1 Whitchurch Road, #03-05
Singapore 138941
www.palatesensations.com




From left, Rayner (His Food Blog), Patrica (My Wok Life), Chef Alicia and me

Video Blog: Ieat learns to make Chawanmushi

In the third part of our Japanese Cooking Series, I accompany Chef Tom to the supermarket where he tells us about the three key ingredients of Japanese cooking, namely shoyu, mirin and sake. Then we head back to the kitchen to make Chawanmushi which is one of my kids' favourite dishes.

The key to a great Chawanmushi is to ensure that there are no bubbles in the custard and Chef Tom shows us how simple it is to make this at home. For the one bowl of chawanmushi you buy at the restaurant, you can make ten bowls at home! You would be amazed how simple it really is!

It's not stated in the video but the proportion of egg to dashi is 1 egg to half cup of dashi stock. Dashi stock was covered in the previous video on Miso Soup. You can learn about it here. To cook, you need to bring the water to the boil and steam for 15 mins.

For the rest of the ieatvideos please click here:

Nestle Omega Plus Acticol: You are what you eat, so eat wisely

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One of the most common questions that I am asked is how a Doctor can be a foodie at the same time. Well, just in case you believe that all Doctors are super health conscious and count every calorie that they eat, let me share with you a secret.

We are not.

In fact, I just came back from an overseas Conference and I can tell you that we Doctors love our food just like everyone else. However, I would say that compared to the general public, a greater proportion of Doctors are more conscious about the nutritional value of what we eat. Whether that prevents us from eating a piece of crunchy pork lard is another matter altogether.

Since the earliest days of the blog, I have always maintained the adage that one should "Never waste you calories on yucky food." That really is my way of saying that one should eat everything in moderation. However, my definition of eating in moderation is not that you should eat your one meat and three veg at every meal, but rather that over the course of a week, say, you ensure that you take relatively healthy meals with which you can save up your "Calorie Allowance" which can be spent on that wonderful meal at the end of the week.

As I enter my fourth decade of life, I am beginning to be even more concerned about my own health, especially given the fact that both my parents suffer from diabetes. So at the beginning of the year, I decided that I was to cut down on the amount of refined sugars that I take. That meant that I switched from taking Teh Tarik Kurang Manis (Tea with less sugar) to taking Teh Tarik Kosong. I also switched to drinking more Chinese Tea especially Pu Erh tea which helps lower cholesterol levels. During the recent Hari Raya celebrations and Moon Cake festivals, I have also make the concerted effort really cut down on the sweet kuehs which get sent to me. Again, I won't say no to anyone who offers me a piece, but when I see it on the shelf, I would always remind myself that it is better for me to not eat it now out of choice rather than having to avoid it out of necessity.

We all know that eating food high in cholesterol is not good for you and so for many years there has been an emphasis on a list of foods that you should avoid like eggs, seafoods, fatty meats etc. However, I begin to realise that it really isn't enough to "Not eat the bad stuff" but we should do more to "Eat the good stuff".

Our MOH advises us that we need 5 servings of fruit and vegetables daily. An easy way to think of one serving is that it is around a handful. Fruits and vegetables contain many substances that not only help prevent cancer and a host of other diseases, but they actually contain substances that actually lower cholesterol. Mushrooms like Oyster mushrooms actually contain the same substance (statins) which we prescribe for patients with high cholesterol problems. This comes as no surprise since the very first statin was derived from a fungus. So this year I have started replacing meat with mushrooms and tofu in our home cooking so that instead of eating a plate of stir fried pork with ginger, now we have stir fried pork and mushrooms with ginger. This way, not only do you cut down on meat by using mushrooms as a substitute, the mushrooms also contain statins to help lower your blood cholesterol levels.

Plants also contain a substances called sterols. You might notice immediately that the word "sterols" also appear in the world CholeSTEROL. Well both cholesterol and plant sterols are essential components of cell membranes and cholesterol are found only in animals. The studies have shown that a diet high in plant sterols does actually lower blood cholesterol levels because the plant sterols compete with cholesterol to be absorbed in the gut. This is another reason to make sure that you have enough fruits and vegetables in your diet.

I have already mentioned in a previous blog about my habit of taking my five green juice every morning and a big bowl of fruit everyday. For me, this balances out what I eat for lunch which is when I usually blog. Recently I have also been introduced to Nestle Omega Plus Acticol which is a low fat milk with added Plant Sterols and Omega 3. I take this product essentially to make sure that I get enough Plant Sterols because you really need to eat a whole lot of vegetables to get the 1.3 grams of Plant sterols that the US FDA recommends is needed to lower cholesterol. Two glasses of Nestle Omega Plus Acticol actually gives you 1.2g which is quite good. Aside from the plant sterols, the low fat milk is also a good source of Calcium which is often lacking in hawker food.

Calcium is very important for ladies who tend to suffer from osteoporosis especially after menopause. It is important to remember that you really only build up your bone mass before reaching menopause so it is essential that you develop a good bone density before you start losing bone mass at the onset of menopause. Aside from a daily intake of 1000mg of calcium, it is important to do resistance exercises in order to build strong bones. Again if your diet is lacking in dairy foods, ikan bilis and tofu, a milk drink such as Nestle Omega Plus Acticol might be a convenient way of getting your daily calcium requirements.

So remember that the only thing you really own on this earth is your body and you really are what you eat. So eat wisely!

The ieat Global Crab Fest:: Featuring Crabs from around the Globe!

Our next makan session is probably going to be the most interesting one to date.

Initially, I had thought about holding a Crab Fest where we will be cooking crabs in 8 different styles, but as fate would have it, I discovered after our dinner at Chin Huat that rather than just having Sri Lankan crabs cooked 8 different ways, we could actually have 8 different crabs cooked 8 different ways! So in the lead up to the main event, I will be presenting a selection of different crabs in this post which might make their appearance during our Global Crab Fest.


Tasmanian King Crab $138 - $158/kg

First up is the Tasmanian King Crab. I first met with this beastie during my Med School days in Sydney. In fact, when I got my first paycheck, half of it went to paying for such a crab for my parents and in-laws. (Yes I got married while still a student) This is one very big crab and the beauty of it is that it contains meat the size of a chicken breast and it is still sweet and delicate. When you look at its face, you realise that the guys who came up with "Predator" must have eaten one of these creatures before the movie.

It wasn't cheap then and it sure isn't any cheaper now. These crabs were much bigger years ago, but I have noticed the last time I was back in Sydney that they are much smaller now. The one in the photo which is taken at Chin Huat is only about half the size of those we used to see in the Chinese restaurants in Australia.

It certainly is the crab to order for that special occasion. I think my mother-in-law might still have the shell of the monster in her home somewhere!


Dungeness Crab $58/kg

I have already blogged about the Dungeness Crab in my last post on Chin Huat Live Seafood. The Dungeness Crab is representative of Crabs from North America and they are the common species being eaten in the West Coast.


Dungeness Crabs Black Pepper style

I had presumed that a crab with such a nice delicate flavour should be best eaten steamed but I was quite pleasantly surprised that it actually tasted very good when done Black Pepper style. The crab actually does affect the taste of the Black Pepper sauce, making the sauce just that much sweeter. This is one dish I would make sure is in the Crab Fest.


Alaskan King Crab $138/kg (Special for this month $98/kg)

Those readers who have watched "Deadliest Catch" would be familiar with the Red Alaskan King Crab. Alaskan King Crab fishing is arguably one of the most deadly jobs in the world. These men brave the treacherous waters of the Bering Sea in order to bring the crabs onto our plates. It's no wonder it costs so much.


Red Alaskan King Crab steamed with egg white

During the peak of the season which is from October to December, many people would tell you that the flesh of the Alaskan King Crab is the sweetest of all the crabs, which is why it is best served just steamed with egg white. Most of the flesh of this crab is in the legs and each leg contains meat about the size of a Mars Bar. Unlike other crabs, you don't need a nutcracker to get to the flesh. Instead, they have a purpose built pair of scissors to cut the plasticky shell.

We should be well into the season during our Crab Fest, so this crab should be on the menu. Incidentally, you might have noticed that this crab is currently the mascot for the blog!


Cromer Crab $58/kg

Representing the UK is the Cromer Crab which is one of the common species of crabs that are caught in the waters of Britain and the Mediterranean. This crab is recognized by its black tipped claws and it is said that those that are caught off the coast of Norfolk have the sweetest flesh because of the chalk shelves there influencing what the crabs actually eat.



We had this crab done "Butter Crab" style as well as with Ginger and Shallots. Both were very good but if I were to choose one, it would be Butter Crab. Unlike the Dungeness Crab, this crab actually has quite a good amount of meat in its claws. The flesh is very close to Dungeness crabs and the part I like best is the legs which are quite substantial and very sweet.

This crab is definitely on the menu.


Snow Crabs $118/kg

For our next species, we once again go Down Under and we will have to go deep down under, like 1000 feet deep to find these crabs in the cold Antarctic waters off the Southern Coast of Australia. The Snow crab is also known as the lucky crab (lucky for the person who catches it, unlucky for the crab) and because it lives in such deep unpolluted waters, the flesh has an exceptional sweetness to it.



We had this crab stir fried with Ee Mee which I thought was good but I felt that Bee Hoon might have been better able to absorb all the sweetness of the crab.


Red Swimmer Crab $28/kg

The swimmer crab can be caught right here in Singapore and is one of those really underrated crabs. My dad used to love these crabs plain steamed as the flesh is very sweet. However, they are pretty small, so there is not so much meat in each crab and often when you buy these from the market, most of the flesh has atrophied (shrunken). However, the ones we had at Chin Huat were very good and the flesh is solid.


Blue swimmer crab porridge

We had this crab in two styles. The first is crab porridge and the second is steamed with ginger and shallots. I don't quite fancy the crab porridge, so we might get them do to this in another style for the crab fest.


Sri Lankan Crabs $38/kg

Finally, we get to the crab that really needs no introduction. The Sri Lankan Crab is also known as the Giant Mud Crab and is found in the estuaries and rivers of Sri Lanka. We do have a local mud crab that can be caught in our waters but they are only half the size. The smaller ones are often known as Indonesian Mud Crabs and are often sold in supermarkets at $10 for 3. Sri Lankan crabs on the other hand costs around $38/kg.


Golden Sauce Sri Lankan Crab $38/kg

We had Golden Prawns during our Makan Session which I did not think much of. However, when you cook Sri Lankan crab with the same sauce, somehow the sweetness of the crab magically turns the sauce into something quite addictive especially when eaten with the fried Man Tou. This will definitely be on the menu.

Conclusion

The crab fest will be in the first half of November and I will announce the registration details in the blog soon. I have another two posts coming up soon on crabs so October and November will be crab month! There will be a poll on the most popular crab dishes among our readers, so I am tring get nominees for the top ten list. Will the old favourites like chilli crab, black pepper crab triumph or will the new and trendier dishes like Salted Egg Crab and Crab Bee Hoon take over the crown?

Do write in to nominte two of your favourite crab dishes! And even better if you also tell us where you can find the best crabs around!

PS: recognize where I got our latest Mascot from?


Chin Huat Live Seafood Restaurant
Blk 105, #01-30
Clementi St 12 (Sunset Way)
Singapore 120105
67757348
This post was done together with Chin Huat as a preview of the crab fest


Make sure you join our facebook, forum and twitter so that you can get the latest updates on the crab fest!