KOREAN MANDU

Here's my version of Korean Mandu.

I tried folding these mandu (Korean dumplings) but they looked more like ingots.
I used the thicker Japanese wrap instead of using the normal wanton wraps and they can definitely withstand a lot of rough handling from me.

The filling: minced pork, shredded cabbage; diced prawns, minced garlic and ginger juice, salt,  pepper and dash of sesame oil.

Put them into boiling water till they are cooked (they will float to the top).

These dumplings are served with chicken broth with more cabbage- a perfect one-pot lunch on  the weekend.

Recently we went for BBQ pork at the Gung  Korean Restaurant in Ampang area.

The menu was also pasted on to the divider screen.   The decor and furniture here are quite dated and very minimalist. Alright, although we are only  here eat,  at least to me, the furniture and the ambience of the restaurant is a contributing factor to the enjoyment of food.  

There is no cooker hood over these BBQ fire and at the end of the meal,  we found the smell of cooking clinging onto our  clothing and hair too! Not too pleasant if you are going out on a date, I think :D!

Service was very fast- infact too fast.   I arrived early with Sarah and we have told the staff that we are waiting for 2 more person after ordering the food. However, the food was almost immediately brought out. So could the food have been cooked and  ready?

I think so, as we found that the Bibimbap was not as hot and I can even touched the stone bowl with my hands!  Likewise the Kimchi jiggae- though it was tasty, it was not hot as a soup/stew should be.

The pork belly, marinated beef and spicy pork-for the BBQ.

 The variety of banchan.

The staff proceeded to cook/BBQ the meat for us.  The meat is tender and the marinated and spicy pork both especially delicious. 

The banchan and green tea are refillable.

There are plenty of choices to sample authentic Korean meals around this area ere- people have nickname this area as "Little Korean Village". Besides restaurants, there are also one or two supermarkets specially selling all sorts of Korean products.

MEMORIES OF MY FATHER'S TEACHING

On Wesak Day, I had a wonderful evening at the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre.

It was another meetup group (Holistic Living) gathering.  As its name suggest, lifestyle that affects us spiritually, mentally, emotionally and environmentally.  I was  happy to meet the organiser Mr. Wong Kee Yew.  He is a lecturer with a Wellness Centre and he really "look the talk"!.  

He had organised for us to watch the musical Broken Bridges at KLPAC.

We arrived early  and took the opportunity to wander around its serene surroundings.   I felt so peaceful and relax that this zen atmosphere of  quietness and tranquility provoked.

  

Sarah and her cousin enjoying themselves in this mini "bamboo forest".

The lake with the beautiful  koi fishes. The bistro in the background.

 The  Asian restaurant on the other said of the lake.

Care to sit and meditate under this old tree- it may not be the bodi tree but you may become enlighten too?

We walked over to the Richard's Bistro for our dinner before the show.  

A cosy dining bistro.  There are also alfresco dining beside the lake as well (see the photo above).

 Spaghetti aglio olio with Prawns.

 Spaghetti alle vongole - plenty of clams - delicious

The local production musical show - Broken Bridges.  There was a write up of this show in The Star.

I  enjoyed this 2 hours show.   As the show started, the performers gave a energetic and rousing dance routine.  There were many dancing and singing  and I can see the time and effort that the performers have put into the show.  

As I sat there watching the story unfold, it bring back memories of my father.   I can truly relate to this storyline- the generation of the 1960's (?) and our relationship with our father- he is a strict disciplinarian and his short words, though few,  are enough to send shivers down our spine when he got angry.  I now know that all these hide his feeling of  love and concern for us.  He wanted us to do good in our life and will not tolerate if any of us goes "offline" anything against his words.  It was so important that our  behaviour and actions are "acceptable" in the society at that time.  I can remember how he will wait up for us if we will to go out with our friends, be it boys or girls and yes at 10pm it is consider late for us too! Sometimes it was difficult to talk to him, so many times, our requests were through our mediator, our mother. 

One thing, I can remember too- is that my father had never caned us - maybe he got someone else to do that for him. :D!.

  

 

I am glad that nowadays we  have a better relationship with our children.   We can open up and share our thoughts and dreams with them and vice versa as well.  We are not afraid to admit our weakness to them and show them that we parents are human too!

So glad that this Wesak day, the young generation were able to catch a glimpse of the times and expectations of the society  that we have gone through and I was able to share these thoughts through this show!.

MEATLESS MONDAY- SIMPLE LIFE

27/5/2013

Happy Monday-the school holidays are here and the road is almost traffic-free, the office is quiet with staffs still on long weekend leave and having a delicious breakfast - Baked French Toast. 

I have soaked the stale bread (my own homemade loaf) with mixture of 1 cup whipping cream; 2 eggs, 1/4 cup maple syrup; cinnamon and vanilla paste overnight. Baked them this morning for 20 minutes at 190C.

Lunch again was vegan with oats and multigrains taken  together with some stir-fry beansprouts and cabbage bought from the economy rice seller. 

 

Still trying our best to have  Meatless Monday, we went for dinner at Simple Life cafe at Leisure Mall.   This new cafe serves organic vegetarian meals.   

The open concept of the cafe - not much privacy as everyone who walk past will be looking in and also maybe not that clean -imagine the dust particles going into your meal!

There are various set meals- Hakka Lui Cha, Mini Steamboat, curry pot etc. Service was attentive but again it was Monday evening, don't know about the service during the weekends.

We ordered their Hakka Lui Cha.  

Brown rice served with a condiments of various vegetables.   The green tea/soup came in this little teapot and it is hot which is good.

Don't be deceived by this small portion of rice- it is more than enough for one person.

Here we goes- all the condiments get mixed with the rice.

The green tea/soup is added and voila - healthy, organic green goodness!

It is delicious and refreshing,  the herbal flavour which sometimes accompany this dish is not too obvious here. Each portion cost RM15.90 and there is a service charge.

TIRAMISU

Hot weather = cold dessert= Tiramisu = good pick me up! 

No-bake Tiramisu

Idea taken from BBC Good Food Magazine.

Basic ingredients: coffee/kahlua syrup, cream cheese, whipping cream, sponge fingers.

Dip the sponge fingers in coffee syrup and place on bottom of the loaf tin (lined with cling wrap for easy unmoulding).

Hey! that's not a "rat" (bottom right corner) but did not realised that TOTO was on the floor.  He always like to wait around for any bits and pieces of crumbs that fall! 

Spread cream cheese mousse over sponge fingers.

Decided to grate some dark chocolate over the cream cheese mousse before the next layer of sponge fingers

Continue layering, ending with the cream cheese mousse. Cling wrap and place overnight in the fridge to set.

Unmould the Tiramisu - (upside down- so that the 1st layer of sponge fingers is on top)  onto serving plate.
Dust with cocoa powder.

Cut into slices to serve- a thin slice is more than enough for me- its is very rich and creamy.

Cheesy goodness to enjoy over a cup of latte.

Enjoy your  long weekend holiday  and Happy Wesak Day!

MEATLESS MONDAY- KOREAN PANCAKE

20/5/2013

Our meatless Monday Menu.

After my injection for my knees, well-meaning friends have been telling me that I must take foods that have high collagen value. I don't know how far true is it that the body to absorb these collagen or maybe induce the growth of the cartillage itself.        

Some of these foods recommended are Bird's nest, sharkfins, sea cucumbers etc. Well bird nest and sharkfins are out of question, as not only are they expensive but also un-eco-friendly.  The other substitution  are white fungus and coral seaweed (so called "poor man bird nest").  

I always loved Chicken Soup with White Fungus and this was my late mother's favourite soup too- double boiled till the white fungus are really soft and gelatinous, no wonder my mother's complexion was smooth and practically wrinkle-free when she passed away at the age of 85 years :D!. 

The coral seaweed is a more recent available  ingredient and this is supposed to have  very high collagen level.  I have tried dunking it into sweet soup ("tong sui") but somehow I just don't like the texture- it could  melt into a jelly-like drink which can be a bit difficult to swallow!.

So when I came across the recipe from Wendy of Table for Two or More - a salad/kerabu version of making use of these seaweeds, its a must try for me. I have make some changes to the dressing.           

I have soaked the Coral seaweeds for more than 2 days in the fridge, changing water everyday to remove the "fishy" smell.  Drain them and pickle them with lime juices, sugar and salt while I prepare the other ingredients: bunga kantan, red onion, red chilies mixed together with more lime juices, sugar, dash of fish sauce and sesame oil. 

Mixed the ingredients together when you are ready to serve, toss in some sliced cherry tomatoes, cucumbers,  mint leaves and topped with toasted sesame seeds.  Very refreshing and totally  collagen-goodness. For one who dislike them in the tong sui, Sarah enjoyed eating this!  

The next dish: Pan Fried Taufoo with Leeks and Red Peppers in Black Bean sauce.
Heat oil and saute minced garlic and ginger, add some salted black beans till fragrant.
Add the cubed taufoo and fry till lightly golden brown. Add a bit of water and cover briefly.
Add red peppers and lastly the leeks, splash of rice wine
Adjust seasoning and serve immediately.

Finally the highlight got to be this: Korean Pancake with my homemade kimchi.

I made these kimchi using the recipe from Catherine Lau/Flavours magazine.  Though it is easy but I find that the taste of the chili flakes is a bit overpowering and the colour is very red- as can be seen above.   However the vegetables still retain their crunchiness.

I follow the simple batter recipe: 1 cup flour, 1/4 cup rice flour, 1 egg and 1 cup water, mix together till smooth before adding the kimchi and some of its juices and 1/2  sliced onion. 

I am sure this is definitely not the authentic Korean Pancake, but it is very tasty and delicious.

So maybe I need to get some advice and help from my daughter-in-law, Eunice.

MEETING UP FOR PRE-GATSBY DRINK

After much fanfare and good press reviews, The Great Gatsby opened in the cinemas on Sunday.

I could not have missed this show for anything- pictures of those gorgeous jewelleries and fashion were enough to make me want to see the movie, not forgetting the stellar cast as well.

Frankly I have not read this literature book.  Normally I either don't want to see the movie tied in if I have   read the storybook and vice versa I will not read the book if I have seen the movie. 

So far there is other movie that I seen without reading the story book was the Les Miserables that I went with Sarah and which I had enjoyed very much. 

This time strangely, I watched this movie with a group of strangers (10 of us meeting for the first time) and yet not so strangers as we have so this common interest - The Paperback Book Club!  

The  fountains outside the shopping mall.

Much photographed mascot of Harrods  

So the arrangement was that we gathered at Cafe Vienna, Level 3 of KLCC for pre-Gatsby Drinks- how very gatsby-like was that except we were not dressed as such :D!!
We each ordered our own drinks and chatted about the movie, the book and getting to know each other before adjourning to the cinema for the show.

I enjoyed the show immensely.  The reviews had said it all and I was not dissappointed at all. 

After the show, I met up with Sarah and both of us decided to go down for dinner at LOKL Coffee in Jalan Tun H.S. Lee, not knowing that they are closed on Sunday.   We then crossed over to  the Reggae Mansion Hotel instead.

They served set lunch too-  only RM14.90.

The bar at the ground floor and there is also a rooftop bar which caters only for the house guests only.

Their menu is not extensive and they offer simple western-style food. Decor is simple black and white tables and chairs. There is a alfresco courtyard in the centre of the hotel.

 Oriental Chicken Chop.

The carrot was a bit hard and one piece literally flew off the plate as I tried to fork it! The chicken portion was rather small (or was I that hungry?) but the sauce was delicious.

  

Sarah ordered a thin-crust Fantasy Island Pizza.  We loved the thin crispy crust and the topping was equally yummy - cheesy and generous with the prawns as well. 

The prices are average and there is no service charges. As the place is near my office, I will definitely check out their set lunch some time later.

We took the LRT back to the station where we have parked the car before heading home to the doggies who were patiently waiting for their dinner!

Thus ended a happy weekend outing.