Stir Fry Bitter Gourd With Salted Eggs

One of my favorite bitter melon dish and opt to order this dish in local Hakka Taiwanese Restaurant. This recipe is easy to cook and not bitter at all and is coated well with salted eggs that made it so tasty and very nutritious too.

Ingredients:
300g white bitter gourd/melon, cut into slices
2 garlic cloves, chopped coarsely
1 long red chili, sliced
1 spring onion, chopped
2 salted duck eggs, chopped coarsely or mashed into smaller pieces
grape seed oil or cooking oil
salt

Preparations:

1. Place a pot of water on the stove to boil. When water starts boiling, place the bitter gourd melon into the boiling water. Let them sit in the water for about 4 minutes.

2. Meanwhile; Heat up 2-3 tablespoon of oil in a wok pan. Saute the garlic, chili then follow by the spring onion and fry until aromatic but not brown.

3. Remove the gourd from the pot or scoop them out of the boiling water.

4. Add the bitter gourd immediately and stir-fry or shake the pan for a seconds. 

5. Then add the eggs and stir for another seconds. Then add around 5 tablespoon of hot boiling water from the pot that you blanched your bitter gourd. Season with salt if desired.

6. Add more 1 tablespoon of cooking oil if desired, continue to stir-fry for 1–2 minutes. Dish up and serve. If you prefer a softer bitter gourd, simmer the dish for a few more minutes.

Hakka Style Stir Fry Green Fern

As you probably all know, hart's tongue fern or bird’s nest fern is a wild plant. It can be found growing on the trees by the roadside, or in forested areas in countries. And we might think it is strange and not fit to eat!. I even grow this plant on my own balcony. But this plant is very popular in many  Taiwanese Hakka restaurants. It taste delicious and it has health benefit. I love ordering and eating this we called vegetable here in Taiwan in many Hakka restaurants. So I try to cook at home for my lunch, it was really good! So tomorrow guys its Earth Day try to cook this green in your kitchen.
Ingredients:
200g hart's tongue fern, cut into bite sized pieces
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 red chili, sliced
1 tbsp shredded ginger
1 tbsp small silver dried anchovy
1 tbsp dried preserved salted black beans
1 tbsp small dried Chinese red dates or goji berries soaked in water then drain.

7 tbsp water
2-3 tbsp green seed or vegetable oil
salt to taste
Preparation:

1. Wash the fern and drain in colander. Heat oil in wok over medium heat. Add the garlic, dried fish,  ginger, goji berries and chili. Fry until the fish cook lightly brown. Then add dried bean and fry until fragrant.

2. Add the green fern increase heat to high, immediately.

3. Stir fry for 2 minutes or more until semi-soft or until leaves start to wilt. You might need to add more water to prevent drying the bottom of the wok pan.

4. Season with salt for extra taste if desire. Remove from the heat, dish up and serve with rice.

Stir-Fry Vegetables With Chicken

This colorful nutritious blend of crisp-tender vegetables requires a fair amount of chopping, but the cooking takes only minutes. It was simplest recipe to cook; all that is needed is to choose a lot of fresh vegetables, add some basic protein and it is great for healthy balanced meal.
Ingredients:
3 garlic cloves, chopped coarsely
1 medium size red onion, cut into cubes
half portion of skinless chicken breast, cut into cubes
80g red bell peppers, roughly chopped or cut into cubes
80g asparagus, cut into one-inch lengths
400g yellow cauliflower, separated into small florets
120g mokum carrot, sliced ¼  diagonally
100g white button mushrooms, halved
75ml chicken broth
1 tbsp plain flour mix in water
1-2 tbsp grapeseed oil
salt and black ground pepper to taste
fish sauce
Preparation:

1. Heat 1-2 tbsp of the oil in wok on medium-high heat. Saute garlic until just fragrant then add the chicken and stir fry until slightly cooked, add the onion and stir for a minutes. 

2. Add the chopped vegetables; stir fry for a minute.

3. Add the broth into the vegetables.

4. Season with salt and ground black pepper.

5. Add the fish sauce and stir again for a seconds.

6. Cover with lid and bring to boil on medium heat and simmer until vegetables are tender-crisp and not over cooked.

7. Pour the flour mixture to the vegetables.

8. Stirring constantly to avoid over-toasting. Taste and adjust salt or msg as needed. Transfer to a warmed serving dish and serve over rice, if desired. 

Hakka Style Stir Fry Eggplant

This Taiwanese Hakka style stir-fry eggplants (九層塔茄子) with pork and basil it taste better than what I get at the Chinese Restaurant. We enjoyed this dish quite a bit during we dine in a Hakka Restaurant in Neiwan. It was very rich and flavorful. Deep frying the eggplant will help a quick stir and cooking time consume and it keep the skin of the eggplant a bright purple colour.
Ingredients:
3-4cups tea polyphenol grapessed oil, or any cooking oil
400g long eggplant, slice and cut diagonally
3 garlic cloves, chopped coarsely
45g spring onion, sliced lengthwise
150g ground pork
15g asean basil leaves
1 red chili pepper, seeded and chopped coarsely
1 tbsp pickle soy bean
2 tbsp grapeseed oil
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice wine
½ tbsp sugar
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp water
Preparation:

1. At first combine oyster sauce, soy sauce, wine, sugar, sesame oil, water and stir to dissolve the sugar.

2. Heat oil to medium heat in a deep fryer. Soak or blanch eggplant in oil for 2 minutes.

3. Then drain well and discard the heavy oil.

4. Heat a wok or skillet over medium-high flame. Add the 2 tbsp grapeseed oil or vegetable oil, saute garlic until fragrant, add the ground pork and sir fry until cooked through.

5. Add the spring onions and stir for a few seconds.

6. Then add the pickle soy bean, then give a quick stir.

7. Add the eggplant and basil continue to stir for a few seconds. Pour the sauce mixture into the wok, tossing quickly, until the sauce is absorbed.

8. Stir in chili and season with a little bit of msg if desired, turn off the gas. Transfer to a warmed serving dish and garnish with the fresh basil leaves, if desired. Serve immediately with hot steaming plain rice.

Roasted Herb Potatoes & Carrots

I made these roasted potatoes and carrots are a great addition and accompaniment to New Year lunch meal. And these roasted potatoes and carrots they’re just as good and perfect served as a side dish with roast chicken.
Ingredients:
14-16 small gold yukon potatoes, peeled
400g earthbound organic carrots, peeled and cut diagonally into chunky pieces
5 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tbs chopped parsley and thyme
1 spring rosemary
1 lemon zest
salt and pepper
herb infused grapeseed oil
Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 230°C. Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil. When the water is boiling, add the potatoes and carrots cook for about 15-20 minutes or until they are completely tender.

2. Strain well the carrots and potatoes.

3. Sprinkle generously with herb infused grapeseed oil. To making herb-infused grapeseed oil, select the herbs of your choice.I used to make herb-infused grapeseed or olive oil are rosemary, thyme, sage, tarragon, oregano and Italian parsley, you can chopped them and add garlic crushed if you want. In a  sauce pan and add the oil to it. Heat it over a low flame until the oil is completely hot. Turn off the heat and add the herbs and cool. Discard the herbs and place the oil in container.

4. Place the boiled carrots and potatoes into the baking dish. Sprinkle generously with salt, freshly ground black pepper, garlic and lemon zest. 

5. Toss them well until evenly coated.

6. Bake these for 30 minutes until brown.

7. After 30 minutes, take them out from the oven. Add and sprinkle the herbs and torn the rosemary leaves into the roasted potatoes and carrots.

8. Add more herb infused grapeseed oil over the carrots and potatoes.

9. Put them back into the oven and bake for 15 minutes until crisp and serve straight away.

Eggplant Salad

This dish is turned me on to Turkish cookery called "Patlican salatasi' it taste delicious. I personally love eating this dish with grilled fish, kebobs and hot steamed saffron rice. So I had to try to replicate this eggplant salad dish. The taste is pungent, smoky, tangy and more pleasing in texture. Serve for 4 persons!
Ingredients:
750g eggplants
2 green sweet peppers
1½ lemon juice
7 pitted black olives, chopped
10 pcs cherry tomatoes
1 small white onion chopped coarsely
8 tbsp pure olive oil
1 tbsp freshly chopped parsley
salt and pepper to taste
Preparation:

1. Prepare and heat a charcoal barbecue. Wash the eggplants and sweet peppers and grill. Turning a couple of times until they are burnt outside and tender inside.

2. Place in a bowl while still hot, cover with plastic wrap until they are cool enough to hold.

3. Then peel off all the skin, cut the steam of the eggplants and deseed the sweet bell peppers. 

4. Put immediately in the mixing bowl and mash it with a fork.

5. Add the onion, salt and pepper to taste, olive oil, lemon juice, mix well.

6. Add the chopped pitted black olives, tomatoes and parsley, stir gently and blend all ingredients. Do not over mix. Arrange on a serving dish and decorate with black olives (cut into halves) and spring parsley.

Fried Zucchini

This simple zucchini recipe is pretty darn good and great side dish or as an appetizer.
Ingredients:
1. Cut zucchini into 1/2-inch thick slices.4 medium zucchini
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
½ of lemon juice
1 lemon zest
salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup olive oil
Preparation:

1. Cut zucchini into ½-inch thick slices.

2. In a mixing bowl, toss the zucchini slices with parsley, lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. If desired, you can sprinkle other spices on zucchini.

3. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Lay the zucchini tothe pan in batches, taking care not to crowd.

4. Fry on one side, flip carefully and cook until evenly browned and zucchini is just tender but not too soft.

5. Drain on paper towels and serve along with pan seared fish fillet, steak or other hot grilled meats.