Sunday, February 14, 2021

Ngoh Hiang / Meat Roll

 

Yield: 16 pieces


Ingredients: 

1.5kg minced pork, preferably shoulder meat for higher fat content

500g fresh shrimp meat, minced coarsely

12 pieces fresh water chestnuts, washed, peeled and finely diced

half stick of carrot, finely diced 

1 yellow onion, minced

2 pack of dried soya bean skin, cut into 4 by 6-inch rectangles (approx. 16 pieces)

3 eggs, for mixing into the pork & shrimp mix

1 egg, for sealing the edge of the Ngoh Hiang

6 tablespoons self-rising flour

6 tablespoons light soy sauce

3 teaspoon sea salt

3 teaspoon five-spice powder

3 teaspoon ground white pepper

Cooking oil, for greasing the steamer tray


Methods:

1. Mix the pork and minced shrimp in a large bowl. Add egg and stir to mix. In a small bowl, stir together the light soy sauce, salt, fice-spice powder and white pepper until they are smooth. Add the seasoning into the pork & shrimp mix. Left it in fridge for 2 hours. 

2. Stir in water chestnute, yellow onion and carrot into pork & shrimp mix until they are evenly distributed. Sift in the flour and mix until no traces of flour are visible. 

3. Lay out the dried soya bean skin, quickly wipe both sides with a clean wet cloth to remove the excess salt on the surface otherwise the ngoh hiang will be extremly salty.

4. Arrange 2-3 tablespoon of the pork mix along the longer edge of the skin, leaving a half inch gap from the surrounding edge. Add more pork mix if needed. Shape the roll into a slim sausage. Roll the skin starting with the edge closest to you, and tuck in the side edges as you roll.  Seal the edge with egg mix. Place the roll with seamside facing down on a plate brushed with oil to prevent the skin from sticking onto the plate after steaming. 

5. Repeat the step until all the rolls are made. 

6. Get ready with the steamer. Steam the rolls for 8-10 minutes, until the skins turn translucent and the rolls feel firm. Do not crowd the rolls during steaming to prevent the rolls from sticking together. 

7. Once the rolls are cooked, remove from steamer and cool it on the wire rack. Once they are cool, you can divide the rolls into batches and frezed them in plastic wrap for up to 3 months. 

8. To cook, defrost the rolls and fry it in a non-stick sauce pan large enough to hold 2- 3 rolls confortably. Add enough oil to thinly cover the surface of the pan. Fry with medium high heat until the skins turn a crisp brown but before it turns into dark brown as the heat will continue to brown it after they are taken out from the pan. When the rolls are slightly cool down, skice the rolls into 1-inch chunks and serve warm. Optional with dipping sauce like plum sauce or chilies sauce.


Sunday, October 23, 2016

Devil's Food Cake





Ingredients
50 grams best-quality cocoa powder (sifted)
100 grams dark brown Muscovado sugar
250 millilitres boiling water
125 grams soft unsalted butter (plus some for greasing)
150 grams caster sugar
225 grams plain flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs

For the Frosting
125 millilitres water
30 grams dark brown muscovado sugar
175 grams unsalted butter (cubed)
300 grams best-quality dark chocolate (finely chopped)

Methods
  1. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
  2. Line the bottoms of two 8inch round sandwich tins with baking parchment and butter the sides.
  3. Combine the cocoa and 100g dark Muscovado sugar into a bowl, pour in the boiling water & whisk to mix. Set aside.
  4. Stir in the flour, baking powder & soda bicarbonate together in another bowl, set aside for a moment.
  5. Cream the butter & caster sugar together & beat well until pale & fluffy.
  6. Dribble the vanilla extract into the creamed butter & sugar & mix then for while. Add in 1 egg & quickly followed by a scoopful of flour mixture, then the second egg.
  7. Keep mixing to incorporate the rest of the dried ingredients for the cake, and finally mix & fold in the cocoa mixture, scraping its bowl well with a spatula.
  8. Divide the batter between the 2 prepared tins & bake in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Take the tins out & leave them on a wire rack for 5–10 minutes, before turning the cakes out to cool.
  9. As soon as the cakes are baking in the oven, start preparing the frosting. Put the water, 30g  Muscovado sugar & 175g butter in a pan over a low heat to melt.
  10. When the mixture begins to bubble, take the pan off the heat & add the chopped chocolate, swirling the pan so that all the chocolate is hit with heat, then leave for a minute to melt before whisking till smooth & glossy.
  11. Leave for about 1 hour, whisking now & again. By which time the cakes will be cooled, the frosting should have been thicken & ready for the frosting.
  12. Set one of the cooled cakes, with its top side down, on a cake stand or plate & spread with about a third of the frosting. Next, top that with the second cake, regular way up, and spread the remaining frosting over the top and all sides, swirling away with spatula. It is not necessary to smooth the frosting as some swirls created will make the cake looks nicer.