TherMe: Braised Pork Rice aka 卤肉饭

The famous Taiwan braised pork rice is one of my faves but those sold commercially tend to be a tad too oily leaving u feeling kinda jerlat towards the end. As a Thermomix advisor, we get to learn a new dish during our weekly meetings so u can imagine my excitement when we were told it's gonna b this dish for the week ;p

Ingredients:

700g of pork belly

Water

1 tsp of salt (preferably pink Himalayan salt / sea salt)

2-3 tbsps of dark soy sauce, depending on how dark u want it to be

1 tbsp of fermented bean paste

1 tbsp of light soy sauce

1 tbsp of organic raw sugar

1 tsp of sesame oil

3 cloves of garlic, ends cut away

10g organic extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

6 dried shitake mushrooms, soaked, drained (retain the water) & sliced

150g of mushroom water

3 pieces of star anise

Directions:

1. Put pork into mixing bowl then add sufficient water to cover pork followed by salt. Par-boil for 20mins / 100°C / Reverse / Spoon Speed.

2. Remove pork then slice to desired thickness. Use a big bowl to marinate pork with dark soy sauce & mix well 1st so that colour will be more even. Add in the remaining seasonings (excluding water) & mix evenly.

3. Pour out the residual water in mixing bowl. Put garlic then set 5s / Reverse / Speed 5. Remove peels & scrap down sides before adding EVOO to sauté at 3mins / Varoma / Spoon Speed.

4. Fix butterfly onto blade then pour in marinated pork including the marinate, mushrooms, mushroom water & star anise & cook for 1hr 10mins / 98°C / Reverse / Spoon Speed. 

5. Lastly, add 5mins / Varoma / Spoon Speed to help thicken the sauce. Pour pork & gravy over cooked rice & hard-boiled egg. Best served warm with some steamed vegetables.

The braised pork can be prepared in advance then stored in individual portions either in chiller (overnight) or freezer (if more than 1 day). Simply cook rice in simmering basket with eggs on top while steaming the required pork portions in the Varoma dish as well as vegs on the Varoma tray & Voila! A quick meal ready in no time at all ~.<

For non-Thermomix readers, you can still tweak & follow the steps but simmer over low heat in a wok or pot on the stove. Stir occasionally but when sauce has thickened, stir more frequently to prevent it from getting burnt.

I'm glad e dish turned out not oily. Meat was well-flavoured & texture was perfect, tender yet not too soft..one word to sum it up, marvelicious!!

Burgers with Homemade Beefy Patties & Portobello Mushrooms with Buttered Peas

This meal turned out totally differently from what I had planned initially..lolz! I chanced upon organic miso the day before so I bought some & had wanted to cook a soba in miso soup. However, I saw the bread buns that we had purchased supposedly for breakfast which I'd almost completely forgotten about. As usual, my lil' bread lover got so excited upon overhearing me muttered the word 'bread'. Thus, with the new turn of events, I asked if he wanted a burger to which few kids would be able to resist that temptation, right?

Ingredients (supposedly for 1 toddler but my boy couldn't finish so I ate 1 too):

50g of organic minced beef

1 tsp of sesame oil

1 tsp of Bob's Red Mill All Natural Cornstarch

1 egg, white separated

A dash of basil

A dash of oregano

2 big portobello mushrooms 

1 tsp of organic VCO

2 tbsps of freshly grated organic cheddar cheese

2 big handfuls of Watties frozen garden peas

2 tbsps of water

1 tsp of unsalted butter

2 burger buns (I used the sesame loaf from Green Pumpkin Japanese Bakery at Nex)

Directions:

1. Marinate beef with sesame oil, cornstarch, egg white, basil & oregano for at least 15 minutes.

2. Preheat oven under Grill setting, max temperature (260°C) for 5 minutes.

3. Drizzle the underside of the mushrooms with the VCO & grill for 5 minutes. 

4. Half the beef & use a spoon to form 2 circular patties. Grill for around 10 minutes till they turn slightly brown on the surface.

5. Cut the buns into half, without seperating them. Lightly beat the egg yolk & spread it over the insides of the buns & grill for 2-3 minutes till the egg is cooked & bread lightly toasted.

6. Top the mushrooms with 1 tbsp of cheddar cheese each & bake for another 10 minutes.

7. Add 2 tbsps of water to the peas then also grill for 2-3 minutes till softened & cooked. Drain the water then melt the butter over the hot peas & mix well.

8. Assemble the burger by putting the beef patty on the bun then cap on the mushroom with cheese. Lastly, top with the bun & serve warm with the buttered peas.

I couldn't help but mention the most hilarious thing that happened while I was prepping lunch. My boy was so elated & grateful for his upcoming meal that he repeatedly thanked me for it..hahaha!! His impromptu luncheon turned out yummilicious!!! I remembered my first attempt at homemade patties weren't quite as successful as I found them too dense with oats added. Yet, this time round, I didn't even have time to do any research & simply jumped right into the preparations with just my gut feel. I was still kinda worried initially as i had pre-marinated the beef with sesame oil which is more commonly used for Chinese cuisines. To my surprise, the patty was quite tender with a faint fragrance from the herbs plus the juice from the portobello mushrooms complemented it nicely. Furthermore, the crispy toasted bread had a slight sweetness to it so all the flavours just seemed to come together in a perfect symphony in my mouth. No wonder BB devoured his in no time at all..lolz! I'm so going to replicate this again for my other 'boy' soon ~.<

Sesame Oil Chicken Rice with Organic Pumpkin & Red Dates Soup

This is another of my all-time faves - "one-pot" chicken rice imparted by my mummy! The usual ingredients include Chinese sausages & dried shiitake mushrooms but we're all aware that sausages are not exactly a very healthy option due to high sodium levels & the addition of preservatives. Thus, they've been omitted. As for dried shiitake mushrooms, i've asked my mummy where I could buy good ones but she told me she also can't really find them nowadays & advised me to use fresh ones instead. That was quite a dampening news as I've always like their richer flavours as compared to the fresh ones. To compensate for the missing aromas, I subsituted normal oil with sesame oil instead & the results were great!

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler & 1 adult):

1 chicken leg + 1 small drumstick

1/2 cup of organic 10 multi-grains

4 tbsps of sesame oil

1 tbsp of Bob's Red Mill All Natural Cornstarch

1/2 cup water

50g of white bunashimeiji mushrooms

8 stalks of organic French beans, diced

Directions:

1. Marinate the chicken pieces with the cornstarch & half the sesame oil, and marinate the rice with the remaining sesame oil for at least 1 hour.

2. Add water to rice, top off with the chicken pieces & mushrooms then steam for 30 minutes (I'm using my Techno 3-Tiers Electric Steamer but rice cooker would do too).

3. Add the French beans & steam for another 5 minutes. Remove chicken pieces & give it a good stir to mix the ingredients evenly. Serve warm.

We both love the fragrance of the sesame oil in the rice. Be warned though that the rice is kinda wet & sticky partly due to the fact that it was cooked in my steamer where more moisture is added during the steaming process. Think along the lines of mui fan (which I happened to like too). Cooking it in the cooker should give you the usual rice texture if you're not a big fan of rice with lotsa gravy.

Ingredients:

240g of organic pumpkin

6 red dates, seeds removed

750ml of water

Directions:

1. Add all the ingredients to a pot & bring to boil. Then, simmer in low fire for 2 hours.

Nothing fanciful but just a bowl of comforting sweet-tasting soup.

Beneficial Combination:

Pumpkin + Red date = Invigorating spleen & replenishing qi as well as restraining & inhibiting qi of lungs

Organic Penne in Creamy Pork with Portobello Mushrooms Sauce

After we came home from our second trip to the library today, I needed to whip up a quick luncheon & I knew just what to cook as I've been having this craving since the bottle of Bulla cream has been siitting in my fridge...hee! I had wanted to prepare this dish much earlier, however, due to unforseen circumstances (almost an entire pack of shiitake mushrooms turned mouldy), I wasn't able to cook it last week :(

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler & 1 adult):

100g of Alce Nero Organic Penne Rigate

100g of Australia corn fed minced pork

6 medium-sized portobello mushrooms, sliced

1 medium-sized purple onion, diced

1 clove of garlic, finely chopped

150ml of Bulla Thickened Cream (red label as shown in picture below)

100ml of pasta water

1 big handful of frozen peas

3 tbsps (sauce) + 1 tbsp (topping) of shredded organic cheddar cheese

Some freshly ground black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

Directions:

1. Bring water to boil for pasta & cook in simmering water till it's almost cooked.

2. Simultaneously, heat up some EVOO in a pan then add garlic. When it starts to brown, add in the onion followed by mushrooms & black pepper then sauté till the mushrooms start to shrivel & 'sweat'. 

3. Add in the pork to stirfry then pour the cream & pasta water into the pan & mix well.

4. As soon as pasta is ready, add the pasta, peas & cheese to the pan. Toss around to evenly coat the pasta with the sauce & let it simmer a while for the pasta to absorb the goodness.

5. Top with more cheese & serve immediately.

Burp! Absolutely satisfying meal but super fattening. Well, I'm sure it's alright since we don't eat cream everyday, not even once a month in fact. &, I know most people would tell me that I can afford to put on some extra kilos..lolz! This is so good that I think I'm going to tweak the recipe slightly to make a creamy mushroom soup one of these days. Thus, do stay tuned & happie grubbing!

Beneficial Combinations:

Garlic + Onion = Detoxification & anti-cancer effects

Garlic + Pork = Eliminate fatigue, improve attention & help enhance immunity

Peas + Pork = Diuretic (promotes the production of urine), stop diarrhoea & aid digestion

Pepper + Pork = Favorable for digestion & absorption of nutrients

My 3rd Variation of Mushroom Cheesy Sauce with Corn Fed Minced Pork

My mushroom cheesy sauce has indeed come a long way . . . evolving from the 2 main basic ingredients to 3, & now to this latest version which actually includes 4. I guess in this case, more is indeed better..lolz!

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler & 1 adult):

100g of Australian corn fed minced pork

2 big portobello mushrooms, torn into smaller chunks

50g of enoki mushrooms

1 medium-sized yellow onion, cut into quarters

1 clove of garlic

3 tbsps of organic cheddar cheese, grated

1 tsp of grated Parmesan cheese for garnishing

10 stalks of organic French beans, diced

100g of edamame

1 cup of Alce Nero's Organic Vehicle Shapes Pasta

Directions:

1. Boil water then pour enough to cover the washed edamames to warm them up for 3 minutes. Cook pasta in the remaining simmering water till al dente. Drain & leave aside.

2. Steam the remaining ingredients, except French beans & cheeses, for 10 minutes (I'm using my Avent Combined Steamer & Blender).

3. Add in the French beans & steam for another 5 minutes. Remove the French beans, add in the cheddar cheese then blend to desired consistency. Pour over cooked pasta, top with Parmesan cheese & serve warm.

My boy was kinda excited as he ate his pasta today. Other than the improved taste, he was pretty fascinated with the new "Alce Nero's Organic Vehicle Shapes Pasta" as they're shaped as different vehicles which include cars, motorcycles, trucks, trains & aeroplanes. The added bonus was that it also came with a much lower price tag. NTUC outlets are selling 2 packs (250g per pack) for only $4.05. The Organic Dinos / Farm / Safari Kids Pastas which I used to buy cost $6.40 for a pack of 300g. I don't think I need to do the Math here for you to see that this is so much cheaper in comparison. One thing to note is that it's stated on the packaging that it's recommended for toddlers 24 months & above. Since I've even fed adults' organic fusiili to BB & he had no problem chewing those, I knew he would be able to chomp these down without difficulties too.

The other packet I bought was "Alce Nero's Organic Vegetable Alphabet Pasta" which comes in plain, spinach & tomato flavours. Similarly, it costs only a fraction of "Bellamy's Organic Vege Macaroni" ($6.95 for 175g) which I had been using. The only apparent "advantage" Bellamy has over Alce Nero is that it includes a beetroot flavour too.

Beneficial Combinations:

Garlic + Pork = Eliminate fatigue, improve attention & help enhance immunity

Garlic + Onion = Detoxication & anti-cancer effects

French Beans + Garlic = Sterilise & detoxify as well as improve the taste

First Experience of Eating Rice with Dishes & Soup On-The-Go for BB

Till date, I usually prepare one dish meals for BB whenever we dine out. As I still had some leftover Organic Pumpkin & Red Dates Soup with Organic Beef Balls from luncheon, I decided to try packing a complete meal with rice, dishes & soup.

The following were cooked simultaneously in my Techno 3-Tiers Electric Steamer.

Organic 10 multi-grains: 3 level tbsps soak for more than 7 hours. Pour away the water, rinse the grains a couple of times then add in 50ml of water. Steam for 35 minutes.

Steamed probiotics fed minced chicken with portobello mushroom & organic French beans: Marinate 50g of chicken with 1/2 tsp of sesame oil & 1/2 tsp of Bob's Red Mill All Natural Cornstarch for at least 30 minutes. Dice 1 medium-sized portobello & 3 stalks of organic French beans & mix evenly into the chicken. Steam for 20 minutes.

Steamed threadfin with wolfberries: Marinate threadfin with some organic extra virgin coconut oil. Top with 1 tbsp of wolfberries & steam for 15 minutes.

To my parents-in-law surprise, BB finished all the rice, dishes & even ate up the beef balls & pumpkin in the soup. Yet, he still managed to drink up the entire bowl of soup after that (^.~)v

Dinner of Pappardelle Mushroom Carbonara for 3

Special request of pappardelle from Daddy-O after we watched MasterChef Junior Season 3. So, I whipped up a mushroom carbonara with the leftover parmesan cheese from our X'mas dinner. It has been more than 10 years since I last did this sauce so l was keeping my fingers crossed that it would turn out alright.

Ingredients (serve 2 adults + 1 toddler):

1 pack of 250g of pappardelle

160g of fresh emperor shiitake mushrooms (bought directly from Mycofarm), sliced

1 cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese

3 eggs, beaten

1 clove of garlic, finely chopped

1 tsp of dried basil

A dash of freshly ground black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil

Directions:

1. Bring water to boil for pasta. Add cheese (reserve some as toppings for later) to eggs, mix well & put aside.

2. Heat up some EVOO in a pan & add garlic. When it starts to brown, pour in the mushrooms, black pepper & basil then saute till soft. Throw the pasta in the water to cook simultaneously.

3. As soon as pasta is ready, drain & reserve 1/2 to 3/4 cup of pasta water. Immediately add the pasta to the pan, toss with the mushrooms to coat & remove from heat.

4. Pour the cheese & egg mixture over the pasta & immediately stir evenly (pasta must be hot enough in order for the eggs to be cooked). Add some pasta water to make it creamier. 

5. Top with more cheese & serve immediately for the adults' portion. As for the portion for BB, I put it back onto the stove to cook for a while more to ensure the eggs are thoroughly cooked.

The taste is good although we found it a tad too dry, as it had probably dried up slightly after my phototaking session..lolz! Anyway, I'll definitely increase the amount of the cheese & egg mixture as well as add in more of the pasta water in future. 

Homemade Chicken Mushroom Balls in Carrot, Spinach & Egg Drop Soup

Being inspired by another mummy blogger who has been using her homemade mushroom powder (her recipe can be found here) as a natural seasoning, an idea struck me. Adding freshly diced mushrooms to minced chicken sounds delicious to me too ;) The initial plan was to steam minced chicken mushroom with tofu but as it was quite a chilly day & I had some spinach in the fridge, I changed to cook one of my fave childhood soup, the spinach egg flower soup!

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler & 1 adult):

50g of minced probiotic fed minced chicken

1 big emperor shiitake mushroom (bought directly from Mycofarm), diced finely

1 tsp of Bob's Red Mill All Natural Cornstarch (new addition to my fridge & it's non-GMO)

1 tsp of sesame oil

750ml of water

1 medium sized carrot, sliced thinly

60g of organic baby spinach

1 egg, beaten

Directions:

1. Marinate minced chicken with sesame oil & cornstarch for at least 15 minutes while you prepare the remaining ingredients.

2. Bring water to a boil in a pot, add in the carrots & cook for 15 minutes.

3. Mix the diced mushrooms evenly into the chicken, roll into 12 twenty-cents balls before putting into the pot & cook for 10 minutes.

4. Add in spinach followed by pouring egg in a slow & steady stream. Let it cook a while before stirring slowly to create the ribbon-like egg flower.

5. Once the egg is cooked, can remove from heat (to prevent overcooking the spinach which can actually be eaten raw) & serve warm.

My lil' food critic seemed to like every single ingredient in the soup, even the spinach! He has never voluntarily pointed to any vegetable other than peas & asked for more but yet he did that more than once for the spinach (which is not even new to him). The chicken balls were tasty with the fragrant mushroom bits & even the meat texture is quite smooth, likely due to the addition of the cornstarch.

I also steamed a pomfret with some sesame oil with ginger strips. To be honest, my palate is getting used to appreciating the natural taste of food without any salt added. I've heard people commenting that the food would be tasteless. On the contrary, my taste buds have in fact become more sensitive to the different natural flavours embedded in each food. Sometimes when we dine out, I seem to be the only one who find the dishes too salty. Mummies & Daddies, you'all can try eating the same food as your little one too. Gradually, you'll become healthier with them too!

Beneficial Combinations:

Carrot + Chicken = Promote the absorption & utilisation of protein

Egg + Spinach = Improve the absorption of vitamin B12 as well as help to treat insomnia & upset caused by yin asthenia

Portobello Mushrooms with Onion Cheesy Pasta Sauce

We were out for lunch last weekend & I cooked a pasta sauce with onion, portobello mushrooms & spinach but I didn't add in cheese for fear that it may turn bad. BB accepted the taste but I somehow felt that it was missing something. Therefore, I decided to retry again today as Daddy-O had to work late & dinner would be just for the both of us.

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler):

1 piece of cod fish

3 small portobello mushrooms

1 small yellow onion, cut into halves

1 handful of organic baby spinach

3 tbsps of organic baby pasta

Directions:

1. Cook pasta in a pot of simmering water as per instructed till al dente. Drain & leave aside.

2. Wipe the mushrooms clean with a damp cloth & tear them into smaller chunks.

3. Steam the cod, mushrooms & onion for 15 minutes (I'm using my Avent Combined Steamer & Blender).

4. Add in the spinach & steam for another 5 minutes. Remove cod fish & flake. Blend the mushrooms, onion & spinach to desired consistency, pour over cooked pasta & serve immediately.

The improvised recipe is shown below.

Ingredients (serve 1 toddler & 1 adult):

2 pieces of corn-fed chicken thigh

3 small portobello mushrooms

1 small yellow onion, cut into halves

2 tbsps of organic cheddar cheese

1 cup of organic fusilli pasta

(Note: Cod & spinach to be omitted if you're adding cheese.)

Directions:

1. Cook pasta in a pot of simmering water as per instructed till al dente. Drain & leave aside.

2. Wipe the mushrooms clean with a damp cloth & tear them into smaller chunks.

3. Steam the chicken, mushrooms & onion for 20 minutes.

4. Remove chicken to cut into smaller chunks. Add in the cheddar cheese to the mushrooms & onion & blend to desired consistency. Pour over cooked pasta & serve immediately.

Note: I usually cook the pasta & prepare the sauce concurrently to save time.

Yeah! This time round the taste is just right! Adding the cheese does make a significant difference to the taste. It was another satisfying meal for both BB & me ~.^ This is also the first time BB is having fusilli. I used to cook his baby pasta before cooking mine but since he's older now & can chew pretty well, I decided to let him try our adult version. The same ingredients are used for both types of pasta anyway. He ate them without any difficulty. Seems like we can stop buying the more expensive baby pasta..hee

Beneficial Combination:

Chicken + Onion = Moisturise body, warm stomach & strengthen waist

Harmful Combination:

Cheese + Cod = Cause diarrhea or abdominal pain

Cheese + Spinach = Affect the digestion & absorption of calcium