Bak Kwa 猪肉干 (Pork Jerky)

Bak Kwa is the Hokkian word means grilled minced pork. A kind of Chinese style moist and grilled pork jerky. This was my third time making Bak Kwa and it is the first time having a satisfying end product. The meat is moist and tender, not over dehydrated and hard. Though it was hard work squatting in front of the oven relentless flipping the meat sheets. Homemade Bak Kwa without any colouring and preservatives is the best. ^^ 

I did some online research about the way others making Bak Kwa and the temperature used.  I'm referring to a YouTube by Lauren's Kitchen on how he made the Chicken Bak Kwa, combined with my own previous two experiments in the kitchen and conclude with the below recipe. Yes, the Bak Kwa needs to have certain thickness to taste better, don't roll it too thin. 

I love to eat my Bak Kwa sandwich between soft white bread! :p

Recipe: (Baking tray: 46 cm x 33 cm)
Ingredients:
(1.5Kg Minced pork with fatty, yield around 0.9 kg Bak Kwa)
1.5 kg minced pork with fatty
200 g sugar
3 tbsp light soy sauce
1.5  tbsp fish sauce
3 to 4 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp five spice powder
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp Chinese rice wine
3 heap spoons honey
1 tsp white peppers
2 tsp salts 

Glazing:
4 tbsp honey + 1 tbsp warm water, mix well

Method:

1. In a mixing bowl, place all ingredients, mix well with a pair of chopstick until the meat turn gooey. Pack into plastic zipper lock, press out thinly but leave a thickness of 5mm. I packed the minced pork into 5 plastic zipper lock. Keep it in the freezer overnight. 

2. Thaw the minced pork from freezer 30 mins before you need to use the meat. Cut the side of zipper lock to take out the meat sheet. (Mine didn't have any meat liquid, so I don't need to drain them) Transfer the meat to a lined baking tray. I used two meat sheets just right for one baking tray. Cover the meat with the plastic, gentle use a rolling pin to spread the meat to the side or cover the tray fully. Remember do not over pressing the meat! 

3. Bake in a preheat oven at 140C for 10 mins, flip the meat and bake for another 10 mins.

4. Leave the meat to cool down a bit, cut the meat into 6 square pieces or your desire portions. 

5. Turn the oven to grill function, apply a layer of glaze to both side of the meat sheet, grill the meat at between 160C to 170C on the wire rack, use the long food tong keep flipping the meat. Apply glazing again if necessary. Adjust the oven temperature if the grill char the meat too fast. Grill until the meat reach your desire red and cooked colour. Keep the extra Bak Kwa in the fridge, when need, take out and heat up in the microwave for 15 seconds, serve warm.

Yu Sheng (Lo Hei) 鱼生

Yu Sheng, Yee Sang or Lo Hei, is a very popular dish during Chinese New Year among Malaysian and Singaporean as it is a symbol of abundance and prosperity. I love this dish not only because of its vibrant colour but the pleasure and ecstatic energy that bring people together when we do the prosperity toss.  

Yu Sheng usually consists of raw fish (or sometimes we used smoked salmon) mixed with shredded vegetables such as carrots, radish and cucumber; and a variety of sauces and condiments. Nowadays, many people have developed this Yu Sheng to suit their family taste buds. 

I love my Yu Sheng to have thin and long shredded vegetables. So this dish must use hand shredded tool to produce the beautiful long shredded vegetables. The plate on the photo is a 24 inches round diameter metal plate. The shredded vegetables pile up to about 12 inches high. It is ready to feed around 20 adults. :) I have made this dish many times, this year posted this dish to make my own note.

初七人日快乐！^^

Recipe:
10 carrots, shredded
3 big radish, shredded
2 big cucumber, shredded
400g smoked salmon, cut into 2 inches slices
1 pomegranate,
1 pomelo, tear into small pieces  
1 orange, cut into small slices
300g ground peanuts with white sesame seeds
1 Yu Sheng's kit with the colour gingers and other condiments.

Sauce:
In a medium glass bottle, add 400 ml plum sauce, add 50 ml abalone sauce and squeeze in one small lime juice. cover the glass bottle with lid, shake well. set aside.

Oil:
200 ml olive oil 

Assemble: 

Place the shredded vegetables, smoked salmon, pomelo and orange in the middle or whatever way you like. Arrange the Yu Sheng's kit colours gingers and other condiments around the shredded vegetables. When is time to toss the shredded vegetables, pour the ground peanuts, white sesame seeds, plum sauce mixture and oil on top of the shredded vegetables. Toss the vegetables as high as you can and hopefully you can fish out the salmon! ^^ 

Tang Yuan with Peanut Butter Filling 花生汤圆 (Glutinous Rice Balls with Peanut Butter Filling)

Tang Yuan, a Chinese dessert made from glutinous rice flour and usually served in sweet syrup. It is usually served on Winter Solstice Festival 冬至 and also a popular dessert for Spring Lantern Festival 元宵节 which is celebrated on the fifteen day of the first month in the Chinese calendar. It marks the final day of the traditional Chinese New Year celebrations.

This year I made the triple colours Glutinous rice balls with peanut butter filling in ginger syrup. A bit different from my previous making of Tang Yuan with black sesame filling in sweet osmanthus syrup or the normal Tang Yuan without filling.

Recipe:
yield: 47 pieces
Ingredients:
Peanut Butter Filling:
250g ground peanuts
4 tbsp fine sugar
4 tbsp peanut butter

Glutinous Rice Balls:
500g glutinous rice flour
2 tbsp sugar
~420ml water (200ml hot water, 220ml room temperature water gradually add) 
a drop of red food colouring
a drop of pandan paste

Soup:
a few slices of old ginger (peeled the skin, then lightly pounded on the flat sides) 
150 g brown sugar
1 litre of water
2 screw-pine leaves/pandan leaves (tie them into a knot)

Method:

1. Prepare the filling: Mix the filling ingredients together, mixed well. Divide into the portion you desire and chill in the fridge before use.

2. Prepare the tang yuan: in a mixing bowl, add half of the glutinous rice flour (250g) and sugar. Add in 200ml of hot water, use a chopstick to stir it together, then use the hands to knead the dough until it comes together. Add the remaining flour (250g), gradually add the room temperature water, continue to knead the dough. You will notice the flour will absorb all the water, knead the dough until it is smooth. The dough should feel wet and smooth with hands. if the dough is too dry, gradually add a bit more water.

3. Boil water in a medium size soup pot, prepare a bowl of drinking water (room temperature) place beside. 

4. Divide the dough into three portion, one portion add a drop of red food colouring, knead until the colour mix well. Add a drop of pandan paste to another portion of dough, knead until the colour mix well. One portion of dough remain white.

5. Roll the three doughs into log and divide it into smaller balls. Roll it between palm to make it round, make an indention on the ball, fill it with a small ball of peanut butter filling. Wrap up the edge of the dough and seal, roll it between palm again to make round ball. Repeat until all dough is used.

6. Drop the balls into the boiling water pot in (3), when the Tang Yuan float on the surface, it means it is cooked, keep it in the boiling water for another 1/2 mins. Scoop the Tang Yuan out from the boiling water and place it in the bowl of drinking water. Let it be there until serving.

7. Prepare the soup: In a medium pot, add water, screw-pine leaves, a few slices of old ginger and brown sugar, bring it to boil. Set aside until serving time.

8. Serving: Scoop out three pieces of Tang Yuan to a serving bowl, place some ginger syrup in the bowl, serve warm.