Busy days call for one-pot meals that nourish and satisfy the whole family, like these delicious creations from a mummy food blogger.
Busy days call for one-pot meals that nourish and satisfy the whole family, like these delicious creations from a mummy food blogger.
Sliced fish mee sua soup
Serves 2
Ingredients
• 300g fish steak (bone-in)
• 100g minced pork
• Cooking oil
• 5 to 6 slices old ginger
• 4 cilantro (Chinese parsley) root stalks
• 1 tbsp black peppercorns, smashed
• 2 tbsp dried ikan bilis (in gauze bag)
• 800ml to 1 litre water
• 1 large tomato, sliced into 8 wedges
• Mee sua for two, parboiled
Marinade for pork
• ½ tsp soy sauce
• ½ tsp sesame oil
• ¼ tsp pepper
• ½ tsp corn flour
Seasoning
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp sugar
• 1 tsp dried sole fish powder
Garnish
• Cilantro leaves
• Fried shallots
Method
1 Fillet the fish and keep the bones for stock. Cut the fillet into smaller pieces. Set aside.
2 Mix the marinade ingredients into the pork meat and set aside.
3 Parboil the fish bones, then drain and set aside.
4 In the same pot, add 1 tsp cooking oil, along with ginger slices, cilantro root stalks, peppercorns and ikan bilis. Saute on medium low heat until fragrant.
5 Add water and the fish bones. Bring to a boil.
6 Lower heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Sieve the stock or remove the bones, roots and gauze bag.
7 Bring the stock to a boil again, then add pork.
8 Add seasoning ingredients, fish fillets and tomatoes. Once the fish is cooked, turn off the fire.
9 Spoon the soup over the mee sua. Top with shallots and cilantro.
TIP To make your own sole fish powder, air-fry or toast dried sole fish until crisp. Blend until it becomes powder.
Spicy and crispy chicken briyani
Serves 3 to 4
Ingredients
• 2 boneless chicken thighs, cut into chunks and seasoned with salt and pepper
• 1 cup cooking oil
• Plain flour (for coating chicken)
• 2 pandan leaves, knotted
• 1 large white onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 cups rice, soaked for 20 minutes
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 tsp sugar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• ½ cup oyster mushrooms, cut into small pieces
• Spice paste for chicken and rice
• 2 stalks lemongrass (use the soft centre)
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 5 shallots, peeled
• 3cm old ginger, peeled
• 1 tsp chilli powder
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 5 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 kaffir lime leaves
• 2 fresh red chillis, deseeded
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
Method
1 Blend all ingredients for spice paste till smooth. Rub half the spice paste on the chicken pieces and marinate for 20 minutes.
2 Add cooking oil to a large pot over medium low fire. Lightly coat the marinated chicken with plain flour and pan-fry till golden brown. Drain on paper towels and set aside.
3 Remove the oil from the pot. Add the pandan leaves and onion, and cook until aromatic. Stir in 3 tbsp of the spice paste.
4 Stir in the rice and cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Pour in the stock and bring to a simmer.
5 Add the sugar, salt and pepper to taste, and cover the pot. Simmer for 10 to 12 minutes.
6 Add the crispy chicken pieces and oyster mushrooms on top of the rice, cover and cook for cook for another 8 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately.
Stuffed chicken breast
Serves 3 to 4
Ingredients
• Olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large or 2 medium red onions, sliced
• 10 to 15 button mushrooms (white or cremini), sliced
• 2 cups fresh spinach
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 butterflied chicken breast with skin
• 1 large tomato or ½ cup cherry tomatoes
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 large potatoes or 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 large zucchini, cut into chunks
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Whole-grain garlic toast
• 6 to 8 cloves garlic
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Whole-grain bread, toasted
Method
1 Heat up a saute pan on low fire and add 1 tbsp of olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add the garlic and onions. Cook until translucent and soft, about 5 to 8 minutes.
2 Add the mushrooms and cover the pan; cook on low heat until soft, about 5 to 8 minutes.
3 Scoop out the mushroom mixture and set aside. Add the spinach to the pan, season well with salt and pepper, then cook until it wilts. Squeeze out the extra liquid and chop roughly.
4 Spread the chopped spinach over the chicken breast, leaving a margin of about 5cm on the side. Then, spread the mushroom mixture evenly over the spinach.
5 Gently roll up the chicken breast (you may want to use baking string to tie it up, too). Pan-sear the chicken until the skin is crisp.
6 Preheat the oven to 200 deg C.
7 Grease a baking dish and place tomatoes, potatoes, sweet potatoes and zucchini in it. Drizzle about 2 tbsp of olive oil over the vegetables. Season well with salt and pepper.
8 Place the stuffed chicken over the vegetables and bake in the oven for 35 minutes.
9 Lower the heat to 180 deg C, cover the meat with aluminum foil and continue to bake for another 10 minutes.
10 Let the meat rest for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing. Serve with garlic toast.
11 To make garlic toast, blend garlic with butter and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spread the garlic butter mixture generously on the bread slices and toast until golden brown. You may also top the toast with roasted vegetables.
Chicken capsicum paella
Serves 3 to 4
Ingredients
• 1 skinless boneless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
• Salt, to taste
• Sugar, to taste
• Garlic powder, to taste
• 2 to 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Olive oil
• 1 small red onion, peeled and chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1 red capsicum, deseeded and cut into small pieces
• ½ yellow capsicum, deseeded and cut into small pieces
• 3 cups chicken stock
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1½ cups rice, rinsed
• 1 green zucchini, cubed
• 2 to 3 sausages of your choice, cubed
• 4 to 6 large prawns, deveined
• 3 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
Method
1 Season the chicken cubes with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Add 1 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil and toss to combine. Set aside.
2 In a large flat pan, add olive oil over a medium-low fire. Add onion, garlic and both types of capsicum, and stir-fry for a couple of minutes.
3 Add marinated chicken pieces and cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
4 Add chicken stock and turmeric powder, followed by rice. Give the mixture a good stir to combine.
5 Mix in zucchini and sausages, and let the dish simmer for a couple of minutes. Add salt and other seasonings as you prefer.
6 Add prawns and cover the pan. Let the dish simmer slowly over a very low fire for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the stock is fully absorbed.
7 Turn off the fire and let the paella rest and absorb all the flavours before garnishing with parsley and serving warm.
Oh Bee Bee of @honeybeesweets.sg fame on Instagram contributed these recipes. This stay-at-home mum of two teenage girls also blogs at www.honeybeesweets88.blogspot.sg.
RECIPE PHOTOS OH BEE BEE
BEE BEE’S PHOTO FILE PHOTO
