Chicken and Bamboo Shoots in Black Bean Sauce
Tinned bamboo shoots are available in whole pieces and sliced from most supermarkets. This recipe uses the ready sliced variety. Do soak bamboo shoots in water and drain thoroughly before use.
Spring
Poh Piah, South East Asian Spring Rolls
These spring rolls from South East Asia are not fried and just melt in the mouth. A lot of chopping of vegetables but well worth the effort. A hands on meal as guests may be required to make up their own spring roll.
Pomelo Salad
This refreshing salad is a contrast of flavours and textures. Pomelos, now available in most supermarkets, are a large sweet citrus fruit, similar to a grapefruit. Traditionally, dried prawns are used in the dish but we have replaced this with frozen prawns, which are more easily available. This salad is a perfect accompaniment to a … Continued
Singapore Noodles
This is an easy way to make this popular takeaway dish as all the essential ingredients come straight out of a jar. As some types of rice vermicelli are suitable for soup and some for frying, the correct choice is important to make this dish a success. In this instance we recommend Swallow brand vermicelli … Continued
Prawn Toasts
You will need a food processor to make this ever popular appetizer. Best results are obtained if the bread is about two days old. The toasts are traditionally deep fried but we have included a baked version a healthier alternative. Reasonably priced raw prawns are available in the freezer sections of our supermarkets.
Pickled Appetizers
Often served as an appetiser along with prawn crackers, these pickled vegetables are quick and easy to prepare. Traditionally made with Chinese turnip (mooli), this can be left out if unavailable. In fact, I have used English turnips and have found them to be a good substitute. Rice vinegar is the best vinegar to use … Continued
Thai Spicy Sweet and Sour Fish (Sam Rod)
This is a refreshing dish with a combination of contrasting flavours. Sam Rod literally means spicy, sweet and sour (three tastes). Do replace whole fish with fish steaks if preferred. If fish such as cod is used, we suggest it be pan fried instead.
Thai Spicy Pork Stir-fry
This is a relatively dry dish that is quick to prepare and cook and would make a good accompaniment to another curry. Please note that red curry paste is salty so do taste the food before adding salt or fish sauce. Although sweet Thai basil is used traditionally, normal basil is a good substitute.
Thai Yellow Curry with Chicken
The ingredients in this curry (lemon grass, shrimp paste, etc) are similar to those used in Malaysia and Indonesia. Cooking with coconut milk results in a rich, creamy curry but replace with water if you are concerned about calories. This recipe uses 2 large chicken breasts but double the ingredients if you are going to … Continued
Sweet Chilli Glazed Nuts
Use a mixture of nuts for this recipe – I used cashews, almonds, walnuts and sesame seeds – but do cook them separately before adding the sweet chilli sauce. Very moorish so prepare plenty.