favourite recipes for everyday cooking and baking

When I think of the word "multicultural", the first thing that comes to my mind is food (actually I think of food most of the time anyway, which is why I decided to have a blog to pen down all my foodie-related thoughts). In Malaysia, we are fortunate to be able to celebrate a myriad of religious and cultural festivities, and of course with every celebration, there is always food. There are two things I look forward to each year (and which I try not to miss!) which are the Mooncake festival and Dumpling festival (" Duan Wu Jie ") or also known as Dragon Boat Festival. The latter was just over on 20 June, and better late then never, I decided to have a go at making these glutinous rice dumplings. Nobody makes better dumplings than my aunt (hers is simply the best!) and I haven't had them since I moved to Australia years ago.  You can find dumplings being sold at most Asian supermarkets in Sydney, although most of them just don't make the cut. The perfect dump...

If there's one thing I can't resist, it's crispy Korean Fried Chicken (see my earlier posts here and here ). So far, this is one of my favourites, with a lightly battered yet slightly chewy and crispy skin. The sweet, salty and sticky garlic soy glaze has a hint of wasabi to give it some kick. Chew on that crispy skin smothered with the soy glaze and sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds and you're in heaven. I almost forgot, every bite should be enjoyed with some of those thin ribbons of scallions. It helps to lighten up the dish, adds some freshness and makes the chicken taste more healthy than oily. Like, really. It's not just a garnish, it's a main ingredient. Don't skip it. Here's a closer look at the crispy chicken wings! The batter for the chicken was based on a recipe from Saveur. The soy glaze is my own concoction based on the famous " Red Pepper Korean Fried Chicken " at Strathfield Sports Club . Koreans enjoy their fried chicken with a...

  I made this cake for the first time as part of the Australia's Biggest Morning Tea fund-raising event at work. It's rather stressful cooking or baking for other people whom you know are going to judge you and your food. I tried to think of what cake would appeal to most people, and the magic ingredient is *drumroll*.... coconut! Australians love coconut (the shredded type) which is probably why lamingtons are so...Aussie.. though not as Aussie as Tim Tams and Vegemite. Coconut is also widely used in Asian cuisine. In fact, some of the people at work commented that it was a Filipino cake, and I said no. This was a Danish Dream Cake. Totally different continents. (I think they might have confused it with Biko, a Filipino dessert made with sticky rice and coconut, though sounds delicious too).   The word "Drømmekage" literally means "dream cake", and is apparently a traditional Danish cake consisting of a genoise sponge with a coconut caramel toppi...

Costco is one of my favourite places to shop at (well, okay, most of my favourite shopping places revolve around food and groceries). I remember watching a documentary about Costco and how they source for only popular or quality that are tried and tested by them, and they carry a limited number of brands for each product line. This makes it easier for the consumer when deciding which brand to choose (as too many brands may confuse the consumer who might end up not buying anything!). I saw a couple of brands for BBQ sauce and decided on Sweet Baby Ray's  (after all, there's only a fifty-fifty chance I bought the wrong one!) mainly because the label stated "Award-winning", dotted with four red stars (not only my kids love stars on their homework, I have an affinity for stars too when it comes to food and product reviews). The other brand had some Japanese sounding name to it which I can't remember, plus there was a mad picture of a Japanes...

  Hainanese Chicken Rice makes a regular appearance on our dinner table almost every Sunday evening. We would make a big batch of it so that it will last for the next couple of dinners. It's easy, simple and the kids hardly complain about it (unless it stretches out to the third or forth time in a row, then there'd be the occasional whining "Chicken rice? Again....?"). And so, I decided to try out a different version of chicken rice which is more Malay style, with the addition of spices like cinnamon and star anise. The chicken is rubbed with kecap manis before roasting it in the oven, which gives the skin a touch of sweetness.    Nasi Ayam (Chicken Rice) Recipe Ingredients 1.8 kg chicken marylands (drumstick and thigh) - reserve the chicken fat for the rice 1-2 tbsp margarine/butter Marinade: 3 tbsp kecap manis (sweet soy sauce) 1 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper Broth: 2 litres water 2 cloves garlic 2 slices ginger 500g chicken bones/wing tips 1 medium onion, quartered...

Here's a sweet and colourful coconut-flavoured treat that kids (and grown-ups) of all ages will love. Rainbow Jelly   Ingredients Part A 10 grams agar-agar powder 1 litre water 200g (scant 1 cup) sugar Food colouring   Part B 10 grams agar-agar powder 600 ml water 200g (scant 1 cup) sugar 400 ml coconut milk ½ teaspoon salt Food colouring   Method 1.        Prepare a container about at least 3 inches high, about 10” x 10” in size. 2.        Combine ingredients in Part A (except for food colouring) in a pot and bring to a boil, stirring frequently until the agar powder is dissolved. Turn off heat and keep warm. 3.        At the same time, combine the agar powder, water and sugar in Part B in another pot and bring to a boil. Then add coconut milk and salt, and bring it back to a boil. Turn off the heat immediately and keep warm. 4.        Measure 200ml...

  Mention the word "satay" and I am instantly reminded of my childhood years and years ago, how the Malay Satay Man would peddle his mobile satay stall on his bicycle in my neighbourhood, tooting his horn. Sometimes, I could even smell the aroma from my house, even though he could be grilling his satay down the road. I would get all excited at the prospect of having satay for dinner, and run to the window to see if I could detect any "smoke" signals in the sky. He made one of the best satays in town, and the fact that he peddled his stall around the neighbourhood meant that we could walk up to him with empty plates and bowls waiting to be filled with freshly made satay. Those were the simple things in life back then, though coming from a foodie family, food was and is a big deal, as to most Malaysians of course. Malaysian Satay is such a luxury item in Sydney. I don't think I've ever ordered satay here before, not when I know it costs multiple times less bac...