Pork & Cabbage Gyoza Recipe

Gyoza is one of my childhood favorites but my mom did a different shape out of it. She’s a working mom and she doesn’t need to make it pretty for us to eat.  Fast and simple equal YUM!! Dipping with my favorite sauce made my day. I’m a picky eater and I know my mom and grandma had a hard time cooking for us young ones, as we will just complain about eating the same old food.

These times around will be different. I can’t wait to go back and show them that I’m a good cook as well. I want to cook for them and let them enjoy. Hopefully, they don’t complain as what we did when we were younger.

Here’s a simple recipe to share with you guys. 

  

 

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INGREDIENTS:

Gyoza wonton wrappers

2 tablespoons water for brushing

Oil, for pan-frying

2 tablespoons Japanese rice vinegar

2 tablespoons shoyu (Japanese soy sauce)

FILLING:

1 ½ cups finely shredded napa cabbage

2 scallions, finely chopped

4 oz/115 gram fresh ground pork

½ - inch / 1 cm piece fresh ginger, finely granted

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 tablespoon shoyu (Japanese soy sauce)

2 teaspoons mirin

pinch of white pepper

salt, to taste

   

METHOD:

1)  To make the filling, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.

2)  Lay a gyoza wonton wrapper in the palm of your hand and place 1 heaped teaspoon of the filling in the center. Brush a little water around the edges of the wonton wrapper.

3)  Fold the wrapper sides up to meet in a ridge along the center and press the edges together. Brush the curved edges of the wrapper with a little more water and make a series of little folds along the edges.

4)  Repeat with the remaining gyoza wonton wrappers and filling. Heat a little oil in a lidded deep skillet and add as many gyoza as will fill the bottom of the skillet with just a little space in between.

5)  Cook for 2 minutes, or until browned. Add water to a depth of 1/8 inch, cover the skillet and let simmer over a low heat for 6 minutes, or until the wrappers are translucent and cooked. Remove and keep warm while you cook the remaining qyoza.

6)  Put the vinegar in a small dipping dish, stir in the shoyu, and add a splash of water.

7)  Transfer the gyoza to a serving dish and serve with the sauce for dipping.

Pan-Fried Fishcakes with Green Beans Recipe

 

Fishy! Fishy! Yes, I love FISH! One of my favorite and I can eat fish everyday without getting bored of it. Maybe because someone told me when I was a child that fish makes you younger and smarter. And I don’t have both of the above. Hmm….. Maybe I ate the wrong fishes.

Thai fishcakes are one of my favorites and I loved to order them every times I saw them on the menu. It just so delicious, that I’ve decided to make them myself. A little different but I’m happy for what I can get. You know, chef or cook don’t share their secret recipe but I do. Ha ha ha ha……….

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb white fish fillet, skinned, cleaned, and roughly chopped

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 ½ tablespoon cornstarch

1 egg

2 oz green beans, finely sliced

5 kaffir lime leaves, finely sliced

sunflower oil for frying

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CHILI PASTE:

2 dried long red chilies, each about 5 inches long

1 lemongrass stalk (white part only), 3-inches long, finely sliced

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

2 shallots, roughly chopped

2 cilantro roots, cleaned and finely chopped

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METHOD:

1)     Make the chili paste. Remove the stems & slit the chilies lengthwise. Discard the seeds. Roughly chop the flesh, soak it in hot water for 2 minutes or until soft, then drain.

2)    Use a mortar & pestle to pound the chilies, lemongrass, garlic, shallots, and cilantro roots until the mixture forms a smooth paste.

3)    Use a food processor or a blender to mince the fish fillets. Add the chili paste, fish sauce, cornstarch and egg and blend briefly until smooth. Spoon the mixture into a bowl and mix with the green beans and kaffir lime leaves.

4)    Use a tablespoon or damp hands to shape the fish mixture into thin, flat cakes, 2 inches across.

5)    Heat a little sunflower oil in a nonstick skillet [add a little oil to the pan before cooking each batch] and gently fry 8-10 fishcakes at a time (depending on the size of your skillet), making sure there is a slight gap between each one. Fry for 2-3 minutes on each side or until cooked and lightly browned.

Honey & Lemon Marinated Chicken Recipe

 

I grew up loving eating fried chicken wings. That’s what my mom cooked for us to make sure we eat the whole bowl of rice. Dipping with my favorite chili sauce just make it prefect. Sometimes, we just took it for granted and complained about eating the same dish all the time until I started cooking and realized; it’s never an easy job because everyday you just have to keep on thinking what to cook and of course to make everyone happy. Of course, I don’t have kids to deal with yet and taking the full advantage to eat whatever we feels like. Hubby not a picky eater but does not mean we can always have a college food all the time. A good fulfilling meal is a must when you’re working hard at work.

Today, I’m going to share with you my most popular or favorite dish from my home. Honey & Lemon chicken which I found this recipe 6 years ago and still cooking it every time I made “Nasi Lemak” for dinner. I remember the reason why I made this chicken back then was because I have no idea how to make curry. You can laugh at me. Trust me…. 6-7 years ago, I don’t even know how to cook but you’re learn when want to save some mullah especially in America, everything need to be tax plus tip for the server. Saving some cash does make a lot of different when you try to reach your dream. Okay…. Back on track. I was giving this chicken a try and figure if it taste good with the “sambal” & coconut rice. To my and hubby surprised, it did taste delicious to our liking and from that day onward, this chicken recipe have been following us every times we’re having nasi lemak. Trust me, I do crave for this chicken.

INGREDIENTS:

4 – 5 bone-in chicken tights

Juice & Zest of 1 large lemon

3 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons finely chopped garlic

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

salt & ground pepper

 

Lemon Zest

METHOD:

1)     Preheat the over to 400F.

2)    In a medium bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and zest, honey, garlic, cumin, oregano and ½ cup of the olive oil.

3)    Place the chicken tights in a glass dish that holds them snugly in a single layer and add the marinade. Cover and marinate for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours in the refrigerator. (turn chicken occasionally)

4)    Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Pat the chicken dry, and season with salt & pepper and place, skin side down, in the skillet.

5)    Cook until the skin is browned and crisp. About 5 minutes.

6)    Transfer the chicken, skin side up, to the prepared baking sheet.

7)    Bake about 20 minutes or until cooked through.