Stir-Fried Dried Anchovies (Meddruchi Bokkeum)

I tried this soy sauce version at one Korean BBQ buffet place that we went to and was impressed.   It was different from Myulchi Bokkeum and had some green chili on it.  I loved this soy sauce version too so I wanted to recreate it at home.  I added red bell pepper and onion in mine.  You can omit the red bell pepper but don't omit the onion as it went really well with this dish.  This dish can be spicy, it depends on the green chili that you use and how hot they are.  My green chili was not hot at all so it didn't turn out spicy but sweet and savory.  I duplicated it pretty well and close to the one that I had tried.  My hubby finished the whole bowl!!  Luckily I saved some away for bibimbap the next day.  This is part of a banchan or side dish of a typical Korean meal.  Enjoy!  And as you know I welcome feedback.  :)

Korean Barbecue Meal

I have this electric grill for about 13 years.  This is by far the best home shopping network product that I had bought.  I used to sit at home and watch the home shopping network all day, I didn't know what got into me at that time but I seriously watched it all the times and knew the names of the hosts!!  Of course, I got tempted and bought some things from them and this was one of them.  But this was the best buy ever, the rest I didn't even want to talk about it. :D

I used it to grill our Malaysian satay and now I used it for my Korean BBQ too.  How convenient!  As you can see, I went all out for my banchan.  I wanted to make pa muchim (scallion salad) too but decided not because I got lazy.  :P

Banchan from top right clockwise, unless otherwise noted:  pickled radish, cucumber & carrot, seasoned spinach, seasoned mungbean sprout, spicy Korean radish, seasoned spicy chayote, spicy cucumber salad, red pepper sauce (for dipping), stir-fried soy sauce anchovies, red leaf lettuces (for wrapping).  Served with barley brown rice. 

Recipes for the new banchan and barley brown rice will be shared in my blog later.  Otherwise, look under the label Korean, you will see the recipes I have already posted.  I marinated some thinly sliced chicken breast in my special sauce for this grill.

Ching's Tutti-Frutti Cookies

Long ago back in 2006, I tried Pusiva's Tutti-Frutti cookie recipe, you can see the post here.   It was similar to Icebox cookie as it was shaped, refrigerate until firm, thinly sliced and then baked.  Her version included desiccated coconut to create a light and crispy texture.  This time around, I played with my own little version by adding slightly more flour, reduce sugar slightly (I remembered I noted it was too sweet before) and also added the sweeten coconut flakes in addition to desiccated coconut for a fun twist.  I just realized I shouldn't call it tutti-frutti as tutti-frutti means candied peels and I used none of it in this recipe.  Oops!

This cookie is light and crispy with coconut fragrant and totally irresistible.  Try it!  I gave some to my friends on X'mas, I hope they like it. 

I also want to take this opportunity to wish my readers a Happy New Year 2012, may you have a happy and healthy new year! :)

I'm submitting these cookies to  Aspiring Bakers #14: Creative Christmas Bakes (December 2011) hosted by Hankerie. 

Easy Apple Raisin Tart (苹果葡萄干馅饼)

I was in the mood for experiment.  When I was making a pie crust for my sweet potato pie for Thanksgiving, I made an extra pie crust and freeze.  And then Granny Smith (green apple) was on sales for 3 for $1 and I couldn't pass it out so I bought 3.  But I only used 2 for this recipe.  With the ready made defroze pie crust and Granny Smith, I set to work.  It was really easy to put together (see instruction on next page) and when I was finished, it looks kind of blank.  So, I scattered some raisins on top and finally it looked presentable.

It turned out great too!  We all liked the flaky crispy crust with the sweet apple filling.  Keep any leftover in an air-tight container and toast it in a toaster oven for 5 minutes to crisp it up.

Easy Oven Baked Spiced Salmon (易烤香料三文鱼)

 
This is one super duper easy oven baked salmon dish.  Even a busy working mom can easily make this at home.  Just thaw the frozen salmon overnight in the fridge and when you come home, the salmon is ready for you to use.  To create a balance meal, buy some washed and cut broccoli, green bean, cauliflower, baby carrot and mushroom, season with extra virgin olive oil and a little salt and put it in the oven to bake together with the salmon (for the harder to cook veggie, just microwave for 2 minutes before roasting).  Serve it with store-bought Hawaiian sweet buns (or whole wheat buns) and you have a complete meal.

I served this salmon with turmeric brown rice, stir fried pumpkin and crimini mushrooms.  Both my girls praised this baked spiced salmon and Evy even requested to save some for her lunch box the next day at school.   Guess I will make this often from now on.

Png Kuih/ Png Kueh (饭桃/桃粿)

This kuih is also called Teochew Png Kuih, but I can't call mine that because I didn't use boiled peanuts in my filling, I also out of dried shrimps.  Also I just used my steamed glutinous rice with chicken and shiitake as the filling.  I wanted to kill two birds in one stone you see so that I would have dinner ready as well as afternoon snack or even breakfast the next day.  Because my steamer was small, I had to steam it twice.

My method was unconventional as well as I used a microwave to make the skin.  So, if you are a traditional cook who wants authentic recipe and the traditional way of cooking, skip this post!  This post is for people who loves short-cut and who don't want to spend too much time in the kitchen.

I used the cheap pink plastic png kuih mold to make this instead of the more expensive wood png kuih mold.  Not bad at all as it fell off easily and didn't get stuck to the mold, furthermore, I could still see the print after it's steamed.  For own consumption, I'm happy with it.