Recipe by Christopher Tan, chef-owner of The Laneway Market
Serves 8-10
INGREDIENTS
750g beef chuck, cubed
30g plain flour
50g oil, for searing
40g tomato paste
250ml red cooking wine
500ml beef stock
250g potatoes, diced into 3cm cubes
100g carrots, diced into 3cm cubes
100g white onions, diced into 3cm cubes
100g brown button mushrooms
3 fresh bay leaves
Salt, to taste
Black pepper, to taste
2 sprigs fresh thyme
50g mustard
100g 65% (or more) dark chocolate
40g butter
10g Italian parsley, roughly chopped
50ml white truffle oil
DIRECTIONS
1 Coat the beef chuck in flour. Heat up the oil in a pot set over high heat, and sear the beef on all sides until well browned. Remove from the pot.
2 Add the tomato paste into the pot and cook until very dark. Add half the red cooking wine and scrape off the bits at the bottom of the pot.
3 Add the rest of the wine, stock and return the beef to the pot.
4 Simmer over medium heat for one hour or until the beef falls off a fork easily. Remove the beef from the pot and set aside.
5 Add the potatoes, carrots, onions and button mushrooms. Add the bay leaves and season with salt and pepper. Continue simmering over medium heat until the vegetables are as tender as you like them.
6 Add thyme, mustard, dark chocolate and butter. Mix well.
7 Add some water to the gravy if it is too thick or simmer for longer if it is too watery. When the stew is at the desired consistency, add the beef back into the pot. Garnish with parsley and drizzle with truffle oil. Serve warm.
Coordination Manfred Tham
Photograhy Darren Chang & Vee Chin
Art Direction & Styling Diane Ng
Recipe by Liu Ching Hai, executive Chinese chef of Summer Palace, Regent Singapore
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
For the marinade:
3 tbsp cooking oil
100g ginger, sliced
100ml chicken stock
60g tapioca flour
A pinch of salt
2 small lobsters*, veins removed and cleaned
1/3 cup brown rice, washed and soaked overnight
1 cup cooked white rice
100ml fish sauce
2 stalks spring onions, chopped
*Available fresh and frozen at selected Sheng Shiong supermarkets.
DIRECTIONS
1 Heat the oil in a wok and stir-fry the ginger until fragrant.
2 Add the rest of the ingredients for the marinade and simmer for 2-3min. Pour the marinade over the lobsters and set aside.
3 Heat a claypot over high heat for 3min. Mix the brown and white rice evenly in a bowl before transferring to the claypot.
4 Cover and simmer over low heat for 4min until the rice is about 80 per cent cooked.
5 Place the lobsters into the claypot, cover and continue cooking for another 5min.
6 Pour the fish sauce over the dish, and garnish with spring onions.
This article was originally published in Simply Her March 2015.
KING PRAWNS AND VERMICELLI CLAYPOT
By Anthony Lim, resident chef at The Prawn Star
Serves 2
INGREDIENTS
For the sauce:
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp Chinese cooking wine
1½ tbsp fi sh sauce
1½ tbsp sugar
3 tsp dark soya sauce
5 large prawns
2 sprigs coriander
2 tbsp cooking oil
50g bacon, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
4 slices old ginger
1 tsp white peppercorns, lightly crushed
250g bean vermicelli (tung hoon), soaked for 5min and drained
200ml chicken stock
A dash of sesame oil
DIRECTIONS
1 Mix all the ingredients for the sauce and set aside.
2 In a grill pan, chargrill the prawns with the shells on until the flesh turns red. Remove before they’re fully cooked and set aside.
3 Cut the roots of the coriander into 3cm pieces, and the stems and leaves into 9cm pieces. Set aside.
4 In a claypot, heat the cooking oil over medium heat. Fry the bacon for 1-2min until it browns slightly.
5 Add the garlic, ginger, peppercorns and coriander roots. Turn the heat up to medium-high and stir-fry until they become fragrant.
6 Add the vermicelli, chicken stock and sauce, and stir until evenly mixed. Cover and simmer for 1-2min.
7 Add the prawns, and top with the coriander stems and leaves. Drizzle sesame oil over, and cover.
8 Cook on medium heat for 10-12min until the prawns and vermicelli are fully cooked. If the sauce dries up while the dish is cooking, add more chicken stock.
This article was originally published in Simply Her August 2015.
Coordination Cheryl Leong
Photography Frenchescar Lim
Art Direction & Styling Nikki Ho
Recipe by Kim Yeshin
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
For the soup base:
5 dried anchovies*
3 pieces dried kelp*
1 litre water
For the seasoning paste:
1 tsp gochujang* (Korean fermented soya bean paste)
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp Korean chilli powder*
A pinch of black pepper
A pinch of salt
1 tsp Korean plum extract*
3 tsp light soya sauce
1 can luncheon meat (340g), sliced and quartered
1 packet chicken franks (340g), sliced
150g kimchi*
150g tofu, sliced and quartered
2 stalks spring onions, cut into 5cm pieces
2 tbsp baked beans (optional)
2 packets Korean ramen noodles
*Available at Korean grocery stores like Lotte (including 67 Tanjong Pagar Road, tel: 6222-1646). Visit www.koryo.com.sg for a list of outlets.
DIRECTIONS
1 In a large pot, bring the dried anchovies, kelp and water to the boil over medium heat. Let it cook for 8min, until the liquid turns pale yellow. Strain the liquid and set aside.
2 In a small bowl, mix the seasoning ingredients together to form a paste. Set aside.
3 In a wide pot, arrange the remaining ingredients, except the ramen, evenly around the pot.
4 Pour the soup into the pot, and stir in the seasoning paste. Bring the soup to the boil over medium heat for about 5min.
5 Add the ramen. When the noodles are cooked, the stew is ready to be served.
This article was originally published in Simply Her January 2016.
Coordination Mia Chenyze
Photography Jasper Yu
Art Direction & Styling Nikki Ho
Recipe by Chua Chwee Whatt of Founder Bak Kut Teh
INGREDIENTS
1kg pork ribs, rinsed and drained
1.5 litres water
5g black pepper
15g white pepper
2g salt
5g garlic powder*
1.5g star anise, ground*
1.5g cinnamon powder*
20 garlic cloves
ó tsp dark soya sauce
*Available in the spices section of supermarkets.
DIRECTIONS
1 In a pot, add all the ingredients except the pork ribs, and bring the soup to the boil over high heat.
2 Add the pork ribs and bring to the boil again. Lower the heat to medium and let it simmer for 35min.
3 Turn off the heat and cover for 10min. Serve hot, with rice.
Coordination Rachel Toh
Photography Jasper Yu
Art Direction & Styling Nikki Ho
Serves 4-6
INGREDIENTS
800g beef brisket, cut into 3cm cubes
2 tbsp cooking oil
75g yellow onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
20g ginger, minced
50g red yeast rice liquid*
150g tomato ketchup
2 pieces black cardamom (cao guo)*
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp plum sauce
250ml chicken stock
Salt, to taste
*Available at Sheng Siong.
DIRECTIONS
1 In a dry saucepan over high heat, lightly sear the beef cubes on all sides for 3min until they start to brown. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
2 Heat the oil in a wok, add the onions, garlic and ginger, and stir-fry for 2min until fragrant.
3 Add the seared beef cubes and the rest of the ingredients to the wok and mix well. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10min.
4 Transfer all ingredients to a pot. Make sure that all of them are submerged in liquid.
5 Simmer for 90min to 2 hours, until the beef softens. Serve over steamed rice.
Recipe by Chai Ngen Kin, head chef of Hao Yun Lai
Serves 5
INGREDIENTS
5 litres water
100ml light soya sauce
50ml dark soya sauce
500ml rice wine
100g sugar
20 red dates
20g bei qi*
20g ginseng root whiskers* (ren shen xu)
4 tbsp wolfberries
1 chicken
1 tbsp potato flour, mixed with 2 tbsp water to make a paste
*All the Chinese herbs used in this recipe are available at Chinese medical halls in Singapore.
DIRECTIONS
1 Combine all the ingredients, except the chicken and potato flour, in a big pot and bring it to the boil over high heat to make the gravy. Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 30min.
2 Place the chicken in the gravy and cook it over low heat for 45min.
3 Remove the chicken from the gravy. Stir the potato flour paste into the gravy to thicken it.
4 Remove gravy from heat.
5 Cut the chicken into pieces and drizzle the gravy over it.
This article was originally published in Simply Her February 2013.