Vegetable Fritter (Bakwan Sayur)

It reminds me of my elementary school activity, when the teacher taught us to cook for the very first time. This food was one of what we made at that time. It was a lot of fun!

Ingredients:
- 2 carrots, peel off the skin, wash, cut into matches shape
- 150gr beans sprout, wash
- 200gr shrimp, peel off the skin and discard tail
- 3 green onion, chop thinly
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 4 cloves of small red onion
- 2 chili paddy/bird's eye chili
- 4 candle nuts
- 1 tsp shrimp paste
- 1Tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground white pepper
- salt
- sugar
- wheat flour
- 2 eggs
- water
- oil for frying

In a blender, blend garlic, onion, chili, candle nuts, shrimp paste and shrimp (or you may just cut the shrimp into small pieces) until smooth. Put it in a big bowl, add some water, coriander, salt, sugar, pepper, and veggies (carrot, beans sprout and green onion) and flour. Mix it well. Taste it and adjust with salt, pepper and sugar. Add eggs and mix it well again until the consistency is good for dough.
Mount the dough using two spoons and deep fry it until brownish.

Note: you may add some other vegetable, such as: shredded cabbage, corn, etc.

Luffa and Vermicelli Soup (Sayur Oyong)

I rarely can find Luffa in Montreal, but last Sunday when we went shopping at an Asian store, I found it. I bought and decided to make this soup.

Ingredients:
- 2 Luffa (Indonesian-Oyong/Gambas), peel off the hard skin, wash and cut into 1cm in thickness
- 3 carrot, peel off the skin, wash and cut into 1cm in thickness
- 200gr shrimp, peel off the skin and tail, cut into 3 each
- 300gr meatballs, cut into 3 each
- 2 eggs
- vermicelli noodle
- 6 cloves of garlic, peel, chop thinly
- 1 chicken broth cube
- salt
- pepper
- sugar
- water
- oil for saute

In a pan, saute chopped garlic until brownish. Add shrimp and continue to cook until it turn red. Add meatballs and cook until done. Add some water, continue to cook until boiling. Add chicken broth cube. Put in the carrot and then luffa and then vermicelli. At the end drop the eggs and stir it instantly. Adjust the taste with salt, sugar and pepper.

Apple and Avocado Puree

This is another baby food which Bianca loves to eat. On the picture , the apple was not shown. You may give it to your baby since they are 5-6mo old (depend on their readiness of eating solid foods).

Ingredients:
- 2 Red delicious apple, peel, wash, discard the core and cut into small chunk
- 2 medium sized-ripe avocado (not too soft)
- water or juice (pear or apple juice for baby)

Cook the cut apple in a small pot with a little bit of water or baby juice, until it is soft. Cut the avocado in the middle (see above picture). Scoop out the yellow part of the avocado and put it in a blender. Add the cooked apple and juice too. Blend until smooth. Serve it directly or keep it in small containers and place it in the fridge or freezer for long-term use.

Garlic Bread

Recently I am addicted to garlic bread. so the other day I tried to make it myself and it turned out to be very crunchy and yummy. I likeeeeeeeyyyyy....

Ingredients:
- Italian or Belgian plain bread
- "garlic plus" seasoning
- butter or margarine

Cut the bread into 2cm thickness. Spread with butter or margarine on one side. Sprinkle some "garlic plus" seasoning on top of the butter spread. Put it in the oven at 250F for app. 5min. Check occasionally until it is brownish. Take it out and serve while warm and crunchy.

Apple and Sweet Potato Puree

I have fed my baby with solid food since she was 4mo old. In Canada it is suggested that solid food is given when baby is 6mo old, considering at this age they are able to sit upright so that they would not be choking. However, I saw the sign of "ready-for-solid" in Bianca when she was 4mo old. So I started giving her very liquid cereal mixed with formula. When she was 5mo old, I started giving her various solid meal, mostly home-made. She eats almost every thing I give her, fruits, vegetables, meat, grains. This is one of her favorites.

Ingredients:
- 2 sweet potato, peel, wash and cut into small chunk
- 2 apple (Bianca likes red delicious apple), peel, discard the core, cut into small chunk
- water/juice (ex: pear or apple juice for baby)

In a small pot, put the cut sweet potato and apple. Add a little bit of water or juice. Cook until tender. Wait until it is warm and place it in a blender (pour all the water too). Blend it until smooth. Add some more water or juice if you find it difficult for the blades to rotate. Strain it with a strainer. Keep it in small containers. You may feed it directly to your baby, or mix it with baby cereal, or keep it in the fridge or freezer for long-term use.


I like to keep it in a small container, so that it is enough for one serving and would not allow microbial contamination. If you decided to freeze it, before giving it to your baby, defrost it by placing it in the fridge for a night, or you may use microwave (no more than 45seconds. Beware of the uneven heat distribution that may cause tongue/mouth burnt, always stir it evenly and longer before giving it to your baby).

Stir Fried Long Beans with Sweet Soy Sauce

Yesterday I made this meal to eat with fried steamed mackerel fish. Kinda missing home....

Ingredients:
- a bunch of long beans, wash and cut into 5cm in length
- bean sprout
- tofu, cut into small pieces, deep fry until half cooked
- 1 tomato, cut into 8
- 5 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- 4 cloves of small red onion, chop thinly
- 5 chili paddy's or bird's eye chili, chop thinly
- 1 Tbsp fish sauce
- 1 Tbsp oyster sauce
- 2 Tbsp sweet soy sauce (you may add more as you like)
- 4cm of galangal
- oil for saute
- water

In a pan, saute the garlic and onion until brownish. Add the chili and galangal and continue to saute for another 1 minute. Add long beans, cook until done. Add the three sauces and some water. Continue to cook until boiling. At last add the beans sprout, fried tofu and tomato.

Teriyaki Steak

Having a good compliment from my husband when I made Western food for him, makes me want to make another one. Moreover, I found good priced beef when I did grocery shopping the other day and I have some teriyaki sauce in the fridge.

Ingredients:
- good beef for steak (ex: sirloin, tenderloin, thinly cut round beef)
- teriyaki sauce and dip
- all ingredients to make mashed potato and veggies (see: Grilled Salmon with Lemon-Dill Sauce)

In a casserole bowl, place the beef and pour some teriyaki sauce. Make sure all the meat surface are covered with the sauce. Put it in the fridge and marinate it for at least 1hour (the longer it is the better, I normally keep it in fridge for a night).
Grill it or place it in an oven at 400F until done (depend on how well you like your meat to be done, if it's too well normally it would be hard and dry).
To serve, place it on a plate and pour some teriyaki dip. Add the mashed potato and veggies.

Continental Breakfast

Saturday morning, Christian made me a brunch meal. It was actually meant to be breakfast, only late time and big portion. So I was the queen of that day...

Ingredients:
- honey and garlic Italian sausages
- 33% less fat bacon
- egg+salt+pepper
- spice coated french fries
- fresh tomato
- sweet gherkin pickle
- chili sauce

Bake the french fries and sausages in an oven at 350F until brownish. Double check the inside of the sausage, make sure it is not raw inside although it is done outside. In an empty pan, fry the bacon (without oil, coz the oil from bacon will burst out). In a bowl, beat the egg and salt+pepper. Make scrambled egg with a little bit of oil from the bacon (discard some of it if it is too much, you don't want your egg will be too oily, right?).
To serve, in a big flat plate, arrange the fries, sausage, bacon and scrambled egg. Add fresh tomato, pickle and chili sauce.

....and I had a full stomach until 9pm. Thanks hubby!

Grilled Salmon with Lemon-Dill Sauce

I rarely cook western food, since Christian prefers Indonesian food over western one. But for his lunch today I made this grilled salmon. This time, mostly I used instant ingredients. He does not mind though. And he called from work, he said that the salmon is yummy, and he may like to have it again sometimes.

To make grilled salmon:
- 2 slices fresh horseshoe shaped skin-on salmon
- 1 lime
- ground black pepper
- salt

Marinade the salmon with lime, salt and pepper for 5minutes. Grill it until done but not too dry.

To make mashed potato:
- 1 package of instant mashed potato (I preferred roasted garlic or butter and herb flavor)
- 1.5 cup hot water
- 0.5 cup milk
- 1 Tbsp butter or margarine
- salt

Put the hot water, milk, butter/margarine and a pinch of salt in a big casserole bowl. Empty the package and add to the bowl. Stir it evenly. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave one corner uncovered to release the heat and steam. Microwave it for 4-6minutes at high power. Take it out with care. Stir with a fork until smooth.

To make lemon-dill sauce:
- 1 package of lemon-dill sauce mix
- 0.5 cup cold water
- 0.5 cup milk
- 2 tsp butter

Put the mix powder in a microwavable bowl. Add cold water, milk and butter. Stir it evenly. Microwave it until boil (app. 3minutes) and stir it with a fork in every minute. Continue to heat it for another 1-2minutes. Stir before serving.

To make veggies:
- 1 cup mixed vegetables
- water
- butter

Boil the vegetables with water in a pot. Do not overcooked. Drain and add butter while it is still hot and serve.

Chicken Porridge (Bubur Ayam)

I remembered when I still worked in a university in Jakarta, Indonesia. I used to have this kind of chicken porridge for breakfast together with my colleagues before we started the day at work. Enough to keep our energy up until lunch time. Oh...how I missed those old days....

Ingredients:

To make porridge:
- 2,5 cups of rice, rinse and drain
- 2lt of chicken broth
- 10cm of ginger, peel off the skin, cut into 2 and crack it with pestle (Indonesian-keprek dengan ulekan)
- 6 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- salt
- sesame oil

To make chicken topping:
- 4 whole chicken leg, boil with water until tender, take out the chicken and put it aside, use the broth for making porridge. Shred the chicken meat, discard the bones.
- 200gr mushroom, wash and slice
- 3 green onion, wash and chop thinly
- 5 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- 4cm of ginger, peel off the skin, cut into 2
- 2 Tbsp oyster sauce
- 4 Tbsp fish sauce
- 4 Tbsp sweet soy sauce
- 2 tsp ground pepper
- sesame oil
- water

Side dish:
- 3 boiled eggs, half cut
- crushed chili
- soy sauce (Indonesian-kecap asin)
- preserved cabbage (tongcai)
- fried onion
- freshly chopped green onion

In a pot, boil rice with the chicken broth at low heat. Stir occasionally and add ginger and salt. Continue to boil until the rice cooked. Add some more water if needed.
Fry the garlic with a little bit sesame oil until brownish. Pour the fried garlic together with the rest of the oil into porridge. Stir it.

In a pan, saute garlic and ginger with sesame oil until brownish. Add fish sauce and oyster sauce. Add the shredded chicken meat. Add some water (if the porridge is liquid enough, do not add water to the topping, however if the porridge is thick, water may be added to the topping). Add sweet soy sauce and pepper. Lastly add the mushroom and chopped green onion.

To serve, in a bowl put the porridge first and add the topping on top of it. Sprinkle fried onion, fresh green onion and preserved cabbage. Add half cut boiled egg (is not shown on the picture). You may add soy sauce and chili if you like.

Note: Sometimes I add fried soybeans and crackers (Indonesian-kerupuk) as side dish. This time I did not have any soybeans nor crackers.

Tamarind Soup (Sayur Asem)

It is another request from my good friend to publish this recipe. I like to modify it as what people normally made in Pati, Central Java. It is quite different than Sayur Asem Jakarta, especially because this one has meat in it and use shrimp paste (Indonesian-terasi) as one of essential spices.
The taste is a combination of spicy-salty-sweet and sour. Very rich!

Ingredients:
- 400gr beef and bones
- 3 corn on cob, cut into 4 each
- 2 chayote (Indonesian-labu siam), peel, wash, discard the seed, cut into small pieces
- 200 gr long beans (Indonesian-kacang panjang), but this time I used string beans (Indonesian-kacang buncis), wash and cut into 4cm in length
- chili paddy/bird's eye chili, as many as you like
- 5 cloves of garlic
- 5 cloves of small red onion
- 5 candle nuts
- 1 tsp shrimp paste
- 2 tsp tamarind paste
- 1/2 tomato
- salt
- sugar
- water

In a pot boil the beef and bones in water until tender. While boiling the meat, prepare the spices. In a blender put garlic, onion, candle nuts, chili, shrimp paste and tomato, grind until smooth. Put it aside. When the meat is tender enough, take it out and cut into small pieces. Put it back. Add corn, continue to boil until cooked. Add the chayote and string beans, cook for 3minutes until they are cooked (not overcooked). Add the smooth spices. Add salt and sugar and adjust the taste.

Note: serve with steam rice and fried dish, for examples: fried fish, potato fritter, vegetable fritter (Indonesian-bakwan sayur), fried tempeh-tofu, etc.

Potato Fritter (Perkedel Kentang)

One of my good friends asked me to publish this recipe. It has been a long time I did not make this fritter, because the preparation is time consuming. But today I felt like eating this potato fritter badly, therefore I made it as a side dish.

Ingredients:
- 4 big potato, peel, wash and cut into big chunk
- 1/2 can of corned beef
- 5 cloves of small red onion, chop thinly and fry
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp of ground white pepper
- 2 tsp of ground nutmeg
- 2 stalk of asian celery, chop thinly
- salt
- oil for frying

In a pan, fry the chunky potato until brownish. Mash the fried potato in a big bowl. Add the corned beef and mix it well. Add the fried onion, chopped celery, pepper, nutmeg, salt and eggs, and mix it until all spices distribute evenly. Make balls using two spoon. Fry the balls in hot oil, until brown.

Note: Some people do not want to fry twice. They normally boil the potato and then make the mix and fry it at the end. However, I prefer to fry the potato first, to minimize the water content, so that the fritter would not be too soft and mushy.

Spaghetti Bolognese

I used to make this meal when I stayed in a boarding house in Jakarta, Indonesia and in Sydney, Australia. The reason is that I can keep the meat sauce for longer period of time in the fridge or even freezer, and I can just take it out and eat in small portion each and then put it back in. Since Christian is not a big fan of pasta, I rarely make it for us. But today he said once in a while eating pasta is okay. So I made this pasta with a big smile. yuhuuuuu...I love pasta!

Ingredients:
- 1 package of spaghetti noodle (try to find the one which is fast cooked, say about 5min)
- 1 lb of ground beef
- 1 clove of onion (Indonesian-bawang bombay), chop thinly
- 1 green bell pepper, wash and chop into small pieces
- 200gr of mushroom, wash and slice
- 1 jar ready made pasta sauce (I like garlic and mushroom or red wine flavor)
- pepper
- salt
- sugar
- oil
- water
- Parmesan cheese

In a pan, saute the onion for 2minutes. Add ground beef and cook until tender, stir it continuously. Add bell pepper, stir it. Add mushroom and continue to stir. Add the sauce, pepper, salt and sugar. Continue to stir and taste it.

In a pot, boil water. Add salt and a little bit oil. Put in the noodle and boil until cooked. Drain and place it on plate. Pour the sauce on top of the noodle and at last sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top.

Chicken Opor (Opor Ayam)

I got this recipe from my mom. It is a bit different from the recipe that is known. Normally people add some lemon grass and lime leaves, but I don't. Usually I add bilimbi (Indonesian-belimbing wuluh), but not for this occasion though coz it is hard to find bilimbi in Canada.

Ingredients:
- 3 whole chicken leg, cut into 4 each
- 4 block of tofu, cut into 4 each, fry until half-cooked
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 5 cloves of small red onion
- 5 candle nuts (Indonesian-kemiri)
- 1 tsp of shrimp paste (Indonesian-terasi)
- 1 Tbsp of ground coriander
- 1 tsp of ground cumin
- 4cm of galangal
- 4 Indonesian bay leaves
- salt
- sugar
- 1 can of coconut milk
- water
- oil for frying

In a pot, boil the chicken with water. Put all spices in a blender except bay leaves and galangal, blend until smooth. Add the smooth spices into the pot. Add bay leaves and galangal. Continue cooking until the chicken tender. Add coconut milk and stir occasionally. Taste it and adjust the taste with sugar and salt. At last add the fried tofu.

Note: eat it with steam rice and sambal terasi/belacan chili paste. Some people like to saute the smooth spices before adding it to the pot.

Tofu Ball Soup (Sup Baso Tahu)

My mom used to make it for me when I was a little kid. Now is my turn to make it for my little family.

Ingredients:

For making tofu ball:
- 4 block of tofu (soft or medium one, I like medium better)
- 100 gr ground pork/chicken meat
- 100 gr shrimp, peel off the skin and tails
- 4 cloves of garlic
- salt
- sugar
- 1 tsp ground white pepper
- 2 eggs
- oil for frying

For making soup:
- 200 gr chicken bones
- 1 can of mixed vegetable
- 100 gr dried white fungus, boil in water, cut into small pieces
- 50 gr clear vermicelli noodle
- 2 green onion, chop thinly
- 6 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- 1 chicken broth block
- salt
- sugar
- 2 tsp of ground white pepper
- water

In a blender, ground garlic, shrimp and tofu until smooth. Put it in a bowl and add the ground pork/chicken, pepper, salt and sugar. Mix it well. Add the eggs and mix it well. Make small balls from this mixture using two spoons and deep fry it until brownish (try to flip over only once). Put it aside.
Boil the chicken bones in water. After getting the broth, discard the bones. Add the chicken broth block, garlic, salt, sugar and pepper, stir it and taste it. Put in the vermicelli, cook for 2 minutes. Add the mixed vegetable and lower the heat. At last add the fungus and chopped green onion.

Note: Serve while it is hot in a bowl. Sprinkle some fried onion if you like.

Somen-Misua Fritter (Misua Goreng)

It is a kind of snack I used to eat while I was still in Indonesia, as it is savory. And even though I am from Central Java where people like to eat sweet things, I like savory better than sweet. This fritter can be eaten as a side dish too.

Ingredients:
- 1/2 package of somen/misua
- 150 gr of frozen mixed cut vegetable
- 150 gr of headless shrimp, peel off the skin and tail, chop into small pieces
- 2 green onion, chop thinly
- 1 chicken broth block
- 5 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- salt
- sugar
- ground white pepper
- water
- 2 eggs, beat in a small bowl
- oil for frying

In a pot saute chopped garlic with a little bit oil for 2minutes, add the shrimp and continue to cook until it turns red. Add the frozen vegetable and green onion and cook for 2minutes. Add some water and boil. Add chicken broth, salt, sugar and pepper. Taste it. Add the somen/misua. Cook until tender and all water is absorbed. Put it in a casserole bowl and place the bowl in a fridge until it is cool and hard (app. 30min). Cut into pieces (app. 6cm in length, 4cm in width and height). Dip it into the egg and then deep fry it until brownish.

Pork Rib Soup (Sup Iga Babi)

It was snowing yesterday and my little family needs something to keep them warm from inside (beside the heater in our house...). This soup would be a perfect meal for us, especially for daddy as he was tired from work and cold from outside weather.

Ingredients:
- 700gr pork ribs, cut into pieces
- 4 carrots, peel and cut into small pieces
- 3 potato, peel and cut into small pieces
- 400gr red kidney beans, soak in water overnightly
- 8 cm of ginger, cut into 2 and crack it with pestle (Indonesian-keprek dengan ulekan)
- 6 cloves of garlic, slice thinly
- 3 green onion, chop
- water
- salt
- sugar
- ground white pepper

Cook pork ribs and beans in two separate pots until tender. Add potato and then carrot in the pot with the ribs. Add ginger and garlic and continue to cook. Add salt, sugar and pepper and taste it. At last add the cooked beans and chopped green onion.

Note: Serve in a bowl while it is hot. Sprinkle some fried onion on top of it. Cooking the ribs and beans separately aims to avoid dark red appearance.

Modification of Beef Bulgogi

Last Sunday we went to Korean BBQ restaurant for lunch. Since then, I really wanted to make bulgogi myself. This morning when I checked the freezer, I found some beef and decided to make this Korean meal.

Ingredients:
- 800gr beef, slice thinly
- 1 clove onion (Indonesian-bawang bombay), chop
- 1 package of mushroom, slice thinly
- sesame oil for saute

Spice for marinating:
- 1 clove onion (Indonesian-bawang bombay)
- 6 cloves garlic
- 4cm of ginger
- 1 Tbsp of ground black pepper
- sugar
- salt
- 2 Tbsp of soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp of sweet soy sauce
- 4 Tbsp of sake
- 1 Tbsp of sesame oil
- 300 ml water


Prior to marinating, grind the onion, garlic and ginger until smooth. In a big bowl place all the ingredients for marinating and mix it evenly. Put the beef in it and marinate it for at least 3hours (the longer the better!).
In a hot skillet, saute the chopped onion for 1minute. Add the marinated meat and cook until tender. Add the marinating liquid. Continue to cook until the water thicken. At last add the sliced mushroom. Continue to cook for another 2 minutes.

Note: Sometimes bulgogi is made by barbecuing. Some people like to sprinkle some sesame seed and chopped green onion on top of it.

Chinese Broccoli with Oyster Sauce (Kaylan Saus Tiram)

I started cooking it since I lived on my own in Sydney, Australia. Christian and I love this vegetables. It tastes like a restaurant made - meal and is very simple.

Ingredients:
- 1lb of chinese broccoli, cut 8cm in length, wash
- 3 Tbsp of oyster sauce
- water

In a pot boil some water. Add the chinese broccoli and continue to boil until it cooked. Drain it and place it on a plate. Pour the oyster sauce on top of it.

Note: Do not overcook. I like it when it is still crunchy but not hard. Add some more oyster sauce if you like salty one.

Woku Chicken (Ayam Woku)

Again...another Manadonese meal...
I made it less spicy than usual, since I still had coughing and sore throat.

Ingredients:
- 5 whole chicken leg, cut into 4 each
- 6 cloves garlic
- 6 cloves small red onion
- 5 cm of ginger
- 3 cm of turmeric
- 6 chili paddy or bird's eye chili
- 5 candle nuts
- 3 lemongrass, use only 3/4 from the bottom, chop into small pieces
- 6 lime leaves
- a bunch of basil leaves (Indonesian-daun kemangi)
- 1 tomato, cut into 8
- 1 lime, use the juice
- salt
- sugar
- oil for saute
- water

Put the chicken in a big bowl and add the lime juice, mix it and let it immerse for 30 minutes.
In a chopper/grinder, put garlic, onion, ginger, turmeric, chili, candle nuts and cut lemongrass, and grind it (Christian normally likes it a bit coarse). In a pan, saute this ground spices with a little bit oil for 2 minutes. Add salt and sugar. Add the chicken and cook, stir it occasionally. Add some water and continue to cook until the chicken tender and the water thicken. At last add the lime and basil leaves and also the tomato. Adjust the taste with salt and sugar.

Stir Fried Bean Sprout and Tofu

My husband and I really like bean sprout, especially for stir frying. So this time I made stir fried bean sprout and tofu. It is very easy to make and almost no-time preparation needed.

Ingredients:
- 1 bag of bean sprout (app. 1lb), wash
- 3 block of tofu, cut into small pieces, and fry until half cooked
- 4 cloves of small red onion, slice thinly
- 6 cloves of garlic, slice thinly
- 5 chili paddy or bird's eye chili, slice thinly
- 3cm of galangal, cut into 3
- 1 tomato, cut into 8
- salt
- pepper
- sugar
- water
- oil for frying

In a pan, saute the onion, garlic and galangal for 1-2 minute. Add the chili and continue to saute for another 1 minute. Add the bean sprout and fried tofu. Add some water and tomato. At last add salt, pepper and sugar. Bring to taste.

Note: I added some spinach too, since I got some left-over in the fridge. You may find it as greeny in the picture.

Red Kidney Beans Soup (Sup Brenebon)

This is another Manadonese meal which I learned to make during my uni years. Really a great treat for the entire family during winter time.

Ingredients:

- 500gr red kidney beans, soak it in water overnightly
- 600gr pork ribs or pork leg, cut into small chunk
- 1 clove onion (Indonesian-bawang bombay), chop thinly
- 5 cloves garlic, slice thinly
- 2 green onion, chop thinly
- salt
- pepper
- 2 tsp nutmeg
- sugar
- water
- oil for saute

In a big pot cook the soaked beans and water until half tender. Then add the pork ribs/pork leg. Cook until both of them really tender.
In a pan, saute the onion and garlic with a little bit oil for 1-2 minutes. Pour it into the pot. Add salt, pepper, nutmeg and sugar bring to taste. Lastly, sprinkle the chopped green onion.
Serve it while it is hot.

Note: You may sprinkle some fried onion too if you like.

Sweet Green Peas Omelet

The simplest recipe, you may not want to leave it behind. When the word "emergency" comes to my kitchen.

Ingredients:
- 3 eggs
- 5 green onion, chop it thinly
- 1/2 small can of sweet green peas
- 2 tsp chili beans sauce
- salt
- pepper
- oil for frying

In a bowl mix eggs with green onion, salt and pepper. Beat it with a fork for 1 minute. Fry it on a pan with a little bit oil. Immediately sprinkle the sweet green peas and chili beans sauce. Fry until it is brownish on one side and flip it over. Continue to fry until the two sides are cooked.

Stir Fried Egg-tofu with Soybean Paste (Telur-Tahu Bumbu Tauco)

To eat with crunchy tempeh-anchovy, I made this stir fried egg-tofu with soybean paste. I intentionally added more water to it, so that our meal is not too "dry".

Ingredients:
- 6 eggs, boil and peel
- 4 tofu, cut into small pieces, fry until half cooked
- 4 Tbsp soybean paste
- 4cm of ginger, cut into 4 and crack it with pestle (Indonesian-keprek dengan ulekan)
- 6 cloves garlic, slice thinly
- 5 cloves small red onion, slice thinly
- 2 Tbsp sweet soy sauce
- sugar
- oil for frying
- water (as much as you like)

In a pan, saute garlic and onion with a little bit of oil for 1-2 minutes. Add ginger, continue to saute for another 1 minutes. Add the soybeans paste and sweet soy sauce, mix it well. Add the water. Add eggs and fried tofu. Stir it and taste it, adjust the taste with sugar. Continue to boil until cooked.

Note: normally it is already salty enough from the soybean paste. However if you think it is not salty enough, you may add some salt. Keep it in fridge and eat it for the next day is better than eat it on the same day as you cooked, because all the spice will penetrate to the eggs and make them brownish, harder and tastier.

Crunchy Tempeh-Anchovy (Kering Tempe-Ikan Teri)

A friend of us bought 4 packages of dried anchovy last week and I got frozen tempeh in the freezer. Today I decided to make kering tempe-ikan teri (Crunchy tempeh-anchovy). In Indonesia, usually we eat it with yellow rice (nasi kuning) or savory rice (nasi uduk). But I had a little time to cook before Christian went home from work, so I did not make the yellow rice nor savory one, we are going to eat it with steam rice.

Ingredients:
- 1 block of tempeh, cut it 1x4cm, fry until brown
- 300gr dried anchovy, fry until brown
- 6 cloves small red onion, slice thinly
- 6 cloves garlic, slice thinly
- 6 chili paddy or bird's eye chili, slice thinly
- 4cm of galangal, cut into 4
- 4cm of ginger, cut into 4
- 5 Indonesian bay leaves
- 1 block/cylinder of palm sugar, grate it
- 2 tsp of tamarind, mix it with 100ml hot water, discard the seed and skin
- salt
- sugar
- oil for frying

In a pan, saute garlic and onion with a little bit oil for 1-2 minutes. Add chili, galangal, ginger and bay leaves. Continue to saute for another 1minutes. Add the tamarind mix and palm sugar. Stir it evenly, until all the sugar dissolved. Add the fried tempeh and anchovy. Lower the heat and continue to stir until all the liquid absorbed. Add salt and sugar to taste.

Padang Green Jackfruit Gulai with Rice Dumpling (Ketupat Sayur Padang)

Yesterday Christian asked me to make Jackfruit Gulai and sambal terasi (Belacan chili paste) to eat with rice dumpling. Instead of making sambal terasi, I decided to make sambal goreng tempe-buncis (spicy tempeh-haricot beans), therefore I can make it less spicy, considering that Christian has sore throat and cough recently. It took me longer time to spend in the kitchen, but I feel content with it.

Green Jackfruit Gulai

Ingredients:
- 1/2 kg beef and bones, cut into small chunk
- 2 can green jackfruit, drain and cut into small pieces
- 6 pieces of tofu, cut into triangle shapes, fry until half cooked
- 1/2 can coconut milk
- 1 lemongrass, cut into 4cm length
- 4 Indonesian bay leaves
- 4 lime leaves
- 6 cloves garlic
- 4 cloves small red onion
- 4 chili paddy or bird's eye chili
- 5 candle nuts
- 4cm of galangal
- 3cm of ginger
- 3cm of turmeric
- 1Tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp tamarind (without seed)
- 1/2 block/cylinder of coconut sugar
- 3lt water
- salt
- sugar
- oil for frying

In a big pot, boil water and cook the meat and bones until tender.
Put garlic, onion, chili, candle nuts, ginger, turmeric and coriander into a blender, and blend it until smooth. Pour it into the pot and add the rest of ingredients except coconut milk. Cook until the jack fruit tender. Lastly add the coconut milk and bring it to boil, stir occasionally. Taste and adjust it with salt and sugar.

Spicy tempeh-haricot beans

Ingredients:
- 1 block tempeh, cut it 1x4cm, fry it until brown
- 1lb haricot beans, clean the hard part and slice it thinly
- 1/2 can of coconut milk
- 6 cloves of garlic, slice thinly
- 5 cloves small red onion, slice thinly
- 4 chili paddy or bird's eye chili, slice thinly
- 4 cm of galangal, cut into 4
- 1 tomato, cut into 8
- salt
- sugar
- oil for frying

In a pan, saute the garlic and onion with a little bit of oil for 2minutes. Add chili, tomato and galangal. Continue to saute for another 1minutes. Add the tempe and beans. Add the coconut milk. Add salt and sugar and taste it.

To serve, in a bowl put the cut rice dumpling and add the gulai and spicy tempeh-haricot beans on top of it. Sprinkle some fried onion if you like.

Note: this time I have the package of rice dumpling ready to cook for 30 minutes. In Indonesia, normally I made it myself with a special plastic bag.

Modified Kudus Soto

Today Christian asked me to make chicken soto. However, I felt bored with just ordinary chicken soto. I remembered my sister once sent me a recipe of Kudus "Denuh" soto (it is a name of chicken soto restaurant in Kudus, Central Java, I think Denuh is the owner). Then I went through my yahoo inbox and found that email with the recipe in it. It seemed a bit complicated to me, therefore I decided to modify it. I told Christian that I am going to make Kudus soto, something new for him...:)

Ingredients:
- 3 whole chicken leg
- 8 cloves of small red onion
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 8 pcs candle nut (kemiri-Indonesian)
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 1 Tbsp ground coriander
- 1 Tbsp ground cumin
- 1.5 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp shrimp paste (terasi-Indonesian)
- 3cm ginger
- 2cm turmeric
- 3cm galangal
- 1/3 block/cylinder palm sugar
- salt
- 2.5lt water
- frying oil

Complementary dish:
- boiled bean sprout
- 3 boiled eggs
- 3 potato, slice and fry until brownish
- fried Melinjo crackers (Gnetum gnemon)
- crushed chili with candle nut (ratio 5:1) mix with warm water = sambal-Indonesian
- lime
- sweet soy sauce

Garnish:
- wild/garden celery, finely chop
- fried onion
- fried garlic


In a pot put the chicken, salt and water, bring it to boil. Continue cooking until the chicken tender. Drain the chicken and fry it until brownish. Shred the chicken meat.
Put aside the chicken and the broth as well.
In a blender, blend all the ingredients except galangal and palm sugar until smooth. Saute the blended smooth spices for 2minutes. Pour it into the broth which is put on low heat. Add the galangal and palm sugar. Continue to cook until boiling.
To serve, in a bowl put some steam rice. Then on top of the rice, put the shredded fried chicken and pour the soto (broth+spices). Add the complementary dish and garnish.

PS: some people like to add cooked bean sprout too, but this time I do not have it. The real Kudus soto normally does not come with the egg and potato. It usually comes with sambal kecap (mix of sweet soy sauce and crushed chilli).

Crispy Chicken with Red Wine Sauce

Today we had a guest coming from Toronto. She is a good friend of my in laws. Early morning I opened the fridge to check what we have there, and found nothing except carrots and green bell pepper. Hmm..what should I cook? This question hanging inside my mind for the whole day. Christian left for work and there I was with my little princess, still had the same question in my mind. As a routine I gave Bianca a bath then fed her and brought her to nap. I had lunch myself then showered and did laundry. By the time the laundry was ready to be dried, Bianca woke up and it was already 3pm. So I picked Bianca and dressed her warmly and took her to do some grocery shopping nearby. While I was at the store, I decided to make something with chicken and veggies for the guest. Went home and put the laundry in the drier and started to cook. Before I finished cooking, the guest has already arrived. So I continued cooking while she played with Bianca. We waited for Christian to be home and had dinner together. The guest commented that the chicken is yummy and Christian gave me a kiss on my forehead...(I am flattered..).

Ingredients:
- 600gr chicken breast fillet, thinly cut
- 1/2 pack of Kobe seasoning flour
- 1 pack (300gr) of baby cut carrot
- 1 green bell pepper, wash and cut
- 1 can of sweet green peas
- 1 pack of St Hubert Red Wine Sauce (powder)
- 6 cloves of garlic, finely chop
- 4 cloves of small red onion, finely chop
- 1 tomato, cut into 8
- 3 green onion, wash and chop
- pinch of sugar
- 1 tsp white pepper
- frying oil
- 300ml cold water

On a plate, batter the chicken meat with the flour. Deep fry the battered chicken until brownish.
Place it in a big casserole bowl.
In a small bowl mix the sauce powder with the cold water and stir it evenly. Put it aside.
In a pan, saute garlic and onion with oil for 1-2minutes. Add the baby carrot, green bell pepper and tomato. When they are half cooked, add the sauce mix and stir slowly until it thicken. Add some sugar and white pepper and taste it. At last add the sweet green peas and chopped green onion.
Pour the sauce and cooked veggies on top of the chicken.

Note: Kobe flour can be replaced with tapioca flour and corn flour mix seasoned with salt and pepper. Or if you want it crunchier, you can use bread crumb too.

Spicy Pork Satay

Last Friday, October 26 '2007 Christian prepared this meal for my birthday. Well, I told him that he doesn't have to do it for me, since we have already gone for late lunch at a restaurant with friends on my birthday last Sunday. However, he insisted to make it for me and to invite good friends to come over for dinner Saturday evening. This is one of his favorite recipes which he got from his aunt - Ida. As for him, spicy means really really hot...so I know what to expect..

Ingredients:
- 1kg pork meat (shoulder part), cut into small cubes
- 8 pcs lemongrass
- 4cm of galangal
- 4cm of ginger
- 10 cloves of garlic
- 10 cloves of small red onion
- 8 pcs lime leaves
- bunch of basil leaves
- chili paddy=bird's eye chili=cabe rawit-Indonesian (as many as you like)
- 1 lime
- 3 Tbsp vegetable oil

Put all the ingredients except lime, vegetable oil and the meat into a blender and blend it until smooth. In a big bowl, put the meat and mix it with the smooth blended spices and add lime and vegetable oil. Mix it well and then keep it in fridge for 24hours.

On the next day, take the bowl out of the fridge and place the meat on the skewers (4 cubes each). Broil until well cooked.

Note: 1kg of meat is good to make approx. 40 skewers. The spicier it is the better! (Christian's philosophy). It clears out your nose...
Good thing that we have smokeless broiler at home, so we are able to grill it inside when the outside temperature is not friendly.

Pork/Chicken Rica-Rica

During my uni years, I used to live in a boarding house that have a Manadonese staying. I got along quite well with her and some of her friends too. She likes to cook and one day.. lucky me..she taught me to make Rica-Rica. In the native language, Rica means spicy or chili.

So watch out! for you who can not take spicy food, you better minimize the number of chili you add. I am not responsible for burning lips...

Ingredients:
- 600 gr of Pork (shoulder part is preferred) or chicken thigh, cut into small pieces
- 4 lemongrass, use 3/4 from the bottom
- 8 cloves of garlic
- 8 cloves of small red onion
- 4 cm of ginger
- 2 cm of turmeric
- a bunch of basil leaves
- 4 lime leaves
- chili paddy= bird's eye chili pepper= cabe rawit (you decide the number)
- salt
- sugar
- oil for saute

Put all the ingredients in a blender except the basil leaves, meat and oil. Blend all together until smooth. In a frying pan, saute the smooth blended spices for 1-2minutes. Put the meat in, lower the heat and stir occasionally until cooked. Put the basil leaves at last.
Taste it and adjust your preference with sugar and salt.
Eat while hot with warm steam rice and fresh cucumber or lettuce.

Note: In the picture, instead of putting the basil leaves at the end I blended it together with all the spices, so you can not see the leaves. Some people may like to put tomato, I don't coz tomato makes the food easily spoil.

Lidia's Fried Chicken

Christian came back from grocery shopping and brought me some chicken drumsticks. I did not have enough time to sleep the night before (Bianca's coughing made me worried and stayed awake the whole night) and I was a bit lazy to cook, but I had to...so I decided to cook something simple yet yummy. I came up with this simple recipe...

Ingredients:
- 6 chicken drumsticks
- 6 cloves of garlic, finely chop or crush
- 1 Tbsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 4 pcs Indonesian bay leaves
- salt
- sugar
- 1lt water
- frying oil

In a small pot put all the ingredients except the frying oil and chicken. Mix it well. Add the chicken and bring it to boil (put the lid on), lower the heat and wait until chicken tender.
Drain the water and fry the chicken until brownish.

Note: It is good to eat with Belacan chilli paste (sambal terasi) and warm steam rice.
I said it was too salty...but Christian said it was tasty! What a compliment...

Clear Chicken Soup

This is the simplest recipe of soup. Having said that, people with no or limited experience in the kitchen will be able to cook this yummy soup. Hey ya...and winter is just around the corner, why not make it for your own?

Ingredients:
- 3 chicken leg (some may call it chicken maryland, no idea where they got this name though), cut into 4 pieces each
- 3 carrot, peel, wash and cut into small pieces
- 4 potato, peel, wash and cut into small pieces
- 3 green onion (or leek...but I prefer green onion), chop into small pieces
- 1 lb snow peas, clean the hard part and wash
- 2 celery, chop into small pieces
- 1 onion (bawang bombay-Indonesian), chop into small pieces
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 tsp ground white pepper
- salt
- pinch of sugar
- oil for saute
- 2 lt water

Put chunky chicken into a pot and add water. Bring to boil and throw away the blackish flake from the broth. Add potato and when it is half cooked add carrot, celery and snow peas. Add nutmeg, white pepper, salt and sugar. Cover the pot for 2minutes.

In a frying pan saute the chopped onion with a little bit of oil until brownish. Add the green onion and continue to saute for 1minute. Put the whole thing into the pot.
Do not forget to taste it and adjust the amount of nutmeg, pepper, salt and sugar as you like.
Done! and it's enough for the whole family...(approx. 6 serving).

PS: I do not like to put garlic, since it makes the soup looks unclear. No MSG added...I replace it with a little bit of sugar, so it's healthy!