Korean BBQ

All of a sudden my husband wanted to do bbq-ing at home, so one of those quite evening we did it on our balcony...just us, my husband-my Bianca-and me..
The menu was simple...but it was soooooo good!

Ingredients:
- 1kg of pork ribs
- 450ml of Korean bbq sauce with sesame seeds
- 100ml of red wine (we used fine ruby porto)

Side dish:
- tomato
- lettuce, cucumber (I did not have it that day)
- hot chili sauce
- baked potato or steam rice



Directions:
Mix the bbq sauce and red wine in a big container, and then marinate the ribs for at least an hour. Grill it for 25minutes or until it is done the way you like...
Better to eat right after it is done, do not keep it for the next day, it won't taste as good. Serve it with baked potato or steam rice, hot chili sauce and some veggies.

Garlic-Basil Stir Fried Ribs n Veggies

Another Thai cuisine which is easy to make and you may throw any meats or veggies as you like.

Ingredients:
- 600gr of pork ribs
- 250gr of peeled washed carrot
- a bunch of yu choy (Indonesian: sawi hijau or caisim)
- 4Tbsp of Thai garlic-basil stir fry paste
- water



Directions:
In a wok, saute for 2 minutes the garlic-basil paste without oil since it contains oil already. Throw in the ribs and stir it until change color. Add some water, approx. 150ml and stir it well. Continue to cook until boiling and the meat tender. Add carrot, stir and continue to cook for 4minutes. Add yu choy, stir and continue to cook for 3minutes.
Serve it with warm steam rice.

Grilled Ribs

I made this grilled ribs two weeks ago, but somehow I misplaced the picture files, and just found it yesterday. So I am glad to share the simple recipe for you...
I used the left over of marinating sauce for sweet satay.

Ingredients:
- 600gr of spare ribs, could be pork or beef
- 1 lime, use the juice
- left over of marinating sauce for sweet satay, you may find the recipe here



Directions:
Cut the ribs according to the size you like. Drizzle some lime juice over it and keep it aside for 10minutes. Then place all the ribs into the marinating sauce and marinate them for at least 1hour (I prefer to do it overnightly in the fridge ). Arrange them in an aluminum pan or other oven dish and grill them at medium heat for 45minutes to an hour. Flip it over to distribute the heat evenly. Serve it hot with some salad.

Pork Ribs Soup

Having no idea of what to cook that day, I decided to cook something simple yet acceptable for the whole family, including my daughter. The choice went to soup..

Ingredients:
- 500gr of pork ribs, cut into small chunk
- 4 potato, peel off the skin and cut into small chunk
- 4 carrot, peel off the skin and cut into small chunk
- 1 clove of onion, chop thinly
- 3 green onion, chop thinly
- 1tsp of ground white pepper
- 1tsp of ground nutmeg
- salt
- sugar
- water
- oil for saute



In a pot, boil pork ribs with water until tender. Add potato and then carrot and continue to cook for 5minutes. While waiting, saute onion with a little bit of oil until fragrant and then pour the sauted onion together with the oil into the pot. Add pepper and nutmeg. Adjust the taste with salt and sugar. At last add green onion.

Sweet Satay (Sate Manis)

We got the first order!! Yup, I am intending to start a home based-cathering business, not a big one though...in my thought it will be words of mouth only...if someone likes my cooking, he/she will tell his/her friends, and that's the way my business would go on.
I saw the possibility when first arrived in this town, not many Indonesian ladies here like to spend their times cooking in the kitchen...and they are missing Indonesian food a lot..so why not providing them with what they prefer?
Our first order was spicy satay and sweet satay. My husband made the spicy ones and you may find the recipe here. And I prepared the sweet ones.

Ingredients:
- 1kg pork meat, cut into small cubes, you may replace it with any kind of meat
- 10 cloves of garlic
- 6 cloves of small red onion
- 6 candle nuts
- 4cm of galangal
- 1 block of palm sugar, grate it
- 1 lime, use the juice only
- 2Tbsp of ground coriander
- 1tsp of ground cumin
- 1Tbsp of ground black pepper
- 6Tbsp of fine-granulated brown sugar
- 100ml sweet soy sauce
- 2Tbsp of soy sauce
- 6Tbsp of fish sauce



In a blender, blend garlic, onion, candle nuts, galangal and palm sugar until smooth. Place it in a big container and add the rest of the seasoning. Mix it well. Marinate the meat cubes for at least 1 hour, the longer it takes the better, in a fridge. I normally marinate it overnightly. Take it out of the fridge and then arrange the cubes on a skewer, 4-5 pieces each. Grill it until cooked. Flip it over as needed. Serve it with spicy soy sauce (Indonesian-sambal kecap) at the side. To make the spicy soy sauce, see the recipe here.

Bakmoy

This is a request from my niece, Inge who lives in Holland and my dear Deetha who lives in Semarang, Indonesia. My mom used to make it back then and in Inge's memory mom's bakmoy was soooo delicious, that is why she asked me to make it. Unfortunately, I could not get mom's recipe since I have been not feeling well and have not contacted my sister whom may have the recipe somehow. So I just browsed around the internet the other day and found one at cie Ine's page. After asking her permission, I adapted the recipe into my kitchen, I made a little modification by adding chinese five spices.

Ingredients:
- 2 blocks of medium firm tofu, cut into small squares, fry until half-cooked
- 200gr pork/chicken meat (I used 350gr), boil until tender then cut into small squares and put aside the stock
- 5 boiled egg, peel off the shells
- 2Tbsp dried small shrimp, soak in water and then crush until smooth (I used 3 Tbsp)
- 3 cloves of garlic (I used 8), crack it with pestle
- 2Tbsp soy sauce
- 10Tbsp sweet soy sauce (or as much as needed)
- salt
- ground white pepper
- 1tsp of chinese five spices

To make stock/broth:
- 1.5l the broth (add more as needed)
- 4cm of ginger, crack it pestle, saute together with garlic
- salt
- 6 cloves of garlic, chop thinly, saute

Side dishes:
- Asian celery (I used 3 green onion), chop thinly
- Garlic solution, 2 cloves of garlic, crush until smooth and mix with 10Tbsp of boiled water (I did not use it, instead I added garlic for sambal kecap)
- fried onion
- sambal kecap (I used 6 chopped chili paddy+3 cloves of garlic-chopped+lime juice+sweet soy sauce)


Saute cracked garlic with a little bit of oil until fragrant. Add dried shrimp and continue to saute. Add the cut meat, soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, five spices, cut tofu, salt, pepper and some water (just enough to make all soaked in). Add boiled egg and continue to cook until it changes color to brown and the water decreases into half of the initial quantity. Put it aside.
Boil the meat stock/broth, add some salt and add the sauted garlic and ginger.
To serve, in a bowl, place some steam rice first and then add the meat mixture with the brown sauce, half of the brown egg, 1-2 Tbsp of garlic solution (if preferred). Sprinkle some chopped celery/green onion and fried onion. Pour some boiled stock over. Add sambal kecap as needed.

Some people may like to serve the stock in a separate bowl, as you see on the picture below.

Fried Meat Balls (Bakso Goreng)

Last week, when we came to visit our good friend, she served us this yummy finger food. This time, I made it myself for my little family. My husband loves it and brought it to work. Bianca loves it too, she can finish the whole ball at once, of course bite by bite...

Ingredients:
- 200gr ground pork/chicken
- 200gr headless shrimp, discard the shells and tails
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 Tbsp of oyster sauce
- 4 Tbsp of fish sauce
- 2 green onion, chop thinly
- 2 tsp of ground white pepper
- 1 tsp of sugar
- 2 Tbsp of maizena/corn flour
- 1 egg
- oil for frying

In a chopper, chop garlic and shrimp until smooth. Mix well all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl (remember to add the flour at last). Using two spoons, make balls and deep fry it with oil until golden brown. Serve it as snack or side dish, add chili sauce if you like.

Pork with Sweet Soy Sauce (Babi Kecap)

This menu is for Bianca, since now she is enjoying rice more than cereal or porridge.

Ingredients:
- 750gr of pork meat, boil until tender and cut into small cubes
- 4 potato, peel of the skin, cut into small cubes and fry it until cooked
- 5 egg, boil and peel of the shell
- 6 cloves of garlic, chop thinly
- 4cm of ginger, crack it with pestle
- 2 Tbsp of soybean paste (Indonesian-taoco)
- 3 Tbsp of sweet soy sauce, add more as prefers
- 1 tsp of ground white pepper
- salt
- sugar
- 500ml of broth from boiling the pork
- oil for saute

In a wok, saute garlic and ginger with a little bit of oil until brownish. Add soybean paste, sweet soy sauce and pepper and stir it constantly until boiling. Add pork and boiled eggs, stir it well. Add broth and continue to cook until boiling again. At last add the fried potato. Adjust the taste with salt and sugar.

Note: normally it is better to serve it on the next day, since all the seasoning will immerse to the meat and eggs.

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.

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.

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.