Peanut Powder - 花生粉

In Singapore this ready-made Peanut Powder can be easily found in major supermarkets at their flour and baking sections. But whereas in certain countries you might have to make your own peanut powder in order to use it for baking, cooking or serving as extra toppings in dishes, beverage or etc.

During your visit to there supermarkets you might find a few different brands of peanut powder available for your selection. Here I have two different brands of peanut powder which contain either with or without sugar added which might comes in handy depending on how you would want to use it for.

This SingLong brand Peanut Powder is one of those that I always have stock in my fridge so that I could make our favourite Muah Chee or Oneh Oneh anytime of the day. But if you are using the same peanut powder for both sweet and savoury dish(kueh paiti, pad Thai noodles) perhaps you can consider the other one below which is just 100% Peanut Powder without any sugar added.

100% Peanut Powder which is great and healthier because you can to control the amount sweet to mix with the powder for sweet treat.

HOW TO MAKE PEANUT POWDER

Below is a simple recipe on how to make your own Peanut Powder if you could not find it in your local supermarkets.

(Make: about 200g | Preparation: 3 minutes | Cooking: 10 - 15 minutes)

Ingredients:
200g Raw Peanuts, with skins on
1 Teaspoon of oil, optional

Method:-

1. Rub very little amount of oil to peanuts and roast them in a non-stick pan over medium low heat or in the preheated oven at 180° until light brown and aromatic.

2. Remove, place roasted peanuts on clean kitchen towel and rub them between the towel using your palms to remove the outer skins.

3. Next using either a pestle or food processor, grind the roasted peanuts into coarse or fine powder according to the recipe requirements.

Tip:-

~ Unused peanut powder can be stored in air-tight container, kept in fridge for a month or two.

Some recipes which use Peanut Powder:-

Muah Chee(麻糍)	Oneh Oneh	Pad Thai Noodles

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BOSCH MCM 4100 Food Processor

From my posts you would notice that I love to experiment with new Kitchen Gadget, tools, products and etc such as Happy Call Pan,  Tupperware, MasterFood Spices. In this post I would be share with you my new toy which is this  - BOSCH MCM4100 Food Processor. This food processor comes with multiple functions such as; juice blender, meat grinder, dough maker and other usage like making meringue, sorbet, mayonnaise and etc.

As you can see from the photo above, they also have a handy accessories drawer where you could keep those unused blades and  slicing discs in order to prevent them from being misplaced.

In order to maintain good condition for the blender, do not process deep-frozen ingredients except ice cubes.  And to attach/remove the blender always rotate the blender in a clockwise/anti-clockwise direction, and do not remove it by force.

Features of this food processor such as:-

~ 800W Motor
~ 2 Speed settings and pulse setting
~ Stainless steel chopping blade and plastic whisking disc
~ Plastic liquidiser attachment 1.25L
~ Plastic mixing bowl 500g
~ Stainless steel cutting disc inserts (thick and thin)
~ Stainless steel shredding disc inserts (coarse and fine)
~ Plastic carrier disc for inserts
~ Dough tool
~ Citrus press

The "Bowl" works well as a food processor, dough maker or whipping of egg whites and etc. It comes with a transparent bowl, lid, funnel and changeable blades and discs and slicing attachments.

These are some handy Slicing Attachments ranging from Coarse - Fine (left to right, shown above). The 1st and 2nd on the left can be used to slice cucumber, fries and carrots while the 3rd and 4th on the right can be use to grate apples, carrot, cheese and cabbages.

Above the Whipping disc, Carrier Disc for disc inserts, Citrus Press from left to right. All these would come in handy depending on what recipe you are working with. For me I find the Whipping disc is quite interesting and I would like to try using it to whip some egg whites/cream instead of my usual electric beater.

This food processor can also act as a Citrus Press for pressing the juice out of citrus fruits such as Oranges, Grapefruits, lemons and etc. In order to do it:-

1. Attach the bowl(arrow on bowl on dot on the appliance) and rotate as far as possible in clockwise direction.

2. Insert drive shaft into the bowl and attach the citrus press to the drive shaft and rotate in a clockwise direction. (The lug on the filter basket must be located fully in the slot in the bowl handle)

3.  To extract the juice, set the rotary switch to low speed and press the fruit onto the pressing cone.

RECIPES USING BOSCH MCM 4100

ABC Detox Juice	Lemon Berry Tarts	Baked Lemon Cheesecake Upcoming Recipe

If you are interested to get one of this BOSCH MCM 4100 you could go to their “live” kitchen at Harvey Norman’s newly revamped Millenia Walk Flagship Store. (detail HERE). Indeed this machine is a great helper in modern kitchen.

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Happy Call Double Sided Pressure Pan - 韩国双面锅

Recently there is a Happy Call Pan(韩国双面锅) craze across most of the forum, facebook and recipes websites such as Munch Ministry where individual and members gets together to share their experience and recipes on using this "in-pan".

Basically Happy Call Pan works with a logic of a pressure cookers, patented silicon gasket and on-touch button magnetic locking systems which ensures cooking is hassle free, faster and healthier.  With the "Normal Pan(red )" having 3 layers and new "Ocher Deeper Pan(brown)" having 5 layers of ceramic durable non-stick coating, it actually speed up the cooking process and produce healthier dishes with enhanced flavour too.

The photo above shows the New Happy Call Ocher Deeper Pan (measured 27.5cm x 24.5cm x 7.5cm) and it is handy for cooking fish, chicken, meat, stew, soup and etc. Below are some basic functions of Happy Call pan's numbered above:-

1. SILICON GASKET
These red patented silicon gasket can effectively seals pan to prevent greasy liquid or smoke from escaping during cooking. And it also acts to prevent leakages during flipping of the pan while cooking.

Note: Over the time, this silicon gasket might expand a little so you can just trim it off the excess and push back firmly onto the groove, but ensure it does not black the "steam vent".

2. STEAM VENT
This allow excess steam to escape, maintain optimal pressure and cooking conditions inside the pan  and allow the meat to be evenly cooked.

3. OIL RECEIVER
It collects excess water or oil condensation which flow from "the upper pan" when the pan is opened.

4. GROOVED RIM
A grooved structure helps the pressure function of the pan by fitting the silicon gasket into the groove which seals and lock the pan.

5. STAINLESS STEEL HANDLE HOLDER
It connects the handles to the pan.

Each part of the handle comes with a magnetic button attached at the ends of the handle(refer to the photo above). With just "one-touch" the magnets it will lock both halves of the pan together tightly and sealed it before before any cooking or flipping.

To Lock - Push the two ends of the handles near and the magnetic buttons will snap closed with a distinct "click".

To Unlock - Simple insert you finger between the two ends of the handle and pry them apart and always open with both hands.

During cooking when the pan is sealed it cause the greasy oil and steam residues to collect on the inner part of the Upper Pan. So when the pan is opened all these residues will drip down onto the "tray" for easy and mess-free disposal.

Whereas the "steam vent" also acts as the drainage access for the oil and steam condensed and collected on the Upper Pan.

TO CLEAN AND MAINTENANCE
In order to maintain the pan in good conditions, once in a while, take out the silicon gasket and clean with a soft toothbrush in order to remove food residues. Or every 4 - 6 month, rub vinegar or lemon juice on the inner non-stick surface and warm it over low heat for a few minutes, rinse and wipe clean with a damp cloth. And remember NEVER use metal spatulas or cooking utensils that may damage the non-stick surface of the pan.

MY HAPPY CALL PAN RECIPES

Although there are quite a number of readers and friends asking me whether is it worth getting this Happy Call pan but for my view it always up to individual and their needs. Although this pan can do certain wonders but it also have negative area such as you won't be able to do stir-fry and get those "wok" smell like most of our wok do.

But in another way it does help to prepare some quick and easy healthy dishes such as pan-fry/grill fish and meat which reduce smokes and smells in the kitchen. 

Happy Call - Dishes

Grilled Teriyaki Saba	Stir-fry Choy Sum	Sizzling Tofu

Stuffed Mushrooms with Black Moss	Glutinous Rice Wine Chicken	Claypot Rice
Buttermilk Cereal Chicken	Braised Bee Hoon with Pumpkin	Hakka Abacus Seeds
Cabbage and Yam Rice with Roast Pork (coming soon)	Caramel Chicken with Potato

Happy Call - Cakes And Snacks

Bak Kwa(BBQ Pork)	Baked Sweet Potato	Caramel Popcorn
Pineapple Upside-down Cake	Apple Upside-down Cake	Muah Chee
Banana Chocolate Cake with Cranberry	Double Chocolate Banana Cake	Blueberry Lemon Butter Cake (coming soon)
Mixed Fruit Cake (coming soon)

Till then happy experimenting with the Happy Call pan if you do own one.

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MasterFoods Herbs And Spices

MasterFoods brand products use only the finest premium ingredients for every range of products and they are mainly available in supermarkets across Australia and New Zealand. In Singapore we do have a wide range of MasterFoods products which are easily found in local supermarkets such as NTUC and Cold Storage.

Above are 3 of my favourite MasterFoods range of seasonings which I could not find in Singapore. And thanks to my brother who recently went Sydney for holiday to bring back these for my pantry.

Portuguese Chicken Seasoning:-
Brings together the flavours of lemon and chillies to create traditional Portuguese Chicken (recipe HERE) at home and this sure come perfect during Christmas season.


Pri Pri Seasoning:-
A hot spice seasoning with a hint of lemon which is excellent on fish, prawns, shellfish or chicken. To in-cooperate them, sprinkle some on the meat before grill, pan fry or BBQ on medium heat. This spice is also good for rice dishes such as paella or spice risotto.

Thai Seasoning:-
I love this spice which can be use to brush with oil on chicken or beef kebabs before grill or barbecue. And for a quick dish, sprinkle some over prawns when stir-frying or use in a Thai noodle salad and curries.

Other than the above, I also have some other MasterFoods products in my pantry which comes in handy while preparing pasta, pizza and etc.

Italian Herbs:-
It consists different types of herbs such as Marjoram, Basil, Red Bell Peppers, Rosemary, Oregano, Parsley, Thyme in a bottle. This is great for adding to spaghetti bolognese, lasagne sauce and fresh tomato sauce.

Chilli Flakes:-
Chilli Flakes are the chopped, diced fruits which is a popular hot spice with bite. This can be added to meat sauces, all Mexican dishes using meat, beans or vegetables. I love to use it in salads or salad dressings as well as rice or pasta dishes.

Will update more on new Recipes using these wonderful herbs and spices. Stay tune.

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Palm Sugar(Gula Melaka) Syrup

Gula melaka or also known as Palm Sugar in English is made by first extracting the sap from the flower bud of a coconut tree. Several slits are cut into the bud and a pot is tied underneath the bud to collect the sap. After which the sap is boiled until thickens before pouring into bamboo tubes between 3-5 inches in length and left to solidify in order to form cylindrical cake blocks.

GULA MELAKA SYRUP

These homecook gula melaka syrup can be used as topping or sweetener for dessert such as Chendol, Chendol Agar Agar, Sago Gula Melaka, Bubur Terigu and etc. These cooked syrup can be stored in the fridge for a few weeks up to 3 months.

Ingredients:
200g Palm Sugar(Gula Melaka)
Knot of Fresh Pandan Leave
80ml of Water

Method:-

1. Bring Palm Sugar(Gula Melaka), pandan leaves and 80ml of water to boil.

2. Lower the heat and simmer till the palm sugar cubes melt and syrup slight thickened (about 10 minutes).

3. Remove pan from heat and sieve syrup into a sterilised glass jar and cool completely before storing in the fridge.

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