Chow Times » Noodles

Vermicelli Soup

Suanne — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 16:00:51 +0000

The Vermicelli Soup is not really a soup but it’s like vermicelli in thick broth. This is great by itself as a vegetarian dish or you may add some meat in it to make it a dish in one pot.

This vermicelli dish reminded me of the dish my mom used to make for me when I’m sick. The texture of this dish is like ‘mien sien’.

If you like it to be more soupy, add more chicken broth and water. The vermicelli is like a sponge and by the time we served it, there is no more broth visible.

Ingredients

100g enoki mushroom
20g dried mushroom
100g vermicelli (made from mung bean)
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup water
1 egg
finely sliced green onion and carrot for garnishing
white pepper
sesame oil

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Vermicelli Soup (119 words)

Country Harvest Spaghetti

Suanne — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 09:00:39 +0000

Heidi partnered with Tanni in this week’s demonstration in the Gilmore Park Community Kitchen. Heidi made a Country Harvest Spaghetti and a jello dessert.

The Country Harvest Spaghetti is full of goodness of colourful vegetables and the sauce is flavoured with white wine. The slice apples add some crunchiness to the dish.

Ingredients

1 lb spaghetti
1 sweet bell pepper, sliced
1/2 lb asparagus, sliced
1/2 lb white mushroom, sliced
1/2 lb onion, sliced
1 medium size apple, slice
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons dried cranberries

For the sauce

2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Country Harvest Spaghetti (141 words)

Hokkien Mee

Suanne — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 09:00:08 +0000

During the Chinese New Year gathering as featured in the Yee Sang blog, I learned how to make Hokkien Mee from Jessica, the host of the gathering. Hokkien Mee is a very much missed noodle dish from Malaysia. Jessica made some very nice Hokkien Mee and she always gets requests from this group of Malaysian/Singaporean friends to make this dish during our gatherings.

Hokkien Mee is a noodle dish made from thick yellow noodles and fried in pork fat and dark soy sauce. The fried pork fat gives the crunch to this dish and you simple cant find any restaurants in Vancouver which will cook this dish the authentic way. I guess the reason is Vancouverites are very health conscious.

Ingredients

thick yellow noodle, soaked in hot water to soften and remove access oil
pork belly
pork liver
prawns
Choy Sum, a kind of Chinese greens
few cloves of garlic, chopped
thick dark soy sauce or cooking caramel
soy sauce
oyster sauce

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Hokkien Mee (212 words)

Hand Made Noodle

Suanne — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 09:00:50 +0000

Ming shared with us how to make noodle from scratch. She shared with us on how to make dumpling skin earlier. Hand made noodle is fresh and chewy. It does not any ‘gan sui’ taste in it compare with those store bought ones.

A bowl of hand made noodle is comfort food.

Ingredients

all purpose flour
cold water

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Hand Made Noodle (209 words)

Shallot Pork Sauce

Suanne — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 09:00:00 +0000

On the last cooking meet at South Arm Community Kitchen in 2007, Julie demonstrated two Chinese dishes. The first one is a very traditional Taiwanese dish called Shallot Pork Sauce.

The Shallot Pork Sauce is very fragrant as it has lots of shallots in it. The shallots are first fried to crisp and braised with the ground pork.

This Shallot Pork Sauce is great with noodles or rice. Kids will love this.

Ingredients

lean ground pork
shallot (use about 10 to 12 shallots for each pound of ground meat)
dark soy sauce
salt to taste
sugar to taste
ground black pepper to taste
water

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Shallot Pork Sauce (230 words)

Baked Spaghetti Squash

Suanne — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 09:00:00 +0000

Ben was away on his vacation at New York City and of course he had his precious camera with him. I had to borrow a point and shoot digital camera from Polly for the community kitchen photo shoot. Every time I use a new camera, I have trouble adjusting with the focusing and maneuver with the settings. So, the photos might not be as nice as those taken with the Rebel XT. Please bear with me.

Minoo demonstrated this Baked Spaghetti Squash in the South Arm Kitchen and also the Caring Place. Since this is the season for squash, it is a great way to introduce the Spaghetti Squash to the community kitchen.

The spaghetti squash (known as Sharkfin Melon to Chinese) is an oblong seed-bearing variety of winter squash. When cooked, the flesh falls away from the fruit in ribbons or strands like spaghetti or shark’s fin and is slightly sweet, crunchy and watery.

The Baked Spaghetti Squash is a complete meal with protein, fiber and dairy. It is an excellent healthy meal.

Ingredients

1 spaghetti squash
1 lb hamburger, extra lean
1 small onion, grated or diced
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
1 cup canned tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon basil leaves, crumbled and finely chopped

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Baked Spaghetti Squash (237 words)

Chinese Style Baked Chicken with Noodle Soup

Suanne — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 09:00:00 +0000

The South Arm Community Kitchen started off with Mr. Chung making a Chinese Style Baked Chicken. Mr. Chung is the room mate of Julie who had demonstrated many times in this kitchen. Julie had went back to Taiwan for the summer.

Mr. Chung told us that he learn his cooking from his mother and Julie. Julie, you are very lucky to have a husband who enjoys cooking.

Vanessa, the group leader of the South Arm Community Kitchen made a simple noodle soup to complement Mr. Chung’s chicken dish.

The chicken is moist and taste great. This is a very homey recipe and it uses the most common ingredients one can in a Chinese home.

Ingredients

2 chicken legs cut into smaller pieces
2 green onions, cut into one inch length
1/2 bulb of garlic, peeled and rough chopped
2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and rough chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon white pepper

Mr. Chung emphasized that the most important ingredients in this recipe is the garlic.

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Chinese Style Baked Chicken with Noodle Soup (146 words)

Chili Con Carne

Suanne — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 17:00:00 +0000

At the Gilmore Park Church community kitchen, Jean paired up with Tanni for this week’s demonstration. Sharing the load makes it easier for members as one do not have to come up with at least 2 dishes to fill the time slot.

Jean made a pot of Chili Con Carne, commonly known as Chili, is a spicy stew like dish with meat (beef or pork), chili peppers (if you prefer spicy), tomatoes, onions, beans other vegetables. The vegetarian version of Chili is known as Chili Sin Carne. Chile Con Carne in Spanish means “chili with meat”. Chili Con Carne is the official dish of the state of Texas in U.S.

Jean served the Chili Con Carne with whole wheat spaghetti. You may served it on rice or garlic toast too.

Even though Jean just prepare a dish for this week, she also brought homemade pumpkin raisin muffins to share with us. Thank you, Jean for your generosity.

Ingredients for Chili Con Carne

1 onion, finely diced
1 cup diced celery
1 lb lean ground beef
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 large can of tomato soup
1 large can of chopped tomatoes or chopped fresh tomatoes
1 large can of kidney beans, drained
1 can of sliced button mushroom or fresh ones
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon vinegar, to tenderize the meat

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Chili Con Carne (98 words)

Taro Noodle Soup

Suanne — Mon, 14 May 2007 09:00:00 +0000

Julie’s second dish is a Taiwanese Taro Noodle Soup. I have never had a noodle soup with Taro. It is something new that I learnt here. The taro gives the noodle soup added textures, soft and creamy.

This is an easy meal to prepare at home. Julie added some fish balls in her noodle soup. You may substitute the fish balls with other meatballs like beef, chicken, squid, pork, etc.

Ingredients

1 large piece of Taro, peeled and cut to bite-size
1 packet of vermicelli noodle
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
fish balls
lettuce, thinly sliced
a can chicken stock

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Taro Noodle Soup (88 words)

Chow Mien

Suanne — Wed, 07 Feb 2007 09:00:00 +0000

Yvonne made a Chinese Fried Noodles (Chow Mien) in the Caring Place Community Kitchen due to the popularity of this dish in another community kitchen which I did not attend.

It looked like a daunting task to make this noodle because Yvonne used a lot of ingredients. But, when making it at home, you can simplify the recipe by using your favourite meat or seafood and vegetables.

Yvonne served the Chow Mien in the wok itself because we could’nt find a platter big enough to hold the noodles.

Ingredients

2 packets of Chinese instant noodles
2 sweet peppers, sliced
2 onions, sliced
2 inches of ginger, sliced
3 to 4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 to 4 shallots, sliced
10 large button mushrooms, cleaned with paper towel and sliced
2 carrots, sliced into match sticks
a bunch of green onions, cut into 1 inch length
a bunch of cilantro, chopped, save some for garnishing
some bean sprouts
1 packet of large prawns, with shell removed
fried shallots for garnishing
toasted sesame seeds for garnishing
chicken stock

Marinates and Sauces

Soy sauce
Oyster sauce
Mirin or rice wine
Fish sauce
Corn starch
Salt and Pepper

Click on the link below for the instructions.

More after the jump. Click to read the rest of Chow Mien (266 words)