Rice: Chicken and peanut congee with conpoy

Marky and I were having congee cravings the other day so I invited him over my house yesterday for a congee dinner. It was not just any normal congee because of the additional conpoy. (Yum yum) Conpoy is great with congee as it add a tinge of sweetness to the congee.

As Marky is a self-proclaimed carnivore, I had to add in generous servings of meat to satisfy him. Chicken thigh meat was choosen as that's my favourite part of the chicken too =)

As my mum was at home, she can't resist not helping me with the preparations and cooking (Typical mum - Can't leave her usual tasks to others. Must get her hands on everything.) And so, both of us prepared dinner together. (With lots of nagging here and there.) However, it was good that she helped out as there was quite a bit of preparatory work to be done.

A tip from my mum
Adding some oil and salt into your rice when cooking will ensure that your congee will have a good consistency.

The end results ----> Thick, sweet and tasty congee which blends well with the ingredients. Great for days when you feel like having something light. CCC

Chicken and peanut congee (Serves 5-6)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of rice
Chicken stock (Instructions below)
2 chicken thighs, shredded
1 can of braised peanuts
A small handful of dried bee hoon, deep fried
1 stalk of spring onion, chopped
Dough fritters (you tiao)
Egg (1 per person)

Method:
1) Season the chicken thighs and bones with salt and leave them for around 1/2 hr before washing off the salt.

2) Cook the chicken stock by boiling chicken bones, chicken thighs, conpoy, 1 carrot and 1/2 a chicken stock cube together.

3) Boil for at least 1 1/2 hrs.

4) Take the chicken thighs out and season with sesame oil (Sprinkle light soy sauce if the meat is still bland.)

5) Place washed rice in a pot and pour chicken stock to cover the rice. Add in the conpoy and some carrots to increase the sweetness of the congee.

6) Cook the rice over small fire and stir occasionally to prevent the rice from sticking.

7) When the congee reached the last stage of cooking (3rd picture), stir continuously to make the rice grains break up further to give a thick consistency.

8) Ensure that the congee is boiling before pouring into a bowl and crack an egg directly into the congee.

9) Add the ingredients and garnishing.

From far left (clockwise): Dough fritter, deep fried bee hoon, shredded chicken thigh meat, braised peanuts, spring onions, egg

Interruption to my foodblog: Practicum and thoughts

After completing 10 weeks of practicum, I could finally heave a sigh of relief. Although it was a period full of ups and downs, I was glad that I've put in all I have to teach them because I know that they recognised my efforts.

The rewards of teaching didn't come until the last day when I read all the cards given to me by the kids. It was then that I feel much appreciated and touched by them...I really miss teaching them but at least I can still look forward to the chalet that was organised by Adeline for them.

Seafood: Veggies: Breaded fish and mushroom potato

I've invited my dear friend recently for dinner at my house and as usual, she was my guinea pig. Haha...It wasn't exactly the best meal due to the saltiness of the fish. My dearest mummy told me to add more salt to the fish and in the end, the fish was really salty =Þ I shall adjust the salt next time.

I enjoyed eating the mushroom potato most as it was a combination of my favourite food. However, my dear friend commented that the mushroom taste was not very strong and I found out later that it was because of the mayonnaise that was added to make the consistency better.

Clockwise from bottom right: Salty breaded dory (A mishap), oven baked white button mushrooms with sauteed onions on a bed of carrots, broccoli, mushroom potato.

My favourite of the day --> Mushrooms, potatoes and onions

Things to do beforehand
- Sauté 1 yellow onion with olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Sauté a mixture of shiitake and white button mushrooms with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Method
1) Boil potato till semi-soft (If you do not have time to bake the potato for 45mins)

2) Brush some olive oil on the oven tray.

3) Cut off one end of the potato so that it can stand.

4) Then, sprinkle a little salt and a drizzle of olive oil on the potato's skin

5) Bake @ 175°C till soft and scoop out the insides of the potato and place into a bowl.

6) Mix in the mushrooms and add a small dollop of mayonnaise for better consistency. Sprinkle some salt and pepper. (Note that mayonnaise covers the taste of the mushrooms so refrain from using too much if u like a strong mushroom taste)

7) Scoop the mixture back into the potato skins.

8) Drizzle some olive oil on the top of the mixture and send it back into the oven for another 15mins or so.

9) Add the sauté onions on top of the potato for garnishing

Oven baked button mushrooms with just salt, pepper and a abit of butter on it.

Although this hasn't been the best meal but I shall try to improve on this the next time round.

Meat: Bacon wrapped asparagus & Bacon wrapped water chestnut

It has been a very long break of 10 weeks. Finally, I have the time to update my blog. And as noticed by Marky, I've gotten a complaint about not updating since my practicum has ended. (You know who u are...lol)

Anyway, I'm going to recommend a very simple yet delicious finger food that is great for parties or BBQs ---> Bacon wrapped asparagus & Bacon wrapped water chestnut.

There are actually a variety of ways that you can cook this for example, frying, baking and barbequing. I actually prefer baking but my mum commented that frying on a non-stick pan is better as it is more crisp. I've given you the choices, it's now up to you to choose your favourite cooking methods =)

The reason why this is a hit among my family, friends and I is because of the heavenly combination of the salty bacon and the crisp vegetables. My favourite is the water chestnut as it doesn't shrink or turns soft when cooking and its sweetness really complements the bacon very well.

Enough of saying.. Let's get on with the extremely easy recipe!


Bacon wrapped asparagus/water chestnut










Ingredients
Bacon strips
Baby asparagus, divide into 4 bunches. Ard 4-5cm each (You may opt to use large asparagus)
Water chestnuts, washed, skinned and cut into halves
Tomato sauce (Optional, but I find that the bacon taste nicer when you brush a little on top)
Chinese Parsley (Coriander), chopped (Optional, but I also prefer to have this)
Black pepper

Toothpicks to skewer the bacon and vegetables.

Method
1) Preheat your oven to 200ºC (May vary from oven to oven)

2) Place 3 or 4 pieces of asparagus on a slice of bacon and wrap the vegetable with the bacon. (If you find the bacon too long, you may want to cut the bacon into half.)

3) Skewer with a toothpick to secure it.

4) Do the same for the halved chestnuts.















5) Once you have all your skewered bacons, place them flat on the baking tray.

6) Brush some tomato sauce over the bacon then sprinkle black pepper and chopped chinese parsley over the top.

7) Bake for 10-12minutes or until bacon is crisp and asparagus bundle is tender.