Cooking Task #4: Chili Crabs

Poor little crabs…

Ingredients:
2 kilos crabs
1 tbsp cooking oil
3-5 pieces chillies, sliced
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 knob ginger, grated
1 cup tomato ketchup
¼ cup chilli sauce
¼ cup Chinese wine (I used Mompo)
2 cups chicken stock (I just used plain water)
2 stalks onion leeks
Dash of sesame oil
2 cups Sprite (This was Mommy’s idea)

Procedure:
1. Cook crabs in Sprite.

2. Pull out the outer shells. Remove the lungs.

3. Split the body into quarters, and crack the claws.

4. In a large wok, heat cooking oil. Stir fry chillies, garlic and ginger until fragrant. Stir in tomato ketchup, chilli sauce and wine. Pour in chicken stock. Let simmer until thick. (I added 1 tbsp of cornstarch dissolved in cold water).

5. Add quartered crabs, mix well and simmer for a few minutes. Stir in leeks and sesame oil.

The finished product…

Chili Crabs for Dinner

Based on the recipe from “The Best of Food Magazine” by the ABS-CBN Publishing, Inc. (2001).

Cooking Task #3: Turbo Chicken

This one is so easy; even a pre-schooler can do it.

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
2 small butter cubes
2 packets Ajinomoto Ginisa Mix (7 g each)
Soy sauce
Pandan leaves

Procedure:
1. Rub the chicken with salt, pepper, Ginisa Mix, and soy sauce. Slide 2 small butter cubes into the breast pockets.

2. Stuff chicken with pandan leaves, then tie the legs.

3. Place in turbo broiler.

4. Set the temperature at 200 °C, and cook for 60 minutes.

DONE! Now get a plate and eat!

Cooking Task #2: Fish Fillet w/ Tartar Sauce

For first-time visitors of this blog who are not great fans of cooking: Don’t worry, this isn’t a cooking blog. I just wanted to chronicle my cooking experiences.

While cooking the tuna carbonara [from my previous post], I was simultaneously cooking fish fillet.

Ingredients of Fish Fillet:
1 pack Pangasius fillet (prime cream dory)
All-purpose flour
1-2 eggs
Japanese bread crumbs

Procedure:
1. Defrost cream dory.

2. Heat corn oil in a small deep saucepan.

3. Cut dory into [not-so-]thin strips.

4. Coat dory strips with flour.

5. Dip in beaten egg.

6. Roll on Japanese bread crumbs.

7. Deep fry until golden-brown.

Ingredients of Tartar Sauce:
1 hard-boiled egg
1 tbsp minced onion (preferably white onion)
1 tbsp pickled relish
¾ cup mayonnaise
1 tsp mustard
Salt
Pepper

Procedure:
1. Mince hard-boiled egg in a small bowl.

2. Add onion.

3. Add pickled relish. (I didn’t do this because our mayonnaise already has pickles).
4. Add ¾ cup of mayonnaise.

5. Add 1 tsp. mustard.

6. Mix everything together.

7. Add salt and pepper, if desired.

So what’s for lunch?

Ta-daaaa…!

Tuna Carbonara + Fish Fillet w/ Tartar Sauce

Cooking Task #1: Tuna Carbonara

The Silent Spectator is proud because for the first time, she was able to cook something by herself! (Well, not really, since her mom was there to guide her).

As the title suggests, T.S.S. cooked Tuna Carbonara. Here are the ingredients:

1 pack penne (500 g)
1 can plain tuna (6.4 oz/180 g)
1 can hot and spicy tuna (6.4 oz/180 g)
1 pack all-purpose cream (250 mL)
1 egg
1 red bell pepper
2 cloves garlic
1 onion
Salt
Black Pepper
Parmesan cheese

Preparing the pasta:
1. Boil water in a large casserole.

2. Add the penne and boil it for 14 minutes. Sprinkle a little salt.

3. Check if the penne is already al dente, then drain the water using a colander/strainer.

Sautéing the tuna:
1. Pound garlic using mortar and pestle.

2. Mince red bell pepper and onion.

3. Sauté garlic in a large casserole until golden-brown. Add onion and red bell pepper.

4. Add 2 cans of tuna (one is plain; the other one is hot and spicy).

5. Add 1 pack of all-purpose cream.

6. Add 1 egg.

7. Add the previously cooked penne.

8. Add Parmesan cheese, salt, and black pepper, if desired.

9. Decorate with parsley. Et voila!

Tuna Carbonara

The Silent Spectator didn’t want to wash any more utensils/glasswares; that’s why, as you can see, the pasta is still in the casserole.