Mamo's Siu Mai Recipe~! Yahoo~!

I love cooking at home (as in in Taiping). Despite having problems to find certain ingredients in Taiping, I've always enjoy cooking at home because most of the time I don't need to prepare the ingredients cos Mamo will always buy most of the stuff needed and she and Vivian will always help up in cleaning and cutting the ingredients! So yes, the last trip I asked Mamo to prepare stuff for me to make her signature Siu Mai that we all love eating them just like that!
I'm skipping the ingredients as you will pick them up while you read through the entire process...

1) Mince some pork and shrimps together. Try not to mince the shrimps too much.

2) Put them in a mixing bowl together with some chopped water chestnuts.Mix them all well.

3) Now add in sufficient amount of soya sauce, pepper and sesame oil to taste. Mix them all well.

4) Add in some cornflour to soften the meat. Let the meat and shrimp marinate in the sauces and let it be in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

5) Then put some amount of the meat onto the middle of wanton skin, which you can easily find at any supermarket. Then wrap it up by pushing the skin up around the meat. You know how normal Siu Mais look like right? Lay the Siu Mais on a steal plate or steam-able plate.

6) Now comes the garnishing part! Steam or microwave one or two salted egg in a bowl and when it's cooked, take the yolk out and cut into small bits.

7) sprinkle them on top of the Siu Mais before sending them to steam in a wok! Steam them yummy Siu Mais for 10-15 minutes and you are done!

Honestly, I never thought Siu Mai can be so easy to make. I was really amazed when Mamo first made this for us to try few years back! Although it might not be as standard as those you can find at the restaurants, but for a homemade version, this recipe can make possibly better Siu Mais than some restaurants outside! I especially love it that Mamo adds in the water chestnuts to make the Siu Mais a little crunchier and juicer to bite! The minced pork and shrimp are also often used to make tasty Sui Gao and Wontan at home!

Now here are three small tips for you...
1. If you love to feel the flesh of fresh shrimps meat, you can also choose to use whole shrimps in stead of mincing them into the pork.
2. In stead of salted eggs yolk, you can also use carrot bits to garnish the Siu Mai. In fact, most Siu Mais outside have carrot bits on top.
3. If you look properly at the pictures, I left the excessive Wanton Skin 'flying' on top of the Siu Mais. Normally people will cut them off so that the Siu Mais look neater. But I left them there cos I love eating Wanton skin! :p

This is definitely a very simple recipe isn't it? Happy trying!

It's Siu Mais and Chinese tea for hi-tea for me!!!

Oh by the way, I also attempted Thai Mango Sticky Rice at home but it failed...

Looks really nice isn't it???? Who knows it was actually a failed project? :p
Well not to say it totally fail, but it was waaaaaaaayyyy to salty to be put into the mouth... Aiks~! :p

Awesome Wanton Mee @ Kwai Lerk Seafood Restaurant, Aulong

During my last trip home, Papo and Mamo brought me to Kwai Lerk for their famous Wanton Mee. To be honest, I was a bit reluctant at first because Wanton Mee is so common you can find it in almost all kopitiams or hawker centres in Taiping! But I gave it a try anywayz since I was sick of the few places we always go for lunch.Watch out for this stall you guys out there!!!
So this stall that sells Wanton Mee, also sells Mee Rebus so I ordered both to try.Mee Rebus! Lovely~!
This Wanton Mee is a MUST TRY!!!
The Mee Rebus is not bad at all, but still, cannot beat the one at Larut Matang Market although it's already quite close. But I totally fell in love with the Wanton Mee! The noodles are slightly thicker than a normal Taiping version's Wanton Mee, which is already thicker than the KL's. But the noodles are also more springy and cool to chew. Then because the noodles comes with the pork lard (oil), it tastes marvelous! Not to forget, the Char Siew and Wantons are also quite good! Oh totally unforgettable man!!! Slurp~~~!!!
And then Mamo went to tell the owner that I'm going to help promote their stall, they actually gave us two packets of the noodles to be takeaway free! Hahaha... That's just Mamo being Mamo lar... :pOur free Wanton Mee, Papo, Mamo and the uncle who owns the stall telling them story about himself...
Anywayz, possibly the nicest Wanton Mee I've ever tried so far. People in Taiping or people who are visiting Taiping should try it out! The shop is located right opposite the entrance of the Aulong Pasar! :)

Oscar movies! Yay~!

I'm so excited about the Oscar which will be happening in few days time! And I'm so glad that I've watched some of the nominated movies beforehand and now that I have some of my favourites, I'm getting extremely kan cheong about who are going to win awards this coming weekend (next Monday our time though)!
Anywayz, here are the three nominated movies I've watched...

Midnight in Paris
Directed and written by 'the' Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris looks and sounds a bit like Back to the Future, only this one, probably prettier settings. Duh... It's Paris!
Story wise, the fact that Owen Wilson's character, Gil learns about what he really wants in life and that his fiance isn't whom he really wants to spend the rest of his life with after going back to the olden days in Paris is pretty cool. I mean, at least it isn't all about the romance, but also learning something from it. Woody Allen is still good in that way. I admit at first I found the sudden ending of the movie too awkward but then after a while I think it actually makes sense.
Acting wise nothing fantastic though. The characters were simply too easy for the actors to carry. What a waste of such a fantastic cast! I mean, Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams aside, you got Marion Cotillard, Adrien Brody and Kathy Bates!
If you are watching it, make sure you listen to the music too! That's probably my favourite aspect of the movie! Having to say that, I think this movie is just average if you ask me to rate it. Not good enough to win 'Best Film' at the Oscar.

The Tree of Life
Now this is just what you call it an 'award-winning movie', in a bad way. Haha... No lar, what I meant is, it's really super artsy that you don't understand exactly what is it trying to say, although, from time to time, you will still be able to catch the messages (now it makes me sound artsy too).
Look, I actually understand the story of the movie. What I don't understand is why does it has to be presented in that way. In between the story there are scenes of sea water, sunlight, and even two weird dinosaur-looking animals hopping around... Which is, weird, isn't it? But I must admit, all these scenes were shot so beautifully! It's like looking at some moving arts! Well, that explains why the movie has been winning loads of awards... In the Cinematography category! Any photographers, cameramen and art directors should watch this! And yes, I do hope the movie will win for 'Best Cinematography' at the Oscar!
In my opinion, Jessica Chastain gave the best and most realistic performance in the movie. After watching her in Tree of Life and The Help (yes, the review will come next), it doesn't surprise me at all that she has been rated as one of best up-and-coming actresses! I love the acting of the boy (Hunter McCracken) who plays the younger Jack too. Sean Penn didn't say a word in the movie but well, to me, he is still so cool!!!!!
An artsy movie that is worth-watching to those artsy people...

The Help
Probably the best out of the three I've watched! I guess it's also because it isn't so artsy? LOL!
The beginning of the movie already put a smile on my face! When Aibileen told the little girl:"You is good, you is smart, you is important" and the girl smiled back to her... Wow, what an unforgettable scene! And it's only the beginning!
Well, The Help obviously is sooooo my type of movie! It's basically about racism and how those days when the white treated their black maids very badly. It pisses me off watching Jessica's Chastain's character! And I am glad that the story actually has someone who stood up for the blacks. What I also like about the movie is the fact that it is sometimes hilarious too! :D
And... What can I say about the cast? Honestly, such a lovely and strong cast! I'm loving Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer, and surprisingly Emma Stone too! Although I cannot decide whether Viola Davis should win 'Best Actress' or should it be Meryl Streep? I love both of them! The entire cast truly made the movie such a lovely and touching movie to watch!
Well I haven't watch the other nominated movies yet, but so far, The Help is my pick for 'Best Film'! It is so much better than Crash, the racism movie that won 'Best Film' few years back! Fantastic cast with great storyline, presented beautifully! :)

Stir-fry Cabbage and Tomato (tomato lovers will love this!)

This is sort of like a Mamo's signature dish which we eat a lot and love a lot growing up. But I must admit this is a dish strictly for the tomato lovers. Those who totally can't accept tomatoes will totally hate this.

It's extremely simple a dish. Let's see what you need to cook this dish.

Chopped garlic, shrimps (optional), cabbage cut into pieces, tomato cut into quarters, corn flour, oyster sauce or salt to taste.

What to do:
1) Simmer the garlic in hot oil till brownish.

2) Add in the shrimps and tomato. In my case, I love my tomato to be mashed so that I can taste the tomato in the gravy, so I squeeze them in the wok or pan. Add some water if you wish.

3) Now add in the cabbage and stir well. Add some water and cover with lit to let it boil a bit.

4) Now add in the oyster sauce or salt to taste.

5) Pour in cornflour in water to thicken the gravy and you are done! :)

Easy right? Mamo sometimes add ginger slices in for an extra punch of taste. And to those vegans out there, you have an option to skip the shrimp and oyster sauce (or use vegetarian oyster sauce) to make it a vegetarian dish too! Absolutely yummy and healthy!!!

At home we normally have this with rice, of course. But when I was in Perth, I used to have this to go with spaghetti! Yeah I think my creativity in cooking started in Perth, especially when I'm sick of only red and white sauce for pastas! I would come up with some random Asian-style stir-fry dishes with loads of gravy to go with my pastas!
Happy trying! :D

Porky treat @ The Hungry Hog, SS15 Subang

Some time ago a colleague recommended this place which is not far away from our house and I was surprised at myself for not knowing about this restaurant any earlier.

Deardo and I went there for lunch one fine Saturday before we went back to Taiping for CNY. The restaurant is seriously simple but I love the fact that they use random different types of tables and chairs in the restaurant. That's so cute! And I can see the old aunty and uncle chilling out there, whom I assume are either the parents of the owner or the owner themselves.Such a homey place!

It's all about the oink oink oink!

Anywayz, as my post title suggested, it's a restaurant that serve basically nothing but PORK! I'm serious! Their menu, including drinks and desserts are only listed in a 2-page menu and every single dish has pork in it, including one of their desserts that says 'Bacon Ice-Cream'. What I like about the menu is that it has a variety of Western and Asian food. So you can find burgers and pork chops, as well as Thai Pork Rice or even Siew Yok (Roast Pork). So imagine if you love Western food, you can go with your parent who might prefer Asian food! Cool, right?

Siew Yuk, RM11.90.

Porky Chop, RM19.90.

3 Little Pigs, RM15.90.

I didn't like their Siew Yok so much mainly because I think we got the wrong part of the pig lar, it was a bit too fat to my liking. The Porky Chops also seems a little weird because of a weird part of the pig that they used, which I'm obviously unsure which part is it. It was just not pork 'chop'. But me being me, I love the mustard seed gravy that comes with the pork! Our favourite must be their signature 3 Little Pigs (cute name too!) which is a burger which comes with a pork patty, bacon, ham and cheese. It was simple but delicious although I actually think it would taste even better if the ham is grilled or fried too.

And very cute OINKNOUNCEMENT! :)

And very cute customer! :p

Together with two Chinese tea, the bill came up to RM55.80, which is quite cheap actually for that kinda food you are getting. I don't think it's the best pork-based-restaurant I've ever tried, but for small and not too fancy deco, food and cheaper price, The Hungry Hog is quite a good place for especially those pork lovers out there! And there are still so many other dishes to try out!!! I only had like three of them!!!

The Hungry Hog

71, Jalan SS15/4C,
47500 Subang Jaya,
Selangor
Tel: 012- 225 0877

好不同路线的两部电影......

错过了贺岁片，过了很久才再踏进电影院去，就连续两天看了两部中文电影，而且是两部超不同路线的电影。还好，两部电影都不错的说！*满足~~~*

逆战 The Viral Factor
虽然听闻这部电影在香港的票房很不错，但还是带着平常心去看这部电影，毕竟票房实在不能代表一切......
逆战就是一部动作片嘛，所以我真的没想到里头的故事情节竟然可以那么的棒！好啦，动作方面可以过关，可以说由头到尾都是action-packed，看得我也特别紧张！要挑的就可能是少了武打，全都靠武器。
最难得的是，除了动作，由两位主角牵引出来的故事竟然可以那么的感人、那么的符合逻辑。简单的说，我喜欢！比起那些超cheesy的英雄救美啦、男主角为了女主角而不能下决定，这个兄弟亲、亲情更适合我的胃口。真的要给编剧的一个鼓励的掌声！
无可否认，好的故事、好的动作，还是要好的演员。逆战的成功，还是一大半要归功于演员们。谢霆锋一贯的‘烂仔’角色，一点也难不倒他，只是我想是时候挑战别的角色了吧？Deardo和我也在讨论着导演为什么偏偏就要找周杰伦来演这个角色，我只能说，很可惜，在香港差不多年纪的演员中并没有一个像他那么有人气、没有他那么大牌、更没有他的经验。老实说，他的演出有惊喜，真的！从来不懂欣赏他的演技的我，竟然觉得还不错！当然还是有几个场面我觉得表情好像怪怪的，但overall真的有进步！*拍手~~~*而且，套Deardo的话，电影最棒的地方就是没有逼周杰伦讲广东话或英语！当然，演他们俩的父母亲得廖启智和金燕玲也让电影生色不少！还有久违的姜皓文和马来西亚童星李馨巧也很棒！
你问我的话，我给四颗星！真的是近年来少见的超棒中文动作电影！再加上整部电影超过一半都在大马取景，更值得一看！

结婚那件事 The Wedding Diary
结婚那件事是一部蛮单纯的电影，就是单纯的想让你知道“结婚”到底是怎么样的一件事。
故事说的是穷光蛋娶了有钱人家的女儿，为了面子、为了不要“衰”给人家看，搞出的一堆趣事。当中也当然带着许多得messages，叫你如何经营婚姻、甚至父子、母女情。
我喜欢它的故事中的现实感，感觉这一切都会发生在每一个couple的身上，所以看得很过瘾。喜欢它的戏剧感，不会太夸张（尤其不像一般新马喜剧那么夸张又不好笑)，就是点到就止。只是不喜欢后半部较cheesy的交代上一代和下一代的关系的结局。
两位主角阿牛和江若琳的演出只能说ok啦，毕竟也不是什么难搞的角色。但说真的，单靠外形就很符合角色，所以选角选得真好！喜欢陈建彬、朱厚仁、惠英红的演出，更惊觉陈泓宇也可以那么邋遢、那么“偕星”！超赞！
这部电影不能说超级好看，但如果你也喜欢看比较现实的电影的话，那你一定会喜欢它。我不清楚导演和编剧是不是大马人，如果是就值得我们开心了！希望他们继续加油，让大马电影有更多的希望和色彩啦！:)

Stir-Fry Choy Sum and Roast Pork with Sha Cha Sauce

What do you normally do with leftover Char Siew (Roast Pork)?

During festive seasons Ah Ma would fry them with dark soya sauce and sugar, which I don't really fancy. Normal days we would bring them back to feed the dogs.
But the other day I tried something new. Well, perhaps not entirely new, but because Mamo had a bottle of Sha Cha Sauce (it was vegetarian though), I've decided to add it into the dish. For my earlier adventures with Sha Cha Sauce see here.

So what do you need?

Chopped garlic, Char Siew, shrimps (optional), Choy Sum or Kailan and Sha Cha Sauce.

Now the simple instructions...

1) Heat up your pan or wok with some oil. Simmer the chopped garlic till brownish.

2) Now add in the Char Siew and shrimps. Stir till shrimps turn red.

3) Add in Sha Cha Sauce and stir well.

4) Now add in the Choy Sum or Kailan and fry them until they are cooked. You can add a little water if you wish to.

And ta da...

It's a simple and delicious dish that has both protein (meat and seafood) and fiber (vegetable) and goes perfectly well with your rice. The only thing I didn't like was the vegetarian taste from the Sha Cha Sauce (guess Char Siew are still meant to be bad and meaty, not vegetarian), still pretty much in love with the original Sha Cha Sauce! It's just so yummy!

Anywayz, I absolutely love Sha Cha Sauce! It tastes a little bit like in between BBQ Sauce and Satay Sauce and there are so much you can play with it! Just grab a bottle of it whenever you see them at the supermarket! Add them into your dish, fry noodles with it, put it into your steamboat soup or even just use it as a dip like sambal!

Now I feel like I'm promoting Sha Cha Sauce for the Taiwanese! :p

Hidden gem @ Lai Thai Market, Happy Mansion

I went to Lai Thai Market couples of week earlier before CNY, when I was down with flu and cough... Unfortunately. ;(

Anywayz, Deardo bought me to Lai Thai Market, which I would otherwise call it a 'hidden gem' because wow, looking at the super simple restaurant, you wouldn't expect such nice and original Thai food!!! Oh wait, they aren't even a restaurant! It's a Thai market below some old flats where you can find all kind of imported Thai grocery and food. The owner just decided to make one half of the shop into a mini food stall with limited tables and chairs. Mind you, Deardo said the place is always jam-packed during normal lunch hours with people working around PJ area squeezing themselves into the little shop!

Simple, simple, simple is the name!

Of course, I didn't miss the chance to try the famous 'Nam Tuk', or simply Thai Pork Noodles, but because of my sickness, I had to go for the clear soup one while Deardo had the spicy one. Out of bias-ness, I also ordered a Pad Thai to share (I love Pad Thai, you don't know meh? :p)

Our yummy 'Nam Tuk's~! Must try whenever you visit Lai Thai Market!

Very home-cooked Pad Thai.

The pork noodles with the thinner version of Kuey Teow was awesome! It's a bit like those Vietnamese beef noodles, only this one with pork and loads of pork livers which I normally don't like! Their pork livers were cut very thinly and they were so soft and yummy I couldn't help but finish all of them! Love them! Slurp~! I tried Deardo's spicy version of the noodles and it was spicy! Good choice for those who love to challenge their taste buds! I didn't find the Pad Thai very nice though, perhaps because there weren't any seafood except for the dried prawns.

So obvious I was sick and looked like I just woke up minutes ago....

Rare case: Deardo enjoying spicy food so much!

I think the reason why the food are so yummy was because they are all cooked by real Thais who own the shop. And I love the little space and its atmosphere because hey you actually see the aunty playing with her grandchild with her son or daughter and daughter-in-law or son-in-law like it's they are at home! I also think the price is reasonable. Three dishes with a bottle of imported Thai Green Tea, we spend RM19 for that early dinner. I assume each of the dish cost RM5 lar, which is acceptable.
Their Som Dtam (some mango salad or something) is quite famous too but it's super spicy I heard, gotta try it next time when I'm not sick... :)

Lai Thai Market

AG-3, Block A,
Happy Mansion,
Jalan 17/13,
Section 17,
Petaling Jaya
(Same flat where Food Foundry is located at)
Tel: 03-7954 4688