Mixed Vegetables & Beancurd

This is an "all-in-one" dish. There are more steps involved compared to the others dishes I posted, but still quite easy to prepare. Here I cook in larger portion as the leftovers can be reheated with rice for my next meal, which helps to cut down time spent cooking. If you are preparing it as one of a few dishes for your meal, you could reduce the quantities given.

Ingredients:

• one packet frozen mixed vegetables (carrot & peas). I use an organic packet which weighs about 284g
• 2 tomatoes
• 8 small sausages about 5cm each. I use this because it's more convenient and both my husband & son like the taste. However I prefer to use minced meat (whether chicken, pork or beef) whenever it's available, anywhere about 250-350g is good enough, depending on your preference of proportion of meat to vegetable (I prefer about 250g)
• 2 packets of tofu (beancurd), each weighing 300g
• 1 heaped teaspoon of chopped garlic
• 1 heaped teaspoon of chopped ginger
• 1 heaped teaspoon of chopped shallot (I have a bottle of deep fried shallot which my mum prepared for me to keep in the fridge, I use this for convenience & to help cut down cooking time too)
• 2 tablespoon cooking oil
• 2 tablespoon cornflour with 2 tablespoon water (as cornflour mixture)

Seasoning:

• half teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon soya sauce

Sauce:

• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon chicken stock sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 400ml hot water

Method:

• thaw, wash & drain the frozen mixed vegetables & sausages
• wash & dice the tomatoes
• cut the sausages into slices (if you use minced meat instead of sausages, you have to marinate it first with 1 teaspoon each of salt, sugar, soya sauce, sesame oil, cornflour and a dash of pepper)
• rinse & drain the beancurd
• heat 1 tablespoon oil in wok, add garlic, ginger, shallot. When fragrant, add mixed vegetables, tomatoes, sausages (or minced meat) & seasoning. Stir fry for 3 minutes on high heat. Ladle out & put aside
• pour the sauce ingredients listed into the wok. When boiling, add the 2 blocks of beancurd, cover & cook for 3 minutes on medium heat. Carefully ladle onto serving bowl
• continue to heat the sauce over high heat, add cornflour mixture & stir well for 2 minutes
• add the vegetables prepared earlier
• stir briskly for just half a minute to mix
• pour over beancurd

There, you have a colourful & nutritious dish!

Meat Patties

After you make the meat patties, either steam them or pan-fry them, depending on your taste & preference.

Ingredients:

• minced meat (I used pork, you can choose your preferred meat), about 300 g

Seasoning:

• half teaspoon salt
• half teaspoon sugar
• quarter teaspoon pepper
• one tablespoon soya sauce
• half teaspoon sesame oil
• one tablespoon corn flour

Method:

• combine minced meat & seasoning, mix well, let stand for 10 minutes
• take a heaped tablespoon of meat and roll into a ball between your palms, then press lightly to flatten, continue for all, making about 12 small patties
• if you prefer it pan-fried, heat one-and-a-half tablespoon of oil in a wok or frying pan, fry on both sides, approximately 5 minutes each side
• if you prefer the steamed version, put the patties in a plate & place them in a steamer when the water is boiling, cook for about 10 minutes

Other than using different cooking methods (maybe you can try deep frying?), you could also experiment with varying the seasoning or adding other ingredients (eg carrot) to get the flavour & texture you like.

Broccoli & Carrot With Minced Meat

This is basically a stir-fry dish. If you have small kids, minced meat will be easier for them to eat than sliced meat. The red & green colours perk up their appetite too, especially if you have time to make some patterns like cutting the carrot & broccoli stem into shapes of stars, moons, triangles etc. They will enjoy the meal more by "hunting" for the next star or guessing what shape they'll get next. If you prepare the ingredients beforehand, it takes only a short while to cook.

Ingredients:
- 1 "ball" of broccoli
- 1 small carrot
- 100gm minced meat
- 1 heaped teaspoon of chopped garlic
- 1 tablespoon oil / sesame oil

Marinade:
- half teaspoon salt
- quarter teaspoon sugar
- half teaspoon vinegar
- dash of pepper
- half teaspoon cornflour
- half teaspoon soy sauce

Seasoning:
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- cornflour mixture (1 teaspoon corn flour dissolved in some water)

Method:
- marinate minced meat with above marinade sauce
- wash broccoli thorougly, cut & separate the stem from the "flowers". Remove some of the tough skin / fibre on surface of the stem. Cut stem into thin slices, & separate "flowers" into small florets
- wash carrot. Peel & cut into thin slices
- prepare garlic
- heat wok, add 1 tablespoon oil
- add garlic & stir-fry until fragrant
- add marinated minced meat, stir fry for a minute until almost cooked, ladle out & set aside
- add a few drops of oil / sesame oil if necessary into wok, add carrot & broccoli stem slices, stir-fry about a minute over high heat
- add broccoli florets, stir-fry for 2 minutes or until the colour change
- add minced meat from earlier on, stir-fry a bit, add some water / hot water
- add oyster sauce & soy sauce, continue to stir-fry for another minute
- stir corn flour mixture into the wok
- turn off heat, cover wok for short while, serve hot with rice or porridge

Tips:
- if you cut the carrot or broccoli stem into various shapes, don't slice them too thin, otherwise they'll break in the stir-frying process

If I only want to cook one dish for a meal, this is one of the dishes I prefer, as it's quite balanced in nutrition.

Steamed Beancurd

Another simple dish! One of my favourites too. Also a good source of protein & easy for kids to eat.

Ingredients:
- 1 box of beancurd (tofu), about 300gm
- minced meat (chicken or pork or beef, whichever you prefer), about 100gm, more is ok too

Marinade sauce (suggested):
- half teaspoon salt
- half teaspoon sugar
- one teaspoon soy sauce
- one teaspoon oyster sauce
- half teaspoon corn flour
- dash of pepper

Method:
- marinate minced meat with suggested sauce for 10 minutes. You can play around with the quantity or type of marinade according to your taste. For example, chopped garlic, ginger, chilli or a little vinegar could be added too
- wash & rinse the whole chunk of beancurd, spread minced meat evenly onto the top
- steam with boiling water for about 10 minutes until cooked

Try it. I like to eat it with cooked rice.

Steam Eggs

I've tried steaming eggs for many times and been figuring out what is the best way to do it. The following is the most basic.

Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 6 parts of water (see "tips" given below)
- pinch of salt
- dash of pepper (optional)
- a few drops of sesame oil (optional)

Method:
- boil water in steamer
- break the eggs into a bowl
- beat them with fork until whites & yolks are mixed evenly
- stir in the water, salt, sesame oil, pepper
- remove bubbles from surface if you want the surface to turn out nice
- steam over low heat for about 8 minutes or until the eggs set (turn solid)

Tips:
- this is how to decide how much water to add: 1 part = half an eggshell full of water. For every egg, add 3 parts water. Some people prefer to use same quantity of water to egg. You can try either. The less water you use the firmer the end result, & vice versa.
- do not use high heat, otherwise your egg custard will have many bubble "holes" in it when cooked.

This dish is easy to cook & easy to eat, especially for young children or when you don't feel like chewing, haha. However if you want a more sophisticated variation, you could always add other ingredients to this basic recipe, like adding minced meat into the egg mixture before you steam, or sprinkling fried shallot, spring onion & red chilli onto the dish just before it's cooked, etc etc. Again it all depends on your tastes, your moods, your preferences, your creativity!