Beef & Mushroom - Pot Pie / Puff

I was looking for a pot pie recipe and came across one that I thought is simple and yet tasty. It sure was! My only regret; I should have made more! 

The taste was somewhat familiar; something that we had eaten in Singapore but can't remember where / the name of the bakery. Yes, it has been too long....hahaha.

Anyway, I am so glad for the frozen puff pastry that can easily be bought here, in The Netherlands. Ohhh....did you know? Sometime before 2000 BC, a recipe for chicken pie was written on a tablet in Sumer. Ancient Greeks are believed to have originated pie pastry.

Now, back to the recipe:

* The traditional beef and mushroom combo infused with rosemary and garlic. 

 - 700g beef, cut into 1cm pieces 
- 2 tbs plain flour
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 250g mushrooms, cut into 4 (depending on the size of the mushrooms that you have.)
- 1 onion, coarsely chopped, 2 cloves garlic crushed (I blended them using the dry blender.)
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 beef cube stock, 370ml water
- 2 tbs tomato paste (I used tomato sauce/ketchup)
- 1 egg, slightly beaten
- puff pastry

Method:

1) Place the cut beef in a large bowl. Add the flour, salt and pepper. Then mix them evenly. Heat half the oil in a pan over medium heat. Add half of the beef and cook till brown. Repeat with the remaining oil and beef.
2) Add the mushroom, onion, garlic and rosemary to the pan and cook till the onion softens. Add the beef, water, stock, tomato sauce and simmer. Reduce heat. Cook (covered) for an hour.
3) Add salt and pepper to taste. After it is done, set aside for an hour to cool. Then, transfer to a container and cover it. Place in the fridge for about 2 hours to cool completely.

** Note: For pot pie, the sauce would be slightly watery, not as thick for the puff.

4) Preheat the oven (follow the instructions on the package of the frozen puff pastry). After filling the puff pastry, seal it with water and then brush the pies with the egg. For pot tie, fill about half of the bowl with the fillings. Then cover it with the puff pastry. You may want to brush it with eggs to seal it.

** Don't let the frozen puff pastry to thaw completely. When it's just thawed, work quickly or you may stretch it, making it too thin and prevent it from puffing. 

Pot Pie is a type of meat pie with a top crust, generally made of flaky pastry.

Ayam Minang / Gulai Ayam

Padang eten komt uit de keuken van het Minangkabau volk van West-Sumatra, Indonesië. Het is beroemd om zijn rijke smaak van kokosmelk, pittige chili en specerijen.

Ayam Minang / Gulai Ayam is één van de meest populaire gerechten.

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I have always loved food from Padang, West Sumatra and it is very popular in Singapore among the Malay community. It's known for its rich flavour - coconut milk, spicy chili and spices.

Ayam Minang / Gulai Ayam is one of the most popular dishes. 

Ingredients for 1kg of chicken:  

- chicken drumlets (marinate in salt and tumeric powder. then fry till it's half-cooked. You may choose to skip this step. It's just that we prefer the chicken to be slightly 'fried'.)

- 1cm galangal *

- 1cm ginger * 

- 2 med-sized red onions, 3 cloves of garlic  *

- 1-2 candlenuts *

- 6 red chillies * (you may add more if you prefer it to be spicier)

- 2 lemongrass, 4 pieces of lime leaves *, about 1/2 teaspoon of tumeric powder

 (* Blend all ingredients)

- coconut cream
- a cube of chicken stock
-salt to taste (I did not add.)
- tamarind juice (I used the dried asam keping / gelugur)

Method;

1) Heat up some oil in the pot. Add the blended ingredients and fry it till its done, slightly dry.
2) Add some water (3-4 cups. Do not add all the water as you do not want the gravy to be too watery. You can always add more later). When the water is boiled, add the chicken.
3) Then add the chicken stock. When it's dissolved, add the coconut cream. (I used about 100-150ml.)
    (It depends on the brand of the coconut cream that you got and how creamy you would like it.)
4) Add the tamarind juice / asam gelugur and cook it till the gravy thickens.
5) Serve with rice or 'lontong'.

Pad Thai

Pad Thai is een bekend gerecht uit de Thaise keuken - geroerbakte rijst noedels met gemalen pinda’s en rode peper eroverheen. Hoe maak je het?

Pad Thai is a popular Street Food rice noodle dish in Thailand. There are a few variations that I've seen online and I've chosen this recipe as I think it's quite easy to cook, if you have most of the ingredients. 

Ingredients for a packet of rice noodles (5mm) 375g :
* 6-7 tbs oil
* 4 cloves of garlic (minced finely)
* 15 pieces of prawns (can also use chicken filet)
* tofu (cut small and fry)
* 3 eggs (scramble and fry)
* bean sprouts (I did not weigh, it was about 4 handfuls.)
* peanuts (roasted and grounded)
* lime
* Chives (I did not use as I was shocked at how expensive they were.
   I used spring onion instead.
* half medium sized red onion (chopped). (I added this.)

Seasoning:
* 3-4 tbs tamarind juice or rice vinegar (I used the tamarind paste and dissolve it in water.)
* 5 tbs fish sauce
* 5 tbs sugar (I used 4 tbs)
* 6 tbs water
* 2 tsp chili powder (I used 4 tsp)

Method:

1) Boil the dried rice noodles. Follow the instructions on the package. The rice noodles should be soft (chewy and not mushy) after boiling. Rinse the boiled noodles with cold running water. 

2) Mix all the ingredients in the Seasonings in a small bowl. (Ensure that the sugar dissolves completely.) Set aside.

3) Heat up the wok on high heat and add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and garlic and stir until you smell the aroma.  

4) Add the prawns and stir till they change colour. Then add the noodles and Seasoning. Mix them evenly. Add the bean sprouts and continue stirring till they are cooked. When they are done, add the tofu and eggs and mix thoroughly. 

5) Add the grounded peanuts and mix through. You may prefer to serve this at the side of the plate when serving instead. 

6) Serve the noodles on a plate with a lime wedge (grounded peanuts and crushed peppers) and sprinkle some spring onion/chives. 

 

Keema

Keema 

Een Indiase gehaktschotel met geurige kruiden. Lekker met naanbrood of chapati en een frisse salade.


Keema is a traditional meat dish from the Indian subcontinent. It is typically minced mutton curry (lamb or goat) with peas or potatoes. Keema is also sometimes used as a filling for samosas or naan













Ingredients:
200g minced meat 
1 large onion, 1 inch ginger, 2 cloves garlic - blend
1 potato (diced) - You may want to dice it and then boil it first.
1 tsp coriander and cumin mixture (blend/powder)
2 tsp meat powder meat (I used more)
1/2 cup water
coriander leaves (sliced)
1 cup peas
salt and seasonings to taste
ghee/oil (or mix of both)

1) Saute blended ingredients. Add in the curry powder.
2) Add the minced meat until its cooked. And then the potatoes and water.
3) Cook for 5-10 mins. (longer if you do not boil the potatoes first) *Some people add diced tomatoes 
    too.
4) Add the peas. salt and seasoning to taste.
5) Simmer for about 5 mins.

Can be eaten with Chapati / Naan / Prata / French Loaf...You can even cook further to use this as fillings for Samosa. 

Nasi Goreng Tom Yum / Tom Yum Fried Rice

Tom Yum is bekend als soep maar kan ook als nasi, noodles of pasta worden bereid.

Tom yum, een pikante heldere soep, wordt gezien als een van de bekendste Thaise gerechten. Ook in de buurlanden Laos, Maleisië en Singapore wordt tom yum geserveerd.

"Tom" betekent "koken" en "yum" refereert aan een pittige en zure Thaise salade. "Tom yum" is dus een Thaise pikante en zure soep.
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Tom Yum is usually prepared as soup can also be prepared as fried rice, noodles or pasta.
Tom yum, a spicy clear soup, is one of the most famous Thai dishes. It is also served in the neighbouring countries; Laos, Malaysia and Singapore.
"Tom" means "cooking" and "yum" refers to a spicy and sour Thai salad. "Tom yum" literally means spicy and sour soup.

The basic ingredients for tom yum are : 
lemongrass, lime leaves, bird's eye chillies, galangal

Most of the ingredients above are sold frozen at the toko. Getting a good lemongrass can be quite tricky. I bought a few from different brands to find one that has nice strong smell. 

http://blog.seasonwithspice.com

The ingredients for the nasi goreng:

- 3 cups of uncooked rice - cook and then leave to cool. It depends on the type of rice that you       get. If  it is the soft fluffy rice, it's best to cook it the night before.

- 3 eggs - fried and scrambled

- 2 red onions, 4 garlic (blended / sliced thinly)

- 30g (or more) of tom yam paste

- pak soi / cabbage

- 1 stalk of lemongrass (smashed)

- a few slices of galangal (I did not add.)

- 3-4 pieces of lime leaves

- 3 pieces of chicken thigh (cut small)

- 10 -12 pieces of prawns. 

- Fish sauce (optional)

Method:

1) Heat up some oil. Add the lemongrass, galangal, blended/sliced onions and garlic. Fry till fragrant.

2) Add the chicken till it's cooked. Then add the prawns, tom yam paste and fish sauce. Fry till the prawns are cooked.

3) Add the vegetables and lime leaves. Mix the ingredients.

4) Add the rice and mix the ingredients. Add salt to taste.

5) When the rice is hot, turn off the fire. Sprinkle with fried shallots(optional) before serving.