Western Chicken Stew (Pressure Cooker Cheat Method)

Ingredients 2 people

Chicken fillet 300g sliced (1 packet from Fairprice)
Potato X1 large ones diced

Carrots X2 medium sized diced

Button mushroom X4 pieces sliced

1 large yellow onion sliced
Flour 2 tbspn
Chicken stock 200ml
Sugar, salt & pepper to taste
Oil 3 tbspn

Instructions

1. Heat oil and onion under bake mode for about 5 minutes. The onions should turn translucent and soft.

2. Add the chicken, potato, carrots and mushrooms.

3. Sprinkle flour into it and stir it for 1 minute.

4. Add chicken stock and let it boil. Add sugar, salt and pepper to your liking.

5. Switch to stew mode for 15 minutes.

Irish Beef Stew (Pressure Cooker Cheat Method)

Ingredients 4 people

Beef chuck 600g diced (1 packet from Fairprice)
Potato X2 large ones diced
Carrots X3 medium sized diced
1 large yellow onion sliced
Flour 2 tbspn
Chicken stock 300ml
Dried parsley flakes 0.5 tspn
Dried basil flakes 0.5 tspn
Tomato paste (half a can of Hunt's 170g paste)
Sugar 2 tbspn
Sat & pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Sliced the onion and fry it under bake mode of the pressure cooker until it becomes translucent and soft.

2. Add the beef, potato, carrot, pasley, basil, tomato paste and stir fry for 5 minutes. The ingredients should start sticking to the pot which is a good sign. This is called browning.

3. Sprinkle the flour in and stir it.

4. Add the chicken stock and add sugar, salt and pepper to taste. Scrap the bottom of the pot with a spatula (all the goodness are in the brown bits)

5. Switch to steam/stew mode and pressure cook for 30 minutes.

Pro Tip: If the stew is too watery, switch back to bake mode and let it simmer for 10 minutes :)

Pan Fried Sticky Tofu

Ingredients 3 people

2 firm tofu (fortune brand from Fairprice)

Cornstarch 4 tbspn (to coat tofu)

Light soya sauce 2 tbspn

Maggi chilli sauce 2 tbspn

Rice vinegar 1tspn

Water 3 tbspn

Honey 4 tspn

Cornstarch 3tspn for sauce

Oil 3 tbspn

 Instructions

1. Remove tofu and drain. Place 2 power towels on a plate and the tofu on top of it. Place 2 more paper towels on top of the tofu and use a cast iron pot to weigh it down. Leave it for 30 minutes and change the towels at the 15^th minute mark.

2. Prepare the sauce. Add light soya sauce, maggi chilli, vinegar, water honey and cornstarch into a bowl

3. Slice the tofu into cubes and coat it with cornstarch using your fingers

4. Add oil and fry the tofu for 4 minutes. Pour the sauce over it and it should thicken in about 2 minutes.

Steamed Egg with Minced Pork

Ingredients 2 people

150g of minced pork or chicken
0.5 tspn of oil
2 eggs
A quarter cup of Chicken stock
Light soya sauce 0.5 tspn
Oyster sauce 0.5 tspn
Sesame oil 0.5 tspn
Shaoxing wine 0.5 tspn
If the chicken stock is not salted, add 0.5 tspn of soya sauce

Instructions

1. Marinade the pork in light soya sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, Shaoxing wine for 10 minutes

2. Add egg and stock into bowl and beat gently. Strain the mixture.

3. Add oil and stir fry the pork until it is not pink and break it up with your spatula. Avoid overcooking it.

4. Arrange the pork at the botton of a heat proof dish and pour the egg mixture over it. Cover the dish with cling wrap.

5. Steam it over high heat for 15 minutes. To test if it is cooked, insert a satay stick to the dish and some clear liquid to flow out.

Thai Basil Pork

Ingredients

Minced garlic 1 tbspn
2 shallots thinly sliced
Minced pork 200g or 1 packet from Fairprice
Thai basil leaves 1 handfull
Fish sauce 2tbspn
Sugar 1 tspn
Chili Padi 2 pieces chopped
White pepper 2 dashes
Oyster sauce 1tbspn
light soya sauce 1tbspn
dark soya 1tbspn
Oil 3 tbspn

Instructions

1. Marinade the pork in oyster sauce, pepper, light and dark soya sauce for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, mince the garlic, shallots and prepare the basil leaves.

3. Add the oil, garlic, shallots, chili padi and stir fry for 1 minute.

4. Add the pork, fish sauce, sugar and fry for 5 minutes.

5. Lastly, add the basil leaves and stir for about 1 minutes.

Pro Tip: Serve with white rice and a sunny side up :)

Hainanese Beef Stew

Ingredients 4 people

Beef chuck 300g
Beef flank 300g (Usually get my beef from Fairprice Xtra)
Fermented bean Tau Cheo 1.5 tbspn
Fermented bean curd Fu Ru 1 tbpn
Minced Garlic 1tbspn
White radish 1 piece cut into round disc 1cm thick
Carrots 2 big ones diced into slightly larger cubes
Oil 3tbspn
Water 400ml

Instructions

1. Cut the beef into bite sized pieces (across the grain)

2. Heat the oil and fry the garlic, tau cheo and fu ru for 1 minutes.

3. Add the beef and stir fry until the beef is slightly brown on the outside. (about 4 minutes)

4. Add water, carrot and white raddish. Let it boil for 10 minutes then simmer until the volume is reduced to half its original amount. It takes about 1 hour for the beef to soften.

5. Cheat method: Transfer the stew to a pressure cooker and switch to 'Stew/Soup' mode for 30 minutes. After releasing the vent, change to 'Bake/Saute' mode to boil off the excess soup.

6. Serve with rice, chilli padi and Chinese parsley :)

Pro tip: White raddish does not require a long time to cook. Add it 15 minutes after you have added the carrots or pause your pressure cooker to add it in when there's 15 minutes left on the timer.

Bee Hoon or Fried Rice

Ingredients 3 people

Minced garlic 1 tbspn
Eggs 2 pieces
Round fish cake 1 piece diced
Carrots diced
Half a Beijing cabbage diced (medium sized)
1 packet of chilli Bee Hoon
Salt 0.5 tspn
Pepper a few dashes
Fish sauce 2tbspn
Oyster sauce 2 tbspn
Oil 3 tbspn
Water a few sprinkle

Instructions

1. Soak the bee hoon in warm water for 2-3 minutes until it is soft. Drain and set aside

2. Beat and fry the egg (omelette style). Break it up and set aside.

3. Add garlic and fry the cabbage and carrot. Add a few sprinkle of water and the oyster sauce to it Cover the wok with a lid for about 2 minutes to soften the vegetable. Side aside once it is cooked.

4. Fry the fish cake for about 1 minute. Add the previously cooked egg, cabbage and bee hoon to the wok. Add the salt, pepper, fish sauce to taste.

Pro tip 1: Use 2 spatula to stir the bee hoon.

Pro tip 2: Switch up the fish cake with other kinds of meat (marinade it first though) and substitute bee hoon with rice for fried rice.

Fried spinach with Ikan Bilis

Ingredients 3 people

Minced garlic 1 tbspn
Pasar Round Spinach from Fairprice
Ikan Billis 100g
Dried small shrimp (Haebee) 1tbspn
Chili 1 piece cut into slices
2tbspn of oil
Salt 0.5 tspn
Pepper a dash
Chicken stock powder 1 tspn

Instructions

1. Wash the spinach and separate the stems from the leaves

2. Mince the garlic, shrimp and cut the chili

3. Add oil and fry the ikan billis. Once it turns light brown, set aside.

4 . Add and fry the garlic, shrimp and chilli for about 1 minute

5. Add the spinach stems and stir for 1 minute before adding the leaves. Add the salt, pepper and chicken stock powder to taste.

Pro tip 1: Try not to stir it around too much or else the vegetable will turn soggy

Pro tip 2: You can use the same recipe for stir-fried cabbage. Just remove the spinach and ikan billis from the list and substitute it with julienned carrots.

Minced Pork & Potato 

Ingredients 3 People

Minced pork 1 packet from Fairprice

Potatoe medium sized 3 pieces

Canola Oil 5 tbspn

Garlic minced 0.5 tbspn

Garlic 2 cloves

Light soya sauce X2 tbspn

Dark soya sauce X2 tbspn

Oyster sauce X1 tbspn

Dash of white pepper

Water 300ml

Chicken powder 0.5 tbsp (optional)

Instructions

1. Marinate the pork in light & dark soya sauce; oyster sauce and a dash of pepper

2. Peel and dice potato. Peel and mince garlic. (Peel but leave 3 cloves not minced)

3. Heat oil and fry garlic for 30 seconds and add pork, potato. Stir for about 5 minutes

4. Add water, garlic cloves and chicken powder and let it boil for 5 minutes. After which, simmer on slow fire for 15 minutes

Sesame Chicken Stew

Ingredients 3 people

Chicken midwings X8 (1 packet from Fairprice)

Potato X2 medium size

Sesame Oil 5 tbspn

Canola Oil 5 tbspn

Ginger X3 thin slices of about 2X5cm

Garlic 3 cloves

Light soya sauce X2 tbspn

Dark soya sauce X2 tbspn

Oyster sauce X1 tbspn

Water 300ml

Chicken powder 0.5 tbsp (optional)

Instructions

1. Marinate the mid-wings for 30 minutes. (light and dark soya sauce, oyster sauce)

2. Peel and dice the potato. Peel the 3 cloves of garlic (Don't need to mince it)

3. Heat up both types of oil and fry the ginger for 1 minute.

4. Fry the chicken wings and potato for 5-10 minutes.

5. Add garlic and  water, let it boil for 5 minutes. After which, use slow fire to simmer it for 15 minutes until the potatoes are soft.