Hakkasan | London

It is always exciting dining at Hakkasan. The last few times I dined at Hakkasan was for dim sum brunch. Since P has never been there and that I haven't been back in a while, we made a dinner reservation for the OpenTable exclusive special offer. It was a pretty good deal at £35 for 3 courses and a cocktail each.

We were served a dim sum platter and crispy spring roll each to start with. The dim sum as always, are delicately made and presented in small bamboo steamers. The mains we chose were Pipa Duck, and Roast Silver Cod with champagne honey sauce served with seasonal vegetables and steamed rice. The mains were small but don't be fooled by it cause we were pretty full by the end of our fabulous dessert from the a la carte menu. The Coconut Semifreddo was presented ever so cutely like a halved coconut, and my Banana Caramel Delice was a delight with salted caramel and peanuts.

The staff were lovely and very friendly, all with beautiful and genuine smile. It makes the evening very special. The ambience was although busy, was rather romantic. Definitely a great place to bring your date.

Loving the colours of our Dim Sum Platter

Crispy Duck Roll

Pipa Duck

Roast Cod

Coconut Semifreddo

Banana Caramel Delice

The OpenTable Exclusive Offer will be ending 31st May. So hurry up and impress your date before offer runs out.

Hakkasan Hanway Place

8 Hanway Place
W1T 1HD London,UK

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Coffee Caramel Pork Belly

This dish has always been a success. It is so packed full of flavour, and is really easy to cook. You just have to be patient while it poaches in low heat for hours. Enjoy! 

Coffee Caramel Braised Pork Belly

adapted from Simply Delicious

serves 2-4

Poaching Liquid:

• 500 g pork belly
• 600 ml water
• 1 cube chicken / vegetable bouillon
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup oyster sauce
• 1 tbs fish sauce
• 1 onions, quartered
• 3 garlic cloves
• 2 inch ginger (bruised)
• 1 star anise
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2 dried chillies
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp instant coffee powder

Method:

1. Wash the pork with vinegar and water before cooking. This will rid of the porky smell.
2. Bring the poaching liquid to boil. Reduce to medium heat and place pork into the liquid. Simmer gently and poach for about 2-3 hours until the pork is soft but does not fall apart.
3. Cut the pork belly into bite sized cubes.
4. It is best eaten with rice with accompanying vegetables.

Tip:

• The leftover actually tastes better the next day.
• If you have leftovers (which is unlikely), you can refrigerate it for the next day and stir fry with noodles and vegetables for a quick and different meal all together. Recipe will be posted next week.

    

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Steamed Cabbage and Carrots

The last recipe I posted was the ‘Tau Eu Bak’ (Soy SauceBraised Pork) recipe. Along with it, I also made this steamed cabbage to make the meal complete with some vegetables. So if you are also making the soy sauce braised pork, this can be made a few minutes before the braised pork is ready. As cabbage and carrots are naturally sweet vegetables, only minimal seasoning was needed to enhance it so its natural flavour could shine on its own. 

Steamed Cabbage and Carrots

Ingredients:

• ½ head of cabbage
• 2 small carrots (sliced)
• 2 cloves garlic (chopped)
• 3 tbs water (or more)
• Dash of soy sauce and sesame oil to taste

Method:

1.  Wash and roughly cut the cabbage into big chunks.

2.  On a hot pan of medium heat, pour a little oil and sauté the garlic until fragrant.

3.  Place the carrots and cabbage into the pan then add about 3 tbs of water, cover and let them steam until  vegetables are slightly softened.

6.  Add a small dash of soy sauce and sesame oil to taste and stir to combine. 

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Tau Eu Bak (Soy Sauce Braised Pork)

Growing up in Penang, I used to live with my extended family so there were two families and grandparents in one house. This makes it a little compact but we all had lots of fun where us kids will bond through playing remote control car, Super Mario, Barbie dolls, wrestling, transformers, making each other cry and all sorts.

When we were all living together, my aunt used to be the one who cooks most often cause she was an amazing cook. She made really good 'Tau Eu Bak' and always, with hard boiled eggs. One thing I regretted though, was that cooking was not my passion when young so I never actually spent the time asking her how to make such delicious food. Well, I guess I now have to make up for it.

So now that I am missing home cooked Aunt's food, I have to make it on my own. Luckily it is actually very easy to make and needs very few basic ingredients. So here is my version of Tau Eu Bak, pork belly slowly braised in soy sauce and slightly garlicky gravy. I'll make sure to get some special tips from her when I go home soon. For now, this is a good version and is best to eat with some 'sambal belacan' as it will give a different depth of flavour and spiciness to it.

Tau Eu Bak is also good when eaten with rice porridge / congee. Enjoy!

Tau Eu Bak (Soy Sauce Braised Pork)

Adapted from Nyonya Flavours book 
Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 600g pork belly (cut into 3cm chunks)
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 1 tbsp salt

Gravy:

• 500ml water
• 1 1/2 tbsp dark soy sauce
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tsp ground five spice
• 10 white peppercorns (cracked)

• 12 cloves garlic with skin
• 4 boiled eggs
• 1 tsp sugar to taste (optional)
• sambal belacan (optional)

Method:

1.  Rub pork with cornflour and salt to clean it then wash under running water until rid of any flour traces.
2.  Blanch the pork in boiling water to remove odour from meat and rinse under running water. Set pork aside.
3.  Combine gravy ingredients in a pot then bring to boil. Add pork into pot and simmer for 10 minutes before adding in garlic.
4.  Add in boiled eggs and sugar then continue to simmer for another 30 minutes or until meat is tender.
5.  Serve with sambal belacan on the side. This will make the braised pork spicy and more fragrant.

Tips:

• This dish is best eaten with rice and some vegetables such as a simple steamed cabbage to be served together.

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The art of making kuih kapit

Seeing that Chinese New Year will be just three weeks away, I would like to share with you my favourite Chinese New Year snack or treat of all time. It is what we call kuih kapit, which is similar to love letters but thinner and folded into quarters instead of a cigar shape. Once you have had your first crunch, it takes a strong will to stop finishing the whole tub. I was lucky to be able to watch my aunt make a big batch of these addictive festive treat. The downside is that I had to wake up really early as she had to start making them before it becomes warmer or shall I say hotter in the afternoon (Malaysian weather).

I shall briefly explain how they are made to give you an overall understanding of what she has to endure throughout this process. Kuih kapit has to be cooked on an open charcoal stove, standing and flipping the mould for about six hours or more, depending on portion of the batter.

Start burning the charcoal before mixing the batter

Make sure the moulds are clean

Sieve the batter  (coconut milk, rice flour, sugar and eggs)

Heat up both sides of the moulds, oil and heat again. Make sure the moulds are hot.

Then pour the mixture onto one side of the mould, clamp and put it back on the stove.

Flip the moulds frequently, open and check. When it turns brown, peel it out of the mould with your fingers. This is when it burns your fingers if your fingers aren't used to heat. Lucky my aunt has fingers made of steel! ;)

This is a two man process as the second person has to quickly fold the sheets into a quarter before it cools and hardens. Tips: This is when nails come in handy so you don't burn your fingers.

KUIH KAPIT! The end product of this tedious process.

A good kuih kapit is very thin and lightly folded. It should be paper thin and not folded flat, like making origami. It should have a slight curve on the folds to give it some space so when you eat it, you can feel the ever so thinly folded layers crunch in your mouth. It really isn't a great idea standing in front of the hot burning charcoal for half a day in such a hot weather. But look on the bright side. The end result is phenomenal !!

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Tamarind Glazed Chicken

Are you getting bored of the typical roast chicken yet? If so, this roast chicken with Asian flavours might just refresh you a little. It is tangy from the tamarind and slightly sweet from the sugar  which will caramelise in the oven to balance out the flavour. The glaze also adds shine to the crispy skin.

If you think it will be complicated, I assure you, it is not at all. Marinade and roast the chicken like you always do and brush the glaze on the chicken at the final 5 minutes of cooking, and then again when it is ready. See, it is that easy!

TAMARIND GLAZED CHICKEN

Adapted from Jehan Can Cook


Ingredients:

Marinade

• 4 chicken leg
• 3 tbs Worcestershire sauce
• Garlic salt & pepper

Tamarind Glaze

• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• 5 tbsp tamarind paste
• 8 tbsp ketchup
• 10 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp five spice powder
• ¼ tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 inch fresh ginger, crushed

Method:

1.  Rub the chicken with Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper. Cover and let marinade for about 2 hours.
2.  To make the tamarind glaze, place all ingredients in a sauce pot over medium heat.  Cook for 15 minutes or until sauce thickens. Set aside.
3.  Place the chicken on a baking tray and into a preheated oven at 180C for about 20 minutes or until almost done.
4.  Brush the glaze on the chicken 5 minutes before the chicken is ready.
5.  Once the chicken is ready and is out of the over, top it with a final layer of glaze.

You may also like:

Banana Tree

Balsamic Glazed Steak Roll

Chicken Chop Malaysian Style

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Penang Road Famous Cendol | Penang

Cendol is a very famous dessert in Penang and Malacca but both versions taste slightly different. The main ingredients include shaved ice,  coconut milk, gula melaka (palm sugar), green jelly noodles made with rice flour and red bean. The green colour used for the jelly noodles are made from natural green colouring extracted from the fragrant pandan leaves (screwpine leaves) commonly used in Southeast Asian cooking.

This dessert is a must try for anyone visiting Penang and the most famous stall serving this dessert is on Lebuh Keng Kwee, off Penang Road. There are two stalls selling Cendol on this street but this famous Teochew Cendol is located on the right as you turn in from Penang road. Many people travel all the way for this Penang Road Teochew Cendol. The already narrow street will be clogged up by people who are there just to have a bowl of this shaved ice dessert. Also, there is no apparent queue so be smart about where you stand. Make sure you are seen by the guy taking orders and not hide behind the crowd.

The ingredients for making Cendol

Lebuh Keng Kwee off Penang Road

This is the other Cendol stall opposite the very famous Teochew Cendol stall. Be sure to look at the sign correctly as this one does not have the word 'Teochew'.

While the most famous stall is crowded with people, this Cendol stall opposite it is usually not as packed. Funnily, this is the stall I prefer and recommend. The Cendol here is tastier with more distinct flavour of its ingredients. I find the Cendol of the more famous Teochew Cendol stall too diluted for my liking. You can always try one from each stall since they are just opposite each other. Compare and pick your favourite, I would say.

Machine shaving a big block of ice

Cendol

Snack Stall on the same street

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My Homestyle (Jia) Restaurant | Penang

A picture of the menu cover

I used to hate bitter gourd when I was young, for the obvious reason. It's named bitter gourd for a reason. But as I grew up, this bitter fruit became one of my favourites. Like anything bitter, kinda like beer, it is an acquired taste. There are quite a few ways to cook bitter gourd and this one, simply stir fried with partially runny eggs and soy sauce was absolutely lovely.

What looks like a simple tofu dish, crispy on the outside yet soft and silky on the inside, topped with the soft, mildly salty and sweet sauteed aubergine was delectable. Just be careful while eating the tofu as it's usually piping hot inside. Just to be safe, cut the tofu open to cool it a little to avoid burning your tongue. Burning your tongue is probably the worst thing to happen when there are so many delicious food on the table.

Garlic stir fried chinese broccoli (kanna greens) with deep fried flat fish for added crunch. Simple and tasty.

Mango chicken is one of those chinese chicken dishes that I have not seen in London except at Maximini restaurant which is owned by Jimmy Choo, our renowned Malaysian shoe designer. It is too bad I have not written a post about Maximini then as I was not keeping a blog at that time. This reminds me, I should go there soon. So yea, the mango chicken, again one of my favourite dishes I will order in Chinese restaurants when I am home. Mango chicken is usually deep fried chicken (still moist on the inside), coated with plum sauce, garnished with shallots, lots and lots of mango and some shredded apples to give it an added crunch and acidity.

The food at this restaurant really does feel like a proper home cooked meal, no fuss tasty food.

Smile..

Great home cooked food at reasonable price.

Frown..

Nothing to frown about.

Will I return?

What is better than home styled cooking? None. This is one of the regular restaurants we go to.

MY HOME STYLE RESTAURANT

2, Lebuh Lembah Permai 4 (Casa Permai),
Tanjung Bungah, Penang, Malaysia.
Tel: +604 890 2764

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Xuan Xin Restaurant at Gurney Plaza| Penang

Who would think that there's actually a decent chinese restaurant in a shopping mall? Well, I have stereotyped food in a mall to be less delicious as they are usually for hungry shoppers to fill up their tummy. So I was actually pleasantly surprise at the quality of food at Xuan Xin Restaurant. It is a very bright and spacious restaurant situated on the third floor of Gurney Plaza's new wing. The food is flavourful and has a rather prompt service. They have incorporated the wireless calling system whereby you press buttons on the table to call for a staff or for your bill. Although this system is useful for such a big restaurant, it has actually reduced the staff alertness.

Press the button for attention, bill or water.

Stir fry lotus root with french beans was well cooked. The lotus roots were thinly sliced and cooked to perfection, still with a good crunch to it.

Black chicken herbal soup

I am sure you must be wondering what 'black chicken' is. It is a different species of chicken named 'Silkie' which has black skin, darkened bones and grey flesh. It got its name from the soft feathers. This gamy free range chicken is usually used in Asian cooking. In Malaysian Chinese cooking, we believe this species has curative effect and are usually used to cook soup. Click here to read the article on NYTimes about silkie.

This deep fried beancurd with salted egg is a must try. I think it is a dish that will convert any tofu haters.

Claypot pork belly with salted fish and dried chilli; salty, spicy, sweet and aromatic.

Mango chicken

Mango chicken has always been one of my favourite chicken dish. I've not seen this dish anywhere else except in Malaysia. The only restaurant outside Malaysia that has this dish so far is Maximini in London, near Lancaster Gate.

The steam egg is so smooth and has the right ratio of eggs and water.

I would definitely recommend this restaurant for a good dinner after a tiring day of shopping. It's well worth it.

XUAN XIN RESTAURANT

Gurney Plaza, 3rd floor
170-03-86, Plaza Gurney, Persiaran Gurney
Goergetown 10250 Penang, Malaysia.
Tel: +604-229 7882
Business Hours: Open Daily, 11am - 10pm

There are other branches as well and address is on their website.

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