Potluck!
Going to be a gathering with ex-colleagues in 3~4 weeks' time...
As it would be straight after work, i gotta think of food that is convenient to bring or easily bought without much hassle and storage as I would be travelling in MRT for an hour to the venue.
Fruits is the first one that come into mind if I cannot find other more interesting idea... haha.
I googled... dishes I gathered that seemed delicious yummy are:
Cheese Balls
Recipe
Serves 3-4
Tips
Economical and easy to work with. These are the two benefits of using fresh shitake mushrooms as compared to the dried ones.
Recommended to use fresh shitake mushrooms as they require a relatively short cooking time, making them a good match for the meat stuffing.
This is one steamed dish packed with flavour, with crab meat in the wolfberry wine-laced gravy.
Although wolfberries in the dish make it more visually appealing, it is perfectly fine to omit them as the flavour from the wolfberry wine enhances the gravy with sufficient sweetness.
As always, avoid buying ready-minced pork.
Instead select a piece of pork belly and asked the butcher to mince that.
The fat in the meat gives a silky finish to the meat paste.
Crunchy bits of water chestnut provide a nice contrast to the tender meat stuffing.
Ingredients
14-15 shitake mushrooms
200g prawns (with shell)
150g minced pork
2 water chestnuts, peeled and chopped
80g crab meat
1 garlic clove, chopped
5g ginger strips
200ml chicken stock
1 egg white
1 tbsp wolfberries, rinsed
2 tsp cornflour
2 tbsp water
1/2 tsp light soya sauce
2 tbsp wolfberry wine
1 tsp oil
Marinade
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
1 Shaoxing wine
1½ tsp of cornflour
1 egg white
Method
1. Add one teaspoon of Shaoxing wine to pork and set aside.
2. Shell and de-vein the prawns.
3. Smash the prawns using the side of a cleaver. Coarsely chop the prawns and place the mixture in bowl.
4. Add 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of sugar and one egg white.
5. Use your hand to mix the prawn meat in a clockwise direction.
6. Add 1/2 tsp of cornflour. Mix until the cornflour is not visible.
7. Mix in the minced pork and one teaspoon cornflour.
8. Add the water chestnuts. Mix well. Set aside.
9. Remove the stems from the mushrooms. Place mushrooms gills side up and lightly sprinkle cornflour onto the mushrooms. This will help the meat mixture adhere to the mushroom.
10. Use one teaspoonful of meat mixture to stuff each mushroom.
11. Steam the mushrooms for 4 to 5 minutes.
12. To make the gravy, heat one teaspoon oil in frying pan. Add ginger and garlic. Fry until fragrant.
13. Add the crab meat and fry for a minute.
14. Add chicken stock, wolfberries and wolfberry wine.
15. Season with light soya sauce.
16. Add the cornflour mixture and bring to a boil.
17. Gradually add the egg white while stirring the gravy.
18. Pour gravy over steamed mushrooms. Serve hot.
Siew Mai
Tips
Reference1: Cheese Balls (MyWokLife)
Reference2: Steamed Stuffed Mushrooms
Reference3: Siew Mai
Reference4: easy potluck - 18 great ideas
As it would be straight after work, i gotta think of food that is convenient to bring or easily bought without much hassle and storage as I would be travelling in MRT for an hour to the venue.
Fruits is the first one that come into mind if I cannot find other more interesting idea... haha.
I googled... dishes I gathered that seemed delicious yummy are:
Cheese Balls
Recipe
Serves 3-4
Ingredients
4 slices of white bread, removed crust2 tablespoons each of grated Mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese, mixed both cheeses in a bowl
4 slices of white bread, removed crust2 tablespoons each of grated Mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese, mixed both cheeses in a bowl
1/4 cup of condense milk
4 tablespoons of Milo powder
4 tablespoons of Milo powder
Method
1) Cut (or tear) the breads into few portions.
1) Cut (or tear) the breads into few portions.
2) Take a portion of cut bread and place on your open palm. Scoop a small amount of mixed cheese and place at the centre of the bread.
3) Fold up to seal the cheese into the bread. Then, squeeze and roll the filled bread into a ball. Repeat steps until all bread portions are completed.
4) Place all cheese balls into the air fryer basket, set fryer to 120deg Celsius and air-fry for 6 – 8 minutes, or until cheese balls are crunched and browned.
For Oven-Bake: Place cheese balls on a baking tray and bake in the oven at 100 deg Celsius for 8 mins, or until toasted.
5) Remove toasted cheese balls from air fryer/ oven. Lightly dip each ball with condense milk and arrange on a serving dish. Then, sprinkle Milo powder on the balls until they are completely covered with Milo. Serve while warm.
Each muddy cheese ball crunch counts about 40kcal (baked version).
For the conventional best taste (but more sinful) of it, you gonna deep fry the cheesy bread balls. Yes, much more juicy and superlicious, but….. Ok, I’ll better leave the choice to you.
Tips: You may choose to drizzle the condense milk on the cheese balls rather than dipping them.
Stuffed Mushrooms
Tips
Economical and easy to work with. These are the two benefits of using fresh shitake mushrooms as compared to the dried ones.
Recommended to use fresh shitake mushrooms as they require a relatively short cooking time, making them a good match for the meat stuffing.
This is one steamed dish packed with flavour, with crab meat in the wolfberry wine-laced gravy.
Although wolfberries in the dish make it more visually appealing, it is perfectly fine to omit them as the flavour from the wolfberry wine enhances the gravy with sufficient sweetness.
As always, avoid buying ready-minced pork.
Instead select a piece of pork belly and asked the butcher to mince that.
The fat in the meat gives a silky finish to the meat paste.
Crunchy bits of water chestnut provide a nice contrast to the tender meat stuffing.
Ingredients
14-15 shitake mushrooms
200g prawns (with shell)
150g minced pork
2 water chestnuts, peeled and chopped
80g crab meat
1 garlic clove, chopped
5g ginger strips
200ml chicken stock
1 egg white
1 tbsp wolfberries, rinsed
2 tsp cornflour
2 tbsp water
1/2 tsp light soya sauce
2 tbsp wolfberry wine
1 tsp oil
Marinade
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
1 Shaoxing wine
1½ tsp of cornflour
1 egg white
Method
1. Add one teaspoon of Shaoxing wine to pork and set aside.
2. Shell and de-vein the prawns.
3. Smash the prawns using the side of a cleaver. Coarsely chop the prawns and place the mixture in bowl.
4. Add 1/4 tsp of salt, 1/4 tsp of sugar and one egg white.
5. Use your hand to mix the prawn meat in a clockwise direction.
6. Add 1/2 tsp of cornflour. Mix until the cornflour is not visible.
7. Mix in the minced pork and one teaspoon cornflour.
8. Add the water chestnuts. Mix well. Set aside.
9. Remove the stems from the mushrooms. Place mushrooms gills side up and lightly sprinkle cornflour onto the mushrooms. This will help the meat mixture adhere to the mushroom.
10. Use one teaspoonful of meat mixture to stuff each mushroom.
11. Steam the mushrooms for 4 to 5 minutes.
12. To make the gravy, heat one teaspoon oil in frying pan. Add ginger and garlic. Fry until fragrant.
13. Add the crab meat and fry for a minute.
14. Add chicken stock, wolfberries and wolfberry wine.
15. Season with light soya sauce.
16. Add the cornflour mixture and bring to a boil.
17. Gradually add the egg white while stirring the gravy.
18. Pour gravy over steamed mushrooms. Serve hot.
Siew Mai
Tips
Some commercially-made stuff is often packed with fatty bits and, at times, the pork filling can be so overwhelming that you wouldn't think it had any shrimp at all.
For best results, avoid buying ready minced meat. You may ask the butcher for the pork collar cut and ask him to mince it.
To counter any meaty odour, marinate the pork in ginger juice with a splash of Hua Tiao wine.
For extra flavour and sweetness, I add koo chye (garlic chives), dried shitake mushroom and carrot.
For texture, I find that some finely diced wood ear mushrooms add a nice crunch to the filling.
Did you know?
Ginger - This root has been used to aid digestion, reduce vomiting and nausea.
In cooking, ginger is used to tenderise meat as it contains enzymes that break down protein.
Ingredients
12 wonton wrappers
300g pork collar, minced
150g fresh shrimp or prawn, shelled
2-3 stalks garlic chives, finely sliced
20g carrot, finely diced
3 pieces of wood ear mushroom
2 pieces of dried shitake mushroom
1.5 - 2 tbsp corn flour
1 tsp corn flour
1/4 tsp salt
Marinade for pork:
1.5 ginger juice
1 tbsp Hua Tiao wine
1.5 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil Dash of pepper
1 egg white
1 tsp corn flour
For garnish (optional):
Tobiko (flying fish roe)
Method
1. In a bowl, place the fresh shrimp, teaspoon of corn flour and 1/4 tsp salt. Mix well and allow to marinate for a few minutes.
2. Rinse the shrimp until the water runs clear. Dry with kitchen paper and leave to dry in the fridge.
3. Mix the marinade ingredients and marinate the minced pork.
4. In the meantime, soak the mushrooms in hot water until softened, then rinse.
5. Remove any hard bits from the wood ear mushrooms and stems from the shitake mushrooms, dice finely.
6. Add the mushrooms, carrot and garlic chives to the marinated pork. Add 1.5 to 2 tablespoons of corn flour. Mix well.
7. Add the shrimp. If you are using prawns, slice each prawn into 2cm-wide pieces.
8. Place a tablespoon of the meat mixture in the middle of each wonton wrapper.
9. Using a finger to dab water on the edges of each wrapper, then fold up the sides and gently pinch to create folds, leaving the top of the dumpling open.
10. Oil a plate and place the wrapped dumplings on it. Gently press the sides of the siew mai to create a cube-like shape.
11. Steam for 12 minutes, then serve hot.
Reference1: Cheese Balls (MyWokLife)
Reference2: Steamed Stuffed Mushrooms
Reference3: Siew Mai
Reference4: easy potluck - 18 great ideas