Lei Cha is my mother’s favourite Hakka dish. But one that she makes the least due to the amount of work involved. If you’d like to take the challenge to make this from scratch, watch the video to understand the entire process and shortcuts that you can take. If you wouldn’t cook it, I’ll tell you where to get the best Lei Cha in Kuala Lumpur.

1. THAI BASIL In Malaysian supermarkets, Thai Basil is not as common as herbs like mint. That is perhaps because that it’s one of the least used herbs in Malaysian dishes. But this flavour makes the dish.
2. SAWTOOTH CORIANDER The shape of this coriander is very different from that that we get at the supermarket. The leaf is long, flat, and with edges like the teeth of the saw blade. My Mom favour this as the taste is more intense. It’s also because it’s growing wild in our garden!
3. MUGWORT This is another herb that isn’t available at the market.
4. FU YIP SUM/ KU YE XIN (苦力心) Acanthopanax trifoliatus. This is perhaps the rarest of all herbs. We’ve made the recipe without this many times. I believe this is also not used in most restaurants as it’s not widely available for sale.

TOOLS

• Wok + spatula
• Chopping board + knife
• Blender
• Oven (optional)

RECIPE CARD

KITCHEN HACKS

1. Use a spice blender to crush the peanuts and sesame seeds. I am using the Panasonic blender with two attachments – one for blending smoothie/paste, and another for blending things like nuts. The finer it is, the better.
2. Toast peanuts in the oven Traditionally, my mother roast peanuts on the wok. I prefer to use an oven instead to leave it there and cook the many other dishes instead.
3. Freeze blended soup ingredients We like making extra soup paste to freeze. On busy days, we just defrost then put the paste and water into a pot to boil.

Although it’s a lot of work, I love making this with my Mom and keeping the tradition alive. 

The post Hakka Lei Cha Recipe (Tea Rice/ ‘Thunder’ Tea/ 擂茶) appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

Chinese New Year in 2021 is an odd one. Many families around the globe will be celebrating Chinese New Year at home in a lockdown. My brother said CNY is now ‘Celebrate Next Year’. 

But it doesn’t have to be so. We can still celebrate at home even if you can’t cook. All you need is some creativity!

This is what we will do: buy a store-bought roast chicken and turn it into 'Two Way Pineapple Roast Chicken’ with Kewpie’s Roasted Sesame Sauce. Best of all, it can be done in just 15 minutes!

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Sara | Cooking Instructor (@sarakhong)

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WHY EVEN A BEGINNER CAN MAKE THIS

Even if you can’t cook, you’ll be able to make it. You only need to:

1. Buy & slice a chicken
2. Chop a few things: pineapple, carrot, celery
3. Make a delicious dressing using Kewpie roasted sesame sauce for a nutty and creamy texture 

Then arrange everything into a platter!

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TOOLS

• Round platter
• Chopping board + knife
• Bowl for mixing sauce

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RECIPE CARD

No-cook Roast Chicken with Pineapple for Chinese New Year (20 Minutes, 9 Ingredients)

10th February 2021

Servings: 4

Prep: 15 min

Total: 15 min

Difficulty: easy

Print This

Lessen yours and your family burden this Chinese New Year with this no-cook Chinese New Year dish!

By: Sara Khong

Ingredients

• Roast chicken - 1/2
• Pineapple (canned) - 1 can
• Celery - 6 inches
• Carrot - 6 inches
• Seasonings
• Kewpie roasted sesame dressing - 6 tbsp
• Kewpie honey mustard sauce - 3 tbsp
• Light soy sauce - 1 1/2 tbsp
• Garnish
• Lettuce - 2 - 3 leaves
• Toasted white sesame seeds - 1 tsp

Directions

• Step 1 SLICE CHICKEN & PINEAPPLE: Slice the roast chicken breast meat into thin slices.Cut pineapple slices into half, then slice thinly.
• Step 2 ARRANGE CHICKEN SLICES & PINEAPPLE: Arrange chicken slices and pineapple slices, alternatively, around the plate.
• Step 3 MAKE SAUCE: In a bowl, combine Kewpie sesame sauce, Kewpie honey mustard sauce, and light soy sauce. Mix well.
• Step 4 MAKE CHICKEN SALAD: Slice celery and carrot into matchstick-size.Cut the rest of the chicken into shreds and mix well with celery and carrot. Pour the sauce into the bowl of chicken and vegetables. Toss to combine.
• Step 5 ARRANGE CHICKEN SALAD: Place lettuce in the middle of the platter. Scoop flavoured shredded chicken and vegetables on the lettuce.
• Step 6 GARNISH: Garnish with sesame seeds.

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COOKING TIPS

1. Visit a major supermarket to get everything at one go You can get Kewpie sauce and all of the ingredients at major supermarkets. Some supermarkets have deli sections where you can buy roast chicken. 
2. Buy chicken at the nearest chicken rice store - If not, get a chicken from your nearest chicken rice store. Remember to order ahead of time if you’re making it for Chinese New Year as it's a busy season. You can even ask the seller to slice the chicken breast for you.
3. Replace chicken with duck - This dish can be made with duck (I think it’ll taste even better!)

Not being able to cook is not an excuse anymore. Try out this simple recipe and impress your family this Chinese New Year!

The post No-cook Roast Chicken with Pineapple for Chinese New Year (15 Minutes, 9 Ingredients) appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

The post Cold Dish Platter for Chinese New Year (9 Ingredients, 30 Minutes) appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

WHY IS IT AUSPICIOUS

When someone overcame a hurdle, there’s a popular saying “slaughter chicken to thank the Gods” (劏雞還神). Chickens are always significant for the Chinese. I remember my late father told me that, in the 40’s, when he was a child, having chicken on the table is very precious.

A whole chicken (including its head and feet) symbolises the togetherness of the family. However, we are not so strict nowadays. We’ll normally have chicken for Chinese New Year, but without the head and the feet.

WHY IS IT EASY

You only need to salt and steam the whole chicken. Even if you’re not good at cooking, this is something that is hard to screw up.

The hardest part is chopping the chicken. Which if you’re not particular, you can just serve it whole and cut it with a knife which I did when I cooked the entire Chinese New Year feast on my own. Afterall, serving it whole is auspicious!

We’ll also be making a simple sauce with only 3 ingredients and simple frying in the pan. This is also hard to mess up.

HEALTHY DIPPING SAUCE

In this recipe, I’ll be making ginger and coriander sauce to dip with the chicken. It’s what my late grandaunt likes to cook at every reunion dinner.

• Ginger
• Shallots
• Coriander

Each of the ingredients is incredibly good for the health. To make it even healthier, I like using coconut oil.

It’s so easy to make that I make it often for regular dinner as well, not just during Chinese New Year.

TOOLS

• Wok + steaming rack + lid / Food Steamer to steam chicken
• Scissors/ Knife/ Cleaver to chop chicken
• Knife + chopping board to mince ingredients
• Small pan to fry ingredients for making sauce

RECIPE CARD

Steamed Chicken with Ginger-Coriander Sauce

24th January 2021

Servings: 4-6

Prep: 10 min

Cook: 30 min

Total: 40 min

Difficulty: Easy

Print This

And easy and auspicious dish for Chinese New Year

By: Sara Khong

Ingredients

• CHICKEN:
• Free-range chicken x 1 (about 1.6 kg)
• Salt x 1 tsp
• Shaoxing rice wine x 1/2 tbsp (OPTIONAL)
• SAUCE:
• Cooking oil x 1/2 cup
• Ginger - 135 g
• Shallots x 70 g
• Coriander leaves x 12 gram
• Salt x 1 teaspoon
• Sugar x 1/2 teaspoon

Directions

• Step 1 1. PREP: Scrub chicken. Mince all ginger, shallots, and coriander.
• Step 2 2. MARINADE & STEAM CHICKEN: Marinade chicken with salt and wine. Steam chicken for 25 – 30 minutes.
• Step 3 3. COOK SAUCE: Fry ginger and shallots in oil until golden brown.Add coriander, salt, and sugar. Mix well

SHORT RECIPE

Rub chicken with salt. Ribse, Steam for 30 minutes, or until cooked. Fry 1/4 cup minced shallots + 1/4 cup minced ginger in 1/4 cup of oil until golden. Add 1/4 cup of coriande and salt. Mix well.

COOKING TIPS

1. Use free-range chicken The least ingredients they are, the better quality the ingredients must be. This dish is prized for the quality of the chicken. My family likes getting free-range chicken with special feed including corn. It’s more flavourful and the skin is more yellow as well.
2. Where to buy good quality chicken It’s normally available at wet market in Malaysia. At the market that I go to, it’s slaughtered on the same day. Supermarkets usually do not have these chickens. But I know I’ve seen it at Village Grocer (though it’s rare)
3. Type of oil My grandaunt normally use regular vegetable oil like canola. But when I make this (without my Mom), I prefer to use coconut oil. Although I have not tried it, I think olive oil will be okay as well as the strong taste of ginger and coriander mask most of the taste of certain oil. It’s up to you.
4. Halal Order halal kampung chicken and omit the cooking wine. It’s still going to taste yum!
5. Any type of coriander, roots or leaves, will do My grandaunt which inspires this recipe uses coriander roots. However, my family uses sawtooth coriander leaves as we have a lot of them in the garden.

If you really think you can’t…

Buy the chicken from a chicken rice stall near you I know this is a cooking blog, and I do encourage that you try to cook. However, if it’s really tough on you, there is no shame to buy the whole chicken for Chinese New Year reunion dinner.

Having said that, this is REALLY easy to make. Check out my video for more detailed steps and tips to clean the chicken.

Good luck!

The post Easy Steamed Chicken with Ginger-Coriander Sauce (30 Minutes + 6 Ingredients) [Chinese New Year] appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

Traditionally, this rice is made in the claypot. But since Chai Huat Hin who commissioned me to work on a Chinese New Year reunion dinner requested for something easy that anybody can do, I came up with Waxed Meat Claypot Rice recipe using the rice cooker instead.

Why is this impressive dish so easy to make?

• The dish is made in the rice cooker so you don’t have to worry about over/under cooking the rice in the claypot
• The three preserved meat (Chinese sausage, liver sausage, and Chinese cured duck legs) are delicious in itself so you don’t need to work hard to enhance the flavour
• The few skills you need is steaming the preserved meat, mixing the sauce, and using the rice cooker (which is a no-brainer)
• The hardest part is probably chopping the preserved meat which in my opinion is do-able (tips at the bottom)

TOOLS

• Rice cooker
• Wok + Steam rack + cover OR  bamboo steamer
• Plate (to steam cured meat)
• Claypot

RECIPE CARD

VIDEO

COOKING TIPS

1. Place the rice and meat in a claypot for decoration The claypot is just for decoration. If you don’t have one, you can arrange the rice in a large bowl
2. Choose good quality Chinese sausage A good quality Chinese sausage should have about 50 fat:50 lean meat ratio. The sausage has to look slightly oiled. This is the one that I used in this recipe: HK Yongzhou Chinese Sausage
3. Slice sausages at an extreme angle For the dish to look nice, make sure you slice the sausages at a steep angle to make the sausages look longer
4. Use a sharp cleaver to chop the duck legs While the sausages are rather easy to slice, duck legs are tougher and harder to slice beautifully. Use a sharp cleaver to help you do a good job

Why not make this super easy dish to impress your family?

The post Easy Waxed Meat Claypot Rice in Rice Cooker (Lap Mei Fan/ 臘味飯) – 30 Minutes appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

The post Eight Treasure Chicken in Lotus Leaf appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.