To Cook
Coat the tofu with the seasonings and pan-fry until brown and chewy.
In a wok, heat oil over high heat and add in the snow peas, carrots, red capsicums and onions. Lower heat is needed, stir-fry 5 mins or until softened but not fully cooked.
Add in the garlic, ginger, curry powder and turmeric powder, combine and stir-fry for 1-2 mins.
Add in the noodles and toss to coat evenly. Stir-fry 2-5 mins or until noodles are heated through and all ingredients are evenly coated.
Add in tofu, green onions, bean shoots and soy sauce, toss for 1 min. Serve hot.
Vegetables
Three Friends Spring Onion Rolls (Tam Huu)
To Prep
Combine pork with marinade ingredients and mix well. Marinade at least 5 mins. Set aside
Combine prawn with marinade ingredients and mix well. Marinade at least 5 mins. Set aside.
Combine all dipping sauce ingredients and mix well. Set aside.
To Cook
In a frying pan, heat oil over medium high heat and stir-fry pork for 2 mins. Add the prawns and stir-fry until cooked through. Add black pepper and stir well before turning off the heat.
To Assemble
For each strand of spring onion leaf, place mint and coriander on the green edge. Top with a piece of pork and prawn, and a slice of chilli, wrap around the group of ingredients with the rest of the spring onions and tuck in the end section.
Place on serving plate and serve with dipping sauce.
Simmered Kabocha Squash
To Cook
To prepare the katsuo dashi, bring 2 cups water to boil. Add katsuobushi, stir through, and then turn off the heat. Set aside for 15 minutes. Strain the katsuo dashi and discard the katsuobashi. Set the katsuo dashi aside.
Cut the kabocha into half, remove the seeds and pith using a spoon. Then place it in a bowl and briefly cook it in the microwave on high for 2 minutes. Cut the kabocha into equal wedges lengthwise, and then cut them into 5cm pieces, leaving the skin on.
Place the equally sized kabocha pieces in a large wide pot, skin side down. Make sure that the pot will fit all of the kabocha pieces in one single layer.
In a bowl, add in the prepared dashi, sake and sugar. Mix well until sugar is dissolved, then pour into the large pot with kabocha pieces. Bring it to a boil and continue to cook on medium high heat. Add soy sauce and salt, and swirl the pot to mix the liquid well. Make sure that the liquid covers most of the kabocha, you may add a little more water if neccesary. Once the liquid is boiling, turn down to medium low heat to and allow to simmer. Cover with lid and cook for 15-20 minutes or until kabocha is cooked and tender.
Remove from the heat and let it cool for about 30 minutes. This dish may be served at room temperature.
Mee Rebus
To Prep the Gravy
Boil and mash the sweet potatoes, set aside.
Poach beef until cooked and cut into small pieces. Set aside.
Place in a blender dried shrimps, shallots, garlic, galangal, ginger and fermented soybeans. Add about ½ a cup of water and blend until fine.
In a large pot, heat up the oil and then add the blended paste, meat curry powder, and lemon grass stalks.
Sauté on medium heat until fragrant and oil begins to split. This should take 10-15 minutes.
Add about 2 cups of beef stock, and stir until combined.
Next, add the mashed sweet potatoes, cooked beef and palm sugar to the pot of gravy and mix well.
Slowly add more beef stock until the gravy has reached your desired consistency.
Bring to a boil and set aside.
To Prep the Noodles and Garnish
Separately, blanch yellow noodles and bean sprouts then set aside.
Pan-fry the bean curd until golden brown, and then cut into 2cm pieces.
Hard boil the eggs and cut into halves.
Final Assembly
In a bowl, portion out yellow egg noodles and bean sprouts.
Ladle gravy over noodles and bean sprouts to sufficiently cover the noodles.
Garnish with egg, bean curd, sliced chillies, fried shallots, Chinese celery, spring onion and calamansi lime.
Serve hot.
Water Kimchi (Nabak Kimchi)
To Prep
Scrub the radish with a clean brush, leaving the skin on. Cut radish into 2cm cubes and place them in a large bowl.
Cut each cabbage leaf into quarters, lengthwise. And then cut across into 2cm pieces.
Place the cut cabbage leaves into the large bowl along with the radish and sprinkle 2 tbsp of salt. Mix thoroughly and let it sit for 30 minutes until the leaves are wilted.
In a separate bowl, soak the gochugaru in 1/2 cup of water.
Cut carrot into thin slices, and pears (or apples) into small cubes. Cut spring onions into 2cm lengths. Add the cut carrots, pears, spring onions, garlic and ginger into the bowl of salted radish and cabbage.
In a separate large bowl, dissolve 4 tbsp of salt with 8 cups of water. Then strain the soaked gochugaru into the large bowl of water through a fine mesh or a cheese cloth.
Pour the salt water and gochugaru mix over the radish mix and combine well.
Keep the kimchi in an airtight glass container or jar. Leave it out to ferment at room temperature for 2 days before storing in the fridge, to be eaten over the next two weeks.
Simmered Kabocha with Shio Koji
To Cook
Place the kabocha squash in a medium saucepan, pour in water, enough to just cover the kabocha, then add the shio koji.
Bring to boil then reduce the heat to simmer for about 4-5 mins until kabocha is cooked through.
Cover and set aside, allowing the kabocha squash to cook slowly with the residual heat while absorbing the flavor from the stock. The kabocha squash may get mushy if overcooked. Serve this dish cold, at room temperature, or warm.
Braised Noodles with Long Beans and Pork (Dou Jiao Men Mian)
To Cook
Heat oil in a wok, fry the spring onion and garlic.
Add in pork belly slices and fry for 1 min.
Then, add dried chilli pepper, dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, sugar, and salt, stir for a few seconds and put in green beans and mix them evenly.
Pour water in the wok, cover and bring it to a boil, then spread the noodles evenly on top of the mixture.
Cover and braise with low heat. After 5 mins, uncover and stir the noodles to make the taste even, then cover again and braise until the water has reduced completely.
Serve with chilli oil or brown vinegar.
Grilled Beef, Bok Choy and Eggplant Salad
To Prep
Whisk together all dressing ingredients apart from rice wine vinegar in a mixing bowl. Reserve half.
Add steaks to the mixing bowl and thoroughly coat in dressing. Cover in cling film and allow to marinate for 30 mins.
To Cook
Heat a frying pan over high heat. Add 1-2 tsp sesame oil and allow to heat up.
Add 1 steak and cook for 1 min before flipping over. Repeat until steak is cooked to desired doneness.
Remove steak from pan, place onto a plate and allow to rest. Repeat with second steak.
Heat a griddle pan/plate over medium-high heat.
Brush both sides of eggplant slices with sesame oil. Carefully place onto griddle pan/plate and allow to cook for 1-2 mins, or until grill marks form and eggplant is cooked. Flip over and repeat on other side. Remove from pan once done.
Brush sliced side of bok choy with sesame oil. Carefully place onto griddle pan/plate and cook for 2-3 mins, or until grill marks form and bok choy is cooked. Remove once done.
To serve, slice steak and serve with grilled eggplant and bok choy. Dress with soy ginger dressing and garnish with chilli.
Seared Sesame Crusted Tuna Salad
To Cook
Combine tamari, ginger, mirin and sesame oil in a small bowl. Set aside.
Place black and white sesame seeds onto a plate and mix together. Coat all sides of tuna fillet with seeds.
Heat 1-2 tsp sesame oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Carefully place tuna into pan and cook for 30 secs on each side, or until seared on the outside but still pink in the middle.
Remove from pan and allow to rest for 10 mins before slicing.
To serve, place mixed lettuce in a bowl or plate. Arrange cucumber ribbons, radish slices, edamame beans, sliced avocado and sliced seared tuna over. Garnish with spring onion and serve with dressing.
Korean Sushi Roll (Kimbap)
To Cook
Mix rice with 2 tbsp sesame oil and ½ tsp salt in a bowl and set aside.
Pour 1 tbsp oil to a heated pan and pour in eggs to make a thin omelette over medium heat. The omelette should be pale in colour. Remove and let cool. Cut into thin strips and set aside.
Pour ½-1 tbsp oil to a heated pan and quickly sauté carrots for about 30 secs. Season with salt and set aside.
Saute the zucchini with minced garlic and ½ tbsp sesame oil. Remove and set aside.
Sit a sushi mat on a board and place a nori seaweed sheet on top. Add ⅓-½ cup of rice on nori sheet, covering about ⅔ of the sheet. Place each ingredient on top of the rice, lining them up horizontally and close together. Roll the nori sheet using your mat until you have a cylinder shape. Squeeze the roll inside the mat gently so that the kimbap is not too loose.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients until you have a desired number of kimbap rolls. Cut kimbap into bite sized pieces, usually 8-10. Garnish with sesame seeds.
Korean Mushroom Kimbap
To Cook
Mix rice with 2 tbsp sesame oil and ½- tsp salt in a bowl and set aside. Also set aside shiitake mushrooms and radish.
Pour ½-1 tbsp oil to a heated pan and pour in eggs to make a thin omelette over medium heat. The omelette should be pale in colour. Cut into thin strips when cooled and set aside.
Pour ½-1 tbsp oil to a heated pan and quickly sauté carrots for about 30 secs and season with salt and set aside.
Mix cucumber with ½ tbsp sesame oil, minced garlic and 2 pinches of salt in a bowl and set aside.
Place sushi mat on a board and a nori sheet on top. Spread ⅓-½ cup of rice on the sheet, covering about ⅔ of the sheet. Place each of the ingredients on top of the rice, lining them up horizontally and close together. Roll the nori sheet using your mat until you have a cylinder shape. Squeeze the roll inside the mat gently so that the kimbap is not too loose.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients until you have a desired number of kimbap rolls. Cut kimbap into bite sized pieces, usually 8-10. Garnish with sesame seeds.
Korean Cold Noodle Soup (Mul Naengmyeon)
To Make Stock
Fill a big stockpot with 16 cups cold water and add beef. Bring to a boil, skimming off impurities and add garlic, spring onion and 1 tbsp salt. Reduce heat and simmer for about 1½-2 hrs. Remove meat from pot, let chill and cut into thin slices. Set aside.
Cool the stock to room temperature or lukewarm (should have about 12 cups of stock). Add in 2 tbsp salt, soup soy sauce, sugar and soup mix from naengmyeon noodle packet. Place in the fridge or in the freezer so that it is lightly frozen (but still liquid).
To Make Korean Pickled Radish (Mu)
Add salt to radish in a small bowl. Leave for about 15 mins. Drain out water and add the remaining ingredients, leave to pickle for at least 1 hr or overnight.
To Cook Noodles
Cook noodles in a pot of boiling water for about 3 mins or until the noodles are still al dente.
Drain noodles and rinse thoroughly with cold water to remove excess starch.
Place 1 serving of cold noodles in a bowl. Ladle 2-3 cup cold soup over the noodles. Top with cucumber, pickled radish, egg, beef slices and pear slices. Garnish with shredded nori, sesame seeds and spring onions. Repeat for other servings.
Serve naengmyeon with vinegar and hot English mustard mixed through according to taste.