Bento Banter # Bento 7

I love bentos and taking bento to office for either my breakfast or lunch sound good  :)  This is not much of a bento banter though . It is not those creative ones but just the same it is colorful and looks appetizing . I have just harvested a load of kimchi ...so you can guess that I made some kimchi  onigiri , pan fried fish and a simple tomato salad and for starter... a kiwi fruit ....this is super delicious....all my favorite in a box!  Ever since I joined Bento Banter , I realized  that I really take the trouble to make my bento looks attractive and colorful...thus making my lunch from home more appetizing . 

Sweet Sour Crab Wrapped In Artisan Bread

I was informed by Ping of  Ping's Picking that my blog Elinluv's Tidbits Corner was one of the 65 blogs picked and featured in InTrend  Malay magazine March issue  ..it is an honor  to be featured in the malay magazine  :))  You can read more about it from Babe In The City blog . Congrats to all the other blogs featured in the March 2012  issue...sorry for the digress....okay back to the crab cuisine....:p

After having savored this crab cuisine which was served wrapped in a bread loaf , I attempted to replicate it with much success to my utmost delight.  Sweet Sour Crab wrapped in bread parcel !  The one served at the restaurant was yummy good but the fact that the bread was deep fried in hot oil deters me from frequent indulgence.   I decided to make my own sweet sour crab wrapped in artisan bread instead,  for I find artisan bread suitable for this heavenly crab cuisine. Thank you Ronnie and Kitty for introducing us to this dish and after which I was inspired to replicate it :)

Piggy Jo was home last weekend , I sprang a surprise on her and served her this finger licking good sweet sour crab wrapped in artisan bread....I wished I had taken a snapshot of her expression !  :p  My artisan bread turned out great with a crispy crust and soft interior . I really have to thank Peter Reinhart for his tips on how to make the crust... even Wild Boar loves this bread....dipping the bread into the flavorful crab scented sweet sour and chilli hot gravy...awwwww  it was truly finger licking good and the fiery taste set my tongue dancing !  

Petola, Tofu And Shrimps Soup Pasta

Dinner for us was just this simple and yet balanced meal ....and of course needless to say delicious to us !  All my favorite ingredients in this soup...put it this way, I concocted my own soup with the ingredients based on what was available in the fridge :p   Throw in some tofu,  left over from making the Japanese Tofu Donut  ,  some sea scented shrimps and cut petolas. On second thoughts , added in some wood ear fungus for myself.  For the soup base, I used Knorr chicken seasoning or Wild Boar will complain that the soup is bland.  He complained that he will soon be turning  into a goat ...LOL, he can darn funny at times....For his sake , I added the shrimps and served his portion in a claypot .  Presentation of the soup pasta in a claypot makes the simple soup pasta interesting I guess !  :)  Served this with some spicy sambal belacan ...and someone even slurp down all the soup :p  Love the petola and tofu...slurrp !

Korean Fried Rice With Egg Sunny Side Up In Onion Ring

I  made another load of kimchi  yesterday which will be ready for harvesting this coming weekend  :)))  Yay! I am happy when there is kimchi in the fridge.  I know many people don't really like kimchi but I do LOL!  It has become a must have item in my fridge now :p   When I am lazy, I will just fry rice with the homemade kimchi , add some shrimps and make myself an egg sunny side up and I will have a hearty meal for dinner.  I never knew how much I actually like kimchi until I realized that I almost make them every month. Now , I do not need to refer or measure out the ingredients ...maybe I can make them blindfolded one day....just kidding :p  Do you see what is so special about this egg sunny side up....welll ,,,yup, the onion ring !

A Simple Meal - Pan Fried Flounder , Purple Potato And Salad

I know many of you will be wondering  why I cook only western food most of the time, but actually I am an all rounder...I eat from East to West and I will choose something simple and yet delicious. I do not mind going to all the trouble to prepare something that I enjoy eating.  If I am hard pressed for time, like I have to attend a cell group meeting,  than even a bowl of  instant mee would be fine, but provided veggies and fresh shrooms are added to it :)  I can slurp down a bowl of instant mee if there are shrooms in it and still enjoy it like it is a five star restaurant food :p    Okay, last night, I prepared this simple meal for us...Pan Fried Flounder  / Ikan Sebelah , with some purple potato slices and a simple salad of tomato and lettuce with Thousand Island sauce.  I managed to get some Flounder fillets from Jusco....it was double the outside price but worth it coz it was thick and very fresh.  For Wild Boar sake, I bought the fillet ones :) and decided to pan fried them with just a rub of black pepper and sea salt.   Simple and yet delicious !  Chinese cooking takes a lot of time and only weekend or holiday, I will make special chinese dishes that needs lots of time in the kitchen :)

Bento Banter # Bento 6

I have not been posting bento posts for a  while now and when my buddy Claire went off to Sibu for a short holiday, I had to pack my breakfast/lunch to office.  No  'makan ' partner so to say * wink , for the last few days, thus back to bentos again.  I prefer homecooked stuff than eating out.  Since Claire is not around, I took the opportunity to pack my lunch to office.  This is what I had when Claire is away LOL!  Prepared a simple one and I love my animal picks...they are so cute and they served their purpose well as picks for my teriyaki chicken bites :)))  I really enjoyed my food just looking at them.....sometimes I feel like a child when I am eating out of a box with this cute little animal picks .....nope, don't worry , I am not into my second childhood yet  I am only 25 this year.... ROFL !!!

Ipoh Salted Chicken

I spotted this packet of Ipoh Salted Chicken Spices Mix at the chinese medicine shop and looking at the front picture , I was half sold and after finished reading the instructions at the back of the packet, I was completely sold !   I bought one packet back to try out and guess what?  It was good and the taste was like those salted chicken sold at the shop, except that mine was more roasted and browned , coz I have the chicken roasted without cover. I wanted it that way coz Wild Boar doesn't look at taste but the appearance.  The instructions asked to wrap the seasoned chicken with aluminium foil ( by the way, the packet of spice mix came with a piece of alumiunium foil )  but I didn't and I was glad I did cover the chicken :)  It was one great spices mix - make up of chinese herb- tong guai , salt and pepper.  It was aromatic and delicious.  When I am lazy or pressed for time, I will go for the easiest and yet delicious method and this is one good one.  Just rub the spices mix on the chicken and wrap with the foil provided.  Dump into the oven and that's it.  Of course, don't let the Wild Boar knows that is a premix and not my own concoctions LOL!  shhhh.......just read on.........

Japanese Sesame Dressing

After having tasted sesame dressing in a Japanese restaurant in KL, and discovered that I actually like it. I googled for the recipe and since then have been making this dressing to go with my salad .  I have been eating like a goat the last one week :p only Wild Boar kept to his title...he eats like one anyway ! Meat for him and salad for me ! Dressings play an important role for salad and I have tried many types of dressing...some are healthy and some not so healthy.  This dressing is great for salad with avocado and salmon in it , but I added jellyfish and tofu to the salad instead :)  I bought this white sesame paste from Jusco, Ipoh  @RM14.90 for a 120g /bottle at the Japanese section.  They have the ready prepared  sesame dressing too but I prefer to make my own dressing with the paste. 

Cheesy Stuffed Portobellos

I like to transform leftover dishes into a totally new dish.   Whenever there are roast meat left  the night before, I will stuff them in portobellos and top them with lots of cheddar cheese the next day....portobellos mushrooms are easily available at Jusco or Tesco. I will pick them up on the way back from work and have them stuffed with the leftover roast meat.  I can have these cheesy stuffed mushrooms and some apple /celery and  frisee lettuce salad for dinner and I will happy for the rest of the night. I love mushrooms and having them stuffed with leftovers meat and baked them with cheese.....mmmmmm  I dont mind the added calories ....and anyway I need more calcium so cheese is a good source of calcium.....LOL! well , my friends used to say this about me...." as long as you like the stuff, you will try all excuses to justify your eating of those you are suppose to abstain from "  I think this applies to most of us :p  okay... maybe just me ! * oink

Dhal Curry

This is the first time I cook dhal curry and it was easier than I thought .   I loved it....saw it on Sonia's blog and I knew I had to try making my own dhal curry at home to go with my homemade chapati :)...and since I can  make quite soft chapati, the thought of homecooked dhal curry  is even more inspiring :)  I soaked the lentils a bit longer to shorten the cooking time.  I prefer the dhal very soft and the gravy thicker than those sold at the mamak shop.   Dhal is good protein so this meal is considered healthy :)   For the chapati , I used hot milk and Crisco shortening to make the dough.  And truly it was soft and a friend told me to roll the chapati dough into very thin disc...as thin as I can go and when cooking the chapati , make sure the griddle is very hot.  It cooks fast...and remembering all the pointers she gave me, I managed to make some soft chapati :)   This chapati was so much better than the previous one I made.  I realised that if the dough is kept overnight in the fridge, the chapati will be even more softer.

Spicy Teriyaki Chicken Wing And Drumstick

Wild Boar after recovering from his flu, has got back his appetite and he wants Roast Teriyaki Chicken for dinner. He has been itching to use my japanese grill pan ( I bought for grilling fish over the charcoal stove) and pestered me to roast the chicken on the grill pan for a crispier skin .  I took out some chicken wings and drumsticks and marinated them with spicy teriyaki sauce and rest them overnight in the fridge.  For roasting, I would normally marinate the meat overnight, so that I can roast them in the oven, the moment I am back from work :) I prefer roasting them in the oven than deep frying them. It is so much healthier and all the fat from the chicken skin can drip on the base of the grill pan which I have covered with aluminium foil .