Exotic Herbs of Southeast Asia's Cuisine

The Exotic Pantry: Unveiling the Unique Herbs of Southeast Asian Cuisine

    Welcome to a culinary journey where we unlock the secrets of the exotic pantry that defines Malaysian and Southeast Asian cooking. From the vibrant markets of Malaysia to the bustling streets of Thailand & Indonesia, a treasure trove of unique herbs, spices, and ingredients awaits, ready to transform your cooking into an authentic feast for the senses. In this post, we'll explore these culinary jewels, their uses, and how they contribute to the rich, complex flavours characteristic of this region's dishes. 

Chinese Chilli Soy Dipping Sauce Recipe

 Chilli Padi in Soy Sauce Recipe

Discover the Delights of a simple Chinese Style Lunch Menu

    Welcome to a delightful journey through a simple yet authentic Chinese lunch menu! In this post, let me guide you through a mouthwatering spread of traditional dishes that are sure to satisfy your cravings for Chinese cuisine. From fried rice to succulent sweet & sour chicken, each dish is bursting with flavour and easy to prepare. So, let's roll up our sleeves and get cooking!

CHINESE VEGETABLE & CHICKEN STIR FRY

    I love to cook the local way, the Malaysian Style, Thai, Chinese, all greatly influenced by my 15 years of living in Malaysia -the Food Haven. I am amazed by the simplicity of the dishes and all the more what I love about cooking Chinese food at home is, It is rather easy, and we can incorporate it in no time.

    This Chinese Style Vegetable & Chicken Stir fry is quite similar to the Vegetable Stir Fries, and the only difference is that we add some boneless Chicken pieces along with it, which gives an overall fullness to the dish.

    All the more, these recipes are inspired from the Chinese Restaurants we dine at, in Malaysia.  Initially, when we used to dine at such places, we loved to try different Stir-fries. Stir-fries with Veggies, stir-fried vegetables with Tofu or Chicken or Sausages. Veggies like Eggplants, Brocolli, Long Beans Stir fried  Stir-fried Greens like Baby Kailan, Bok Choy, Napa Cabbages Kang Kung etc., The introduction to these recipes gave me a new way of cooking and combining vegetables, egg, meat, salted fish, shrimps, or tofu into these stir fries.  And also these recipes gave me a total new revelation to cooking vegetables, the way it has to be, retaining the colour, texture, and nutrition.

    Chinese Style Vegetable & Chicken Stir Fry is a quick & easy Chinese dish, with a simple addition of seared Chicken pieces into it.  This style of cooking vegetables & chicken together adds a whole new dimension to the all plain vegetables.  

    But the secret behind perfect Chinese Style Stir Fry is the techniques you need to follow to get it right.  Keep in mind that the vegetables in the stir-fry should retain the colour, crunchiness, and freshness of the vegetables.  When perfectly done, this Chinese Style Vegetable & Chicken Stir Fry is going to be lustrous, gorgeously beautiful, presenting itself with a cornucopia of colours with a remarkable texture.  I love this stir-fry whatsoever.

CHINESE VEGETABLE & CHICKEN STIR FRY

    Just follow these simple tips and techniques for perfectly cooked Vegetable & Chicken Stir-fry.

VEGETABLES:

    As we need to stir-fry the vegetable in one quick movement in a high heat, it is always advisable to keep all the needed items ready side by side.  First clean, peel & cut the vegetables and when it comes to the Vegetables which you can add into this stir-fry, I mostly use Carrots, Mushrooms, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Capsicums & Snow peas. Can add Baby Corn too. If using mushrooms, use varieties like Button Mushrooms, Crimino Mushrooms, Shitake, or Oyster Mushrooms.  Small Beech or Bunapi Mushrooms also suits well for Vegetable stir fries.

BLANCHING THE VEGETABLES:

    Then I blanch the vegetables before stir-frying them.  Blanching shortens the time required for stir-frying.  And also the vegetables are cooked half way, retaining the shape & colour.  Then, while stir-frying, the idea is just to mix them up with the sautéed garlic and the sauces on a high heat.  This way the Stir Fry turns out to be perfectly cooked through, retaining the texture, colour, and all the more the nutrition. Once the Vegetables are blanched, you can straight away go with the stir-frying process.

    Then mince the Garlic, Cut the Onions into big pieces and then thinly slice the bird's eye chillies.  Well, I do add a Bird's eye chilli into this Stir Fry.  After all, the taste buds of Indian ethnicity asks for a bit of heat in everything.  You can totally skip it in this recipe.

SEARING THE CHICKEN:

    Well, any Chinese restaurant style Chicken recipes, habe an extremely tender and silky texture.  Soft & Succulent Chicken pieces.  The secrfet behind this velvety texture is that, most Chinese Chefs "treat" the chicken with baking soda.  Baking Soda removes the "meaty" odour and also tenderizes it at the same time.

    Searing a Chicken/Meat is a simple cooking technique where the meat is tosses in hot oil (a litlle amount just to coat the pan) until the colour changes.  This method changes the chemical composition in the meat creating an intense flavour and develop a perfect texture.  And the main point is that they are not deep fried.

SAUCE:

    The next step is to get the sauce ready.  The idea of a sauce in a stir-fry is to add taste and flavour into the bland vegetables.  So you can get easy with the type of sauce you use.  Commonly Oyster Sauce is used along with seasoning like salt, sugar and a dash of white pepper powder.  I love to add the popular locally available ABC Sauce, which is a sweet thick soy sauce with caramelized palm sugar in it. Alternatively, can add Dark Soy Sauce.  I have added the Corn Flour slurry into the sauce mix.  So, you do not need to add ‘cornflour slurry’  during stir-frying.  Corn flour slurry glazes & gives a sheen to the stir-fried vegetables. 

STIR-FRYING:

For more VEGGIES & STIR FRY Recipes, Click here...


Cuisine – Chinese; Southeast Asian
Recipe Type – Stir Fry
Spice Level – Low
Difficulty – Easy
 Serves - 2–3
Author – SM

Preparation Time - 15–20 Minutes
Cooking Time - 5–10 Minutes
 

For more Recipes from CHINESE CUISINE, Click here...

HOW TO MAKE CHINESE VEGETABLE & CHICKEN STIR FRY

CHINESE VEGETABLE & CHICKEN STIR FRY

INGREDIENTS:

Vegetables:

Carrots – 1/2 Cup
Broccoli – 1/2 Cup
Cauliflower – 1/2 Cup
Snow Peas – 1/2 Cup
Mushroom – 1/2 Cup 

PALAKKADAN ERACHI KUMBALANGA CURRY

     It is one of our family recipes, followed for more than three generations.  This recipe is the same as my Dad's special curry "Achante Erachi Curry" - Dad's Mutton Curry.  An authentic native style of Palaghat region, Mutton Curry prepared with freshly sautéed and ground spices marinated & slow cooked which gives a wonderful aroma and flavour to this curry. The base of the Curry is a thick gravy and once cooked they add Ash Gourd and ground coconut to the curry which makes it slightly runny. I have seen this type of curry served in almost all of our relative's household in Palaghat. 

     I have always loved this curry, and it was one extra curry made on Sundays, with a portion of Erachi Curry made as a star stopper every week.  Whatsoever be it, Chicken or Mutton, the recipe is the same at home. I still remember our Monday Lunch during primary school, which were always this leftover Erachi Curry and Erachi Kumbalanga Curry.  Lunch at home, listening to AIR afternoon News by Saroj Narayanaswami followed by a set of Mellisai, a non movie based songs.  And it would be time for us to go back to school for our afternoon session.  In the midst of this short time, I would even shuffle my bag and transfer the books according to the timetable and carry just the ones needed for the afternoon session. Nostalgia hitting me - the wonderful days of childhood, the taste & memories which tightly holds the moments deep in our mind.  Reliving it, Re-livening it at a hint of a smell or a taste.

     Though I make Achante Erachi Curry often, I have made this Erachi Kumbalanga Curry just a few times & it could easily be numbered out. At home, It is always Chicken/Mutton/Beef mostly cooked along with Potatoes.  And in my in-law's side of the family, they are experts when it comes to cooking meats with tubers (starting with Potatoes, Tapiocas, Chinese Potato(Koorka) etc.)  My MIL regards this curry with abhor, a kind of regional discrimination loaded with loyalty to the region from where she is from, and says it is a watery curry.

     Well, in my opinion every region has its own speciality unique to the tradition and style.  And I hate to discriminate it in any sense.  As said, it is absolutely nothing like a watery Curry.  But if you are new to combining water based vegetable along with meat, you may feel it to be a weird combination.  But trust me, the Ash Gourds in hot and spicy curry does total justice.  And it is prepared with the whole idea of balancing the heat of the spicy curry and meat, especially chicken. These types of curries are quite common in Palaghat and Trissur region and are also served during a non-vegetarian feast.

PALAKKADAN ERACHI KUMBALANGA CURRY

HOW TO COOK PALAKKADAN ERACHI KUMBALANGA CURRY - MUTTON & ASH GOURD CURRY

PALAKKADAN ERACHI KUMBALANGA CURRY

 

METHOD:

To Sauté & Grind :

• Heat Coconut Oil in a Pan, Sauté Shallots, Ginger & garlic until Shallots turn translucent.
• Add Turmeric Powder, Red Chilli Powder and Coriander Powder to the above and fry on a very low flame until aromatic.
• Add Cumin Seeds and Peppercorns and fry for a while.
• Switch off the flame and allow the ingredients to cool.
• Grind the sautéed ingredients into a fine paste and leave it aside.

PALAKKADAN ERACHI KUMBALANGA CURRY

 

For Erachi Kumbalanga Curry:

• Clean and remove the skin & seeds of the Ash Gourd and then cut them into cubes.
• Cut the Clean, wash & dice the Mutton into cubes and allow it to drain in a colander.
• Marinate the Mutton pieces with the ground paste and leave it aside for about an hour.
• Heat oil in a Pan/Pressure Cooker.
• Splutter Mustard seeds, immediately add Curry Leaves & Coconut slices into it and fry for a while on a very low flame.
• Sauté finely chopped Onions and Green Chillies, sauté the ingredients on a medium flame until Onions turn translucent.
• Add finely chopped Tomatoes and cook until the Tomatoes turn soft and oil separates.
• Now, add marinated Mutton Pieces along with a dash of salt and give a quick stir.
• Pour 1/2 a Cup of Water (or as required to cook Mutton).
• Cover the Pressure Cooker with the lid and cook until the meat turns tender and soft.
• Once the Meat is cooked, add the Ash Gourds and mix well.
• Cook this on a low flame until the Ash Gourds turn soft and cooked.  Do not overcook the Vegetable.
• Grind the Coconut into a fine paste.
• Pour it into the above Curry and mix well.
• Adjust the consistency by adding some water
  
• Let this boil on a low flame until the raw flavour goes, and it reaches the desired consistency.
• Switch off the flame.
• Palakkadan Erachi Kumbalanga Curry goes well with Appam/Vellayappam, Idiyappam,  Dosa, Idli etc.,
• Or simply serve Erachi Kumbalanga Curry with steamed Rice or Palakkadan Matta Rice.
  

NOTES:

• Adjust the amount of spices to suit your preference.
• Sauté the ingredients on a very low flame, stirring continuously.
• Marinate the Mutton/Chicken pieces and leave it aside for at least 1/2 an hour. 
  
• This Erachi Kumbalanga Curry is prepared with Mutton/Lamb.  Cook the meat accordingly and then add Ash Gourd and ground coconut paste.
  
• Cook Mutton pieces along with Ash Gourd on a low flame for about 15-20 minutes.  This will help the flavour get infused into the meat & the vegetable.
• Can prepare the same Curry with Chicken/Beef too and the cooking method is the same.  Adjust the cooking time.
• Coconut Oil gives an authentic taste to the Curry, can use any other vegetable oil too.
• Adding Tamarind is purely optional.

INDIAN MASAL CHAI - SPICED TEA

    I am a Coffee person, nothing rejuvenates me, rather than a strong aromatic Cup of Coffee right in the morning.    Searching through my thoughts & while unravelling through my memories, I have drank cups & cups of tea many times during my childhood days. Spicing up a simple Chai(in Hindi) or Chaya(that's what we call Tea in Malayalam) with a few spices from the pantry.  Cardamom is the showstopper, and sometimes we do add spices like Dry Ginger, Cinnamon, Clove or a spice mix of all the above a few other Indian Spices like Fennel and Peppercorns.  Even we make it a bit intricate and aromatic by adding Dry Rose buds/petals or Mint Leaves.

    Well, a cup of aromatic spiced Chai is sure to tantalize your senses, if you are a Tea Person.  I quit drinking tea when I got pregnant with my son.  The only food I have avoided since those old days of morning sickness.  A sense of repulse which overtook my senses and regret that I am not able to get even with it until today.  But, it is only with Milk Teas and not the Black ones, but it makes me hyperactive drinking a Black Tea, Chinese Tea, Green Tea.  It is almost 25 years since I lost my friendship with Tea or the so-called Chai/Chaya, and it is not ready to get in terms with me whatsoever.

    But, I do make intricately spiced Tea at home, sometimes for my husband and mostly for my daughter.  My daughter quit Coffee for a long list of good reasons, as she was overwhelmingly getting addicted to it with her late night and a few hours of sleep study cycle for the past 3 years. So, whenever she is in the mood for a packet of Indian Parle-G or Malaysian Tiger Biscuits, there I make Tea, especially Masal Chai. 

    I am not sure how my Tea tastes, but I always have got comments (since my school days) that my Tea tastes good, and I am still not sure how.  I work with an eye-balling technique while making tea.  No tasting and no smelling, but still I try to get it perfect every time I make it. That's what the guinea pigs (My Tea Tasters) say...

So here goes a recipe for a wonderful cup of Indian Masal Chai...

INDIAN MASAL CHAI - SPICED TEA

So what makes a good Indian style Masal Chai or Spiced Milk Tea?

Milk:

Milk, Obviously...

In India, as a norm, every Chai wallahs and households use fresh cow milk or the ones available in packets which has become the style of selling pasteurized fresh Cow Milk in India.  Use whole milk or low fat milk to suit your preference.  Even Milk Powders diluted in water can be used instead of fresh milk.  Sweetened Creamers or Dairy/non-dairy whiteners (as in Malaysian grocery terms) are milk substitutes used here locally for making Tea, colloquially called Teh and the creamers are one best option for creamy when it comes to Malaysian favourite Teh Tarik(pulled Tea).

Tea:

Then of course you need a good quality Tea leaves - Black Tea.  Preferably Brooke Bond Three Roses Tea, an Indian Brand, which we have known through our growing age. Such products & brands live through our life in terms of taste, memory and nostalgia. Feel free to use your preferred Tea Leaves or Tea Dust. I use Yellow Lipton Tea which is commonly available in Malaysian Market and shop online for Three Roses Tea.

Spices:

    Chai Wallahs or the Tea vendors have their own blend of Spices for a Masal Chai, and it varies with Chai wallahs, as specifically to each Kitchen.  You can simply add a few pods of Cardamom and still it is called Masal Chai.  Or go with your whims and fancies to make it intricate, aromatic and absolutely delectable with your preferred spices & herbs. I usually make a Masal Mix for this Chai which is a blend of a few Spices like Cardamom, Dry Ginger, Cinnamon Clove and Dry Rose Petals.  Can also add spices like Peppercorns and Fennel.  The amount of each spice also goes with your liking.  

    Then instead of Dry-Ginger can use fresh Ginger along with a few other spices.  Or simply make Adrak ka Chai or Inji Tea, just with an extra bit of ginger in the tea.  Sometimes I even add a few dried rose petals or Mint Leaves while making Masal Chai. 

In my opinion, it is always improvising and fine-tuning. Without me tasting...

Sweetener:

    How to sweeten the Chai - a simple add-on of Sugar is what is needed to sweeten the Tea.  Use your preferred sweetener of choice.  

Tips to make the perfect Masala Chai:

INDIAN MASAL CHAI - SPICED TEA

Water Milk Ratio:

    How you prefer the Chai is what fixes this ratio, a personal preference.  I make Chai mostly with a Ratio of 3/4 Cup of Milk & 1/4 Cup of Water.  If you like richer, thicker tea, you could use more milk and less water or for a stronger tea, use even lesser milk.  

When to Add Spices:

    Make sure that the water is simmering before you add Tea Leaves & Chai Masala/Spices.

    Dry Ginger or Fresh Ginger - I prefer dry Ginger in Masal Chai which gives an intricate note, but fresh ginger is the most preferred version according to Indian taste buds.  Add ginger along with the Chai Masala/Spices to the simmering water.  Make sure to add it before adding milk, otherwise the milk may curdle.

When to Add the Tea Leaves:

    When the spice mix bubbles up, then add the Tea Leaves.  Do not boil the tea leaves/Tea dust for a long time, which can make the Tea bitter.  Give a gentle swirl occasionally while boiling the tea leaves. 

    Finally, add Milk & Sugar, mix well, pull it up to make a froth.  Pour in and serve Garma Garam Hot Tea - the humble Indian Masal Chai.

    Enjoy Masala Chai by dipping a biscuit or a piece of Rusk. Parle-G, Milk Bikis, Marie Biscuits and Milk Rusk are my personal suggestions - which goes a nostalgic way. Or simply pair it up with Tea time snacks like Vadai, Vazhakka Bhajji,Undam Pori, Pazham Pori, Sugiyan, Onion Pakoda, Cutlets, Egg Puff, Vegetable Puff etc., & etc., goes well with Snacks like Murukku, South Indian Mixture, Namkeens etc.,

For more TEA TIME SNACKS, Click here...

Cuisine - Indian
Recipe Type - Beverage
Difficulty - Easy - Medium
Serves - 1
Author - SM   

Brewing Time - 5 Minutes
Preparation Time - 5-10 Minutes

For more BEVERAGES, Click here... 

HOW TO MAKE INDIAN MASAL CHAI - SPICED TEA

INDIAN MASAL CHAI - SPICED TEA

INGREDIENTS:

For Masal Chai:

Spices if not using Chai Masala:

• Boil water in a pot on Medium-high flame.
• When water starts to simmer, add crushed spices or Chai Masala Powder along with slightly crushed fresh ginger.
• Reduce the heat to low and bring the water to boil.
• Then, add Tea leaves and boil this for a minute. 
• Give a gentle swirl occasionally, so that the tea leaves and spices gets well infused into the decoction.
• Can add Sugar at this stage or can add it while serving.
• Pour in the Milk and stir well.
• Bring the Tea to a Boil. Now, switch off the flame.
• Strain the tea into another pot, gently pull it up to and fro into another cup so that it froths.
• Pour it out into the serving Tea Cup and enjoy Garma Garam (Hot) Chai with your choice of biscuits or toasts or with snacks and savouries.
• Masala Chai serves best as a morning tea or along with breakfast too.
  

INDIAN MASAL CHAI - SPICED TEA