Shredded Chicken with Chilli and Lime

(print version)

Ingredients

2 pieces of chicken breast
3 small cloves of garlic
6 small shallots
¼ of a big red chilli
1cm knob of ginger
1 blanched tomato
Juice of 1 small lime
1 lime, to serve
A few tbl spoons of coconut oil to fry
Salt and pepper and a little bit of sugar to taste

Method

In a blender or pestle & mortar blend all ingredients except for the lime & chicken.

Add oil and 1 spoon of the blended mix to the pan and fry the chicken breasts until done. Then cool off and pull the chicken meat in small pieces.

Then put the rest of the blended ingredients in the pan with some oil together with the lime juice and salt & pepper & sugar to taste and add the chicken and stir until warm. Serve with lime slices.

Serves 4

Chicken Sate

(print version)

Ingredients

16 bamboo skewers
3 medium chicken breasts, skin off, diced into 2cm pieces
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 large chilli, de-seeded
1 lime, juiced
2 tablespoons kecap manis
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon chicken stock
Pinch salt
Pinch pepper
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Method

Soak the bamboo skewers in water to prevent them burning when grilling.

Place the diced chicken breast in a bowl.

Add the garlic, chilli, lime juice, kecap manis, sugar, chicken stock, salt and pepper and stir.

Let the chicken marinate for 10-15 minutes.

Thread chicken onto skewers.

Heat grill pan, add oil and then chicken skewers and cook until golden brown.

Serves 4

Banana Pancakes

(print version)

Ingredients

1 cup rice flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
1 cup milk
½ cup water
4 bananas
3 tablespoons coconut oil

Method

Whisk together egg and sugar until smooth.

Stir in milk, water and flour and mix until light and fluffy.

Heat large frypan over medium heat and add enough coconut oil to coat pan.

Slice banana and set aside.

Pour mixture in slowly and lay banana slices on top and increase the heat.

When pancake is golden brown, turn over and cook for 3 minutes. Flip pancake again and cook for a further 2 minutes.

Turn pancake out onto a plate, top with a couple of fresh banana slices and serve with a lime wedge and maple syrup.

Serves 4 – 5 large pancakes

Coconut Prawns with Mango Salsa

(print version)

Ingredients

8 large green prawns, peeled and deveined
2 limes
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 egg yolk
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup coconut oil

Salsa:
1 mango, finely diced
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
1 small bunch coriander
1 lime, juiced

Method

Place the prawns in a bowl and squeeze the limes over the prawns.  Add salt, pepper and garlic to the prawns.

Place the egg yolk and coconut in separate bowls.  Dip the prawns in the yolk and then coat with coconut.  Repeat until all the prawns have been coated.

Heat oil in a pan.  Fry prawns until golden brown.

To make the salsa:
Place the chopped mango in a bowl, add remaining ingredients and stir to combine.

Serve the prawns with the salsa.

Serves 4

Nasi Goreng

(print version)

Ingredients

6 tablespoons coconut oil
6 shallots, halved and sliced
6 cloves of garlic, sliced
1 carrot, sliced into fine strips
2 long red chillies, halved, de-seeded and finely sliced
2 birds eye chilli’s, sliced (optional)
100g white cabbage, thinly sliced
1 cup green beans, sliced
1 tablespoon tomato sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 eggs, beaten
600g, cooked white rice, chilled
1 celery stick, sliced
1 leek, white part only, sliced
1 cup spinach, cut into lengths
Pinch salt
2 tablespoons fried shallots, to serve

Method

Heat oil in a wok or heavy frying pan.  Add shallots, garlic, carrot, beans and chillies and sauté for 1 minute until shallots and garlic are golden brown.

Add cabbage, tomato sauce and chicken and sauté for another minute.  Season with soy sauce and sauté.

Add eggs and scramble then add rice.  Cook for another 3 minutes then add remaining ingredients except fried shallots.  Mix well and season to taste with salt.

Garnish with fried shallots.

Serves 4

Serombotan

(print version)

Ingredients

Salad:
400g water spinach, blanched
400g grated coconut
400g bean sprouts, blanched
400g long beans, sliced and blanched

Dressing:
6 tablespoons peanuts, skin on and fried until golden brown
2 tablespoons coconut oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
2 long red chilli, de-seeded and sliced
1cm piece ginger
Pinch salt
Pinch pepper
Juice from 1 lime

Method

Toss the salad ingredients together and set aside.

To make the dressing, heat oil in a heavy saucepan, add garlic and chilli and sauté.  Set aside to cool.

Place all the other ingredients in a mortar and pestle and pound to a paste.

Serves 4

Rice Paper Rolls

(print version)

Ingredients

2 carrots, thinly sliced
2 cups white cabbage, thinly sliced
3 spring onion, sliced
3 cup bean sprouts
3 stalk celery, thinly sliced
8 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Rice paper – 16 sheets

Method

Fry garlic in small amount of coconut oil, add a pinch of salt and pepper.

Add the cabbage, carrot and celery and cook for 4 minutes.

Add the bean sprouts and spring onion and cook for a further minute.

Dampen the rice paper with warm water until they soften – do one sheet at a time.

Add ¼ of the ingredients into the rice paper and roll up , like a spring roll. Repeat 3 more times.

Serve with satay sauce.

Notes:
*These rolls can be made vegetarian, with chicken or with prawns (shrimp).  If using chicken/shrimp – cook 100g of either prior to cooking the vegetables and then start cooking as per above.

Serves 4

Tuna with Lemongrass

Ingredients

1 teaspoon oil
5 shallots, halved and finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 knob ginger
1 knob galangal
1 small birds eye chilli, chopped, deseeded
1 candlenut
1 bunch coriander
2 stalks lemongrass, bruised
2 teaspoons coconut milk
2 tablespoons oil
600g tuna steak, cut into 2cm cubes

Method

Heat the oil in a frypan and fry off the tuna, until cooked through. Set aside.

Heat oil in a fry pan and fry shallots, ginger, garlic, galangal, chilli, candlenut until fragrant.  Add to a blender and blend to a paste.

Add the sauce and the tuna back to the pan and add the bruised lemongrass stalks, coriander and the coconut milk.

Keep on a medium heat until warmed through.

Serves 4

Notes:
If you cannot find candlenuts in the Asian grocery store, you can substitute with macadamia nuts.

Big Vegan Breakfast

Ingredients

Salad:
2 slices of sourdough bread
Small can of baked beans
English spinach, small bunch
Green beans, handful, cut in half
Tomato, sliced
Half avocado

For the Corn Fritters:
1 cob of corn, kernels removed from cob.
½ spring onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1 sprig of parsley, chopped
¼  tomato, chopped
1 tablespoons rice flour
Pinch salt
Pinch pepper
Ice cold water to bind
Vegetable oil to fry

Method

For the Corn Fritters:
Add all ingredients together in a large bowl. Mix until well combined.

Heat oil in pan. Place tablespoon-sized portions of the mixture into oil and fry until golden-brown. Remove from oil and drain on paper towel.

For the remaining ingredients:
Saute the spinach until wilted.

Saute the green beans with garlic and chilli (can be omitted).

Warm up baked beans and place in serving dish.

Toast the sourdough bread.

Arrange all items on a serving plate and enjoy.

Serves 4

Soto Ayam (Chicken Soup)

Ingredients

3 cloves garlic
2 candlenuts
½ teaspoon turmeric (fresh)
½ teaspoon ginger
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1 spring onion, cut into 4 pieces
1 ½ litres chicken stock
500g chicken breast, skin removed, cut into 1cm cubes
Rice noodles, blanched
1 carrot, sliced
200g green cabbage, finely shredded
200g bean sprouts
4 tomatoes, quartered
2 onions, diced and fried
1 stick celery, chopped
4 hardboiled eggs, quartered
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

To make the paste, in a mortar and pestle, pound the garlic, candlenuts, turmeric, ginger.

Fry the ingredients with oil, then add the spring onion and chicken stock

Add the chicken and carrot and simmer until cooked.  Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.

Boil the noodles until tender, drain and divide into 4 bowls

Blanch the cabbage and bean sprouts, drain and divide into 4 bowls

Poor the soup over the noodles and vegetables and garnish with the fried onions, celery, quartered tomato and quartered eggs.

Serves 4

Notes:
Fresh turmeric can be sourced from most supermarkets and green grocers.  Turmeric is a rhizome belonging to the ginger family.  The active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin and it exhibits a powerful anti-inflammatory action.  It is also a powerful antioxidant and is beneficial for the liver and digestive system.

Nicoise Salad

Ingredients

3 leaves cos lettuce chopped

Handful string beans, cut into 1.5cm lengths
6 cherry tomatoes, halved

3 baby potatoes, halved

6 black olives

1 green spring onion

1 hard boiled egg

Tuna fillet, grilled and sliced

Dressing:
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Juice of 1 lime
½ small clove garlic, crushed
Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Place the chopped lettuce leaves on a plate, scattered.

Blanch the green beans for 4 minutes, place in a bowl of iced water. Once cool, scatter over the lettuce. 
Cook the baby potatoes and slice in half and scatter over the lettuce
. Slice the cherry tomatoes and scatter over the lettuce.

Scatter the olives over the lettuce Sprinkle the spring onions over the salad.

Hard boil the egg (just until the yolk is still soft)
. Grill the tuna until cooked through and then slice thinly and arrange over salad.

Make the dressing and drizzle over the salad or serve on the side.

Serves 1

Tofu Rendang

Ingredients

1 packet of tofu
Coconut milk (to taste)

Sauce:
5 small shallots
3 gloves of garlic
Small piece of fresh ginger root
Small piece of fresh galangal root
Small piece of fresh turmeric
1 glove
1 tsp of cinnamon
1 tsp of black pepper
A pinch of coriander kernels or powder
1 big mild red chili
A teaspoon of palm sugar
¼ of a tomato

Later add:
Kafir lime
Lemongrass

Method

For the Sauce:
Blend the sauce ingredients (except for the kafir lime and lemongrass) in a blender or pestle & mortar:

For the Tofu:
Cut the tofu in small bite size triangle shapes and fry them in a wok in coconut oil until brown, but don’t fry too long otherwise the tofu becomes hard inside. Just a quick browning.

In another wok with some oil, fry the blended mixture & add some kafir lime leaf & lemongrass and a pinch of salt & sugar.

Add the tofu and a bit of water and let it boil in the pan together then add some coconut milk to taste at the end and serve.

Serves 2