Duck Breast with Pickled Ginger and Pineapple - Pineapple #3

I went into a bookstore looking for my sister in law who went in earlier and passed by some cooking books in Chinese. I saw one dish on the cover looking kind of attractive and quickly flipped it. Ah,… the dish is duck with pickled ginger and pineapple… but I didn’t go through the recipe because I needed to be quick.

Pineapple Lattice Tart - Pineapple #2

There are times  when I am totally craving for pineapple tarts and it's not Chinese New Year.
And those times, I am not that diligent to form bite sized ones.

With this big big tart (If I made a tighter lattice, I'll call it pie), I can eat a lot of pineapple filling and pastry with a lot less work. That's total satisfaction!

Crab Curry with Pineapple - Pineapples #1

I happened to see some crabs at the wet market near my mom's place and so I bought some.

I learnt during MFF Kedah and Perlis that seafood can be cooked with pineapple. So I tried it out myself.
The pineapples added a lovely flavour dimension to the curry. We loved it.

Cabbage Salad with Chuka-fu Dressing - Easy Japanese Fare #3

About 10 years ago, when I was still in Klang Valley, I frequent this Japanese eatery Ryu Men Tei in Subang Jaya on a weekly basis. I have roughly eaten about 90% of what is on their menu. My then bf, now husband, loves the restaurant as well. The restaurant was always packed, even on weekdays.

Saba Shio @ Salt Grilled Mackerel - Easy Japanese Fare #2

I love grilled saba and I do order this quite often whenever I eat at Japanese restaurants.

It's actually a lot cheaper if you grill this at home. When I dine at the restaurant, I get 1/4 of  the fish, but if I cook at home I get one whole fish for the same price. Wow, isn't that very "dai" (means worth it in Cantonese)

Kurigohan, Japanese Chestnut Rice - Simple Japanese Fare #1

My blogger friend cum old school mate Annie gave me some beautiful delicious koshikahari rice.
I want to make full use of it, and so, I tried cooking chestnut rice.

That time, I haven't bought my mirin, so I used rum to replace.
I'm not sure if I will submit this to AFF, haha, I used rum.

Mango Cheese Charlotte -No Bake Cheesecake #3

MIL suddenly asked us out for dinner with a newly wed couple who are relatives. And asked me whether I can make a cake for them. 22 hours notice!

To make a cake for the newly wed couple as a simple dinner celebration, is not like a birthday cake or a regular cake, I have to incorporate romantic elements into it. I can only make do with whatever I have in hand. I have mangoes, limes, chocolate, coffee and no berries at all in the fridge. So, it's either I make a mango cake or a mocha flavoured cake.

Rainbow Fruit Cheesecake - No Bake Cheesecakes #2

All natural no food colouring, no artificial flavouring, all fruits! It's one of my crazy projects that I made out of the quest for new ideas.
It's quite an expensive cake to make,but worth it, if you are not into food colouring but yet want to make a surprise for kids.

Pistachio Lime Cheesecake - No Bake Cheesecakes #1

This cake was a feat!

I got to know that my BIL’s birthday was on the day itself at 1.30pm. I asked him whether he wants a cake, and he said yeah, cheesecake but egg free please. Then I searched for some cheesecake series and passed the phone to him, asking him to select the one he wants. He chose a lime and strawberry cheesecake.

I had no strawberries on hand but I happened to have some homegrown limes from my brother’s neighbor. That’s perfect! I don’t have limes at home usually and he’s one lucky man! And I also bought a good sum dairy products in baking the day before, so, making a cheesecake will not be too hard. A baked one will take too long as I had to get the cake ready that day itself and ah-ha, since he wanted it egg free, let’s just make a no bake cheesecake, a lime flavoured one.

Buta Kakuni - AFF Japan Butakakuni # 3

My husband loves buta kakuni. He will order this whenever possible during out dine outs at his current fav Japanese restaurant in Ipoh. Of which is why I wanted to cook it.

I went through a few recipes and found Nami's recipe to be quite similiar to what we ate as I knew the meat was once fried.
The preparation take a lot of time, as said by Nami herself, the result is worth it.

Rolled Chashu - AFF Japan Butaniku #2

The 2nd Butaniku (Pork in Japanese) dish I am posting :)

I wanted to complete my tonkotsu ramen with chashu and I love how it looks like when rolled.

I did a bit of mistake. I think I should cut the corners off the belly where the ends meet, so that when rolled up, it will be a nice cylinder. I only realised that when I have tied up everything.
A bit lazy to open up the whole thing and wrap again, so I just let it be

Tonkotsu Ramen- AFF Japan Butaniku #1

Asian Food Fest starts today! And it's Japan month this time. Visit Alan's blog for the introduction post

I love tonkotsu ramen.
That thick sticky broth that makes my lips feel smackingly yummy.
I read up a few recipes and there are many many versions around. Some are very very basic and some with more ingredients.