【覆盆子柠檬水】Raspberry Limeade

这几天温度都在一百度左右，孩子和我都没什么胃口，就用家里有的材料做了几个冰饮，这款覆盆子柠檬水可以加点蜂蜜制作，更加清凉好喝。

It has been more than 100 degrees over the weekends, since we didn't have much appetite for foods, I made a few cold drinks for us and chill.

【鱼豆腐】Fish Tofu/cake

我平时涮火锅炒米粉炒面什么的喜欢加一点鱼饼/鱼豆腐。其实传统的鱼饼和鱼豆腐还是有点不一样的，鱼饼是全鱼肉的，口感比较爽脆扎实。

鱼豆腐比较软嫩，会加入鸡蛋制作，所以口感更细致一些。两者可以相互替代烹饪。自己家里制作鱼豆腐其实不难，买得到片好的鱼柳那就更简单了。

Fish Tofu has no bean in it, it is made with fish paste and egg, it is called fish tofu because the look  resembles fried tofu.

I like using fish tofu in my hotpot, stir fry and noodle dishes. Though it is easily available in most Asian supermarket, it is also quite easy to make at home. It is easier when you can get fresh fish fillet from the market.

【印式炸豆圈】Medu Vada/Vadai (Deep Fried Lentil Donuts)

小时候每个午后都会有个老人推着脚踏车来到住宅区叫卖。脚踏车后座有个超大的玻璃箱子，里边是一格一格的各式各样的印度零食小吃，有花生，有粗的细的油炸香辣面条。给两毛钱老人会拿一张报纸，卷成火炬状，然后让你选格子里的零嘴往里头装，直到“火炬”装满为止。

这些零嘴都是素的，大部分是豆粉或豆子做成的香口零食，除了脆口的炸面条，老人也卖这个叫Vadai外层松脆，内部软嫩的像甜甜圈的糕点。

以前一直不知道它是什么材料做的，后来问了朋友，查了些食谱才发现这个饼居然是全豆做成的，不必小苏打，也没有面粉，自自然然的全由一个豆子，完成了外脆内嫩的好东西。一想到在没有搅拌器的时代，用石磨慢慢的磨出豆糊，然后在没有小苏打和膨化剂的帮助下，做出好吃爽口的小食，我就觉得非常的感动。

When I was a student, there was this old Indian man who goes around selling deep fried snacks or"muruku" back home. He has a big wooden/glass box attached to the back of his bicycle, where you could find small compartments that filled with different kinds of savory tidbits.

One of them is a little fried bean cake shaped like a mini donut, it is called "vadai", I love that stuff and did not know what it was made off until I moved to stay in India.

I was thrilled to learn that this snack is made of only legume, a snack higher in protein I presume. It goes very well with Coconut Chutney and can easily turn into Dahi Vada later.

【南瓜鹹味龜粿】Pumpkin Salted Angku Kueh

龟粿模子是我妈多年前去潮汕旅游时买的，带来美国都超过十年了才动手做了这款龟粿。一直没做的原因是因为我一直想还原小时候吃的咸味龟粿的味道。近些年来流行的甜馅龟粿花样很多，但我的心头好仍然是馅料炒得比较干，入口粉粉的、咸香美味的这款咸味龟粿。

所以后来我小批量地调整了好几次馅料的口味和皮的配方，这次做的最满意，馅料味道美味，粿皮软糯Q弹，第二天早上都还是软的，真的非常棒！所以今天特意写下食谱记录一下。

The Angku kueh mold was given to me by mom, she bought it  when she traveled to Chaoshan, China many years ago. It took me more than ten years after bringing it to the United States to start making this Angku kueh. 

The reason why I hadn't made it for a long time is because I always wanted to make only the salty version of this Angku kueh, the type that I used to have as a child. 

There are many types of popular Angku kueh around in the market with sweet stuffing in it, but my favorite remains the salted-sweet and slightly powdery version of the stuffing type.

I had to try adjusting the flavor of the filling and the recipe of the skin several times in small batches before I finally came to this one today. 

The filling tasted delicious and the kueh skin was soft and Q, and the kueh stays soft to the next day.  I am truly happy with the result !

印度面食之三【多层面饼】Plain Paratha - Type 3

北印家里平时吃的圆形烙饼在和面做饼的时候不加任何东西，只在全麦粉里加上一点盐和水，合成软面团，抹上一点点酥油防干裂，这样的面团擀成圆饼烙的叫做Roti或Chapati。

抹上酥油分层做出不同形状煎的叫做Plain Paratha。裹入不同的馅料做成的馅饼叫做Stuffed Paratha，印度语里就根据馅的名称叫做xx Paratha 。Roti/chapati是不加油铁饼上烙成的，而Paratha则是煎制而成的，所以成品会香很多。

今天给大家介绍一种在印度家庭常做的多層煎饼。

A couple of years back a lady posted a "Chapati" post on the website I frequent, it was all good, but the bread she posted was really a Paratha rather than Chapati, I tried to explain her the difference. To my surprised, she took it very defensively and told me that she can't be wrong, mainly because her neighbor, who is originally from Hyderabad was her teacher in this matter. Who am I to argue with an Indian origin, right?

After that episode I have been meaning to write about paratha and Chapati, my plan is to write about three different ways to make plain paratha. And here is the third type of plain paratha.

【鸡蛋牛奶醪糟】Egg Milk with Fermented Glutinous Rice

前阵子做的酒酿我除了拿来做了酒酿发糕之外，还做了这款我最喜欢的甜汤。第一次吃鸡蛋牛奶醪糟是在兰州，当时就爱得不得了，嫩嫩的鸡蛋加上浓浓的奶香，再带点醪糟/酒酿的甜味。真是人间美味。

这款甜汤营养价值也特别高，工作不忙的时候我会做一碗来当早点，吃完身体暖暖的特别舒服。

I made fermented glutinous rice (Tapai Pulut) not long ago and used it to make Rice Huat Kueh, another dish I had in mind with the fermented glutinous rice is this Chinese dessert called Egg Milk with Fermented Glutinous Rice (鸡蛋牛奶醪糟).

I had this dessert the first time in a city in Northwest China, it was love at first try for me, I liked it so much that I had it almost everyday during my trip.

Now that I have learnt to make it at home, a bowl of this delicious and nutritious soup is such a great breakfast in the winter morning for me.

【绿叁巴酱】Sambal Ijo （Indonesian Green Sambal）

几年前我接了一份在费城为期一年的工作，所以经常会在下班时开车到附近的“印尼城”去买印尼超市里的盒饭回家当晚饭。

其中一款我很喜欢的盒饭是绿叁巴鸡块盒饭，和一般的红辣椒叁巴不一样，更清新好吃。

不久前阿姨送来一大盒她自己种的墨西哥绿番茄 Tomatillos，刚好特别适合拿来做印尼的这款绿叁巴。我就做了一大盒放冰箱里慢慢吃。

A few years back I was on a one year project in Philadelphia, PA, so I used to visit the "Indonesian Town" near my office in Philly after work to buy packed foods for dinner. One of my favorite packet meals is Sambal Ijo Ayam (Green Sambal with Chicken), it is different than the normal red sambal yet very spicy and refreshing.

My aunt sent me a big box of Tomatillos that she planted during the summer time, it is perfect for this Sambal, so I made a big batch of Sambal Ijo with it. 

【摩摩喳喳】Bubur Cha Cha

摩摩喳喳其实做了很多很多次，但是每次做的时候都是为了聚餐或者有朋友来家里吃饭，所以几乎每次都没机会拍照写食谱。

某天发现家里做这款糖水的材料全有，就做了这款糖水做点心，真好吃。

I have made Bubur Cha Cha many times over the years, but failed to take pictures to write a recipe mainly because I normally made this sweet dish either for party or get together with friends, so I was always in a rush.

One day couple of weeks ago I realized I have all the ingredients needed for this Sweet dish at home, so I decided to make Bubus Cha Cha for snack time, and this time I can quietly enjoy this sweet dish without having to rush!

【驴打滚】Glutinous Rice Rolls with Red Bean Paste

多年前和朋友们聚餐，刚好我妈来美国看我，有个北京姐姐带了她做的驴打滚，非常好吃，妈妈至今仍然怀念。

Years back mom went with me to a gathering, a friend of mine from Beijing made this dessert and brought with her, it was so tasty that my mother still thinks about it even today.

马来西亚【辣椒板面】Chili Pan Mee

 

辣椒板面好些年前突然席卷吉隆坡甚至全马来西亚，好吃的辣椒板面店如雨后春笋，到处林立。我回国探亲的时候吃过两次，很是喜欢。

这个周末下雨，不想出门就做了好吃的虾干辣椒粉, 泼点热油就是辣椒板面的辣子啦！

Almost everybody I met raved about this Pan Mee back home several years ago, Chili Pan Mee shops spring all over KL like mushrooms, I tried this Pan Mee twice and liked the idea very much, it has all the "Ohm" factors that Malaysian liked, spicy, umami with the fragrance of fried shallot. Topped with a beloved half boiled egg. 

It is just irresistible!

【虾干辣椒粉】Dried Shrimp Chili Powder

几年前从马来西亚带回两瓶泰国产的虾干辣椒粉非常辣，味道很鲜，平时炒面炒饭时加一点非常好吃，因为是干粉没有油，存储长时间味道都不变，非常喜欢。

买来的用完我就一直想着自己做一次，趁周末又是雨天出不了门，就在家做这个好吃好用的辣椒粉吧！

A few years back I brought two bottles of "Namprik Narok" (which means spicy like hell.) made in Thailand back to the USA. I used it in some of my cooking and liked the spiciness and umami taste a lot. 

The two bottles didn't last me too long and since replenishing from homeland won't be possible due to the pandemic, I did what I thought is the next best thing, I recreate this chili powder at home.

【麻酱糖饼】Sesame Sugar Pancake

之前做了好吃的糖酥饼，就想着下次做一次我也特别喜欢的麻酱糖饼，我做的糖饼红糖比较少，但是味道还是非常非常好的哦！

I made Beijing Traditional Pastry -- Sugar Puff not long ago and made a mental note to make this Sesame sugar pancake that I also liked. 

I used lesser brown sugar in my pancake, it still tasted very good though!

【芝麻海苔脆饼】Sesame Seaweed Crisps

这款脆饼其实是春节期间做的，当时做了炮竹虾还剩下大半包的春卷皮，刚好家里有寿司紫菜（Yaki Sushi Nori)，就做了这款家乡常见的年饼。真是满满年味的小零食呀！

I made Firecracker shrimps for Chinese New Year and was left with more than half a packet of spring roll wrappers, since I also have some Yaki Sushi Nori (Roasted Seaweed) that I bought to make sushi at home. I decided to make this common CNY snacks that I used to have since young. 

It is such a tasty snack that I can't stop eating!

【鸡蛋三文治】Egg Salad Sandwich

俊宝的学校上课时间很长，学校的午饭时间也比较早，十一点半就吃完了。平时放学回到家里已经快下午四点钟了，一回到家就会说肚子很饿，所以我都会在他回来之前给他准备些点心，这款三明治是他很喜欢的点心之一，所以我也经常做。

My son's school hours are long, he gets home around 4 pm, often very hungry, so I always make sure there are some snacks to tie him over until dinner time. 

This egg salad sandwich is often my go to, and one of my son's favorites. 

【酒酿米发糕】Tapai Rice Huat Kueh

发糕里我最喜欢的是米发糕，而米发糕里我最喜欢的就属这款酒酿发糕了。这款酒酿米发糕完全满足了我对食品的追求。天然，质朴，美味，古法少添加。就是食品原有的样子。

注：做这个米发糕要用新鲜酿制的酒酿才会发得好。

These rice cakes were made using fermented glutinous rice (酒酿）as rising agent, it was made from whole grain rice.

The batter took around 12 hours to ferment naturally at room temperature. There is nothing not to love about this Huat Kueh, it is 100% natural, made the way foods were made hundreds of years ago.

To me, it is almost like a batch of art work, made possible only by ancient wisdoms passed down to us by our ancestors.

【萝卜排骨汤】Pork Rib Radish Soup

Pork rib and radish soup is a type of soup that I make a lot at home, especially in the winter months, it is hearty and helps to keep the body warm.

秋冬季节我最爱炖的汤就是排骨萝卜汤了，冷冷的天气里来一碗热汤，既能饱肚也能温暖身子，真是御寒的好东西。

【荷叶包】附刈包食谱 Lotus Leaf Buns and Kuah Pau

前几天做了一锅控肉/炕肉， 家里有控肉怎么可以不做刈包呢？于是趁把孩子送上校车后还有三个小时才上班开会的空挡，我做了几个荷叶包。

早餐就是我心心念念的刈包啦！

One thing leads to another, when you have the Kong Bah at home, you need to make lotus leaf buns~~

【黄豆炖猪蹄】Soybean Trotter Stew

冬天因为家里开暖气的关系皮肤都会变得特别干燥，平时除了抹点润肤剂以外，我还喜欢炖点滋补的汤喝喝，也是不想吃太多碳水时很好的选择。 

猪蹄不想红烧的时候拿来炖黄豆也很美味，冬日里来一碗，吃完暖暖的很舒服。

Pork Trotter and soybean are both believed to be good in winter, a stew made from the two should keep you warm and hydrated at the same time. 

It is often my go to when I am on low carb mood.

【控肉/炕肉饭】Kong Bah P'ng

不久前和妈妈视频时说起买了一块非常棒的五花肉，妈妈就说好的五花肉应该拿来做控肉，去台湾玩时最让她念念不忘的美食之一就是控肉。

于是我就趁工作不忙的时候煮了一大锅加了鸡蛋和豆干一起卤的控肉。真是美味得不行，控肉炖好先别忙着吃，等几个小时再吃更美味噢！

I bought a box of real good pork belly last week, I was so excited that I told mom about it. She told me the best way to use a good block of pork belly is to make Taiwanese Kong Bah. 

I couldn't agree more and putting it to work the moment I had a break from my busy work schedule! I added some five spiced bean curd and hard boiled eggs into the stew, both turned out superb!

【番薯芋头炸年糕】Fried Nian Gao With Yam and Sweet Potato

今年过年本来只做了两个红豆年糕过年，后来还是忍不住又做了一个古法年糕就是为了要做这款炸年糕。这是童年的味道，也是记忆中的年味。时隔很多年吃上一口，还是那么地满足。

炸这款年糕的脆浆糊食谱是我调整了好多次后最满意的一次，炸好的年糕第二天都还是脆的，这个面糊比例炸香蕉、炸番薯和芋头都特别好哦！

I had only planned to make Adzuki Nian Gao this year for the Chinese New Year Celebration, but I have been craving for this fried Nian Gao for such a long time that I ended up making another Nian Gao the traditional way.

The crust recipe of this fried Nian Gao has been fine tuned for years, this batch of crust turned out the best and the Nian Gao stays crispy hours after it was fried, it just hit the spot and just brought me right back home to those afternoon times, sharing this snack with my beloved family.

Note: The crust recipe is also perfect for Fried Banana, Fried Yam and Sweet Potato.

【石灰水】Limewater/Air Kapur

石灰用于食品加工很常见，例如石灰水泡柿子，制作皮蛋、冰粉、米豆腐等等。在国外，石灰也是腌渍食品制作时的常见用料，石灰在食品加工里能起保鲜，杀菌消毒的功能，所以运用广泛。

石灰和石灰水在东南亚的传统美食里也用得非常多，比较常见的做法是用石灰水浸泡一些需要长时间烹煮的蔬果，让其在烹饪过程中仍然可以保持形状和颜色。

另外一个更接地气的用法就是加到面糊里制作脆浆，加入石灰水制作的挂浆可以长时间保持爽脆的口感，不容易回潮，效果非常棒。

使用少量石灰制作的食品对身体无害，微量的石灰摄入甚至还有补钙的效果，但切记使用不能过量，购买的石灰也必须是食品级的才行噢！

自己在家制作石灰水超级简单直白，只要找到原材料食品级石灰，基本就是三十秒即可搞定的事情，制作一次还可以用上好多好多年，有兴趣的朋友可以试试看。

注：食品级石灰膏可以在网上，亚洲超市，印度超市，墨西哥超市里找到。就是印度人嚼槟榔时抹到荖叶上的白色膏状物质。

Limewater is used in many Malaysian dishes to help retain shape of fruits/vegetables during cooking process, it is also the secret ingredient in making the batter for fry foods batter that stays crispy for a long time.

Some people back in Malaysia add Slaked lime (Kapur Sirih) or Calcium hydroxide into frying batter to achieve the crispy effect, I personally like to use limewater in my batter since it is colorless and odorless and doesn't change the ratio and consistency of my batter at all.

Making limewater at home is really straight forward and simple, as long as you can get hold of the main ingredient - - Slaked Lime, sometimes also called Pickling lime, Kapur Sirih in Malay, Nam Pboon Sai   น้ำปูนใส in Thai, "Cal" in Spanish.

Slaked Lime is the main ingredients in the Paan/betel chewing practice, so you can easily find this ingredient at any shops that sells Paan/Betel nuts. 

(Hint : Try a traditional Indian grocery shop, Hispanic grocery store or Thai/Vietnamese Grocery stores. Just make sure you purchase food grade lime, not the one for construction use, which may consist lead.)

【自制酒酿】Fermented Glutinous Rice

酒酿，也叫醪糟/甜米酒/甜酒/糯米酒/江米酒等等，古时候叫“醴”。是把蒸熟的糯米加上酒曲发酵的一种甜米酒，非常适合用做甜点和烹饪辅料。中国其他地区也有用玉米面和其他谷类制作的类似甜酒，做法类似，也非常甜美。

据说酒酿甘辛温，含糖、有机酸、维生素B1、B2等，可益气、生津、活血、散结、消肿。不仅利于孕妇利水消肿，也适合哺乳期妇女通利乳汁，女性朋友在每个月特殊时期吃点酒酿也有活血滋补的效果哦！

Fermented Glutinous Rice, or jiu niang (酒酿), has several other names depending on which part of China one is from, it is also called Sweet Rice Wine, 甜米酒 (tian mi jiu) 醪糟 (lao zao) ,米酒 (mi jiu), 甜酒 (tian jiu), 糯米酒 (nuo mi jiu), and 江米酒 (jiang mi jiu). 

It is made with glutinous rice (also called sticky rice, or sweet rice), fermented with distiller’s yeast, it is believed to be very good for women, especially after childbirth, during the confinement period.

I liked using it in several sweet dishes such as Sweet Osmanthus Jiuniang TangYuan, its culinary possibility doesn't end at sweet dishes, it could also be used as a rising agent for buns and cakes. Which I will introduced whenever I have a chance.

虎年大吉【萌虎小馒头】Tiger Buns For The Year of Tiger

这个馒头是春节前做了要给朋友们送年的，制作过程比我想像的还要耗费时间，但是效果很是不错，在儿子强烈的要求下留了一个给他吃，他特别喜欢。

今天是春节的最后一天，写个帖子纪念今年做的萌萌哒小虎馒头，也希望今年大伙儿都虎虎生威，健健康康的。

These cute buns were made the day before CNY with the thought of sending them to some friends to wish them a prosperous and happy Chinese New Year.

The final product came out slightly different than I initially planned, better, I would like to think... 

DS loves the buns so much that he requested to have one at breakfast on the CNY day. 

He "liked it very much, and is delighted that he finally gets to eat a tiger!" He said.

【炮竹虾】Firecracker Shrimp

炮竹虾是我们每每到泰国餐厅一定会点的前菜之一。这款美食在家做其实一点都不难，全家都特别喜欢，寓意也特别好，今年过年做了当年菜，大家都很喜欢呢！

These firecracker shrimps were made on the first day of Chinese New Year, beside being right for the occasion, it is also tastes amazing! The family enjoyed it as a starter for our CNY dinner.

【红豆年糕】Adzuki Bean Nian Gao

一转眼，虎年已经来到了眼前。今年还是因为疫情没法回乡过年。那就趁这两周工作不太忙的时候做两个年糕过节吧！

往年我一般做的都是我奶奶生前爱做的古法年糕，今年我想了想，就做了这款红豆年糕，也特别香甜美味呢！

It is the time of the year again to celebrate Chinese New Year. Since I am not able to make the trip back home (again) due to the pandemic, I decided to make a few Chinese New Year dishes to celebrate here in the States.

This year, instead of the traditional Niao Gao that I normally made for CNY, I opted for this Adzuki Bean Nian Gao this year, somewhat healthier, and something different.

KEREPEK BAWANG (Onion Chips) 【洋葱螺旋饼】

 

When I was young, I used to snack on this Onion crackers that I bought from stores, and thought that this snack can only be made by factories or bakeries. 

Until one year it was Eid so my classmate and I visited a teacher, we were served a super crunchy and tasty onion crackers, I loved it so much that I asked my teacher where did sher bought it from.

When I was told that it was homemade by the teacher herself... I was amazed and truly impressed. 

It has been more than 25 years since and I have not been able to buy this Kerepek from any stores where I now lived. I decided to try making it at home, it turned out so good that I could not stop snacking on it!

这款洋葱脆饼是我小时候经常买的的零食之一，洋葱的香味越嚼越香，我非常喜欢。我一直以为这是食品厂才做得出来的味道，直到某年开斋节我和同学们去一位马来老师家拜访，老师家的洋葱饼特别好吃，脆脆香香的。

因为太喜欢，就问了老师是那里买的，被告知是老师自己做的之后，我至今仍然记得心里的惊讶和对老师的佩服，心想老师居然还做得出店里买的零食噢！真是太厉害了。

出国定居后，喜欢的家乡零食不再是花钱就购买得到的满足。突然想吃这款洋葱饼了，趁这几天工作不忙，就做了一批，真是好吃得欲罢不能呢！