【柠檬饭】Lemon Rice

 

多年以前我在马来西亚一个学院工作，有个同事是南印度来的婆罗门，她每天的早饭一定是芭蕉叶裹着的酸奶饭，而午餐则是一定会有这个柠檬饭的。我也是那个时候第一次知道这款主食。

后来在印度居住的时候，也经常在餐厅里或者朋友家吃到这个饭。后来也学会了在家做这款米饭，因为它真是冷饭的好去处噢！

Many years ago, I worked in a college in Malaysia. One of my colleagues was a Brahmin from South India. The breakfast she brings to work must consist of yogurt rice wrapped in banana leave, and her lunch will be this lemon rice many a times. 

Later, when I lived in India, I often had this rice in the restaurants or at friends'.  I also learned to make this rice at home during my time in India, it is really a good way to turn left over white rice into a yummy staple!

【蝶豆花椰浆饭】Nasi Lemak Biru

好友在佛罗里达州成功培植了蝶豆花，她晒了一大包邮寄给我。我就拿来做了这个蝶豆花椰浆饭，真是色香味俱全的一道美食。

蝶豆花是个健康保健的好东西、有抗氧化、提升脑力、护发、提高抵抗力的效果。 在泰国，人们会把蝶豆花泡热水做成蓝色的饮料，有消暑养生的效果。

According to Wikipedia:

Clitoria ternatea, common names including butterfly pea, blue pea, Aprajita, Cordofan pea and Asian pigeonwings, is a plant species belonging to the Fabaceae family.

......Names in other languages include bunga telang (Malay), อัญชัน `anchan (Thai), đậu biếc (Vietnamese), अपराजिता Aparajita in Hindi and 蝶豆 dié dòu (Mandarin Chinese), 'Sankhu Poolu/Sankham Poolu' in Telugu, "Shankupushpam" in Malayalam language and অপরাজিতা (Aparajita) in Bengali.

A friend of mine sent me a packet of her sun-dried Blue butterfly peas, I used them to make this beautiful Nasi Lemak, it is so beautiful that I almost feel bad eating it!

【日式米汉堡】Japanese Rice Burger

多年前日本快餐连锁店摩斯汉堡（MOS burger）进军马来西亚，开业时我和几位同事一起去尝了他们家有名的米汉堡，一吃就爱上了米汉堡的味道。后来摩斯汉堡店选择了离开马来西亚市场，我也再没机会吃上我喜欢的米汉堡了。

前几天我做了日式汉堡肉当晚餐，第二天早上做了我想念的米汉堡当早餐，真是让人分外满足的一份早饭呢！

Years back the Japanese fast food chain MOS burger opened its stores in Malaysia, I went with my colleagues and fell in love with the Rice burger they served. Unfortunately the restaurants didn't do too well in Malaysia and they had to eventually pull all stores out from the market.

I made Japanese Hambugu Steak (ハンバーグ) few days back for dinner, and made this delicious Rice Burger with the remaining burger meat for brunch the next day. 

Just so that you know, This Rice Burger is actually the reason I made the Hambugu Steak! It really did taste like the signature rice burger of the MOS!

Kimchee Fried Rice 【韩国泡菜炒饭】

Kimchee Fried Rice is one of my favorite way to use left over rice, a quick delicious fix for dinner.

平时家里的剩饭我喜欢拿来做这款韩国泡菜炒饭，酸酸辣辣的非常开胃，家人也都很喜欢呢！

Hainanese Chicken Rice 【海南鸡饭】

It has been a long time since I have made this famous Malaysian dish Hainanese Chicken Rice. My friend brought me one free-range chicken from Chinatown in NYC few days ago, I decided to make Hainanese Chicken rice with it and share with her!

好久不做海南鸡饭了，前几天好友从纽约买了一只三黄鸡给我，新鲜的三黄鸡不做海南鸡饭就太浪费了，刚好也发现没完整地写过一个海南鸡饭的食谱，就趁这个机会也整理一下食谱吧！

Japanese Katsu Curry カツカレー 咖喱猪扒饭

This curry rice is one of my comfort foods, I fell in love the first time I had it in Japan years back. I also often order this dish whenever I visit Japanese restaurant here in US, or when I work in NYC, some of the Japanese Deli/Restaurants sell very good Katsu Curry Bento.

I bought a box of very good Kagoshima Kurobuta (かごしま黒豚, "Kagoshima black pig") chop from Japanese Supermarket few days back. 

Since it is long weekends here, I made my favorite Katsu Curry and rice and had one of the best home cook meals in months! 

在日本的时候最喜欢的其中一道美食就是咖喱猪扒饭。来美之后天凉的时候我就爱到日本餐厅叫一客咖喱猪扒饭，吃完觉得元气满满的，可以继续努力工作。

前几天买了非常好的日本黒豚肉排，趁长周末，做一次咖喱猪扒盖饭。今天的午餐是这几周来吃得最满意的了！

Mustard Green Rice/Dua Cai Peng 【芥菜饭】

My mum used to make this Giam P'ng (Hokkien Salted Rice) back home, there are similar dishes made with pumpkin, Long bean and yam.

It is prepared almost like the Spanish Paella, the rice is cooked together with ingredients and seasoning in a pot/wok and later simmer to perfection. It is simply irresistible, every spoon of it is a charm!

I have planted some Chinese mustard green end of summer, harvested handful of times, with the last two batch, I made this rice casserole to remind me of the taste of home. 

咸饭是我在家乡时妈妈常做的一个饭食，妈妈常做的有菜豆饭，芥菜饭，芋头饭和南瓜饭等等。

就是把蔬菜类的食材加上香菇，虾米，葱蒜和五花肉焖好，再炖一锅汤，就能美美地喂饱一家子。很方便，又美味喔！

夏末的时候我在后院撒了一把芥菜籽，后来张出一大片的小芥菜，我收了好几茬送朋友，最后两茬我自己做了芥菜饭和芥菜粥。好吃又营养，很适合秋末养生。

Long Bean Rice （Cai Dao Peng) 【菜豆饭】

My mum used to make this long bean rice back home, there are similar dishes made with pumpkin, Chinese mustard (Gai Choy) and yam.

It is prepared almost like Spanish Paella, the rice is cooked together with ingredients and seasoning, in a pot/wok and later simmer to perfection.

It is simply irresistible, every spoon of it is a charm!

咸饭是我在家乡时妈妈常做的一个饭食，妈妈常做的有菜豆饭，芥菜饭，芋头饭和南瓜饭等等。

就是把蔬菜类的食材加上香菇，虾米，葱蒜和五花肉焖好，再炖一锅汤，就能美美地喂饱一家子。很方便，又美味喔！

Nasi Minyak / Malaysian Ghee Rice 马来油饭

Nasi minyak is synonymous with wedding for most Malay back home, it is one of the main dishes served at the wedding reception. I used to look forward to a Malay wedding to enjoy the feast when I was young. 

Malay wedding reception is a true spirit of "Gotong royong" (Communal work), most people in the village (Kampung) gathered together to share the tasks of cooking/preparing for a reception. 

Every village/kampung has its own team of cooks for such occasion, in other word, every village has their own specialty that passes down generation after generation.

I made Nasi minyak last weekend for a gathering to go with my Malaysian mutton curry, Ayam Goreng Berempah and Achar Timun, everyone enjoys it very much, it was a perfect meal!

在马来西亚，如果想要知道马来友族朋友什么时候结婚的话，只要开玩笑地问道：“你们什么时候请吃油饭呀？”即可。可见这款马来油饭在马来族婚宴是举足轻重的一道美食。

马来西亚的乡村(Kampung)有个很特别的文化叫“Gotong royong"。 就是村子里的人集合在一起同心协力地去做一件事的意思。村里的婚宴一般都是村民们集合一起共同完成的，每个村子都有自己的婚宴团队，专门负责婚宴煮食和安排。换句话说，每个村子的婚宴美食都是很独特的哦！

周末我们请朋友一家和他们来探亲的父母吃饭，我做了马来羊肉咖喱，马来香料炸鸡 和 凉拌黄瓜，大家都很喜欢，连小孩都很喜欢颜色好看的这道米饭哦！

Nasi Lemak Kukus (Steamed Coconut Rice) 【椰浆饭】

With many of my fellow Malaysian friends showing their Ramadan feast on facebook the last couple of weeks, I started craving for nasi lemak to no end. Nasi lemak used to be my breakfast back home for years. I especially loved the small packets of Nasi Lemak wrapped in Banana leaves sold by street hawkers, it is simple, authentic and full of flavors. 

My love for nasi lemak probably was responsible for my weight and cholesterol level then, but then, it was totally worth it!!

I had to make this nasi lemak for lunch this weekend, I could wait no longer. This steaming method really works great and my nasi lemak turned out just the way I liked it! The only thing I am missing here is a fresh banana leave!

P/s：Original recipe was written on 7/26/2014, updated with photographs.

斋戒月这几个星期让人有点郁闷，亲戚朋友们都在FB上发好吃好喝的照片。让思念家乡美食的我都要抓狂了。于是这个周末就不怕麻烦的做了这个得三蒸三煮的椰浆饭。出来的效果跟我思念的味道一模一样。就差那一叶垫底的新鲜芭蕉叶啦！

注：原食谱写于7/26/2014，照片更新。

Thai basil chicken recipe (pad kra pao gai ผัดกระเพราไก่) 【泰式打抛鸡丁】

I had previously made Pad Ka Prao using minced Chicken, Turkey and Pork, all turned out very nice and tasty.

This time I have used diced chicken and added some long bean, it allows us to have more vegetables and hubby loved it so much, he had 2 plateful!

我之前用肉末做过好吃的泰式打抛肉，今天用了鸡丁加上豇豆。能够多吃蔬菜，味道很好，俊爹吃了两大盘还不够呢！

Bamboo Shoots Rice【竹笋焖饭】

When mom was here in the States, she loves to buy fresh bamboo shoots from The Asian market, she will stir fry it with tofu or made stew with pork belly.

She told me about this rice dish that she used to eat as a kid couple of weeks back. When I saw fresh bamboo shoots in the market, I brought home some and made this rice dish and shared with a few friends. 

My friends loved it so much that one of them even brought me more bamboo shoots days later and request me to make it again!

我妈很喜欢吃鲜笋做的菜，她在美国的时候只要看见鲜笋就会买几只回来炒豆腐干或炖肉。

几个星期前妈妈跟我提起鲜笋焖饭，是她小时候很爱吃的美味咸饭，我问了做法后，到亚洲超市买了鲜笋，处理好后留起一大半来做菜，一小半做了这个焖饭。

做好的焖饭送给几个朋友吃，大家都好喜欢。一个好友还在几天后买来一大包的鲜笋，让我再做一次！

Salmon Fried Rice 【三文鱼炒饭】

When we first came to the States, we were amazed with the price of foods here, coming from European country makes everything in the USA look so economical. We will go to Costco and bought tonnes of fruits and vegetables and meats, I will then literally cooking up a spree!

Salmon was one of our favourite purchase, I was initially very happy with the cut, it is boneless and is very easy to clean and prepare. We stopped buying from Costco shortly after, the reason is not hard to figure. The size of everything from Costco are humongous for a family of two, it started feeling more like a burden and I hate having to throw away many unused rotten vegetables.

Coming back to the salmon, I got tired of the meaty tasteless fillet, I grew up eating whole fish and enjoyed sucking on fish bones and head, we stopped buying salmon for a long time, until one day I discovered fish belly and fish bones in Hmart. I bought a packet home and managed to turn a 7 dollar box into three different dishes! How economical is that. Not to mention I thoroughly enjoyed the bones and succulent belly!

刚从欧洲搬来美国的那会儿，觉得自己简直来到了美食天堂，超市里的物价和欧洲比起来直接就是白菜。当时很爱去Costco买肉和水果，我尤其喜欢买Costco的三文鱼，切块腌制烤鱼块，做咖喱，烤鱼都很方便也卫生。

后来渐渐地就不怎么去Costco了，两口之家买Costco的东西其实是一种压力，经常吃不完丢了也浪费。而且我也开始对口口是肉的三文鱼厌倦了，吃海鲜长大的我还是喜欢吃整鱼啊！带骨带头的鱼怎么吃起来就鲜很多呢？

后来被我在Hmart发现了三文鱼骨腩，一大盒才七美刀左右，买回来鱼骨做了鱼头米粉，鱼腩部分做了三文鱼腩煲，还有一小块巴掌大的鱼肉切丁做了三文鱼炒饭，居然让我给弄出三道美食，这算不算很会持家呢？（笑）。

【马来乡村炒饭】Nasi Goreng Kampung (Malaysian Village Style Fried Rice)

Sometime the best food that brings us right back to our memories are the simplest of all. Just like this fried rice,it is easy to prepare, and tasty to eat. The only trick is to have the right ingredients.

Malaysian out there... do you all miss this simple Nasi Goreng Kampung?

有些食物用料朴质，做法简单，可味道却特别的难忘。这个炒饭就是那样的一个食物，它不华丽，做法也可以有更多的变化，可即使在最简单的时候，它也让人觉得滋味无穷。

那些在外的马来西亚游子。你们是否还记得这一道朴质的乡村炒饭？

Stir-Fried Glutinous Rice 【生炒糯米饭】

Fried glutinous rice is a very famous dish in Chinese Dim Sum place, most restaurants now pre-cooked the rice and stir fry like the normal fried rice would to reduce cooking time.

The shortcut was created simply because the traditional way to make this dish is rather time consuming and tedious. It started with soaking the glutinous rice for hours and stir-fry it in a wok, the rice is then being cook slowly by adding sauces in batches until the rice is completely cooked, this method resulting in rice that retaining its shape and is much chewy and less gooey in texture.

If you have time, try making this dish the traditional way, you will find a brand new experience and may even fall in love with it!

印巴美食(素)【豌豆饭】Matar Pulao （Snow Peas Fragrant Rice)

在家宴客的时候，如果做了适合下饭的菜，总觉得煮一锅白米饭请客有点单调是吧？

可以试试做这个漂亮好吃的豌豆饭。这个米饭颜色好看，调味清爽，带着淡淡的香料味，入口很香，配菜吃也不会喧宾夺主，还特别容易做，绝对会让你的客人惊艳喔！

I make a lot of dishes that go well with rice at home, and I often thought serving white rice from rice cooker when I have guest is a little too boring. Thus, this beautiful,fragrant snow pea rice is often my choice to go on the dining table.

I love the contrast of colour, the light seasoning that will not overtake tastes of my main dishes, it could literally be made under 20 minutes!

南洋风味【椰浆饭】 Nasi Lemak （Rice Cooked In Coconut Milk)

很多朋友都在不同的时间问过我，你什么时候做Nasi lemak呀？我一直说会的会的，但都沒上帖子。其实不是不想寫，是我对Nasi Lemak的要求太高了，这个在马来西亚几乎街头巷尾都找得到的美食，却是最难做得好的。

主要的原因是，原材料必须要新鲜，尤其是那个米饭，非要新鲜的椰浆不可，罐头和椰漿粉都做不出那個香味。再者就是我一直很想做一次我最最最满意的Sambal，因为只有好吃的Sambal，椰浆饭才算完整。

终于给我实验出最满意的Sambal辣椒酱，也找到该找的材料了，还给我找到了新鲜的香蕉叶，我的椰浆饭之旅算是完美了！

Many of my Malaysian friends asked me time after time about when will I post a Nasi Lemak recipe. 

I keep saying I will, and is still not posting any, reason is that I am too particular about my nasi lemak, especially the sambal that goes with it. 

I kept trying and tweaking until I made this one, one that I truly enjoyed and will definitely make it again and again.

Here it comes the nasi lemak that I simply LOVE!

【芭提雅蛋包饭】Nasi Goreng Pattaya (Pattaya Fried Rice)

这个蛋包饭是马来西亚小食摊相当有名的一道饭食,和美极辣椒酱一起吃很美味。

它其实就是简单的炒饭用蛋饼包上了，卖相马上就特别不一样啦!

This fried rice dish is a very common dish one could find in almost all of the Malay food stalls in Malaysia.

It is basically fried rice wrapped in thin omelets, a very elegant presentation that brought this simple dish to a complete new level!

Cebu Style "Steamed" Fried Rice

My sweet friend Cally asked me whether I know how to make this Steamed Fried Rice sometimes ago. She said that the sauce was to die for and the rice so yummy. It got me curious and I recalled something I have read on a blog of a Philippino foodie - Dinner at Six Thirty, the writer also mentioned about this steamed fried rice and how yummy it was.

With the intention to know more about this dish, I started researching online and learnt that this is a Philippine version of "Chinese Dim Sum". Here is something I found online about the origin of this dish from this website :

"The Steam Fried Rice of Cebu is fried rice topped with shrimp and pork, and steamed in a rice cooker with its secret sauce. This was an original creation of Mr. Henry Uytengsu of Ding Qua Qua Dimsum House in Cebu, which pionereed the all-day dimsum dining in 1969.

After Ding Qua Qua (1 branch) which offers a signature dimsum buffet, Mr. Uytengsu's group created Harbour City Dimsum House (3 branches) which featured the traditional dimsum carts wheeled to the customers' table-sides. They then created the mall-based Dimsum Break outlet (13 banches) to originally address the dining needs of the mall's late night foodies from the bowling alleys and cinemas.

True enough, the name "Dimsum Break" was inspired by taking breaks to eat dimsum during a bowling session. It is considered the Philippines' version of Panda Express."

As a Malaysian, I know only too well how interesting food could be with some local influence. As part of my effort to recreate this dish at home, I found a few recipes online and tweak my version based on my understanding of Cantonese dishes (which, is the origin of dimsum dishes.) .

The result is great and the taste superb! Though I never did try the original, this version I created is definitely satisfying and I will surely make it again!

Rice Cooker Chicken Rice 【电饭煲蒜香鸡饭】

The original recipe was posted on Wenxuecity years back as rice cooker chicken and immediately became a hit, as it is very easy to follow and is really tasty...

I was in India then and was fascinated by the recipe, as I could find all the ingredients easily, I later modified it a little and added rice, it immediately turned into a one pot meal, so simple and yum!

很多年前，文学城私房掀起了一阵电饭煲蒜香鸡热，当时是哪个聪明的姐妹发的食谱和做法我已经不记得了。

只记得当时我在印度，看见帖子惊为天人，因为材料简单印度也都找得到，所以就经常做，让我在无数个想家的夜晚能够吃上熟悉的味道，着实难忘。

后来我稍微调整了一下，做成电饭煲蒜香鸡饭，更简单，再弄一道沙拉或者炒菜，就是一顿丰富的午饭啦！

原食谱因为换过几个电脑已经丢失了。这会儿因为带孩子，做饭也越来越简单，突然想起这个曾经一度非常喜爱的电饭煲蒜香鸡饭。就把已经束之高阁的电饭煲取出来，做一顿电饭煲鸡饭就可以吃好几顿。实在要感谢发明这个做法的那位姐妹啊！又再一次解救没时间做饭的带娃的妈！