Food experiments from my little kitchen

That day I came home did not really feel like to cook but my boy asked to eat at home. I did not have enough time to prepare our usual soup so decided to make something easy and simple so that he can have some soup for dinner. The ingredients in the soup are black fungus, dried mushrooms and eggs which are normally stocked in my kitchen. I only prepared a very small portion so the measurements are all estimated. Ingredients 5 to 6 pcs dried black fungus  3 to 4 pcs dried shiitake mushrooms  1 beaten egg  chopped spring onions (garnish) chicken stock powder (you can replace with fresh stock if you have)  water  dark soy sauce  light soy sauce pepper  Cornstarch solution  Recipe 1. Soak the black fungus and shiitake mushrooms till softened and cut them into thin shreds. Discard the soaking water for black fungus, you can keep the soaking water for mushrooms.  2. Add the soaking water for mushrooms in a pot a...

The weather has been very hot these days so it's good to prepare this soup. The apple and Chinese pear make the soup sweet and children friendly. I have added white fungus which is very nourishing for the lungs too.  Ingredients 1 Chicken leg (skin removed/cut into half) 1 Chinese pear 1 Apple (I use Royal Gala) 1 Pc of white fungus (about palm size)  6 Red dates Recipe 1. Put the chicken into boiling water and boil for a few minutes till the scum appears. Drain and rinse it before putting into the slower cooker. 2. Peel the skin of the pear and apple and cut them into large chunks. Add the pear and apple into the slow cooker. 3. Put in the red dates and pour in water to cover the ingredients. Turn the slow cooker to auto mode for at least 3-4 hours.   4. About 30 minutes before serving the soup, soak the white fungus till soft. Remove the stem and cut into desired size before putting it in the soup for 10-15 minutes. 5. Season with salt ...

Soup is always essential for our weekday dinners. I cannot imagine having dinner without soup. Other than my usual ABC soup, pumpkin soup etc, I cook this soup often because I love the sweetness of wong bok. This time I added in special ingredient - white fungus! Seems like the haze is not fully gone so I thought it is good to add something nourishing for our lungs. :)  Ingredients Wong bok Carrot White fungus Pork ribs Garlic Ginger Salt Recipe 1. Cut away diagonally the bottom thick part of wong bok and separate the leaves. Wash them and cut them into a few sections before placing them in the pot. 2. Peel the carrot, cut them into chucks and add them into the pot. Soak the white fungus for a while before trimming and cutting them into smaller pieces to add in as well. Pour hot water till it is fully covered. 3. Par boil the pork ribs in a separate pot till the scum is formed. Pour away the scum and rinse the pork ribs before adding them into the soup pot. 4. Peel...

Due to a recent infection, my son has been coughing every night without fail. Even with the strong cough medicine prescribed by the doctor, his cough has been persisting and often worsened at night. It was very worrying as he seldom fall sick like this. I chanced upon a kind soul (Ms Shuzhi Xu) sharing a recipe for cough on a Facebook cooking group - fritillary bulb soup . I was so delighted and went to medical hall to get the ingredients to prepare for the soup. The shop assistant advised me to get the pre-packed versions they have if I am not going to cook often. Below is the instructions printed on the box. In addition to the pack, I have added half a pear (the pear I bought was very big) and some snow fungus. Also, I added some rock sugar to sweeten the soup in order to entice my son to drink. :p I am really amazed that this soup works wonder! I let my son drank a small bowl yesterday and he did not cough at all during the night. This morning he coughed a little but I cou...

On most weekdays, I would cook soup using pork ribs or chicken in the slow cooker. Sometimes when I am really busy or tired, then I will go for quick soup recipes like this one I am sharing below - tomato egg drop soup. I am not exactly a tomato lover but this soup tastes really good. Simple and nutritious!   Ingredients Tomato Egg Bunapi mushrooms Chopped spring onions (garnish) Ikan bilis Soya beans Recipe 1. Wash the ikan bilis and soya beans and put them into the stock bag. 2. In a pot of boiling water, add the stock bag and let it simmer for 20 minutes. 3. Chop the tomato into cubes and remove the bottom from Bunapi mushrooms. Crack the egg in a bowl, beat it and set aside. 4. After 20 minutes, remove the stock bag from the pot. Add in tomato cubes, mushrooms and let it cook for a few minutes. 5. Taste the soup and season it with salt if you like. Pour in the beaten egg slowly and stir gently in circles using chopsticks. 6. Garnish with chopped spring onio...

White radish is one of my favourite vegetables to use for making Chinese soups. I bought a really big one this week and after cooking Radish soup with Pork ribs, I still have some leftover. I was thinking what can I do with it as I did not want to make the same soup again. So I was on the net again searching for a possible recipe to try - Daikon radish and carrot miso soup . Love the idea of doing miso soup as it is quick and easy!  Ingredients White radish Carrot Instant dashi White miso Chopped spring onions (optional) Recipe 1. Cut the white radish into long strips. 2. In the pot, add in the white radish, instant dashi and water. Cook till the radish strips are softened. (you can taste the soup and add in more dashi if required at this step) 3. While the radish is being cooked, cut the carrots into strips too. (shorter than the radish) 4. Add the carrot strips to the pot and simmer till soft. Turn off the heat. 5. Add in the miso paste to the taste you required. ...

I have never really eaten pumpkin as a child. Somehow I do not recall my mum cooking pumpkin at all. I only remembered the sinful stuffs like chicken wings and curry etc. Yet when my son started taking solids, I was told that pumpkin is good. We gave him pumpkin porridge then slowly I incorporated pumpkin into our weekly soup menu. Here is one really simple yet tasty soup to share. Ingredients 300g Pumpkin 4 Dried Shiitake mushrooms 250g Pork ribs Salt Recipe 1. Soak the dried mushrooms in water till softened. Discard the water. 2. Cut the pumpkin into big chucks and remove the skin. (You can leave the skin on if you wash it really clean)  Don't cut it too small as it will soften and disintegrate easily after cooking. 3. Wash the pork ribs and blanch it in boiling water for a few minutes till the scum is floating. Remove the scum and rinse the pork ribs again. This is to produce a clear soup. 4. Place the mushrooms, pumpkin and pork ribs into slow cooker and add hot...