Video: Setting Our Taste Buds Aflame

As part of experiencing the foods of different cultures, we made a video!

Come watch us as we try our hand at taste testing.

Rojak

Rojak is a Malay word, used to describe something that is derived from a mixture of unrelated substances.

It comprises small pieces of fruit, vegetables, dried tofu, dough fritters and cured cuttlefish are cooked in a prawn paste sauce with crushed peanuts, to form a dish that is not only found in Singapore, but in Malaysia and Indonesia as well.

There are two types of rojak in Singapore;
Indian rojak (pasembor), which is an mixture of potatoes, eggs, bean curd and prawns fried in batter, served in with a sweet and spicy chili sauce,

and fruit rojak, which is made up of cucumber, pineapple, jicama, bean sprouts, tofu and chinese fritters.

The following is a simple recipe to make fruit rojak:

Ingredients include

- 2 cucumbers, peeled and cubed 
- 100g peeled and cubed pineapple 
- 100g bangkuang (jicama), cubed(tulip bulb) 
- 2 pieces fried beancurd, sliced 
- 100g bean sprouts 
- 100g water spinach 
- 100g jellyfish or preserved squid 
- 1 tablespoon chopped ginger flower 
- 1 deep-fried dough stick, sliced 

- Dressing : 
1 tablespoon tamarind pulp soaked in 2 tablespoons water 
300g roasted peanuts, crushed 
6 tablespoons black prawn paste 
4 tablespoons sugar 
3 tablespoons lime juice 
1 tablespoon ground dried red chillies, fried in 1 teaspoon oil


Procedure:

Cut the cucumber, pineapple, bangkuang and bean curd into bite-sized pieces.

Blanch the bean sprouts and water spinach for 10 seconds, remove and drain.

Clean the jellyfish and cut into strips; peel and clean the squid and cut into pieces.

To prepare the Dressing, mash and strain the tamarind and discard any solids to obtain juice.

Combine the tamarind juice with two thirds of the crushed peanuts and all other Dressing ingredients in a large salad bowl and mix well.

Add the vegetables and other ingredients and mix well. Garnish with the remaining peanuts and serve.


References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rojak
http://www.grouprecipes.com/45721/singapore-style-rojak.html

Posed by Hanyi Wong

South Indian Dinner :Rasam

Rasam is a South Indian soup,it classical  prepared using  tamarind juice as a base, with added ingredients such as chilli , pepper , cumin and used as seasoning . 

preparation 

ingredients

 For the rasam:

• 9-10 medium size red and juicy tomatoes
• 1 or 2 cups water
• salt

For the spice herb mixture:

• ½ cup coriander stems with or without leaves
• 1 inch ginger
• 8-9 garlic
• 10-12 black pepper
• 1 tbsp cumin seeds

For the tempering:

• 2 tbsp oil
• 2 to 3 sprig of curry leaves
• a pinch of asafoetida
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• 1 tsp white lentils
• 1 or 2 red chillies, broken
• ½ tsp turmeric powder

method

1. blanch or steam the tomatoes.
2. once they cool, chop them and blend to a smooth puree.
3. in a mixer and pestle make a coarse paste of all the ingredients mentioned in the spice herb mixture list above.
4. heat oil and fry the mustard seeds. when they start to crackle add the white lentil.
5. fry the white lentil till light brown and then add all the other tempering ingredients, except turmeric powder.
6. fry for a minute.
7. add the coarse herb and spice paste. add turmeric powder and fry for a minute.
8. now add the tomato puree.
9. add the water and salt.
10. bring to a thorough boil and then simmer for 10-12 minutes.
11. garnish tomato rasam with coriander leaves.

serve 

tomato rasam hot with rice.

by Nayana.kalaimalai 

south indian lunch: sambar

sambar is a lentils and vegetable stew based on a brew made with tamarind , it is a dish from south Indian.

preparation 
Ingredients

• 1 cup pigeon pea lentils
• 1 to 1.5 cups, cleaned and chopped vegetables - okra, french beans, potatoes, shallots or onions, small round lady finger, tomatoes
• 1 tbsp seedless tamarind soaked in ½ cup water
• 1 to 1.5 tbsp sambar powder
• ½ tsp red chilli powder
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• a pinch of asafoetida
• 2.5 to 3 cups water for pressure cooking the lentils
• cups water to be added later
• salt

for the tempering

• 2 to 3 dry red chillies
• 1 tsp mustard seeds
• ¼ tsp fenugreek seeds (optional)
• a pinch or two of asfoetida
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic - crushed lightly with the peels (optional)
• 12 to 15 curry leaves

method

1. first soak the tamarind in warm water for 30 mins. pick and rinse the dal in water well.
2. boil dal in 2.5 to 3 cups water in the pressure cooker for 8-9 whistles on medium to high flame. the lentils should become soft and mushy.
3. once the pressure settles down on its own, remove the lid.
4. now add the chopped veggies, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, asafoetida and salt. add 2 cup water and stir well.
5. pressure cook again for 1 whistle on medium to high flame. once the pressure settles down on its own, remove the lid.
6. add the sambar powder and tamarind pulp. if the consistency of sambar is thick, then add some water.
7. keep the cooker on the stove and and then simmer the sambar for 10-12 minutes on a low flame.
8. keep on stirring at intervals so that the lentil does not stick to the bottom. switch off and keep the sambar covered.
9. in a small pan, heat oil. crackle the mustard seeds first.
10. then add the fenugreek seeds, garlic, red chillies, asafoetida and curry leaves.
11. fry till the garlic turns a light brown and the red chillies change colour. pour the whole tempering in the steaming hot sambar. close with a lid so that the flavours infuse for about 5-6 minutes.
12. lastly stir 

serve

 the vegetable sambar with steamed rice or idli or dosa or medu vada.

 by Nayana.Kalaimalai

China Food Journey

  The story of china is the story of food. A number of different styles contribute to Chinese cuisine but perhaps the best known and most influential are Cantonese cuisine, Shandong cuisine, Jiangsu cuisin and Sxechuan cuisine. These styles are distinctive from one another due to factors such as availability of resources, climate ,geopraphy, history, cooking techniques and lifestyle. One style may favour the use of lots of garlic and shallotsover lots of chilli and spices, while another may favourspreparing seafood over other meats and fowl.
Jiangsu cuisine favours cooking techniques such as braising and  stewing, while Sichuan cuisine employs baking, just to name a few.Hairy crab is a highly sought after local delicacy in Shanghai, as it can be found in lakes within the region. Peking dark and dim-sum are other popular dishes well known outside of China.
  Based on the raw materials and ingredients used, the method of preparation and cultural differences, a variety of foods with different flavors and textures are prepared in different regions of the country. Many traditional regional cuisines rely on basic methods of preservation such as drying, saliting, picking and fermentation.

 Retrived fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Plg-ZiWNst8

                                                             ---renyu fang

Chicken Rice

Another dish that is considered a national dish of Singapore is the Hainanese Chicken Rice.

It is a relatively cheap meal ($3-$4) and can be purchased at many of the coffee shops or hawker centres in Singapore. However, it is also available at restaurants, though the price is often many times the price of a regular meal in a coffee shop. Chicken rice is often served with a soup that has been flavoured through cooking the chicken with spices and seasoned. Some locals believe that the taste of chicken rice is brought out when the chicken is a 'kampong' chicken, which is in other words, a free ranging chicken.

The popularity and fame of the dish is such that it is even served at international expositions and global events abroad, as well as on the Singapore Airlines flight as one of the optional inflight meals.

There are regional variations in this dish in Malaysia and Thailand as well. In Malacca, Malaysia, the chicken rice is served in the shape of rice balls. In Thailand, the chicken rice appears to be rather similar to the kind served in Singapore, but it is called khao man kai. 

The following is a link to a recipe to cook this much loved Singapore dish.
http://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/hainanese-chicken-rice

References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hainanese_chicken_rice


- Hanyi Wong

Tandoori Chicken

Ingredients


Chicken whole1 
Kashmiri red chilli powder 2 teaspoon
Lemon juice 3 tablespoons
Salt  to taste
Yogurt 1 cup
Ginger paste 2 tablespoons
Garlic paste 2 tablespoons
Garam masala powder 1/2 teaspoon
Olive oil to baste2 tablespoons
Chaat masala 1/2 teaspoon


Method


1. Make incisions with a sharp knife on the chicken breast, legs and thighs.
2. Apply a mixture one teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder, one tablespoon lemon juice and salt over the chicken and set aside for half an hour.
3. For the marinade, tie up yogurt in a piece of muslin and hang over a bowl for fifteen to twenty minutes.
4. Remove the thick yogurt into a bowl. Add the remaining Kashmiri red chilli powder, salt, ginger paste, garlic paste, remaining lemon juice, garam masala powder and two tablespoons olive oil.
5. Rub this mixture over the chicken and marinate for three to four hours in a refrigerator.
6. Thread the chicken onto a skewer and cook in a moderately hot tandoor (clay oven) or in a preheated oven at 200°C/400°F/Gas Mark 6 for ten to twelve minutes, or until almost done. 
7. Baste chicken with a little oil and cook for another four minutes. Remove and set aside.
8. Sprinkle chaat masala powder and serve with onion rings and lemon wedges.


http://www.sanjeevkapoor.com/recipe/Tandoori-Chicken-Cooking-with-Olive-Oil.html


By Anmol Jajee