Asian Food

Five-Spice Braised Lamb and Bok Choy

This will serve 6 easily.

• 2.5 pounds stewing lamb
• 3 cups beef broth
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 3 inch by 2 inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
• 5 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 Tablespoon Chinese 5-spice powder
• 3/4 cup Chinese rice wine (unsalted)
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• water to cover
• 8 bunches baby bok choy washed, trimmed and separated
• 16-20 medium mushrooms, thickly sliced (preferably mixed, but any kind will do)
• cornstarch to thicken
• more rice wine - about a half cup.

If you're making this ahead to pop in your slow cooker later in the week, put the first 9 ingredients in a large zippered freezer bag and freeze until needed. Otherwise, place all ingredients except bok choy and mushrooms, into the slow cooker and allow to cook for 6 to 8 hours. You can either saute the mushrooms and bok choy and make a bed out of them, or you can add them to the slow cooker towards the end of the cooking time - I'd say add the mushrooms with about 45 minutes left to go and the bok choy with about 15 minutes left.

Once the meal is finished cooking, remove the meat and vegetables from the broth. Using a large wide-bottomed stir fry pan, reduce the cooking liquid until the flavour is strong enough for you. I reduced mine by half, but it will really depend on how much liquid evaporates from your slow cooker and whether you topped the liquid up at all during cooking. Use a bit more Chinese wine, into which you've stirred a few spoons full of cornstarch to thicken the sauce.

Place a heap of rice (if you are serving it with rice) into the bottom of a big soup plate. On top of that, make a nest of bok choy and mushrooms. place some lamb pieces on top of the vegetables and ladle over some of the sauce.

This also reheats well for lunch the next day!

Tom Jued: Thai Clear Soup With Minced Pork

Serves 6

• 300 grams minced pork (about 1 + 3/4 cups)
• 3 tablespoons coriander root, finely chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 cups chicken stock or water
• 3 cups Chinese cabbage
• 1 cup soft tofu, cut into small pieces
• 1 + 1/2 cups soaked glass noodles (about 150 grams dry)
• 3 tablespoons light soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce
• 2 spring onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup coriander leaves

Mix the pork, coriander root or stem and garlic together with your hands until very well Separate the mixture into tiny meatballs, about the size of a small grape - you should be able to make approximately 48. Set aside.

Put the stock into a pan and bring to the boil. Add the meat balls and cook for 2 minutes. Turn down the heat to medium-low, then add the shredded Chinese cabbage and tofu and simmer gently for another two minutes. Add the soaked glass noodles followed by the light soy sauce and fish sauce. Ladle into 6 bowls and garnish each with coriander leaves and spring onions.

Chinese braised pork hocks

Serves 4

• 2 pork hocks (about 4-5 pounds), rinsed well
• 1 cup light soy sauce
• 1 cup dark salted rice wine
• 1 cup clear rice wine
• 1/2 cup palm sugar
• 1/3 cup sliced ginger
• 4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
• 4 star anise
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 3 1 inch pieces of orange peel, pitch removed

Put the pork hocks in a slow cooker (or a large pot on the stove top) together with all the other ingredients and add sufficient water so that the liquid covers the meat completely. If you're using a pot on the stove top, gently bring to the boil then and turn down to simmer. Simmer the pork hocks for at least 2 hours, or longer if you have the time. If you're using a slow cooker, allow to cook for 6 hours from the time you put all the ingredients in the pot.

Remove the cooked pork hocks to a plate to cool slightly. When cool enough to touch, use your fingers to work the flesh away from the bone, use your fingers to clean the meat of the skin and as much of the sticky jelly as you can . Discard the bone, jelly and skin. Set the meat aside.

Strain the stock and bring it to a boil, allow to boil rapidly to reduce the stock to one third of its volume or more. taste the stock during reduction. If it is not strong enough for your liking, reduce it some more.

Once the stock is strong enough for your taste, place the pork meat pieces in it and warm them in the stock for 5 minutes. Serve pork over grits or rice and drizzle the reduced stock over the top.

Pad Thai Tribute

I love Thailand. I found it very depressing to watch some of my favourite places on earth on the telly in the days since the tsunami. The Thais are such warm people and their country is so beautiful. There were so many places on the news that I recognized. In order to make myself feel better I decided to make the pad Thai I learned to cook at the Chiang Mai Thai Cookery School. I’ve been there both times I’ve gone to Thailand and the next time I go, I will definitely be taking their master class! The teachers are wonderful and funny and the class is so interesting. It’s not just a live cooking show, but a hands on instruction and interactive discussion on all topics relating to native Thai foods.

I can’t claim that this is the original recipe as I’ve mutated it somewhat over the time I’ve been making it. For starters, theirs calls for tamarind paste, and I much prefer lime juice for the sour. I’ve never liked tamarind paste.

When I’m missing Thailand, like now, I cook up a big batch of this, make myself a pineapple shake and settle back.

The quantities of ingredients listed are all really an estimation of what I use and are thoroughly alterable to suit your own tastes. I like my Pad Thai pretty spicy and limey, so bear that in mind.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp oil

4 cloves chopped garlic

5 chopped shallots

¼ cup Tiny dried shrimps

25-30 prawns, peeled with tail on

3 Tbsp soy sauce

½ cup fish sauce

4 Tbsp palm sugar

Juice of 2 whole limes

4-7 birds eye chilies, diced fine, including seeds

Fresh wide rice noodles (or dry, but soaked in boiled water for 5 minutes)

3 eggs

4 cups bean sprouts

½ cup crushed peanuts

4 lime wedges

Heat oil in large non-stick wok or stir-fry pan and stir-fry the garlic, shallots, dried shrimpies and prawns for 2 minutes. Meanwhile whisk together in a bowl the soy sauce, fish sauce, palm sugar, lime juice and chilies and set aside. Add the wet noodles to the pan and stir-fry for 3 more minutes, adding about a ½ cup of water or chicken stock to soften the noodles. Stir in sauce, and continue cooking.

Break eggs into sauce bowl and whisk to combine.