Stir-fry Basil Chicken

Ingredients
1/2 free range chicken (cut into small pieces)
300 gm fresh basil shoots
3 cloves chopped garlic
2 red bird eye chili (halved, seeded)
1 dried chili (soaked, seeded and cut into 1″ length)
dark soy sauce
light soy sauce
sesame oil
1/2 tsp sugar
dash of pepper
sea salt
olive oil

1. Wash chicken parts and pat dry. I prefer small free range chicken for this dish mainly because it has less fats and the meat is sweeter and more succulent. Make sure the pieces are small to enable it to cook through easily and not burn on the outside and still red in the insides. This dish has to be dry and not full of gravy.
2. Heat up the wok. Drizzle in the olive oil. Toss in the fresh and dried chili, chopped garlic, followed by chicken pieces. Stir fry them around until the chicken is well seared, then add a drizzle of light and dark soy sauce, a little sesame oil and stir some more till all the chicken is evenly coated and colored. Do not add water but you may lower down the heat.
3. When the chicken is almost cooked through, throw in all the basil shoots and leaves. Add sugar, pepper and sea salt to taste. When the basil goes limp, turn off the heat immediately and serve.

source:Audrey Cooks

Nyonya Style Steamed Fish Recipe

Cooking Nyonya dishes is labor-extensive, involves delicate preparation and requires mingling of a variety of spices which is pounded into a very specific texture. Nyonya cuisine evolved from the inter marriages of the Straits Chinese and the local Malay traders. It is a perfect amalgamation of spices used by the Malay or Indonesian community such as pungent roots, aromatic leaves and sometimes together with candle nuts, shallots, shrimps paste, chilies, tamarind juice and coconut milk. But it all well-worth the effort as the finished dish proved. Nyonya style steamed sea bass transformed into delectable melt-in-your-mouth morsels, smothered in the bath of sourish, spicy and tangy spices. The subtle selection of ingredients give it a wow factor that make you want to savor every mouthful.

If you are looking for easy delightful Chinese-Malay fusion to satisfy your spicy and sour cravings, you might want to try the recipe below. Lay your hand on this delicate recipe of the Straits settlement.

Ingredients:

1 sea bass (about 700g), cleaned

2 tablespoon onion, shredded

2 tablespoon coriander leaves, chopped

Spices:

2 stalks lemongrass, chopped finely

3 tablespoon ginger flower, chopped

1 tablespoon bird's eye chilies

4 tablespoon squeezed lime juice

Seasoning:

1 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoon fish sauce

dash of pepper

Method:

1. Combine all the spices and seasoning, pour over the cleaned sea bass.

2. Steam at high heat in a wok with boiling water for 10-12 minutes until the fish is cooked. Then remove the fish from wok.

3. Sprinkle shredded onion and coriander leaves on top of the steamed fish and serve hot with fluffy rice.

Article Source: Siaw_Ling_Kock