Cheesy Stuffed Pork Steak with Onion Sauce

Fried onion mixture:
1/2 packet shimeiji mushroom washed and finely chopped
4 medium size onions peeled and finely chopped
2 tablespoon oil
A pinch of salt and pepper *optional to omit*
Stir fry the onions and mushroom till lightly brown and leave aside. You will use half for the pork steak and half for onion sauce.

Pork steak:
500gm of mince pork
3 tablespoon of panko or breadcrumbs
2 eggs
1/2 fried onion mixture
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 slices of cheddar cheese (from a cheddar cheese block)
Oil for frying
1 bowl of water
Mix well the mince pork with all the above ingredients.
Shaped them into steak and make a well in the centre.
Place 1 sliced cheese in the centre and cover and roll back and forth the meat steak.
Heat oil in a frying pan.
Place meat steak and fry until golden brown and flip to the other side . Once both side is golden brown, add in 1 bowl of water and cover the pan with a lid.  Cook until the water evaporates. The water will help to steam the meat steak and prevent it from drying.
Once water evaporate, remove the meat steak and set aside.

Onion Sauce:
1/2 fried onion mixture
3 tablespoon all purpose flour
* butter or oil optional*
Salt pepper sugar to taste
Using the same pan to make the sauce. Add in the fried onion mixture and lightly fry it. Push it aside.
If the pan is dried up, heat some butter until melted (or oil) and add in flour to make a roux or thickening. Fry the mixture until lightly golden color and mix it with the fried onion mixture. Fry until combined and add in 1 bowl of water. Stir and break up any flour lumps. Add salt , pepper and sugar and adjust taste to your liking.
Remove sauce from pan into a bowl and set aside.

Mixed vegetable:
1 carrot cut into strips
1 bunch of French beans cut into bite size pieces
1/2 packet shimeiji mushroom
salt and pepper to taste *optional to omit*
Stir fry all the above veggies until slightly cooked and leave aside until ready for assemble.

Hasselback roasted potatoes:
4 Russet potatoes
Olive oil
Salt pepper to taste
* Herbs of your choice optional*
Wash and scrub the potatoes to remove any dirt or soil.
Cut a small piece to allow the potato to sit firmly.
Cut thin slice of the potatoes without cutting through. Place a large wooden spoon in front of the potato as a guideline.
Pour olive oil and rub salt and pepper.
Roast it in a preheated oven of 250'C for 25 minutes. Every now and then, brush oil on the surface of the potatoes to prevent it from drying. You may sprinkle herbs of your choice.

The Perfect Grilled Cheese Sandwich

4 slices of white bread
3 tbs butter
2 sliced cheese
1 tomato sliced thinly
A sprinkle of dried basil
Salt and pepper to taste

Spread butter on the outer side of the bread.
Placed cheese sliced inside. Topped with tomato slices and sprinkle basil, salt and pepper to taste. Cover with another sliced of bread. Butter the top side.

Heat a pan and melt a dollop of butter. Place sandwich butter side down. Using spatula, turn the sandwich every now and then to get the bottom side evenly browned. Once bottom side is evenly browned, using a spatula, carefully turn the sandwich over to brown the other side.

Remove from pan and sliced the sandwich into halves. You know you get a perfect grilled cheese sandwich when both sides are evenly browned and the sandwich oozes out warm melted cheese.

Sour Spicy Vegetable Stew @ Chai Boey

2 cloves garlic
6 pieces dried chilli (seeds removed)
10 pieces tamarind slice
1 thumb size ginger
1/4 roast duck or 1/2 roast trotter or 1/2 roast chicken
2 stalk Chinese Mustard green "kai choy"
500ml water
90ml Light soy sauce
Sugar to taste
Oil for cooking

Method:
Heat oil and stir fry garlic, ginger, dried chilli and tamarind slice until fragrant.
Add in meat of choice. Here I am using 1/4 roast duck. Mix well.
Add in water and bring to boil. Once boiling, turn down the heat to low and add in Chinese Mustard Green vegetables. Add in the 90ml of soya sauce and additional water until it is the same level with the vegetable level. Simmer on low heat for about an hour.  Finally, add in sugar to taste.

Mint Curry Fish

4 pieces fish fillet
4 tbsp oil
2 stalks lemongrass, lightly crushed
3-4 cups water
1 1/4 cup (300ml) coconut milk
2-3 tomatoes, quartered
10 okra (or add eggplant if desired )
1 Stalk mint leaves
Mint leaves for garnish

Blend finely:
120g (4oz) shallots
4 cloves garlic
1 inch ginger or galangal (lengkuas)
2 candlenuts
1/2 tbsp toasted belacan
6- 8 pieces dried chillies that have been soaked until softened
Salt & sugar to taste

Spices:
Curry powder (mixed with 4 tbsp water to form a paste):
2 tbsp ground coriander
1/2 tbsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin

Method

Rub some salt over the fish and set aside for 1/2 hour before rinsing it off. Ensure there is no blood left on the fish as it may cause bitterness in the curry.
In the meantime, heat up 4 tbsp oil in a large pan/pot. Fry the blended ingredients (shallots, garlic etc) for 3-5 minutes. Then add curry powder mixture continue frying for 2 minutes until the chilli split oil into the pan. Add the lemongrass.
Add water, cover and bring to a boil. Simmer for 1/2 hour. Then add coconut milk. Once it starts to simmer, quickly add tomatoes and okra. Simmer for 5 minutes then add in fish fillet. Cover and simmer gently for 10 minutes until the fish is cooked. Turn off the heat and let it sit for 3 minutes so that the oil rises to the top. Dish out
immediately, garnish with mint leaves and serve hot with steamed white rice.