Dry Bak Kut Teh

It's very common to crave the taste of home when you are living abroad. Especially people like myself, a typical Malaysian girl who loves to eat. Luckily I love to cook so whenever I'm desperate for certain kind of dishes, I will try it on my own first. This time is the famous "Dry" Bak Kut Teh (肉骨茶).

The typical Bak Kut Teh, consists of meaty pork ribs or pork belly simmered in a fragrant broth of herbs and spices. However, some people also fancy additional ingredients like shitake mushroom, chinese cabbage, button mushroom and dried tofu in their pot of Bak Kut Teh. The Bak Kut Teh is usually eaten with rice.

Meanwhile the "Dry" Bak Kut Teh, still consists of pork meat is cooked to a thicker gravy with additional ingredients like dried chillies and dried squids. Here is my humble recipe of "dry" bak kut teh. It's not the best yet so any feedback or suggestion is very welcomed. Have fun cooking! 

"Dry" Bak Kut Teh  (for 2 person)

Ingredients A (for the broth)

500g of pork belly ( I prefer pork belly but you can use pork ribs or any part, depending on your preference)

4 pints of water

1 packet of pre-mix bak kut teh herbs & spices

1-2 garlic bulbs ( you can add more garlic if you like stronger garlic taste) 

10-15 pieces of Wolfberry ( gei ji)

2 tbsp of thick dark soy sauce

2 tbsp of light soy sauce

1 teaspoon of oyster sauce

1 teaspoon of salt 

Steps A

1. Put the 1 packet of pre-mix into the water and bring it to a boil. 

2. Add in the pork, garlic, wolfberries, dark soy sauce, light soy sauce, oyster sauce and salt. 

3. Simmer in low heat for an hour. 

4. Take out the pork and set a side. Keep the broth

Ingredient B ( dry bak kut teh)

500ml of broth

3 small pcs of dried squid ( 2 if is medium size)

1-2 pcs of chilli padi

Some small pieces of dried scallops ( I put coz I like scallops!)

10 pcs of dried chillies

Some coriander

2 shallots bulbs (fried)

Lady's finger

1 tbsp of maltose ( I like it to be slightly sweet). You can also use rock sugar or normal sugar

2 -3 tbsp of light soy sauce

1-2 tbsp of thick dark soy sauce

1 teaspoon of oyster sauce

Salt and pepper to taste

Steps B

1. Fry the dried squid, dried chillies, dried scallops and chili padi until fragrant.

2. Add in the pork from Steps A. Fry for 2 minutes. 

3. Add in the lady's fingers.

3. Add in the 500ml of the soup or adequate to cover the ingredients.

4. Add in the light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce, maltose, salt and pepper. 

5. Bring it to boil and cook until the gravy is thickened

6. Garnish it with some coriander and fried shallots

Enjoy the ever-so-tasty "dry" bak kut teh!

Land van Oranje...

Travelling with your best friend is a journey of a lifetime. Sharing the special moments while you both enjoy exploring exciting new places together is a blessing. 


I was really fortunate that I get to explore the Land van Oranje with two very good friends of mine - Emily & Jenifer. For some personal reason, I didn't plan to visit Amsterdam for Queens Day even though I know I will get to meet some Malaysian friends whom I really miss..until Emily told me that she will be going to Amsterdam too. 


Before I share about Amsterdam..let me tell you who is Emily..


Emily is a very very good friend of mine from Malaysia who is currently working in Hong Kong. I haven't seen her for months and I was so happy when she told me that she'll come to visit me in London before Amsterdam. 


Thanks to Alvin, we both have a really comfy place to sleep. We had loads of fun or maybe I had loads of fun. We visited the Borough Market; tried the burgers, Racliffe, some pastries and took pictures with different kind of vegetables! We were like small kids...Then we did what most of the tourist would do..visited the Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey...We walked a lot and was tired but I enjoyed every moment I spent with Emily.  We also went Westminster Abbey and the Buckingham Palace to have a glimpse of the place where the Royal Wedding will be. Did I mention that Emily & I went to Primark too? Not once but twice! I must admit that Emily did a really fantastic as she got herself two big bags from Primark. At night, we had home-cooked chinese dinner and enjoyed casual & "sampat" conversation..when I said conversation, what I really meant is "GOSSIPS!" :P


* Thanks dearie for visiting London

"No Driving" Day

Like I've mentioned before in the previous post, I want to make my life more exciting by doing things that I'm not used to. So today, I've decided to fulfill my 2nd resolution and that is "Public Transport Day"

First destination - Menara Atlan at Jln Ampang

I left my house at 1.45pm and started walking to the RapidKL train station, located 5mins away from my house. I bought a ticket to "Masjid Jamek" that cost RM 2.40. It took about 20mins to arrive at Masjid Jamek. From Masjid Jamek, I took the RapidKL Kelana Jaya line ( RM 1.60) to station Ampang Park. The Ampang Park station is 3 stations away from Masjid Jamek and it took about 9mins to arrive. From Ampang Park, I walked about 8mins to reach Menara Atland ( next to Wisma MCA)

Total duration: 1hour & 5mins ( travel + waiting) from Pandan Indah to Menara Atlan

Total cost: RM 4.00

Second Destination - Celebrity Fitness in Mid Valley

After I finish my meeting, I head back to Ampang Park station to catch a train to KL Sentral (RM 2.00). From KL Sentral, I took the KTM ( yes the slowest train:p) to MidValley ( RM 1.00). I was lucky today because I didn't have to wait for the KTM train ( Seremban line) to arrive. The train was there when I walk down the escalator! It took about 10mins from KL Sentral to Mid Valley (via KTM). Went to my yoga class today for an hour. Stretch and relax the muscles after quite a bit of walking :p After gym, I walk back to the Mid

Valley station . There's a pedestrian bridge that connects Megamall to the station. You can find the bridge on Level 1, North Court ( near Roti Boy) :)

Total duration: 30mins

Total cost: RM 3.00

Third Destination - Home in Pandan Indah

This time, I bought a ticket to station Bandar Tasik Selatan (RM 1.00). I waited 10mins for the KTM train to arrive and it took about 15mins from Mid Valley to Bdr Tasik Selatan. From Bdr Tasik Selatan, I took the RapidKL Ampang line to Pandan Indah ( RM 1.60). To get to Pandan Indah, you have to change line at station Chan Sow Lin because the train is heading to Sentul Timur. Alternatively, you can take the train to KL Sentral, hop on

to RapidKL to Masjid Jamek then take the Ampang line to Pandan Indah.

And now..am home! yay!

Total duration: 60mins

Total cost: RM 2.60

Pros:

1. Avoid being stuck in traffic jam

2. Lose some pounds - walking can burn calories!

3. You get to see some interesting people around you. New buildings too!

Cons:

1. You sweat during walking. Suggestion: Use an umbrella, walking under the shade and don't walk too fast. If you walk too fast, your heart beats faster and you sweat more.

2. Longer travel time. If you look on the bright side, you get to improve your time management skills! ;) Because of the longer travel time and uncertainties, you will have to allocate extra time to travel and this will help you to improve your time management. :)

3. Wait and wait and wait...Suggestion: Bring a book/magazine to read or you can utilize ur PSP/Nintendo DS ;)

It's actually a good idea to take public transport once in a while. Its quite fun! This journey has reminded me to be grateful for I have - a car to drive ;) Imagine the people I've seen today, they travel with public transport everyday..no matter rain or shine..while we have a car roof that protects us from rain and sun rays...