Fortune Cookies
Ingredients
3 egg whites
4 tbsp sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
4 tbsp melted butter
2 tbsp water
80 g all-purpose flour
1 tbsp sesame seeds
Steps
Firstly write or print fortune messages that you wish to hide inside the cookies, and preheat the oven to 180°C.
In a mixing bowl, lightly beat egg whites and sugar until foamy.
Pour in vanilla extract, melted butter, and water. Whip until well incorporated.
Add in flour. Gently mix and stop as soon as a smooth batter forms (do not over mix).
Pour a tablespoon of batter onto the baking sheet. Spread with the back of the spoon to form a round, thin disc (about 10cm). Sprinkle sesame seeds around the edge of the disc.
Repeat the procedure. Make a maximum of 4 discs at a time.
Transfer the baking sheet into the oven. Bake for 7-8 minutes until the edges brown slightly
Bring the baking sheet out of the oven. Quickly flip a disc over with a spatula. Place a fortune message in the middle
Fold the disc into a semi-circle. Then quickly place it onto the rim of a mug.
Push the corners down to shape it into a fortune cookie. Place it in one of the molds of the muffin tray to keep it in shape while cooling. Repeat to finish the rest.
Enjoy when the cookies are completely cool. Or store them in an air-tight container for later consumption.
If you find the middle of the cookies are not crispy enough when cooled, or your leftover cookies have lost their crunchiness, bake them in a preheated oven at 130°C
Tang Yuan (Glutinous Rice Balls)
Ingredients
For the filling
80 g black sesame seeds or peanuts
2.5 tbsp sugar
40 g softened lard
For the wrapper
130 g glutinous rice flour
3 tbsp boiling water
4 tbsp room temperature water
Steps
Toast black sesame seeds (or peanuts) in a frying pan over low heat.
In a food processor, grind cooled black sesame seeds (or peanuts) and sugar until they turn into a paste texture.
Add lard (or butter). Mix to combine then keep refrigerated until the mixture is firm enough to handle.
Divide into 20 portions. Shape each piece into a ball. Put them back in the fridge while preparing the dough.
Make the dough in a mixing bowl, pour hot water into glutinous rice flour while stirring with a spatula.
Add room temperature water little by little.
Knead with your hand until a smooth, soft dough forms.
Divide and roll into 20 balls.
To assemble it, flatten a piece of dough into a round wrapper with your fingers.
Place a ball of filling in the middle. Gently push the wrapper upwards to seal completely.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Gently slide in some Tang Yuan and move them around with a spoon to prevent them from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
When all the balls start to float on the surface, cook for a further minute.
Dish out (along with some liquid) and serve warm.
Freeze Tang Yuan right after they are assembled and follow the same cooking procedure (do not defrost).
Youtiao (Doughnut Sticks)
Ingredients
400 g all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten, plus water combined to 250g
2 tbsp neutral cooking oil
Flour for dusting
Oil for deep-frying
Steps
use a silicone spatula to mix and combine all the ingredients into a rough-looking dough. Cover and rest for 15 mins. Coat your hands with oil (to prevent sticking). Use your fist to press the dough. Then use fingers to fold the dough from the side towards the centre. Repeat the movement until the dough becomes smooth (at this stage it should be soft but not sticky).
Divide the dough into two equal portions. Shape each one into a smooth ball. Coat with oil then cover with cling film.
Rest the dough for 2-4 hours at room temperature. Or, keep it in the fridge overnight. The next morning, wait for at least 1 hour until it comes back to room temperature.
Before handling the dough, start heating up the oil for deep frying.
Transfer the dough pieces onto the work surface dusted with flour. Use your hands to flatten each piece into a rectangle shape (about 10×25 cm). Handle it gently. Then cut each piece into 10 equal strips
Lay one strip on top of another. Press the centre with a chopstick lengthways to stick them together. Repeat the procedure with the rest of the dough pieces.
Fry the sticks once the oil reaches 190°C, turn the heat down to low. Gently stretch the dough then carefully lower it into the oil.
When it comes up to the surface, roll it around continuously with a pair of chopsticks. Once the dough stops expanding and is evenly golden, transfer it to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
Repeat the procedure to cook the rest of the dough. You may cook two sticks at the same time, but do not fry more at once since this will decrease the oil temperature too much.
Doughnut sticks taste best when warm. You may store leftovers in an airtight bag in the fridge for up to three days or in the freezer for 2 months.
Fried Rice
Ingredients
2 cups enriched white rice
4 cups water
⅔ cup chopped baby carrots
½ cup frozen green peas
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 eggs
soy sauce to taste
2 tablespoons sesame oil (to taste)
Steps
In a saucepan, combine rice and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes.
In a small saucepan, boil carrots in water for about 3 to 5 minutes. Drop peas into boiling water, and drain.
Heat wok over high heat. Pour in oil, then stir in carrots and peas; cook for about 30 seconds. Crack in eggs, stirring quickly to scramble eggs with vegetables. Stir in cooked rice. Shake in soy sauce, and toss rice to coat. Drizzle with sesame oil, and toss again.
Har Gow (Shrimp Dumplings)
Ingredients
Wrapper
150g wheat starch
150g tapioca starch (can be replaced with potato starch)
300ml boiling water
Filling
250g shrimp
250g pork belly
100g fresh canned bamboo shoots, cut into pieces
30g kale leaves, cut into strips
Pepper and salt
Sesame oil
Steps
Place the wheat starch and tapioca starch into a large bowl and stir.
Boil the water. Place the bowl with the starch mix onto a scale and set it to zero. Pour boiling water into the mixture and stir quickly until it weighs 300 grams.
Continue stirring the mixture for a while till the mixture turns into a translucent paste in the bowl.
Transfer the starch mixture to the surface you want to make the dough on. You will be using your hands to form the dough (it may still be quite hot). As the dough is forming, you will notice that the dough is starting to turn a very elastic texture. You need to let it relax, preferably in a sealed box, while you prepare the shrimp dumpling filling.
The first step to do the filling is to remove the skin from the pork belly and slice it into small, semi-thick pieces.
The second step is to cut the shrimp into small pieces of about one centimeter.
Next, chop the bamboo shoots into tiny pieces. The smaller the better.
Combine the pork, shrimp, bamboo shoots, kale leaves, sesame oil, salt, and pepper together and stir well.
The first step before assembling the dumplings is to get your steamer ready. Fill it with sufficient water and bring it to a boil on high.
First, cut a portion out of the dough with a knife and roll it with your hands into a strip about 2.5 cm wide. Cut this into about 8 equal portions.
Roll out each portion in a circle with an 8-10 cm circumference.
Next, place some of the filling on the dough and gently use a small spoon to shape it.
Starting from the edge near the filling, crimp the edges ¾ of the way around the dumpling, leaving ¼ uncrimped.
Then press the remaining part against the pleated section and pinch the edges together firmly, to ensure that the two do not separate.
Place some non-stick baking paper inside the steamer. When the water in the steamer begins to boil, place the shrimp dumplings into the steamer. Make sure there is enough space between the dumplings.
After they are covered with the lid, you can start the timer. After 6 minutes of steaming, you can turn off the heat and remove the pan.
Bibliography
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