Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

TS:
For some reason or other, we had a defrosted bag of small shrimp in the fridge. They were too small to fill a starring role in any dish, so we had to think of some application for which they were suited.



TS:
After hemming and hawing for a while, we couldn't really think of anything, and just wanted something fast and easy, as well as comforting to eat. So finally, I thought, why not make our favorite Golden Egg Torta, but with shrimp instead of pork?

OK, then.



TS:
I chopped the shrimp into small pieces, then added it to some beaten eggs, along with green onions, soy sauce, sesame oil, black pepper, and some cornstarch.



TS:
They were cooked à la pancakes, and dinner was ready!



JS:
There's something about the combination of shrimp and eggs that just feels so right and tastes so good. Simple, delicious alchemy.


Yaya's Greatest Hits
Philippine-style Hamburger
Philippine Pork "BBQ"
Philippine Chicken "BBQ"
Golden Egg Torta

eatingclub vancouver Torta (Omelette)
Golden Egg Torta
Oyster Torta
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

Some eggy eatingclub dishes
Piedmont Marinated Eggs
Golden Egg Torta
Oyster Torta
Tarragon-Carrot Deviled Eggs
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Curried (Easter) Egg Salad
Torta (Mexican Sandwich)
Stir-fried Egg and Tomato
Taiwanese Stewed Eggs (滷蛋) with Stewed Minced Pork (魯肉 or 肉燥)
Longsilog (Longganisa + Sinangag + Itlog)
Hunanese Stir-fried Eggs with Green Peppers
Mr. Zheng's Soupy Tomatoes and Eggs with Tofu
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

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Recipe
Golden Shrimp Torta
Serves 4 as a main dish

6 eggs
1/4 kg small shrimp, chopped finely
1 to 2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (up to 1 teaspoon)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 stalks green onion, chopped

Scramble the eggs. Add all the ingredients into the eggs and mix together. Heat oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Pour egg mixture into the pan and cook until the bottom half of the torta is cooked. Flip over.

The size of the torta is your choice. Make one big one or several small ones.

You may want to do a tester torta first, then adjust the seasoning (soy sauce, salt, black pepper, sesame oil) of the mixture according to taste.

Cook torta in batches until all the egg mixture is used up.

Serve with condiments such as ketchup, sweet chile sauce, etc., if you wish.

Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg with Pork (家常蒸雞蛋)

JS:
A while back, my aunt and uncle from Toronto came to visit Vancouver with some friends, on their way to an Alaskan cruise. My mother asked if we can prepare a home-cooked meal for them one of the days they were here.

TS and I said yes -- but warned our mother that the meal is most likely going to be a very simple one. That was no problem, apparently, as by the end of their trip, my relatives were starting to suffer from restaurant food fatigue.



JS:
One of the surprise hits of that meal was this Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg (家常蒸雞蛋). In the Fujian/Hokkien dialect, called "tim-nung".

Our mother used to prepare steamed egg quite often back in the day, but for some reason, her steamed egg kept changing and changing and it was never the same taste from the first time to the next.

After a spate of inconsistent and unsatisfying steamed egg dishes, unsatisfying to herself, I guess, our mother probably got discouraged because she never made steamed egg again.

Which is a shame, because home-style steamed egg can be one of the most soul-satisfying dishes to eat.



TS:
As with home-style dishes, this was dead simple to make.

I started by pan-frying the ground pork. Well, pan-"frying" may not be the best word. Basically, I cooked the ground pork to release some of its liquid. I added the tiniest amount of Shaoxing wine and sesame oil to taste.



TS:
The cooked ground pork then goes into the steaming vessel. In the meantime, I beat some eggs, then added some chicken stock, chopped green onions, chopped tree ear mushrooms, and some Shaoxing wine and salt to taste.

If without tree ear mushrooms in the house, simply use shiitake, dried (reconstituted) or fresh.



TS:
That whole lot goes into the steaming vessel over the pork.



TS:
As per its name, the dish is then steamed until cooked. There's really no way to overcook this. We had some of these salted egg yolks, so I stuck them into the dish for garnish when the eggs were more or less cooked.



JS:
Such a homey dish is quite the pick-me-upper after a long day at work. Our cousins and guests at the get-together remarked, on more than one occasion, how eating this dish gave them such a warm, comforting, satisfying feeling.

Some eggy eatingclub dishes
Tarragon-Carrot Deviled Eggs
Golden Egg Torta
Hunanese Stir-fried Eggs with Green Peppers
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Piedmont Marinated Eggs
Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes
Stir-fried Egg and Tomato
Oyster Torta
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Curried (Easter) Egg Salad
Taiwanese Stewed Eggs (滷蛋) with Stewed Minced Pork (魯肉 or 肉燥)
Longsilog (Longganisa + Sinangag + Itlog)
Torta (Mexican Sandwich)
Mr. Zheng's Soupy Tomatoes and Eggs with Tofu
Nasi Lemak (Malaysian Coconut Rice Meal with Sambal)
Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg with Pork
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

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Recipe
Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg with Pork (家常蒸雞蛋)
Serves 8, or more if part of a multi-course meal

Note:
This is quite a large size of steamed egg. Feel free to halve the recipe.

3/4 pounds ground pork
Shaoxing wine, to taste
sesame oil, to taste

16 eggs
2 cups chicken stock
6 stalks green onions, chopped
1 cup soaked tree ear mushrooms, chopped
(substitution: chopped reconstituted dried shiitake mushrooms, or chopped fresh shiitakes)
1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
salt

salted egg yolks, optional

Heat pan/skillet over medium heat. Add ground pork, Shaoxing wine and sesame oil, and cook until the ground pork is cooked through. Let cool and set aside.

In a bowl, beat eggs and mix in chicken stock, green onions, mushrooms, Shaoxing wine and salt. If using, chop salted egg yolks and add into the mixture. You may reserve some for garnish.

In a container safe for steaming, add the ground pork, then pour in the beaten egg mixture. Steam until cooked. If using salted egg yolks as garnish, simply add them when the steamed egg dish is more or less cooked, then steam for a little while longer to heat them through.

Serve with rice. If desired, serve soy sauce, Maggi seasoning, or kecap manis as condiments.

Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes

TS:
We happened to have crabmeat and asparagus in the house some time ago. These ingredients reminded me of Vietnamese Crab and Asparagus Soup (Sup Mang Tay Cua).

I took that as my inspiration to create this easy dish for Delicious Vietnam. (See info on this blogging event at the end of the post.)



TS:
What we had was actually the pasteurized crabmeat we used before for Crab Tostadas and our Supreme Lion's Head Meatballs with Crabmeat.

Vietnamese Crab and Asparagus Soup (Sup Mang Tay Cua) is an egg-drop soup: swirls of egg float about in the broth. For my egg component, I decided to make thin "crêpes" or omelettes.

But first, I cooked the asparagus by shallow-boiling/steaming them.



TS:
I peeled the tougher skin near the bottom of each asparagus stalk, then placed the asparagus in a pan of shallow water that I've let boil. I cooked them until they were crisp-tender.

Next up, the "crêpes".

I beat some eggs and seasoned with fish sauce. Then, I poured a little bit into the pan, just enough to form a thin coating.



TS:
I sprinkled a little bit of crab meat onto the crêpe, as well as some black pepper. The egg cooks through in no time. Then, the whole thing was rolled up with the asparagus inside.


My food-styling skills are zero to nil. Look at that plate!

TS:
That was it. Easy! I cut each roll into slices before serving.



TS:
Of course, one can even dispense with the rolling-up business to make this dish even easier. Just fold the egg over with the asparagus inside.

There's something about egg fried in oil that's, well, delicious. The crab gives it a touch of sweetness, the fish sauce and black pepper a savory kick, and the asparagus a nice verdant flavor.



Some eggy eatingclub dishes
Tarragon-Carrot Deviled Eggs
Golden Egg Torta
Hunanese Stir-fried Eggs with Green Peppers
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Piedmont Marinated Eggs
Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes
Stir-fried Egg and Tomato
Oyster Torta
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Curried (Easter) Egg Salad
Taiwanese Stewed Eggs (滷蛋) with Stewed Minced Pork (魯肉 or 肉燥)
Longsilog (Longganisa + Sinangag + Itlog)
Torta (Mexican Sandwich)
Mr. Zheng's Soupy Tomatoes and Eggs with Tofu
Nasi Lemak (Malaysian Coconut Rice Meal with Sambal)
Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg with Pork
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)

Enjoyed this post? Why not subscribe to our blog? Subscribe via reader or subscribe via email. Thank you!

Recipe
Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes

asparagus
crabmeat
eggs
fish sauce
black pepper

Quantities are up to you.

Prep the asparagus: cut off the tough ends and peel off tough outer layer. Cook asparagus until crisp-tender. An easy way is by adding a shallow amount of water into a wide pan, then letting the water come to a boil. Place the asparagus into the pan until cooked to desired doneness. Set asparagus aside.

Beat a few eggs in a bowl and season with fish sauce and black pepper.

In a wide pan, heat oil over medium heat. Pour in a small amount of beaten eggs, just enough to make a thin layer coating the surface of the pan. Dot the egg "crêpe" with crabmeat. When cooked, slide onto a plate.

Repeat until beaten eggs are used up.

Assemble by placing a small bundle of cooked asparagus near the edge of an egg "crêpe". Then, roll the crêpe around the asparagus bundle. Serve whole or slice into pieces.


To make the soup, visit Wandering Chopsticks for her recipe:
Sup Mang Tay Cua


Vietnamese food at eatingclub vancouver
Squid with Black Pepper
Trout in Vietnamese Caramel Sauce
Pho Bo (Vietnamese Beef Noodle Soup)
Vietnamese Salmon Steaks with Cucumber, Garlic and Ginger
Pho Ga (Vietnamese Chicken Noodle Soup)
Vietnamese Chicken Cabbage Salad (Goi Ga Bap Cai) on Sesame Rice Cracker (Banh Trang Me)
Vietnamese Spring Roll (Cha Gio)
Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes


We are submitting this post to Delicious Vietnam, a blogging event founded by A Food Lover's Journey and Ravenous Couple.

For more information on this event, click here.

Entries can be submitted to Anne at buddhabelliespdx [at] gmail [dot] com by 7 pm pacific time July 11. The round-up will be hosted by Buddha's Bellies.

Hong Kong-style Singapore Noodles (星洲炒米)

JS:
One of our favourite things to order at a HK-style café/diner is Singapore noodles.

The name is misleading, because Singapore noodles are actually a Hong Kong thing -- that is, you won't find "Singapore" noodles in Singapore.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singapore_style_noodles
The picture on that Wiki page is not the best representation of this dish.



JS:
How Singapore noodles came to be I can only imagine, but whoever invented it was genius.

There's something about the combination of light curry-flavoured noodles with barbecued pork (char siu), shrimp, bean sprouts, green and red bell peppers, and onions that always hits the spot. Oh, and one mustn't forget the egg! I always pick out the egg bits as the choicest morsels from the plate.

TS:
I was even inspired to make a char siu sandwich with the flavors of this dish! Good times.

Char Siew Sandwiches à la "Singapore Noodles"


JS:
Char siu sandwich yummy.

Rice Vermicelli Noodles


TS:
Singapore Noodles need rice vermicelli. They're often labeled "rice sticks". They're thinner than spaghetti; perhaps more like angel hair.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rice_vermicelli

The Components

clockwise from top left:
shredded Wuxi spareribs, bean sprouts, "marinated" rice noodles, sliced onions, sliced bell peppers, beaten eggs, marinated shrimp

TS:
We had leftover Wuxi spareribs in the house, and that's what brought about the idea of attempting to make Singapore Noodles at home. Look at those delicious Wuxi spareribs on the right! That JS is a genius sometimes. Must run in the family. ;)

All the other components had to be prepped before the moment of wok-truth.

Bean sprouts were washed and drained. The onions and bell peppers were sliced. Eggs were beaten. Shrimp were tossed with some Shaoxing wine and salt.

And, the most helpful prep tip of all, "marinating" the rice vermicelli!

This time, the genius belongs to TasteHongKong.com. The recipe on TasteHongKong calls for mixing the noodles with the seasonings in advance.

But first, soaking the rice vermicelli. We simply soaked the vermicelli in water (hot or lukewarm is fine) until they were pliable, but not cooked, then drained them for a bit in a colander. When they were not water-logged, I "marinated" them with curry powder (we had Madras), ground turmeric for that nice yellow color, salt, sugar and some sesame oil.

Wok-Truth


TS:
It was pretty fast-going from here onwards. Well, it would've been had I done two batches instead of one massive one. My arms were so sore from stirring and trying to mix everything!

Oil in the hot wok, then onions and chili peppers. Next were the bell peppers. After they had cooked slightly, I added the shrimp. I made a well in the center, then poured in the beaten eggs. After they had more or less set, I stirred everything and added the marinated rice noodles. I adjusted the seasoning, adding some salt & sugar, soy sauce, and a touch bit more of sesame oil.



TS:
And that's that!

JS:
Like always, this hit the spot. The only thing missing is that elusive "wok hei," which is darn impossible to replicate at home anyways. It didn't help that we decided to do one big batch instead of doing maybe 3 smaller batches to get more stir-frying action done.

Also, the noodles might be a tad thin for this application. We actually had two bags labelled "rice sticks," and the thicker rice sticks I had already used up the day before for some noodles in soup (pork and pickled vegetables like before, in case anybody's wondering).

I should have switched them around: these thinner, Taiwanese rice vermicelli would have worked better in the soup, while the thicker China rice vermicelli would have worked better for Singapore noodles.



JS:
Nonetheless, as I said, this hit the spot. The leftover Wuxi spareribs might in fact be better here than the stardard char siu, given that some restaurants that serve Singapore noodles usually have average, as opposed to excellent, char siu.

You betcha we're going to make another batch of Singapore noodles soon.

eatingclub Hong Kong/Cantonese
Chicken Chow Mein
Cantonese Braised Beef Brisket, Two Ways
Lobster Congee from a Lobster Feast
Chinese Roast Pork Belly
Gailan (Chinese Broccoli) with Oyster Sauce, Two Ways
Chinese Pork Bone Soup with Carrots and Water Chestnuts
Hong Kong-style Curry Cuttlefish
Dimsum Seafood Trio: Black Pearl Prawn Toast, Scallop in Nest, Jewelled Rice Cup
Hong Kong-style Singapore Noodles (星洲炒米)
Hong Kong-style Stir-fried Water Spinach with Shrimp Paste (蝦醬通菜)
Hong Kong-style Stir-fried Rice Noodle with Beef (乾炒牛河)
Sweet and Sour Pork
Hong Kong-style Curry Beef Brisket (咖喱牛腩), 1st Attempt

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Recipe

Hong Kong-style Singapore Noodles (星洲炒米)
Serves 4

150g dried rice sticks/rice vermicelli
1 to 2 Thai bird chile or jalapeño peppers (optional)
1 small onion (or 1/2 medium-large onion)
1/2 green bell pepper
1/2 red bell pepper
1 to 2 eggs
100-125g (approx. 1/4 pound) char siu (HK barbeque pork)
(or use shredded meat from Wuxi pork spareribs; recipe here)
handful bean sprouts

1 tablespoon Madras curry powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 teaspoon sesame oil
salt & sugar

100-125g (approx. 1/4 pound) shrimp, peeled
1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
salt

salt & sugar, to taste
soy sauce, to taste
sesame oil, to taste

Soak rice vermicelli in hot/warm water until pliable. Drain in a colander.

In the meantime, prep the other ingredients:
Chop char siu into small pieces (or shred meat from Wuxi spareribs).
Wash and drain bean sprouts.
Slice chile peppers.
Slice onion and bell peppers.
Beat eggs.

Marinate shrimp in Shaoxing wine and a touch of salt.

When the noodles are dry, mix together with curry powder and ground turmeric. Add a pinch each of salt and sugar, and a tiny amount of sesame oil. Mix well.

Heat wok over high heat. When hot, add vegetable/cooking oil. Add the sliced onions and chile peppers. After a few seconds, add the bell peppers.

If your shrimp are large, add them now. Stir a few times, then make a well in the center. If your shrimp are small, wait until the eggs have gone in before adding them.

Pour beaten eggs into the well. Let cook until mostly set (80%), then stir all the ingredients together. If using small shrimp, add them now.

Add the marinated noodles, char siu pieces or shredded Wuxi spareribs, and bean sprouts. Mix everything well. Season to taste with salt, sugar, just a little bit of soy sauce (this dish is not soy sauce-based), as well as sesame oil. Stir and cook until all components are cooked and heated through.

Enjoy!

Nasi Lemak (Malaysian Coconut Rice Meal with Sambal)

JS:
A while back, we had a spectacular Alaskan King Crab dinner with Ben and Suanne of Chowtimes and ET and Christina of Doesn't Tazte Like Chicken.

Being the generous and gracious people that they are, both Ben and Suanne and ET and Christina gave us some food items to take home.

Thanks, guys!


peanuts and anchovies

JS:
Suanne and Ben gave us a jar of their homemade sambal belacan, a jar of sambal ikan bilis, as well as a packet of peanuts and ikan bilis (dried anchovies) straight from Malaysia.


left: homemade sambal belacan; right: sambal ikan bilis

Wikipedia: Malaysian Sambal

Naturally, we thought to use these products to make nasi lemak.



TS:
Nasi Lemak means "rice in cream". In this case, the cream is coconut cream (or milk). Besides the coconut rice, nasi lemak usually comes with cucumber slices, dried anchovies, roasted peanuts, egg, and sambal.

Let's get to work.

Coconut Rice


TS:
Of course, I simply used the rice cooker. For this attempt of mine, since I didn't exactly know how coconut-ty we wanted the rice, I used half coconut milk and half water for my liquid. I added a knot of pandan (screwpine) leaf to the rice while cooking.

The rice was extremely fragrant. Mmm.

Roasted Peanuts


TS:
I toasted the peanuts on the stovetop.

Sambal, Ikan Bilis, and Onions


TS:
Actually, instead of frying up the sambal with the dried anchovies (for sambal ikan bilis), I followed Suanne's suggestion of simply caramelizing some onions and adding the sambal, without adding the anchovies.



TS:
That way, the dried anchovies will remain crispy and give us some nice textural contrast. Besides, we have that jar of prepared sambal ikan bilis anyway.



TS:
We also happened to have recently purchased a bag of fried shallots (or actually, small red onions that I haven't seen in Vancouver). Why not have contrasting onions as well?

Fried Egg
TS:
Instead of hard-boiled eggs, I fried mine up. I can't resist egg yolk ooze, after all. It's so much better than hard-boiled eggs!

Nasi Lemak


TS:
So, there's our nasi lemak plate! Here's what we have on there.


Sautéed Onions with Suanne's Homemade Sambal Belacan.
Sliced Cucumbers (in the background).


Sambal Ikan Bilis and Ikan Bilis (dried anchovies).


Pan-roasted Peanuts and Fried Egg.
Fried Shallots/Small Red Onions (see below).



TS:
What's great about this is that one doesn't even really need a recipe. It's assembly work! Yet, the result is fantastic. The whole meal is so savory and hearty, and that fragrant rice is quite something else.

Of course, our version is a bare-bones version. All sorts of accompaniments (or ulam, as we would call it) can be added: fried fish, beef rendang, chicken dishes, seafood... I think a trip to Malaysia is in order to sample all the possible different combinations or nasi lemak plates!

Wikipedia: Nasi Lemak

other Nasi Lemak recipes/how-to
Chowtimes.com
Rasa Malaysia
MalaysianFood.net

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eatingclub vancouver Malaysian
Sambal Mini Eggplants with Campari Tomatoes
Nasi Lemak (Malaysian Coconut Rice Meal with Sambal)

Some eggy eatingclub dishes
Tarragon-Carrot Deviled Eggs
Golden Egg Torta
Hunanese Stir-fried Eggs with Green Peppers
Tortilla de Patatas (Spanish "Omelette")
Piedmont Marinated Eggs
Asparagus and Crab Egg Crêpes
Stir-fried Egg and Tomato
Oyster Torta
Torta with Pork and Kecap Manis
Curried (Easter) Egg Salad
Taiwanese Stewed Eggs (滷蛋) with Stewed Minced Pork (魯肉 or 肉燥)
Longsilog (Longganisa + Sinangag + Itlog)
Torta (Mexican Sandwich)
Mr. Zheng's Soupy Tomatoes and Eggs with Tofu
Nasi Lemak (Malaysian Coconut Rice Meal with Sambal)
Home-style Chinese Steamed Egg with Pork
Golden Shrimp Torta (Philippine Shrimp Omelette)