Prawn crackers (Keropok)

A relative gave us these home made sun dried sliced prawn paste chips.
It was left in the cupboard for quite sometimes if not for the coming Chinese New Year festival it would be still be untouched.

Prawn cracker dough are made from grind prawns (60%), Tapioca flour (40%), salt, pepper and water.
Then rolled into length of about 8 inches, steamed, sliced and sun dried until it turned into semi transparent chips.

As our prawn paste chips have been left in the shelf for too long it was better to leave it in the sun for a few hours to "bring it's crispness back to life" before frying.

Sun dried raw sliced prawn paste chips.

Filled a hot wok with plenty of vegetable oil and slowly place the sun dried sliced prawn paste chips into it.

Watch it bloom into lovely white fluffy prawn cracker in seconds !!!

Scooped it up and colander it with thick Kitchen rolls-let it cool down and then pack it into airtight containers-the crackers were deeply prawn flavored, crispy with melt in the mouth sensation.

Dragon Star Seafood Restaurant.

Dragon Star Seafood Restaurant is one of my favorite Chinese restaurant- small, unpretentious and consistently served tasty and good Chinese cuisine.

The restaurant location is good because it is along a busy road, nestled among residential houses and away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

This dinner was a treat from our children and son in law for their mum's birthday.

Service was a bit slow because of their low staff turnout and parking was bearable.

Four season platter-filled with 1. sliced crabstick/egg/seaweed beancurd rolls 2. stir fried sweet pea beans with prawn/deep fried cuttle fish served on a rice vermicelli basket and 3. cold dish of chewy jelly fish and vegetarian abalone-adorned with pieces of fresh lettuce and slices of pineapple-Rm60/

Wok fried Clam with sliced ginger and spring onion-clam meat were meaty and juicy-Rm25/

Deep fried Spring chicken (4)-served with crispy prawn cracker-well marinated with crispy skin and tender moist meat-Rm36/

Steamed Soon Hock -1.2kg (Bamboo fish) with superior grade Soy sauce and peanut oil and garnished with spring onion and cilantro-fish meat was smooth and fine textured-Rm120/

Green Dragon vegetable-leafy and smooth but less pungent than chives-Rm18/

Finished off the meal with watermelon and sweet mango.

The birthday lady and me.

Total bill:RM288/
Location:54a-54b, Jalan SS1/22,
Kampung Tunku, Petaling Jaya,
Tel:03-7877-6673.

CANTON - i

Canton-i located in One Utama, Petaling Jaya is a typical Hong Kong styled "Char Chan Teng" (cafe).

The modern decor with white bird cages hanging from the ceiling and butterfly's motif wood panel on one side of it's wall were eye catching and cleverly done.

We were there on a Monday evening and was surprised with their brisk business.

Service was prompt and efficient.

Cute butterfly's motif decor.

Polo bun with a slice of butter kept cool with some ice cubes-the pineapple's crust was not too sweet and the bun was soft-Rm4/

Egg yolk and Custard bun-the outer skin was skinny soft and the design was very appealing-oozing with the runny egg/custard fillings-Rm6/

Congee with lettuce and condiments like sliced fish meat, pig's stomach, bits of cuttle fish tentacles-garnished with toasted peanuts and spring onion-love the smooth, translucent and gooey congee-Rm11.80/

Congee with Carp Fish and Meat-sliced fish meat was fresh -the minced meat were filled with fatt choy (black moss), crispy Chinese crullers- garnished with spring onion and again the congee was perfect-Rm10.80/

Fried Udon (Wheat noodle) with tiny strips of chicken meat, thinly sliced red and green capsicum-tasted peppery but not worth the money-Rm16/

Fried Beef Kway Teow (flat noodle) served on a hot plate, with small slices of tender beef, bean sprout and egg-tasted more like Char Kway Teow-Rm15/

Wan tan mee with roast duck thigh-noodle was springy and well tossed but the roast duck meat was bland-looks delicious but deceiving-Rm17.80/

A pot of Pu-Er tea for three-Rm15/

Total bill:Rm120/
Location:G-208, Gnd Floor,
1 Utama Shopping Mall,
Petaling Jaya,
Tel:03-7729-7888.

Delicious Dinner 31.

A series of home cooked dinner by my wife.

Deep fried stuffed bean curd sheet ( crust was crispy and a wee bit salty) with home made springy Tenggiri (Spanish mackerel) fish paste mixed with diced carrot and tantalizing parsley-fresh and pleasant sweet taste.

Steamed stuffed Green chillies with home made springy Tenggiri's (Spanish mackerel) fish paste-practically no oil and no fat.

Kai Lan' s with julienne stem-plump and crunchy stir fried with olive oil and ham.

Restoran Foon Lock-2 Visit..

After a satisfying and delicious meal at Restoran Foon Lock, on our first visit in September, we decided on a revisit with a group of friends to sample their food again.

The 45 minutes drive on the highway was a breeze on a Sunday afternoon.

We were looking forward to wild frogs, there were none because of the rainy season !!

Luckily, fresh river prawns and Ikan Tapah were available.

After the lunch, we bought fruits like duku langsat, pulasan, mangosteen and the famous Bentong ginger from two stalls outside the restaurant.

Parking is available in front and at the back of the restaurant.

The shop front.

Steamed Lim Yee (Ikan Tapah) (700 gm) with good grade soy sauce and garnished with chopped ginger and cilantro-meat was smooth and fine textured-RM49/.

Stir fried Kwai Tau Mui (baby long bean) with deep fried shrimp-fresh, delicate and crunchy-Rm9/.

Stir fried fresh farmed mushroom with fish paste, sweet tasting pea bean and sliced carrot-a well balanced dish-Rm15/.

Drunken Chicken with sliced ginger-the free range chicken meat was firm and muscled but the wine broth was too diluted-"no kick"-Rm18/

Steamed river prawn (1.6 kg) with egg white, Chinese wine, and garnished with toothpick ginger and sprigs of cilantro-was fresh, juicy and succulent except for one which was "suspect"-Rm104/.

Hokkien fried Tung Hoon (mung bean noddle) was simple with some egg, beansprout and strips of chicken meat-mediocre-Rm9/.


Fruits Galore.

Mangosteens.

Red and yellow bananas.

Pulasan.

Duku langsat.

Bentong Ginger.

Total bill:RM217/
Location:84, Kg Bukit Tinggi,
Bentong, Pahang.
Tel:09-233-0170/012-955-3832.

ITALIANNIES.

Italiannies is an American-Italian restaurant located in The Curve, Damansara Mutiara where we had our lunch last week.
Just as the sign says "So good So much So share !" the food served here are generously sized and if you are a small eater, it is better to share in true Italian tradition!

Comfortable ambiance and service was friendly and prompt.

Fresh bread or Ciabatta are complimentary - white, fluffy and grainy bread-dipped into a healthy olive oil/black balsamic vinegar mix for flavors-good starter while waiting for the food.

Toasted Bruchetta is homemade crispy Tuscan bread topped with marinated tomatoes, pesto sauce, chive and shredded parmesan cheese-was a good appetizer.

Parmesan crusted Fish -oven baked fish fillet-big chunk and very smooth in texture seated on a bed of fried zucchini and red onion strings with white caper sauce-suitable for two people.

Clam Fra Diavolo-sauteed in a spicy tomato both-clams was fresh and fleshy -soup was tasty and full bodied.

Spaghetti meatballs with marinara sauce-very rich and cheesy but fulfilling!

Total bill:RM86/
Location: The Curve, Damasnara Mutiara
Tel:03-7728-1715.

AUNTIE HANNAH'S SIGNATURE DISHES.

Auntie Hannah is my sil and is not as old as her name implies.

She is a "busy as a bee" homemaker with two gregarious and hyperactive boys to care for and that is why she does not cook very often.

She is a bit "ang moh", carefree and easy going, likes to FBooking and dislikes eating vegetables and her forte are western dishes which she learned from her aunt while studying in U.K.

We only get to sample her signature dishes on Christmas eve every year and we always look forward to it.

This year dinner dishes was a repeat of the previous year but with a lot of improvement in term of taste and flavors.

Roast Turkey stuffed with rice, green peas and bacon-served on the side with baked onion and carrot.

Salmon gravalax-was moist and peppery.

Baked potatoes with condiments like deep fried ham, chives, butter and shredded cheese.

Honey ham-was way too fat.

Stir fried Brussels sprout with fresh and juicy shrimps with the sliced carrot, green and yellow zucchini adding a riot of colors to the dish.

Roast Lamb-meaty and gamy.

Minestrone soup-with a mixture of root vegetables was delicious and tummy warming.

Ended the dinner with a few glasses of red wine and a piece of luscious banana chocolate.