Makes 24 kebabs

Method:

Cut 750g lean rump steak into thin strips, 15cm long and thread the slices onto skewers. Combine ½ cup (125ml) soy sauce, ½ cup (125ml) sherry or sake, 1 crushed clove garlic and 1 teaspoon each ground ginger and sugar. Place the steak in a shallow non-metallic dish and marinate it for at least 1 hour in the refrigerator. Drain and place the skewers on a preheated, oiled grill tray or barbecue flatplate and cook for 3-4 minutes each side.


Nutrition per kebab:
Protein 10g
Fat 1g
Carbohydrate 1g
Dietary Fibre 0g
Cholesterol 20mg
195 kj (45 cal)

Makes 8 satays

Method:

Trim any fat or silver sinew from 500g lamb fillets. Slice the meat across the grain into very thin strips (if you have time, leave the meat in the freezer for 30 minutes as this will make it easier to thinly slice). In a food processor, combine 1 roughly chopped onion, 2 crushed cloves garlic, 2cm lemon grass (white part only), 2 slices fresh galangal, 1 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, ½ teaspoon ground fennel, 1 tablespoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon turmeric, 1 tablespoon soft brown sugar and 1 tablespoon lemon juice and process until a smooth paste is formed. Transfer the paste to a shallow non-metallic dish and add the lamb, stirring to coat well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Thread the meat onto skewers and cook under a preheated grill for 3-4 minutes on each side, or until cooked. Brush regularly with the remaining marinade while cooking.


Nutrition per satay:
Protein 15g
Fat 2g
Carbohydrate 3g
Dietary Fibre 0g
Cholesterol 40mg
380 kj (90 cal)

Makes 12 skewers

Method:

Combine 750g minced beef, 1 small grated onion, ½ cup (30g) chopped fresh parsley, 2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander leaves, ½ teaspoon each ground cumin, nutmeg and cardamom, and ½ teaspoon each dried oregano and mint. Let stand for 1 hour. With wet hands, form the mixture into 24 sausage shapes; thread 2 koftas into each skewer between wedges of lime. Place the koftas under a hot grill or on a preheated barbecue flatplate and cook for 10-12 minutes, turning frequently.


Nutrition per skewer:
Protein 15g
Fat 5g
Carbohydrate 0g
Dietary Fibre 0g
Cholesterol 40mg
470 kj (100 cal)

Makes 8 kebabs

Method:

Trim the fat and sinew from 500g pork fillet and cut into small cubes. Combine 2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce, 2 tablespoons tomato sauce, 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce, 2 crushed cloves garlic, 3 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 tablespoons honey and 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger. Pour over the pork and stir well. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight. Thread the pork onto skewers; cook on a lightly oiled grill or barbecue flatplate for 3-4 minutes each side, or until cooked. Brush with the remaining marinade while cooking. Serve with Quick Satay Sauce.


Nutrition per kebab:
Protein 15g
Fat 1g
Carbohydrate 10g
Dietary Fibre 1g
Cholesterol 30mg
490 kj (115 cal)

Makes 8 satays

Method:

Cut 500g chicken tenderloins in half lengthways. In a shallow non-metallic dish, combine 1 tablespoon honey, ¼ cup (60ml) soy sauce, 2 teaspoons sesame oil, 1 teaspoon ground coriander, 1 teaspoon ground turmeric and ½ teaspoon chilli powder. Thread the chicken lengthways onto soaked wooden skewers and place the skewers in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. To make Quick Satay Sauce, cook a small finely chopped onion in 1 tablespoon oil until softened and then stir in ½ cup (125g) crunchy peanut butter, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, ½ cup (125ml) coconut cream and 2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce. Cook gently until smooth and heated through. To cook the satays, place the skewers on a preheated grill and cook for 5-7 minutes, turning and basting with the marinade frequently. Serve with warm Quick Satay Sauce.


Nutrition per satay:
Protein 20g
Fat 15g
Carbohydrate 10g
Dietary Fibre 2g
Cholesterol 45mg
1090 kj (260 cal)

Makes 16


Ingredients:

7 cup (800g) strong white bread flour
1 sachet easy blend dried yeast
2 tsp salt
2 tsp caster sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
sesame seeds, to decorate

Cheese filling:
350g kefalotiri cheese, grated
115g haloumi cheese, finely grated
3 tsp plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp chopped fresh mint
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
4 eggs, beaten


Method:

• To make the filling, place cheeses in a bowl. Add flour, baking powder, mint and nutmeg to cheese. Stir in most of beaten egg to make a stiff paste.
• To make the dough, sift flour into a bowl. Stir in yeast, salt and sugar. Add oil and 2 cup (425ml) tepid water. Mix together, then turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Divide into 16 pieces; roll out each piece to a 10cm circle.
• Place a little filling in centre of each circle. Pull dough up on 3 sides to make a tricorn shape, with filling showing in centre. Pinch corners together well. Place on oiled baking sheets, cover with oiled plastic wrap and leave in a warm place until doubled in size.
• Preheat oven to 230°C (450°F). Brush buns with remaining beaten egg. Scatter with sesame seeds. Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown.

Makes about 18


Ingredients:

¼ cup (55g) unsalted butter
¼ cup (55g) demerara sugar
2 tbsp (55g) golden syrup
¼ cup (55g) plain flour
½ tsp ground ginger
1 tsp brandy

Filling:
¼ cup (300ml) double thick cream
3 tsp stem ginger syrup
6 pieces stem ginger


Method:

• Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease several baking sheets. Butter the handles of 3 or 4 wooden spoons. Put butter, demerara sugar and syrup in a saucepan and heat gently until butter has melted and sugar dissolved. Cool slightly. Sift flour and ginger into melted ingredients and stir in with the brandy. Drop teaspoonfuls of mixture, well spaced out, onto prepared baking sheets. Bake in the oven for 7-10 minutes until brandy snaps are golden.
• Quickly remove brandy snaps from baking sheets and roll round spoon handles, leaving them in place until set. slide off spoons; leave on wire racks until completely cold.
• In a bowl, whisk cream with ginger syrup until thick. Put cream into a piping bag fitted with a small star nozzle. Pipe into each end of brandy snaps. Slice pieces of stem ginger and use to decorate brandy snaps.

Makes about 12


Ingredients:

⅓ cup (55g) urad dhal (mung beans, split not husked)
1 cup (150g) long-grain rice
2 spring onions, finely chopped
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
2.5cm piece fresh root ginger, grated
1 fresh green chilli, seeded and chopped
½ tsp salt
3 tbsp vegetable oil
coriander leaves, to garnish


Method:

• Wash dhal and rice thoroughly and put into separate bowls. Add 2 cup (500ml) water to each and leave to soak for 3 hours. Drain well.
• Put dhal in a blender or food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add ⅓ cup (90ml) water and process until smooth. Puree rice with ⅓ cup (90ml) water in same way. Mix purees together in a large bowl, cover with a damp cloth and set aside at room temperature for about 12 hours.
• Stir in onions, coriander, ginger, chilli, salt and about 3 tbsp water to make a batter. Heat a 15cm frying pan, brush with a little oil, then spoon in 2-3 tbsp batter and spread into a 10cm circle. Cook over a high heat for about 3 minutes, turning over with a fish slice after half the time, until browned. Cover with a dry cloth while cooking remainder. Serve warm, garnished with coriander leaves.

Makes 32


Ingredients:

2 cup (225g) plain flour
pinch of salt
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground mace
¼ tsp ground cloves
½ tsp baking powder
½ cup (115g) caster sugar
½ cup (115g) butter
1 egg, beaten

Glaze:
1 small egg, beaten
3 tsp milk
2 tsp caster sugar
2 tbsp granulated sugar


Method:

• Butter several baking sheets. Sift flour, salt, spices, baking powder and sugar into a bowl. Rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Stir in egg; mix by hand to form a soft dough.
• Roll out dough on a floured surface to 0.3cm thick. Using fancy biscuit cutters, cut out as many shapes as possible from dough. Place on baking sheets. Re-knead and re-roll trimmings; cut out more shapes to make 32 in total. Refrigerate shapes for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
• To make glaze, stir together egg, milk and caster sugar in a small bowl. Brush glaze over each biscuit, then sprinkle with half the granulated sugar. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned. Remove from oven and immediately sprinkle with remaining granulated sugar. Using a palette knife, carefully remove biscuits from sheets to wire racks to cool.

Ingredients for filling:

300g minced beef
½ cup water
salt to taste
1 tsp pepper

grind to a fine paste:
5 cloves garlic
5 green chillies
2 red chillies
1 pc (3x2x1cm) ginger

3 onions, grate fine or cut into small squares
1 tsp coriander powder
½ tsp chilli powder
½ tsp turmeric powder
4-5 sprigs big coriander leaves, chop fine
1 small bunch mint, chop fine

Ingredients for pastry:

340g plain flour
a pinch of baking powder
120g margarine
water

Method for filling:

• Combine minced beef, water, salt, pepper and chilli-garlic-ginger paste in a saucepan and boil till almost dry. Add chopped onions, coriander, chilli and turmeric powder, stir and remove from heat. Add chopped mint and coriander leaves, mix and leave to cool.

Method for pastry:

• Sieve flour and baking powder into a bowl.
• Melt the margarine and when cool, work into flour.
• Add a little water at a time, using just enough to form a dough. Knead so that pastry becomes elastic.
• Divide pastry into little lumps of equal size. Take 1 lump, roll it paper thin into a circle, dusting with flour to make rolling easier.
• Cut each circle in half, place a spoonful of cooked meat mixture on each semi-circle; fold pastry over to form a triangle, moisten edges and seal carefully. Repeat till all the pastry is used.
• Heat sufficient oil for deep frying and fry the samosas over moderate heat till golden brown. Drain and serve with chilli sauce, mint sauce or yoghurt.

Ingredients:

For filling:
1 clove garlic, grind to a fine paste
2 red chillies, grind to a fine paste
4 shallots, grind to a fine paste
150g shrimps, remove shell, cut into small pieces
300g bean sprouts, remove tails
10 sprigs coarse chives (kuchai), chop fine
2 hard beancurd, deep fry till a light brown then cut into small cubes
salt to taste
2 tbsp oil

For pastry:
340g plain flour
5 tbsp cooking oil
¼ cup water, mix with a little salt

Method for filling:

• Heat oil, add ground ingredients and salt and fry till fragrant. Add shrimps, fry for a minute or two, then add bean sprouts and kuchai. Stir for a few minutes. Finally, add beancurd and stir, mixing vegetables well. Remove from heat, drain and cool.
  

Method for pastry:

• Sieve flour into bowl, add oil and work it into the flour, adding just enough water to form a dough. Knead for about 5 minutes.
• Roll out half the pastry at a time to 3mm thick. Use a 6cm cutter to cut pastry into rounds.
• Put a scant teaspoon of filling in each round. Damp edges of pastry with water, bring together, seal tightly and flute edges.
• Deep fry till golden brown.
• Serve with chilli sauce.

Ingredients:

600g flour
1 tbsp omum seeds, sieve and remove stones
1 slightly heaped tbsp chilli powder
2 slightly heaped tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp salt, mix with 300ml water
oil for deep frying


Method:

1. Dough press with various discs. Select disc with bigger holes for Murukku. The disc with the smaller holes is used for making Putu Mayam.
2. In large bowl, put gram flour, omum seeds, chilli and turmeric powder. Mix well.
3. Add water to which salt has been added. Mix till dough is smooth. Put a handful of dough into dough press.
4. Heat oil in a wok. Lower murukku strands into hot oil by turning handle of dough press and simultaneously moving the dough press in a circular motion over wok to make a coil of murukku. Break off strands of dough with a sweep of your hand when a large enough coil is formed in the oil. Fry till crisp and drain. Repeat till all the dough is used.

Note: Store the cooled murukku in an air-tight container.

Ingredients:

230g rice flour
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp water
1½ cup grated coconut, remove skin


Method:

1. Dissolve salt in water and sprinkle over rice flour. Mix to get a crumbly texture. Add 1 cup coconut and mix well.
2. Put 1 tbsp coconut into funnel. Add 3 heaped tbsp of rice flour-coconut mixture.
3. Repeat steps 2 till rice flour-coconut mixture is used up. Make sure the last layer is of coconut. Fill pot with water and boil. Fit funnel into pot of boiling water and cook till steam appears.
4. When cooked, remove putu from funnel by pushing the disc at the base using the thick round handle of a wooden spoon or any similar object. Serve with bananas and brown sugar.

Note: Aluminium Putu Bamboo steamers are available in Indian General Stores. The steamer is made up of three parts, the pot of water, the funnel with a disc inside and a lid. Wrap a strip of cotton or towel around the base of the funnel so that it fits snugly into the pot and seals the container. Originally, thick bamboos were used as they were easily available. The bamboos were fitted snugly into a mug or kettle of water. Hence the name Putu Bamboo.

Makes about 20


Ingredients:

For the filling:
¾ cup brown sugar
½ cup water
1 cup grated coconut

For the dough:
2 cup glutinous rice flour
230g grated coconut - add ½ cup water and, using a fine tea towel, squeeze coconut to extract ½ cup thick coconut milk
½ tsp salt
½ tsp green food colouring
banana leaf, cut into 20 rectangular pieces (4x5cm)


Method:

• For filling: Put sugar and water in a saucepan. Heat till sugar dissolves. Strain syrup and put back in saucepan. Add grated coconut. Cook over low heat, stirring all the time, till mixture is thick and moist. Cool.
• For dough: Put glutinous rice flour in a bowl. Add salt. Add colouring to coconut milk and pour into flour. Mix into a soft dough.
• Put a small lump of dough on a piece of banana leaf, flatten it a little, add a spoonful of coconut filling. Wrap dough around filling to form an oval shape about 4 to 5cm long.
• Make leaf design with a tart pincher or trace design with a skewer. Steam for about ½ hour. Serve while still warm.

Ingredients:

Apple filling:
800g apples
100g sugar
100g butter
1 tsp cinnamon powder

Pastry:
150g icing sugar
180g margarine
½ egg
2 tsp custard powder
300g plain flour


Method:

• Apple filling: Chop apples finely. Boil with sugar, butter and cinnamon powder. Stir till apple filling is sofe and thickened.
• Pastry: Beaicing sugar, margarine, egg and custard powder together in mixer till all sugar has dissolved. Add plain flour and mix well to form dough. Remove.
• Divide dough into balls. Press 1 ball of dough into small tart mould. Pour in apple filling and cover with 1 flattened ball of dough. Brush surface with beaten egg. Bake for 25 minutes.

Makes 16


Ingredients:

1½ cup (270g) frozen stir-fry vegetables
2 tsp mild curry paste
½ tsp brown sugar
4 thawed sheets
1 egg, beaten
fresh mint, chopped
plain yoghurt


Method:

• Preheat the oven to hot 220°C (425°F). Thaw 1½ cup (270g) frozen stir-fry vegetables and roughly chop. Add 2 teaspoons mild curry paste and ½ teaspoon brown sugar.
• Cut 10cm circles out of 4 thawed sheets of ready-rolled puff pastry. Place teaspoons of the mixture onto one side of each circle, fold the pastry over to form a semicircle and press the edges together with a fork. Brush with beaten egg and bake for 15 minutes, or until golden.
• Stir chopped fresh mint through plain yoghurt and serve with the puffs.

Nutrition per puff:
Protein 3g;
Fat 10g;
Carbohydrate 15g;
Dietary Fibre 2g;
Cholesterol 10mg;
680 kj (160 cal)

Makes 40


Ingredients:

250g raw prawns, chopped
2 tbsp water chestnut, chopped
2 spring onions, chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce
½ tsp sesame oil


Method:

• Combine 250g chopped raw prawns, 2 tablespoons chopped water chestnuts, 2 chopped spring onion, 1 tablespoon soy sauce and ½ teaspoon sesame oil.
• Place a teaspoon of the filling on the centre of a won tan wrapper, brush the edges with water and gather up to form a parcel. Repeat with the rest of the mixture and wrappers and steam for 20 minutes. Serve with soy sauce.

Nutrition per dumpling:
Protein 2g;
Fat trace;
Carbohydrate 5g;
Dietary Fibre 0g;
Cholesterol 9mg;
115 kj (30 cal)

Makes 14


Ingredients:

500g fish balls
½ cup (125g) sweet chilli sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped


Method:

• Thread 500g fish balls onto bamboo skewers, about 3 on each skewer.
• Combine ½ cup (125g) sweet chilli sauce and 1 tablespoon each of fish sauce and chopped fresh coriander.
• Cook the skewers in a frying pan or on a barbecue, brushing frequently with the marinade until they are golden brown.

Nutrition per skewer:
Protein 5g;
Fat trace;
Carbohydrate 5g;
Dietary Fibre 0g;
Cholesterol 25mg;
175 kj (40 cal)

Makes 15


Ingredients:

250g chicken mince
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 tsp oil
2 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice


Method:

• Fry 1 chopped onion and 1 crushed clove of garlic in 1 tablespoon of oil. Add 250g of chicken mince and fry over high heat until brown. Stir in 2 tablespoons of peanut butter and 1 tablespoon each of sweet chilli sauce and lemon juice. Set aside to cool.
• Place 1 tablespoon of the mixture in the centre of a wan ton wrapper, brush the edges with water and place another wrapper on top to form a star. Repeat with the rest of the mixture and wrappers. Deep-fry in hot oil until crisp and golden. Serve with a dipping sauce.

Nutrition per wonton:
Protein 5g;
Fat 8g;
Carbohydrate 3g;
Dietary Fibre 1g;
Cholesterol 10mg;
435 kj (105 cal)

Makes 25


Ingredients:

170g butter
170g sugar
255g polenta
100g plain flour
Zest of 2-3 oranges, finely chopped
2 large eggs


Method:

• Rub the butter, sugar, polenta and flour together before mixing in the orange zest and the eggs. Cover with cling film and put in the fridge for an hour until slightly firm.
• Place a large square of greaseproof paper on a baking tray and spoon small teaspoons of the mixture in lines 5cm apart. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 190°C (375°F) for around 5-6 minutes until the outside edges of your biscuits are lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes before eating.