Stuffed Shrimp and Chicken Fritters

Ingredients:
1 lb Raw Peeled Shrimp
1 lb Chicken Meat
1 can Water Chestnut
1 packet of Chinese Twist Crullers
2 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
5 Dashes of White Pepper

Steps:
1. Finely diced the raw peeled shrimp and the chicken meat. Make sure it is the texture of a paste.
2. Chop water chestnut and add into the paste.
3. Add soy sauce and white pepper into the paste.
4. Mix it all together.
5. Cut Chinese twist crullers into 1 inch sizes.
6. Stuff each end of the chinese twist crullers with the paste mixture.
7. Heat up oil and fry crullers till golden brown.

Notes:
Best serve stuffed shrimp and chicken fritters with thai chili sauce. Shrimp and chicken is just a suggestion. Other types of meat can also be used. The texture depends on the type of meat use to make the fritters. If shrimp alone, the texture will be a lot softer.

Cost:
A pack has 3 Chinese twist crullers. Each Chinese twist cruller should be enough for 12 to 15 pieces depends on the desired size. All the ingredients above cost only $12 and should be enough to feed a large party.

Mee Jawa

Ingredients:
1kg Yellow Noodles
6 Hard Boiled Eggs (Cut to quarters)
3 Boiled White Potatoes (Cut to cubes)
1 Whole Fried Tofu (Cut to cubes)
300g Boiled Bean Sprouts
2 Whole Lime (Slice to 1/8 sizes)
1kg Medium Shrimp
500g Mashed Sweet Potato
2-3 tablespoon Corn Starch
1/2 cup Oil
Salt
Pepper
2.5L Water

Ingredients for Herb Paste:
3 Stalks Lemon Grass
6 Shallots
4 pips Garlic
4cm Ginger
4cm Galanga
5 Red Chillies

Steps:
1. Blend all ingredients for herb paste together until it becomes a paste.
2. Making the shrimp stock.
a. Bring 2.5L of water to a boil.
b. Pour in shrimps.
c. When the shrimp are cooked, dish them out.
d. Shell the shrimp and keep aside for the noodles.
e. Return the shrimp shells to thepot to make the shrimp stock.
f. Continue boiling the stock for another 30mins.
g. Discard the shells.
3. Heat oil and fry the paste till fragrant.
4. Add shrimp stock, simmer and bring to a boil.
5. Stir in mashed sweet potatoes and thickened with corn starch and season with sugar, salt and pepper. The sauce is ready after 15mins.
6. Plating.
a. Add yellow noodles to plate.
b. Add egg.
c. Add potatoes.
d. Add tofu.
e. Add bean sprouts.
f. Squeeze lime.
g. Add Sauce.

Notes:
Other ingredients can be used when plating.

Cost:
Above recipe is good for at least 10 to 15 people. The cost is $15 to make.

Sea Cucumber Stir Fry

Ingredients:
1 lb Sea Cucumber (Cut into 1 inch cubes)
1 Green Pepper (Cut into 1 inch cubes)
1 Red Pepper (Cut into 1 inch cubes)
1 Carrot (Slice thinly)
1/2 lb Broccolli
2 Dried Shitake Mushroom (Cut into halves)
10 Whole Button Mushroom (Cut into halves)
4 Tablespoon Garlic (Chop finely)
4 Tablespoon Oil
2 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1 Teaspoon Corn Flour

Steps:
1. Pour oil into hot wok.
2. Add garlic into wok. Cook till garlic is golden brown.
3. Add shitake mushroom and button mushroom in wok and stir fry for 2 mins.
4. Add green pepper, red pepper, carrot and broccolli and stir fry for 5 mins.
5. Add sea cucumber into wok and stir fry for 5 mins.
6. Mix corn flour and oyster sauce together with 2 tablespoon of water.
7. Add mixture into wok and turn off the heat.
8. Let it cool for 3 mins and it is ready to be served.

Notes:
Sea cucumber is a delicacy. It is said to carry medicine value to revitalize the skin. Do not over cook the sea cucumber as it will melt away if you over cook it. It has a consistency like jello.

Cost:
Sea cucumber can be pricey. It depends on the size of the sea cucumber. The bigger the sea cucumber the more expensive and harder to find. Ranges from $10 per lb to $50 per lb depending on the size and quality.

Char Koay Kak (Fried Turnip Cake)

Ingredients:
1 Packet of Turnip Cake
1/2 lb Beans Sprout
1/4 lb Peeled Shrimp
2 Tablespoon Garlic (chopped finely)
4 Tablespoon Preserved Raddish (chopped finely)
4 Tablespoon Thick Dark Soy Sauce
2 Tablespoon Soy Sauce
6 Tablespoon Oil
2 Eggs

Steps:
1. Cut turnip cake to 1/2 inch cubes.
2. Heat up wok with 3 tablespoon of oil.
3. Add turnip cake into wok.
4. Add thick dark soy sauce and soy sauce into wok.
5. Keep stiring till turnip cake is dry.
6. Remove cooked turnip cake from wok.
7. Add remaining oil to wok.
8. Add garlic and preserved raddish when oil is hot.
9. Cook till garlic is almost brown.
10. Add shrimp to wok. Make sure it is fully cooked.
11. Add cooked turnip cake back into wok.
12. Keep stiring for 3 mins.
13. Create pocket in the middle and break egg into the pocket. Let it cook half way.
14. Stir everything together to get the egg to mix with all the other ingredients.
15. Add beans sprout into wok and stir for 2mins.
16. Remove from wok and serve.

Notes:
Do not overload the wok with too much ingredients. It taste better when it is cooked in smaller portions. Also, instead of turnip cake, you can also try cooking with yam cake. As for the ingredients, you can put anything you want in there as well. See what fancies you most.

Cost:
Each packet of turnip cake is good for 3 to 4 people. Cost about $6 for all the ingredients.

Cendol

Ice Shaving Machine (aka Ice Kacang Machine)

Steps and Ingredients:
Making the Green Jelly (For 1lb worth).
Ingredients:
2 Oz (50grams) of Mung Bean Flour
400 ml Water
3/4 Teaspoon of Pandan Extract
2 to 3 Drop of Green Coloring (Not necessary)
1/2 Teaspoon of Potassium Carbonate & Sodium Bi-Carbonate Solution

1. Mix the above ingredients into a pot.
2. Place pot over medium high heat.
3. Keep Stirring till solution thickens.
4. Prepare a bowl of cold water with ice.
5. Pour thicken solution into pasta strainer and pushed solution thru into the bowl of cold water.
6. Leave it for 5 mins. Strain water away from green jelly.

Making the Red Beans (You can buy the canned version)
Ingredients:
1 lb of Red Beans
1/2 Gallon of Water

1. Put red beans and water into a pot and bring to boil.
2. Stir every 10mins to prevent red beans from sticking to pot.
3. Cook till red beans is soft and tender.

Making the Gula Melaka Syrup
Ingredients:
1 lb of Palm Sugar (Gula Melaka)
1 lb of Brown Sugar
1 Cup of Water

1. Dissolved palm sugar and brown sugar in water over medium heat.
2. Once it is dissolved removed it from the heat and allow it to cool down.

Making the Coconut Milk
Ingredients:
1 Can of Coconut Milk
1 Teaspoon of Salt

1. Mix Coconut Milk with salt. Start with 1/2 teaspoon and add more if required.

Putting everything together.
1. Put shaved ice into bowl.
2. Add green jelly and red beans on top of the shaved ice.
3. Drizzle gula melaka syrup and coconut milk on top of green jelly and red beans.
4. Ready to eat.

Notes:
1. Shaved ice from the machine above is needed. It has to be like snow. Snow cone ice maker is not fine enough.
2. Red beans can be cooked in a pressure cooker to speed up the process. Or just get a can of red beans.
3. All ingredients can be prepared earlier except the green jelly.

Cost:
1 block of ice (8inch by 8inch) is enough to feed 12 people. The cost is about $10 for all the ingredients above.

Lobster in Tomato Sauce

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb Lobster (Chopped into pieces)
1 whole cloves of Garlic (Chopped finely)
8 slices of Ginger
1 whole Red Onion (Thinly sliced)
50 ml Oil
16 Oz Ketchup
4 Oz Sweet Chili Sauce
1 teaspoon Salt
2 stalks of Green Onion (Thinly sliced)

Steps:
1. Add oil to hot wok.
2. When oil is heated, add chopped garlic and sliced ginger into wok. Cook till garlic is almost brown.
3. Add sliced whole red onion into wok. Cook till onion is soft.
4. Add lobster into wok and stir for 5 mins.
5. Add ketchup and sweet chili sauce into wok. Stir everything together and add salt to wok.
6. Cover up the wok and let everything simmer so that the sauce can penetrate the lobster. Simmer for about 10 mins and it's ready to be served.
7. Garnish with Green Onion and serve.

Notes:
Lobster size should be above 1 1/2 lbs or below 4 lbs. Small lobster yields no meat but the meat is tender. Bigger lobster than to have tougher meat. Depending on the texture, select the size that suits your taste.

Cost:
The cost depends on the size of the lobster and number of people. 1 lobster is good to feed 2 people.

Steamed Chillian Sea Bass

Ingredients:
1 piece of Chillian Sea Bass
8 slices of Ginger
4 cloves of Garlic thinly sliced
2 whole leaves of Sour Mustard thinly sliced
2 dried Shitake Mushroom diced finely
2 stalk of Green Onion thinly sliced
1 whole Red Chili Pepper thinly sliced
5 tablespoon of Soy Sauce

Steps:
1. Put fish into a plate for steaming.
2. Add ginger, garlic and sour mustard around the fish.
3. Add shitake mushroom on top of the fish.
4. Put plate into steamer for 15mins.
5. Remove plate from steamer and add Soy Sauce to the fish.
6. Garnish fish with green onion and red chili pepper.

Notes:
Not all the listed vegetables required. Pick and choose whichever combination that you want. You can also add other vegetables if you want. The type of pepper is of your choice. In my recipe, I used the long chili pepper.

Cost:
The cost depends on the size of the fish. Usually it's about $10.99 per lb at the asian grocery store. An 1 lb piece is good for 4 people.

Chinese Broccoli (Kai Lan) with Shrimp and Scallop

Ingredients:
1 lb Chinese Broccoli
1/4 lb Peeled Shrimp
1/4 lb Scallop
1 Tablespoon Oyster Sauce
1 Tablespoon Corn Flour
2 Tablespoon Chopped Garlic
5 Tablespoon Oil

Steps:
1. Add oil to hot wok.
2. When oil is heated, add chopped garlic. Cook till garlic is almost brown.
3. Add peeled shrimp into wok. Cook till shrimp is almost done.
4. Add scallop into wok. Cook for about 3mins.
5. Add Chinese Broccoli stems. Cook for 2mins.
6. Add Chinese Broccoli leaves and close the wok and let it steam for 3mins.
7. Mix oyster sauce and corn flour with 5 tablespoon of water.
8. Add mixture into wok and cook till sauce thickens.
9. Plate and serve.

Notes:
Not a fan of seafood? You can substitude it with any desired meats (Chicken, Beef or Pork) or even make it vegetarian by adding fried tofu. Add a bit of sliced carrots or sliced red peppers to add some color to the dish.

Cost:
This recipe is good for 5 people and it cost less than $10 to make.

McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant in Maryland

McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant
Pier 5 Inner Harbor
711 Eastern Avenue
Baltimore Maryland 21202
410-234-1300
http://www.mccormickandschmicks.com/

McCormick & Schmick's is a chain seafood restaurant. The menu at this restaurant changes daily depending on what they have in stock and the shipment of seafood they receive. The Chef decides the menu for the day. If you take a look at the menu, there will be a date stamp on the menu on the top with the listing of fresh seafood they have available for the day. Then only below that, they have the dishes that the Chef will be preparing for the day. Below are some of the dishes that were ordered during the last visit.

Small Oyster Sampler

Fried Calamari

Yellowfin Tuna Burger

Pan Fried Oysters with Fries

Broiled Seafood Platter

Miso Barramund

Seared Halibut

Super Sundae

Cost:
Soup $5 to $7
Salad $11 to $20
Appertizers - $8 to $25
Main Entrees - $10 to $40

Suggestion:
Since the seafood here is so fresh, I would suggest trying their oysters. They usually have a few types of oysters that is from around the US. Also worth trying is their fried calamari as it is crispy outside but the squid is never overcooked or dry. It comes with three different dipping sauces. As for the main meal, just look at the selection of seafood they have available for the day. Whatever that strikes you the most, that should be the dish you should order. Just be adventurous.

Butter Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 lb Butter
3/4 lb Soft Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Essence
3/4 lb Flour
1/6 lb Corn Flour
3/4 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Soduim Bicarbonate
1/2 lb Chocolate Chips (Any type. I recommend Bitter Sweet)
1/4 lb Chopped Nuts (Which ever nuts you fancy. I like Macadamia Nuts)

Steps:
1. Mix butter and brown sugar till cream texture.
2. Add in eggs one at a time and continue mixing.
3. Add in vanilla essence.
4. Shift flour, corn flour, salt and sodium bicarbonate. Mix them together and add it to the mixture.
5. Stir in chocolate chips and chopped nuts.
6. Drop spoonful of mixture onto greased baking sheet.
7. Bake at 360F for 10 to 15mins.

Notes:
The number of cookies from this recipe depends on the size you desire. The smaller the cookie, the more cookies you can make. Also by making it smaller, the cookie is crispy. If you make the cookie larger, then the cookie will be softer.

Cost:
The recipe is good for like 60 medium size cookies (1 1/2inch cookies) and it cost less than $10 to make.

Burapa Thai Classic in Virginia

Burapa Thai Classic (Thai)
19326 N101 Lansdowne Town Center
Promenade Drive
Lansdowne VA 20176
571-333-9130

Burapa Thai Classic is a small Thai restaurant that is hidden at Lansdowne Town Center. The menu is a pretty simple Thai cuisine menu. It has all the normal Thai dishes that is available at other Thai restaurant. Overall, I am pretty satisfied with this restaurant's authenticity. Below are some of the regular dishes I ordered during my last visit.

Crispy Roasted Duck

Soft Shell Crab with chili paste sauce

Crispy Whole Flounder

Papaya Salad

Cost:
Soup $5 to $7
Salad $6 to $9
Appertizers - $5 to $8
Main Entrees - $8 to $40

Suggestion:
To share or not to share. By now, you know what I would suggest. Share your food! That is the only way that you will be able to try more flavors at the restaurant rather than to stick to what you ordered. I suggest 1 Main entree per person and there will be plenty to share. If it is not enough, you can always order more. But save some room for some dessert.