The Food Canon

No matter how warm or strained family ties are, all across Singapore, families still try to gather. There is an unspoken forgiveness or a staying of grievances. As conversations flow, we remember that family is a given and gift. Whatever or whoever, we ought to receive it with gratitude. Going beyond a truce, some mending may actually happen.

For a few days, work is set aside as the home becomes centerstage. It has been a while since one stood at the balcony and stared at his neighbourhood. To have the whole family gathered in the living room is a rare moment indeed. Indeed, the living room is no longer the a gathering place as families often retreat to their own PC or smartphone devices in their rooms. Hopefully during CNY, that will be different.


The ambitious career persons readjust their perspective. After all, the home is a graveyard of ambition. As a proud father watches his children, the unquenchable desire for public honour recedes into the background. Problems at work are temporarily forgotten.

The second day will be about visiting relatives, and on the third day, close friends. For those who come from broken families, the reunion night can cruelly open some old wounds. I don’t think those wounds can be healed completely on this side of life. But CNY celebration stretches long enough to remind one that close and faithful friends are still some of the good gifts of life.

Indeed, "every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father …” so says the Bible in James 1:17.

We can be grateful for the many gifts that God has given us through our culture, family and friends.

Wishing all of you a wonderful and blessed Chinese New Year.

A family photo taken in 2005

If you have spare ikan bilis in your larder or fridge, this is a good condiment to make. It is appetising and goes very well with rice or porridge. And it makes for a good snack. My Mum made this often.

With CNY around the corner, it is good to have some of this in your fridge.

I was told that Indonesian ikan bilis crisp up better than those from China. Should you remove the hearts and organs? After reading this, you may not want to do that.

And please, don't wash the ikan bilis unless you want to reduce it's saltiness and plan to dehydrate them first before frying. Do you know how hot deep frying oil is? Deep your finger in and feel it. But then again maybe not. The point is even humans will not survive hot oil.  Neither will any pathogens clinging to it. Hou should however sake of any dust by shaking the dust down by using both your hands or a suitable colannder.

Tau chu is salty and plum sauce is sweet. Make sense to combine them. Plum sauce will also add some glaze to the ikan bilis.

Ingredients
200 gm ikan bilis
10 shallots (peeled and sliced)
2 fresh green or red chillies (sliced)
1 Tbsp of plum sauce
1 Tbsp of brown soy beans (Tauchu, whole not meshed)
Oil

Method
1. Deep fry the ikan bilis in medium heat till it is golden brown and set aside.
2. Using a Tbsp of the oil, cook the slice chillies and caramelised the sliced shallots for about 2 minutes.
3. Add the tauchu and plum sauce, mix and switch off the fire.
4. When the sauce has cooled, add the fried ikan bilis in and mix.

Serve immediately or keep in an air-tight container.

Happy crunching.

I have written a few post on this recipe and you can check them out through this link.

I have never cooked this for less than 30 bowls and the recipe reflect this. However, there have been various request for a smaller portion recipe. So, I hope this is helpful if you plan on making 10 bowls or less.

As for the stock, it is primarily a prawn or shrimp stock with some secondary flavours from meat stock, i.e. chicken or pork. Once you grasp this, you will know how to vary the ingredients as you will be using different type of prawns, depending on what you can get from the market in your area. If you have very small shrimps, they can be used whole without peeling. Remember to roast them first before pulverising.

Auntie Ruby's Hokkien Prawn Mee Recipe

To make 10 bowls (about 2-3 liter of stock)

Preparing the prawn and dried shrimp stock 

800 gm  prawns
100 g dried shrimps (hae bee)
150 g  fried anchovies (ikan bilis)
5 cm ginger

1. Peel and separate the heads and shells of all the prawns. Trim off the sharp pointers at the top of the heads. Set aside about 20 pieces of meat for garnishing later.
2. Heat up 1 Tbps of oil in a wok and roast the dried shrimps for 10 minutes. Add ginger. Then add the heads/shells and roast till they turn golden orange. 
3. Add 2 litres of water and pulverise it finely, using a stick or standing blender. You should see some orange or red coloured foam at the surface of the stock. 
4. Add the ikan bills. Cover and simmer the stock for half an hour. Then let it steep overnight for maximum flavour extraction. You can also do this earlier in the day and let the flavours develop by dinner time.

Preparing the lard and sambal chili

300 g of pork fat 
30 pieces dried chilli
1 inch in diameter block of belachan or 1 Tbps

1. Lard is of course optional but the flavour and mouth feel of pork fat is fantastic in the broth. Cut the pork fat into 1 cm (0.4 in) cubes. In a pan, slowly heat up the cubed fat. The oil will slowly flow out and fry the rest of the fat. Keep the fire low so as not to burn the lardon. It will take about an hour to do it right. When the cubs have shrunk to a quarter of its original size, increase the fire to get the lardon nicely browned. The lardon can be offered as a garnish but the oil is what you want. Lard can be prepared beforehand and stored in the fridge for weeks.    
2. Leave about half a bowl of the lard in the wok to make the sambal chilli. Blend the soaked dried chilli into a paste.  Then, over low fire, add paste and simmer for 15 minutes. You can also use ready-made or store bought chilli paste.

1. Strain the prawn and ikan bills stock. 
2. Keep the broth on a simmer. It is important to taste it as you develop the flavours to learn how each ingredients move the broth closer to the outcome you want. While I give the quantities of ingredients in the recipe, the sweetness and saltiness which you prefer may be different from mine. Learn to train your palate to balance the flavours. If you have tasted some good Hae Mee or tasted mine, those palate memories can guide you. 
3. Add the rock sugar, chicken stock (bouillon powder or concentrate) and sambal chilli. The chicken stock flavouring gives a mellow body to the broth. (Note: You can replace the chicken stock with chicken bones and meat or pork bones if you want to stir clear of MSG.) 
4. Add the belachan and a bowl of the sambal chili (with lard oil) into the broth. 
5. Add some water along the way.  

Don’t rush through this stage. This is where a cook can improve his skills, palate and learn the steps in improving a broth. Sometimes, I ladle out some broth into a bowl and flavour it to find a right estimate of what is needed in the pot. Of course, if you are using the same ingredients again and with experience, you will get more confident.

Preparing the prawn meat and pork loin meat(for garnishing)

1. Simmer the pork loin meat in the stock for 30 to 40 minutes depending on how large the chunks are. Don't overcook it or it will be too dry. 
2. Set aside 20 pieces of prawn meat for the topping. Keep the remainder for other uses. Devein the prawn meat for the topping using a toothpick or the sharp edge of a knife. It is easier to devein before you blanch them.  
3. Blanch the prawns in the boiling stock using a strainer. Do this in small batches as the prawns need to cook quickly or the meat will fall apart on the sides. If you are doing this the day before serving, refrigerate the prawns. They keep well after they are cooked.   

Preparing the bowls: garnishing and serving

20 pieces prawn meat (halved into 40 pieces, 4 per bowl)
500 gm  water convolvulous (kangkong)
500 gm beansprouts
300 gm pork loin
4 eggs
Fried shallots
400 gm (2.2 lb) yellow noodles
400 gm  (2.2 lb) rice vermicelli (bee hoon)
30 slices of fish cake (3 slices per bowl)

1. Slice the boiled prawn meat into halves. 
2. Slice the pork loin and fish cakes. 
3. Fried shallots are indispensable. Make your own if you can. If you use commercial ones, get those which are fresh and crispy. 
4. Soften the bee hoon in water for about 30 minutes.  
5. When it is time to serve, assemble a serving of the bean sprouts, mee, bee hoon and kangkong in a bowl. Blanch the contents of the bowl in rolling boiling water for about half a minute. This will also remove the “kee” (alkaline) smell of the yellow noodles. Put back into the bowl. Garnish with slices of prawns, pork and fish cake. Pour in the boiling broth and drain. Do it twice. Garnish with fried shallots and serve immediately with plates of sambal chilli and lardon on the side.  

The PPM broth is done.