Sizzling Hot Plate Tofu

We love our cast iron hot plate. It is really good for both baking and cooking. And today, I am going to share with you, my hubby's favourite dish. Sizzling Hot Plate Tofu is one dish that requires a good cast iron hot plate. Without a hot plate, you can't make the perfect 'this dish'.

Because it was an impromptu request from my hubby, I just make do with whatever ingredients I have in my fridge. You may refer to the last note in my recipe for other ingredients that you can add.

See the bubbles over the edge of the plate, it was sizzling hot! Even tho' it's only minced pork sauce over the tofu and egg, my hubby rated this at 9 out of 10. Yummy!!

A Simple Sizzling Hot Plate Tofu

SIZZLING HOT PLATE TOFU

Prep Time  : 20 mins
Cook Time : 20 mins
Total Time : 40 mins
Serves       : 2 - 3 pax

Ingredients:
2 rolls japanese egg tofu
1 tbsp corn starch

200g minced pork
1 cup water
1 egg
2 cloves garlic (minced)
Spring onion for garnish

Marinade
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

Seasoning
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1/2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp Shaoxing wine (optional)
Salt to taste

Thickening (Combine in a small bowl)
1 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp water

Directions:
1. Cut the japanese egg tofu into thick slices, approx. 1.5cm thickness. Lightly coat with corn starch and deep fry until golden brown. Dish up and set aside.

2. Marinade the minced pork with soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, salt and oil for at least 15 mins.

3. In a wok, sauté garlic until fragrant. Add in minced pork and stir-fry untill browned.

4. Add in water and seasoning, and bring to a boil. Thicken with corn starch solution by pouring the solution into the minced pork mixture in a slow stream while stirring it. When the sauce is done, turn to lowest heat.

5. Add in a tsp of vegetable oil on the hot plate and heat over the stove on high heat until smoking hot. Transfer the plate to its wooden tray and quickly beat in an egg. Arrange the previously deep fried egg tofu on top of the egg and pour the sauce over the egg tofu. Lastly, sprinkle a handful of chopped spring onion on top and serve immediately.

Notes:
● By adding (vegetable) oil during marination, it helps to separate the meats better for cooking later.

● I love to keep my sauce piping hot until it is ready to be used. If you have only one stovetop, you may pour out the sauce first and heat the hot plate.

● Usually, I will get ready my dining table and had everyone seated when my sauce is ready. Then when the hot plate is ready for sizzle, everything will be done in a hastily manner to ensure that my guest will be able to see and hear the sizzling.

● This is the simplest Hot Plate Tofu. You may add other ingredients such as prawn, thin slices of shitake mushroom, thin slices of carrot, shredded black fungus and baby corn, in a combination of 3-4 ingredients.

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Milton of It's Me! Bluedreamer!

Moistest Eggless Chocolate Mug Cake

Mug cake simply means cake cooked in a mug. When I first heard of it, 8 years ago, mug cakes were not so popular then. A blogger friend of mine, Yoko from My Pooch Life was very generous to shared her mug cake recipe with me in which I've surprised my ex-boyfriend (now hubby). I can still remember his "shocked" expression. It was priceless! Read about it HERE, in A Great Pleasure.

After so many years, I've decided to make mug cake again. But this time, I've omitted the egg and make a few amendments to the previous recipe. Through a few trials and errors, I've finally came to this perfect recipe for the moistest eggless chocolate mug cake.

This recipe is really super easy and I let my almost 3 years old daughter make this all by herself, except for the last round of whisking which required a more thorough mixed. I am so proud of her!

The mug cake is really moist and chocolatey. The side part of the mug cake has a denser texture, almost like a mudcake. I can't believe this rich, moist & dense cake was made in a microwave and done within 3 minutes. Gonna keep this recipe in my family cooking book!

MOISTEST EGGLESS CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

Prep Time  : 2 mins
Cook Time : 1 min
Total Time : 3 mins
Makes       : 1 mug

Ingredients:
4 tbsp all­ purpose flour
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 tbsp castor sugar
A pinch of salt
5 tbsp milk (full cream)
2 tbsp vegetable oil
A big dollop of nutella

Directions:
1. In a small bowl (preferably a measurement cup with a spout for easy pouring), mixed together dry ingredients with a fork.

2. Add in milk and whisk till combined, follow by vegetable oil. It should be a smooth runny batter.

3. Pour batter into a microwaveable mug. Add in a big dollop of nutella in the middle of the batter and just let it sink in.

4. Microwave on high heat for 60-70 sec.

Notes:
● I used a 9oz mug.

● All microwaves are different. You may need longer or shorter time to cook this mug cake. Please do your own adjustment accordingly.

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Grandma's Golden Syrup

Many years ago (around 5 - 6 years ago), my hubby's grandma taught me how to make traditional mooncake. Unlike commercialized mooncake, traditional mooncake has a pastry skin that is moist, cakey and has a hint of fragrant caramelized smell. You can right away spot a traditional mooncake by these charateristics. All these because of one main ingredient - the GOLDEN SYRUP.

Golden syrup or light treacle is a thick, amber-coloured form of inverted sugar syrup made in the process of refining sugar cane or sugar beet juice into sugar, or by treatment of a sugar solution with acid.

It has an appearance similar to honey and is often used as a substitute where honey is unavailable or prohibitively expensive.

Molasses, or dark treacle, has a richer colour than golden syrup, and a strong, distinctive flavour.

- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_syrup

Because of its amber-colored, the golden syrup gives the mooncake a very nice brownish skin without overbaking it. Back then, I thought that the golden syrup is only to be used in making mooncakes. I didn't know that it was sold in bakery supplies shop. (Pardon me for my shallow knowledge!)

It is only recently when I googled for gingerbread man recipe that I learn golden syrup is called . And later when I googled more about it, I found out that it is also used in making desserts and other yummylicious baking goods. (sou desu ne/そうですね。- Oh I see!)*

And today, I am making this syrup in preparation for my Christmas baked goodies. Are you ready for Christmas? Let's start!

GRANDMA'S GOLDEN SYRUP

Prep Time  : 2 mins
Cook Time : 40 mins
Total Time : 42 mins
Makes       : approx. 1 1/2 cup

Ingredients:
2 cups castor sugar
1 cup water
3 calamansi limes (halves and desseded)

Directions:
1. Combine castor sugar and water in a thick-bottomed pot. On medium high heat, boil the mixture. Lightly swirl the pot a few times as the sugar begins to melt, combining the sugar with the water. Leave to let it simmer.

2. Once it has reached boiling point, add in the calamansi limes and turn down the heat to medium low. Continue to let it simmer, for approx. 30-40 mins, until it turned amber color. If you are unsure whether is it time to off the heat, then try to scoop out a spoonful of syrup and let it cool under the fan. Check the consistency. If it is sticky and feels like honey, then it is done.

3. Let it cool but not completely before pouring to a jar.

Notes:
● If you find that your syrup is too thick after cooling down, you can add hot water to dilute it, and cook again. Likewise, if the syrup is too runny, you can cook again until it reach the consistency of honey.

● If the jar is pre-sterilized, you can keep the golden syrup for as long as one year. The longer it is kept, the more fragrant your baked goodies will be.

● The syrup may look watery when it is hot. It will become thicker as it cools. That is why I prefer to pour the syrup into the jar when it is still at its runny state.

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Make this recipe? Don't forget to snap a photo of it and tag #msyummyliciousrecipe on social media! I would love to see them! Enjoy my recipe!

Note: *Yes, I do use a few japanese words in my daily conversation, eg; Hontōni?/本当に? - Really?, Chotto Matte/ちょっとまって - Wait a moment, Doumo/どうも - Thanks.

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Guest Post : Teriyaki Chicken

Being a sudden backup chef when my wife is busy taking care of our 2 little precious is simply a head-scratching job. Thinking of what to cook in such a short time is hard when both of us are always wondering what to eat.

Well this time, I've make the call without letting her know what I'll be cooking. I surprised her with this simple yet a fullsome meal dinner which is also my all-time my favorite, Teriyaki Chicken on Japanese Rice. Of coz this was not my first attempt on cooking this dish.

And so I quickly went to nearby Tesco and grabbed 2 chicken whole legs and rushed home, cook the rice, deboned the chicken, cook it...and Woohoo! A delicious Teriyaki Chicken Don is ready. All these done within one and a half hour. 5 out of 5 she rated it. Maybe she's hungry hehe.

Having to see her finished the entire bowl without any rice left is very satisfying. Though I may not be as good cook as her but sometimes I just nailed it. I just need to have few recipes in my mind for that the last minute task. I hope this recipe will help you guys out there to cook on short time like me. Cheers and enjoy!

TERIYAKI CHICKEN

Prep Time  : 15 mins
Cook Time : 30 mins
Total Time : 45 mins
Serves       : 2 pax

Ingredients:
2 whole chicken legs (deboned)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp vegetable oil
75ml soy sauce
3 1/2 tbsp sugar + 3 tbsp sugar (Updated on 23 Jan - Improvised)
1 tsp sesame oil
1 clove garlic
130ml hot water
Japanese mayonaise (recommended)
Spring onion for garnish

Directions:
1. Marinade the deboned chicken with salt, black pepper and vegetable oil for 10 mins.

2. In a small bowl, prepare the sauce mixture. Mix well soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil and hot water.

3. In a frying pan, heat a tablespoon of oil on medium high heat. Pan fried the chicken, skin side down first till golden brown, approx. 5 mins on each side. Cover with a lid while frying. Dish out and leave aside.

4. In the same frying pan, with the remaining oil from the frying, saute the garlic until fragrant. Pour the sauce mixture and bring to a boil. Continue cooking the sauce to reduce for approx. 10 mins.

5. Place the pan fried chicken, skin side up on the sauce mixture, turn down the heat to low. Let it simmer for approx 5 mins. By now the sauce has been well caramelized and become a thick glaze. Using a spoon, scoop the sauce onto the skin until the whole skin is well coated.

Notes:
● Japanese mayo will give a creamier taste.

● You may add 2 tbsp mirin if you like.

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Homemade Sensory Playdough For Toddlers

My daughter loves playing with dough. Whenever i work with dough recipe, she would come and ask to join along. Usually I would give her a ball of dough to play with and she could play throughout my whole baking time. This gives me an idea to make her some homemade sensory playdough from edible ingredients.

After googling for a good half an hour, I decided to give this Martha Stewart playdough recipe a try. Because I am a baker myself, I know that a cooked dough is definitely a better choice from an uncooked dough. They are much more softer and pliable than the latter.

And true enough, this playdough is very smooth, soft and pliable. For smelling senses, I've added a few drops of different artificial flavours for each colors. My daughter loves them and she can named the smell for each colors without me telling her. Good job, baby!

After playing for 2 hours, the playdough still remained soft and pliable. To further test the suppleness of this playdough, I've left a ball of dough overnight on the counter without covering it. When I checked on it the next morning, there was a thin crust formed on the surface of the playdough. But once I knead it, the heat from my kneading seemed to have melt the crust into the soft dough. The end result is the playdough still remained soft and pliable as it was yesterday. I am very happy with this playdough recipe. Definitely the BEST playdough I've ever played!

HOMEMADE SENSORY PLAYDOUGH FOR TODDLERS
(Recipe Source from Martha Stewart)

Prep Time  : 12 mins
Cook Time : 3 mins
Total Time : 15 mins
Makes       : approx. 4 balls of 7cm diameter

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 cup salt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
2 cups cold water
Food coloring
Artificial flavoring (optional)

Directions:
1. In a medium saucepan, combine well the flour, salt, vegetable oil, cream of tartar, and water.

2. On medium heat, cook the mixture for about (no more than) 5 minutes. Stirring constantly until the dough is the consistency of mashed potatoes. (It took me about 3 mins to get to the consistency of mashed potatoes)

3. At this point, your dough maybe still a little bit sticky. Knead it a few times while the dough is still in the saucepan, away from stovetop. The heat from the saucepan will continue to cook the dough whilst you are kneading.

4. Divide the dough into four equal portions and add your coloring and flavour according to your liking. I've added approx. 1 tsp of food coloring and 1/4 tsp of artificial flavoring into each portion.

Notes:
● To store, wrap each color dough with a cling wrap before placing them in a ziplock bag or airtight container.

● According to Martha Stewart website, it says that "If you store the play dough in a plastic bag or airtight container, it will stay nice and soft and last for years."

● Do not worry about your kids mixing different colors together. You can try to separate the color dough later. And if you can't, just knead it together to create a new color. :)

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MY OBSERVATION

After posting up this receipe, an experienced mommy (whom has made this playdough before) told me that her dough got moldy after 5 days in room temperature and only lasted for 2 weeks when kept in fridge. Upon hearing this, I decided to do my own observation and comparison.

Note: Both dough are wrapped in cling wrap and kept in airtight container after each play.

	Room Temp (Dough A)	Fridge (Dough B)
7 Days	Dough remained soft & clean (The colors were all mixed up hence the dull color) more details below...(+/-)	Dough remained soft & clean, and is slightly softer than 'Dough A' more details below...(+/-)
2 Wks	Dough has harden a bit but still soft to shape & free from mold. more details below...(+/-)	Dough is tougher than last week but it is still soft to shape & definitely softer than 'Dough A' more details below...(+/-)

Dough Untouched In Room Temperature
(Observation on the first 7 Days)
I've kept a small ball of dough untouched in room temperature (since the day i made them). It became very sticky. (See below photo.) I guessed we need to knead it once a while or perhaps maybe I did not knead it enough at the beginning. Hmmm...

Dough Untouched In Room Temperature
(Observation on the next 7 Days)
I was not happy that my daughter could not play with the 'sticky' dough. So I tried making them into a flat disc and leave it uncovered for the whole day under the fan. A thin crust has formed on the surface. I knead it to blend with the soft sticky of inside dough. After a few minutes, it became a smooth dough again. Yay! My daughter was able to play with it.

DOUGH B
(Observation on the first 7 Days)
Even tho' 'Dough B' is slightly softer than 'Dough A', but I found that it is very troublesome to have it thawed(*) first (for at least 4-5 hours).

In the first 1-2 hours of thawing, the dough began to sweat and become very sticky(**). Got to let it thaw further for approx. 4-5 hours to get a smooth dough (after kneading it again for few mins).

Ok. you may ask, what if I let my kid play right from the fridge? I've tried that and it doesn't work. When I let my daughter play right after taking it out from the fridge, the dough was nice to play with at first but in just few minutes, it became very sticky. (See photo below.)

The dough stick to the table and hands.
NOTES
(*) thawing condition: dough is unwrapped from cling wrap and left 'naked' on table.
(**) the dough may not sweat or may not sweat too much if the weather is cooler.

DOUGH B
(Observation on the next 7 Days)
My daughter was able to play with the dough right after taking from the fridge. Does not need thawing anymore and it doesn't feel sticky.

Conclusion of My Observation: The dough kept in room temperature (Dough A) was more lasting than the one kept in fridge (Dough B), in terms of pliable. It can last up to 3 months or more, provided that it is stored accordingly. I did not further test because the dough has become brownish color and my daughter wasn't interested in it anymore.

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