The Woolpack - Bermondsey, London

The cold front has finally lifted and London is bathing in glorious sunshine. And what better way to welcome the warmth of summer than a cool icy pint of Sweden’s best perry and a plate of food in a beer garden.

The batter was crisp, the fish fresh and chips even crispier than the fish batter … just the way I like it.

A fully loaded burger - cheese, bacon and a smack of the Heinz ketchup bottle. Good stuff.


A thoroughly enjoyable afternoon with the day’s excitement provided by a celebrity sighting of Gok Wan and a power failure that affected the whole of Bermondsey Street.


The Woolpack
98 Bermondsey Street, London SE1 3UB

In Search of Penang's Best - Char Kway Teow

For every plate of char kway teow that is served up in Malaysia, there are only a few that gets the distinct nod of approval. And apparently there are more heads nodding in Penang than anywhere else in the country. Good char kway teow is all about the 'ummph' factor. The big fire to lend that great 'wok hei' flavour, the right amount of ingredients that goes into the wok at any one time just so not to overwhelm the heat ... it's beautiful art and science rolled onto a plate.

Whilst Sisters on McAlister Road serves up a decent plate of noodles; with those big crunchy prawns and sprinkling of crab meat just before the dish is served, I have always been left with a twinge of disappointment of the lack of ‘ummph’ I felt. On this trip to Penang (for VO’s wedding ….or should I now say Mrs VT) it was straight pass McAlister Road and on to Heang Huat on Lorong Selamat instead. Look for the lady in the wacky sunglasses and you know you’re at another of Penang’s char kway teow institutions.

The noodles were good but I was still not feeling the ‘ummph’ . I was not throwing up my hands in the air and declaring it one of the best plates of char kway teows I’ve ever had. Even worse I was beginning to think that Penang food was standing on an extremely rickety pedestal. All the elements of a good plate of char kway teow were there – good wok hei, good balance of the ingredients, some very nice big crunchy prawns but if I were to be pedantic (which I am so totally not … ) there was not enough chives and it was so oily that at least a healthy half a teaspoon of oil was left on the plate after I had finished. I walked out of Heng Huat feeling slightly dejected. At this rate there was still no challenger to my all time favourite from Seng Lee in Damansara Heights.

A flurry of wedding festivities over, we were headed back to KL but not before one last plate kway teow. This time we let a local take charge. First impressions of Khoon Hiang were pretty bad. Tucked away in a corner of a not particularly busy area (but let’s remember it was in the middle of the afternoon on a Sunday), the coffee shop was dead quiet save a few old men gathered around a formica topped table sipping cups of iced tea and a few strays flopped about in the shade. And it was hot, not helped much by the corrugated tin roofs. Grumpy and eager to be on my way home (it had been a terribly long weekend with too much food and booze and not enough sleep) I wasn’t even cheered up with arrival of the first plate of noodles. But as the chorus of ‘emmms’ and ‘not bad, not bad’ (high compliments coming from a bunch of discerning Malaysian eaters) compelled me to dig in. It was good. Good flavours without the feeling of an oil slick in my mouth (which was perhaps my biggest objection to the CKT from Lorong Selamat).

If I thought the first plate was good, the second was better. For a few ringgit more they add extra prawns (those big crunchy babies that are so darn delicious) and mantis prawns (which look suspiciously like smaller version of a witchetty grub). If you want the full whack, spend an extra 50 cents and your run of the mill chicken’s egg will be upgraded to a duck egg.


Belly full and burping wok hei garlic I think I may have just eaten some very good CKT. Is it my personal favourite? Maybe not … call me a KL girl at heart. I like my noodles with a touch of thick dark soy sauce KL style. Penang CKT may just be too fine a dish for me ….


Kafe Heng Huat, 108 Lorong Selamat,Penang
Ah Leng Char Koay Teow, Kafe Khoon Hiang, Jalan Dato Keramat, Penang
Sister’s Char Koay Teow, Lam Heng Cafe, Jalan Macalister, Penang

It's A Long Ride Home

I hate travelling. Oh I don't dislike going on holiday, quite the contrary in fact, but I hate the journey. The waiting around, the boredom, the stress ... especially long journeys with transits when you're travelling alone. After awhile all airport transit lounges roll into one. This time it was Dubai International, the last it was Schiphol. Funny how I've been through these airports but have never visited the cities of Dubai and Amsterdam.

Long trips away mean cleaning out the fridge of any immediate perishables. There have been numerous occasions when I have been away only to return to find rotting veg - nice, eww! This time I smartened up (finally!) and cooked myself a big wokful of vegetable fried rice, dumping in all those bits and pieces that seemed to have built up in the fridge. Overnight rice, beansprouts (which I had always turned my nose up at in fried rice but it's actually quite nice if the crunch is maintained), broccoli, tomatoes, sliced ham, tinned tuna in oil - all mixed together with a good dash of fish sauce, oyster sauce and white pepper. This is my Everything Rice. Ingredients are, of course, seasonal :)

I guess it's not entirely true to say that if you've seen one airport you have seen them all. They are remarkably similar but some are a whole load nicer than others. I'll probably say the same thing about Starbucks. I'm sure I've said this before - whilst I'm all for the independent coffee shop I do love my Starbucks. There's something quite comforting in getting the same thing that tastes the same anywhere you are in the world. At Dubai International my Iced Mocha tasted good, the same, the usual .... but oh dear god ... that is not a muffin! It looked normal enough. You know muffin like. It smelt like what it said on the label - banana and choc chip. But I could have given someone a serious concussion if I had lobbed it at their head (not that I had reason nor occasion to). It was that solid. Hard and dry. Let's just say it gave for some interesting eating.

Back on the plane I was pleasantly surprised to find myself with three whole seats to myself. Since Emirates separated the KL and Jakarta legs, the KL flight has been a bit quieter. From the refreshments cart I got myself an orange juice and a glass of water. Got to keep those hydration levels up. Next up food - yay! I only managed to chip through a quarter of that muffin.

Sweet and sour chicken on fried noodles. Sounded promising, tasted disgusting. To be fair the meat was fairly tasty and moist. The sauce and and noodles, on the other hand, were so gloopy they just melded together and formed a large pool of mush.

The strangest Niçoise salad I have ever encountered. I thought the version I had in Paris last summer that was served with rice was a bit odd but this didn't even look like a Niçoise. If I hadn't checked the menu, I would have just brushed it off as a very untasty potato salad.

The saving grace of the meal was dessert. Tiramisu, halal style (minus the alcohol) with chocolate sauce. It wasn't traditional but more like a nice creamy dessert.

All that food and I still managed a good 4-5 hour sleep. Next stop - KL International. I'm going home!

Post Holiday Blues

It's been awhile since I posted anything - a jet set lifestyle leaves a girl with little time to blog about her eating adventures :) True, I have been traveling - a much needed break to Istanbul at the end of May with sister and mum and two weeks later it was back home to KL for the wedding of a very dear friend. But trust me, it's all been un-glamourous slogging at the office in between trips trying to make a decent penny to pay off my credit card bill.

Two lovely holidays and I should be raring to go, bursting with energy as I sit nine hours at my desk, five days a week. Instead I find myself bemoaning the injustice of another British summer washout. I look out the window at work and it's absolutely miserable - clouded over with that light drizzle that goes on for hours (yet as I write this today, the sun is out and shinning brightly but I'm stuck indoor with a sore throat whilst feeling hot and cold all at once).

So put the salad orders on hold and keep the stodge coming. I made cottage pie ... well, sort of anyway. The basic elements were there - mince beef and potato. Ahh ... so this is what deconstructed food is all about. In my case I was merely being lazy but I think it tasted pretty darn good.

Deconstructed Cottage Pie*

Mince beef (about 250g)
Jersey Royal potatoes (or any baby potatoes of your choice)
1 Red onion (diced)
4 Garlic (minced)
1 large Courgette (diced)
Peas (about 50g)
Milk (about 1 wine glassful)
Red wine (about 1/2 a glass)
Tomato purée (a generous tablespoonful or two)
Chipotle chili jam (a good heaping tablespoonful)
Olive oil (2 generous glugs)
A handful of grated Chedder (or any other good melting cheese)

• Heat your oven to about 170-180 °C. Wash and boil the potatoes until tender (you should be able to push a knife into a potato quite easily). Drain the spuds and let it stand for a minute or two. Transfer to an oiled baking tray. Using the back of a fork, crush each potato (or just slightly flatten each spud - no need for prettiness). Pour over the 1st glug of olive oil, season and put the tray into the middle shelve in the oven. It should take about 20 minutes ot until the potatoes are golden brown and the edges are crisp.
  
• Heat a large pan with the 2nd generous glug of olive oil. When the pan is decently hot, add the mince and breaking up any large chucks. Let the meat brown (I find draining the meat once or twice of the juices that come out during the browning process helps it cook faster - there is so much moisture in pre-packaged meat).
• Once the meat is nut brown (or thereabouts), add the onion and garlic to the pan. Cook for a few minute or until the aromatics are released from the onion and garlic. Mix the tomato purée in and let the meat cook for another minute or two.
• Pour in the wine. Let the alcohol evaporate before adding the milk, chipotle chili jam, peas and courgette. Season and mix. Cover the pan with a lid and let contents simmer for about 10 minutes.
  
• The meat is done when the veg is cooked through and the sauce has thickened. Serve with the potatoes and topped with some grated chedder. I put my bowl back into the still oven for a minute or two to let the cheese melt.
  

*As with most of my recipes (if you can call them that as I tend to make things up as I go along) I don't usually keep track of measurements. I'm a staunch beliver in personal taste - little more of this or none of that at all, it's all up to you. Everything I write is just a guide. Your tastebuds will lead you.

Dim Sum - New World, Chinatown

Think dim sum and images of leisurely Sunday brunches with a few little bamboo steamers on the table, opened newspapers lying about and lots of tea being drunk should spring to mind. But I'm a Foong and Foongs don't do leisurely dim sum. We do maniacal over-ordering because that's the only way we know how and we love it. If I wasn't bad enough, bring my new manager at work, ISW, into the picture and the world turns into a Mad Hatter's tea party. In between moans and groans about work, we do serious food talking and plot out our future restaurant empire.

First the talk. Next the eating, the important bit. We headed to Chinatown for dim sum midweek and chose New World for it's location and the trolley service. To maximize our ordering capabilities, we roped in JE and TN who both had never had dim sum before. Almost rubbing our hands in glee with 2 extra tummy space, ISW and myself filled the table, to a point it was almost embarassing. As long as JE and TN kept eating, we didn't stop ordering. The two bird size ladies at the next table were giving us positively evil looks. They had 4 dishes on their table when we arrived and they were still pushing the food around the same four dishes when we left - an hour and half later. Maybe they were grumpy they couldn't order more?

Steamed Tripe

Snails in Curry Sauce

Prawn Cheong Fun

Sui Mai

Xiao Long Bao

Steamed Barbeque Pork Buns

Steamed Beef Balls

Steamed Pork Ribs with Chili and Black Beans

Har Kau

Pan Fried Raddish Cake

Woo Kok

Deep Fried Squid

Ham Sui Kok

Roast Duck

Stuffed Aubergine in Black Bean Sauce

Wanton Noodle Soup

Fried Beef Hor Fun

My doggie bag - with the extra 2 dishes we ordered, Deep Fried Squid Balls and Minced Prwan on Sugarcane

And because we couldn't resist dessert but were a tad bit too full we bought a few egg tarts from the bakery section of Far East Restaurant on Gerrads Street. I used to love these tarts but gave mine away to Stuart when I got home. The guilt of that huge lunch had started to creep up on me and I could face another bite.

On the way back to the office we passed the crazy cake shop ... the colours and decorations on their cakes are so fantastically gaudy that I never fail to stop for a look :)

New World Restaurant
1 Gerrard Place, London W1D 5PA


Far East Chinese Restaurant
13 Gerrard Street, London W1D 5PS

Chicken Cacciatore

I remember my mum making this dish way back in the day when having Italian food at home was a wee bit of a novelty. It's not a fancy dish. Just a hearty one pot dish with chunky bits of chicken on the bone with lots of punchy tomato sauce. Comfort in a bowl.

Chicken Cacciatore
6 pieces of chicken on the bone (I jointed a whole chicken and used the legs and wings for this dish)
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
1 glass of red wine (anything drinkable is fine with me - I'm not fussy)
2 tsp tomato purée
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
a good handful of black olives
generous splash of olive oil
salt and pepper

• Heat the pan on a medium to high heat and add the olive oil.
  
• Place the chicken into the pan and let it brown. Don't attempt to move the chicken around too much at this point as the meat will stick to the pan. Once a lovely golden brown, turn the pieces of chicken over to cook on the other side.
  
• After all the sides are browned, lift the chicken out of the pan onto a plate and keep warm. Drain the fat from the pan, leaving only a tablespoonful or two.
• On a medium heat, add the onions and garlic. Once the onions are translucent and the garlic is smelling gorgeous, add the tomato purée. Mix it into the onions and garlic. Let the tomato purée cook out for a few seconds before adding the chicken pack into the pan.
• Add the wine and tomatoes. Season.
  
• Stir and let the mixture come to a boil to cook out the alcohol from the wine. Once the acidic smell has evaporated, the alcohol has cooked off.
• Scatter the olives and put the lid on the pan. Simmer for about 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

I served the chicken with a quick stir fry of spring greens and garlic flat breads from M&S. Rather delicious on evenings when the weather is still not quite warm enough for a salad.

Weeknight Dinners

A quick look at what has been keeping me warm and nourished through the last dregs of winter and the first signs of spring as the daffodil heads poked through the ground.

Minced beef braised with potatoes, onion and garlic in oyster and soy sauce. Served over white steamed rice, a fried egg sunny side up and steamed choy sum. And not forgetting the good shake of Maggie seasoning and white pepper over the fried egg. This is real comfort food for me, especially as the yoke oozes all over the meat and rice.

Stir fried mee hoon with mussels and lots of veg, which I picked up as part of a special deal at the supermarket. I made a simple omelette which I cut up and added to the nearly finished dish. I never noticed how almost deep frying an omelette makes it taste like deep fried tofu. Well, there you go ... I learn something new everyday.

Rotisserie chicked basted in barbeque sauce that was picked up from the supermarket along with the baguette. I made some slaw with finely sliced white cabbage, carrot and red onion dressed with mayonnaise, lime juice, a touch of ketchup, a splash of sweet chili sauce and a dash of fish sauce.

Whilst I was at the Korean supermarket I picked up some thinely sliced beef usually used for bulgogi. I marinated the meat in soy and oyster sauces with a touch of sesame oil overnight before adding it to a simmering pot of with a miso base soup and lots of vegetables - Chinese cabbage, beansprouts and broccoli. The meat cooks is about 2 minutes and had the lovely flavours of the marinade. Served with soba noodles.

I used some of my other Korean supermarket purchases, fish tofu and fresh tofu, for another noodle dinner. This time it was in a katsuobushi dashi base soup flavoured with tomatoes. I guess you can that fish tofu is my new discovery. Soft, yet firm blocks of fish paste ... like a cross between a fish ball and tofu ... crazy, yet very yummy. I added more beansprouts ... huge bags of beansprouts are so cheap at oriental supermarkets. It makes you wonder what sort of killing the high street supermarkets are making with their little bags of 'from bag to wok' stir fry vegetable mixes. I also added some spinach and served it all up with some thick udon noodles.

Four Seasons - Chinatown, London

Our last leisurely Friday lunch took us to Four Seasons for duck and rice. I got the 2 meat and rice combo for £6.50 with roast duck and soy chicken as my choice of meats. The duck was good as usual but the chicken was pretty awful. Verging on tough and dry, it was certainly not up to Four Seasons standard. If that wasn't bad enough, the ginger and spring onion sauce that accompanied the chicken (usually one of the highlights of getting soy chicken) was tongue numbingly salty and looked like something they had mixed up the week before.

To balance the heaviness of the meat we got two portions of vegetables. Stir fried ginger for crunch and dau miu (my absolute all time favourite) for deliciousness.

Four Seasons Chinese
12 Gerrard Street, Soho, London, W1D 5PR

Soy Braised Chicken

Sometimes when you're down and out all you want is something that tastes remotely of home. Tonight I made chicken stew. Not just any chicken stew but soy braised chicken with melting onions and spiced with cinnamon and star anise. And it tasted like a little piece of home heaven ... :)

Soy Braised Chicken

12 chicken pieces (I used leg pieces. Skin and bone the chicken if you wish but I was too lazy. The skin and bone does add extra flavour to the finished dish)
3 small red onions, peeled and roughly sliced
5 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
3 pieces of star anise
1 cinnamon stick
2 tbsp oil
5 tbsp soy sauce and an extra splash for good luck
5 tbsp oyster sauce and an extra blob for 'umph'
2 tsp sugar
150ml water

• Heat the oil in a wok on high heat.
  
• Once the wok starts to lightly smoke, turn the heat down to medium-high. Add the onions and garlic. Fry until slightly browned.
• Add the chicken pieces along with all the other ingredients except the water. Mix well to coat the chicken.
• Leave the mixture to bubble. Once the sauce begins to cook down and catch at the bottom of the wok, add the water.
  
• Put the lid on the wok and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and simmer for about 45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked. Check half way through and if the sauce is too watery, take the lid off and continue to simmer uncovered.
• If you like your sauce thicker, add a mixture of part corn starch and water just before you take the wok off the heat. Serve with a sprinkling of sliced spring onion, pipping hot steamed rice and perhaps a veg of your choice.I made a quick stir fry of spring greens, rocket ad tomatoes.
  

Is There Such A Thing As Too Much Crab?

A visit down to Folkstone over the bank holiday weekend brought me back to London armed with a few goodies courtesy of the bright blue sea.

Four brown crabs needing to be dressed was something I soon discovered was going to be a pretty mean feat. It's one thing to pick, suck and prod at a crab piece for instant gratification and quite another when the eating pleasure is to be delayed. After three long hours picking through the one big beast and three smaller crustaceans, I swore I would never attempt to dress a crab again. There were about a half a dozen little cuts on my hands, crab shell littered the floor and the air was heavy with the salty, wet stench of the sea. Next time I want to eat crab I'll wait till I get back to Malaysia or I'll buy a neatly dressed crab from my local fishmonger who sells them for a very reasonable £5 each.

After all my hard work I was almost tempted to stash the meat away in the freezer until I had managed to get some of the crab smell off my hands (ohhh a few weeks or so ... ) but I went ahead and dressed some of my beautifully picked crab anyway. Some sweet white meat, some brown meat (for that lovely richness), mayonnaise, lemon juice, paprika and ketchup was mixed up for my afternoon snack of crab on toast.

The next day the crab became part of a sandwich - dressed with a little mayonnaise, paprika, ketchup, sweet chili sauce, fish sauce (fishy on fishy = quite delicious), finely chopped coriander and lime juice served on tomato bread with cucumber. Yum ... much nicer than the day before. The other sandwich for the day was ham with grain mustard, rocket and cucumber.

The rest of the crab is now sitting in the freezer waiting for me to decide what to do with it .... chili, garlic and lemon crab with pasta or crab cakes? We'll see ...