A Gift of Caviar

Caviar, as we all know, is the roe (eggs) of a specific fish...the (wild) sturgeon fish, to be exact.  A gift of caviar.....is a gift of luxury!  Well, that is if you get real caviar (as true caviar only comes from sturgeon)! There are many different grades of caviar out there...from super expensive ones to cheaper substitutes or alternatives.  Though only sturgeon roe is considered true caviar, roe of other fish like salmon, trout or lumpfish, even whitefish, carp or paddlefish is also referred to as caviar by some.  This one I got (from Iceland) as a gift is actually lumpfish roe (also referred to as caviar).

From what I know, read and seen (on TV), one of the most prized caviar it seems is Beluga caviar (coz the Beluga sturgeon is critically endangered).  Malaysia has also become a producer of caviar of late, specifically a luxury brand called T'lur Caviar with its farm in Tanjung Malim, Perak.  Even these locally produced ones can cost hundreds of ringgit for just 30g! O_o

It's not that I'd ever get to taste real caviar anytime soon...or in my lifetime...lol!  What I do get to taste are the cheaper versions of caviar or, maybe, imitation caviar that some restaurants offer.  I remember my first ever taste of 'cheap' caviar was in the form of a starter from Victoria Station in Jalan Ampang but that was before I started blogging, so no photos were taken.  In case you're gifted a can of caviar and don't know what to do with it, let me show you just a few ways you can use them in some simple home recipes.

#1 - Caviar on Toast Points

But that appetiser in Victoria Station remained vividly in my mind that I'm able to replicate it at home.  Turns out that's the traditional way of eating caviar...with a selection of condiments like chopped hardboiled egg (some would serve the whites and yolks separately...why, I don't know, coz when it goes into our mouths, they'd be together...lol), finely chopped shallots/onions and chives with optional lemon wedges and creme fraiche.

My rendition is a little simpler with less components.  The way to eat this is you scoop a little bit of everything onto a slice of buttered toast point (a toast point is a triangular piece of bread that has been toasted with the crust cut off), top that with a bit of caviar...and take a bite! ^o^

It's very good, I tell you...biting into these tiny discs of caviar, you get this crunchy texture with a briny, salty burst of juices for a pop of sensation in your mouth.  Somewhat similar to tobiko (flying fish roe) in its crunchy texture and ikura (salmon roe) with its pop of juices.

#2 - Caviar on Crackers or Blinis

Of course, the simplest way is to put the caviar on crackers.  Some would serve it on blinis (a small, savoury pancake) together with a dollop of creme fraiche.  Creme fraiche and caviar is a classic combination that pairs perfectly well together.

I'm not sure if I've had creme fraiche before...I'm sure I've had and not know it.  Since I'm not that into cream, I omitted it (+ it's not easily found at our regular supermarkets anyway)...perhaps the higher-end supermarkets might have it.  These bite-sized lovelies are great as hors d'oeuvres or finger food for parties.

#3 - Caviar on Eggs

Besides the great pairing of creme fraiche and caviar, the other match that's perfectly made for one another is the pairing of eggs and caviar.

#3.1 - With Deviled Eggs

I'm sure many of us have seen this dish on TV or in food magazines and cookbooks.  It's pretty easy to prepare and it also makes a good appetiser or finger food for parties.

I've made this deviled eggs before...but that version was missing the luxurious ingredient of caviar, of course. I didn't even need to salt the eggs as the caviar was quite salty (which I wasn't expecting) or, should I say, taste of the sea! ;)

#3.2 - With Soft-Boiled Eggs

I once had soft-boiled eggs with black truffle shavings (and foie gras) that I thought elevated the humble soft-boiled eggs.  If a prized delicacy like truffle can do that, I'm assuming the luscious addition of caviar can do so too, and rightly so, it sure did.

This is not the kopitiam version of soft-boiled eggs, so no soy sauce, please...hah..hah.  Anyway, the caviar brings enough saltiness to the dish.  Who wants the typical kopitiam version now that I've tasted the luxurious version...and wish I can have that to start my every morning! ^_~  

#3.3 - With Scrambled Eggs

If it works with hard-boiled and soft-boiled eggs, why wouldn't it work with scrambled eggs, right?  The rather crisp tiny pearls of caviar create a nice contrast to the soft scrambled eggs.  It'll take your humble western breakfast to a Michelin star dish (lol!) and make it that much fancier.

If you're making this for friends/guests, your posh breakfast will be the subject of conversation among friends for a long time to come.  Seen here paired with some gourmet chicken garlic slices.

Sprinkle some finely chopped chives over the eggs if you have (I don't).  And yes, you can use a bit of freshly grinded black pepper with caviar as it can enhance the flavour profile of the caviar.  If the scrambled eggs look a bit less runny than usual, that's because I like my scrambled eggs cooked a bit more that way.

#4 - Caviar on Potatoes

One of the chefs on Top Chef once mentioned that caviar goes very well with potatoes.  For a cheffy rendition, it'll probably be in a dish of confit or fondant potatoes.  For the non-chefs in us, we can just pan-fry or bake the potatoes lah.

Dollop each potato rectangle with a little sour cream, mayo or creme fraiche and caviar (you can make it pretty with some strands of chives too).

#4.1 - With Potato Chips

If making potatoes is too troublesome for you, the easiest would be to use potato chips (unsalted, of course). Some (like the caviar connoisseurs) might frown upon this way of pairing caviar with potato chips but it's really good, I can vouch for that....crispy, salty, heavenly in one bite! ^.^

I think I went a bit overboard with too much caviar (for the sake of photo taking :D) on such a small, thin piece of chip...lol! :D  Just a little will do, otherwise you may end up with too salty a bite.

#5 - Caviar on Seafood or Pasta

When I think of caviar with seafood, the obvious ones that come to mind would be oysters, scallops, cured/smoked salmon, shrimps and crab cakes which I've seen on many food/cooking shows and competitions.

You can use the caviar to elevate a common appetiser like prawn cocktail to make it just a little bit more posh for your guests.  Equally as common is a dollop of caviar on top of pasta...the same way you'd see tobiko and ikura on pasta, so you know this is a winning combination also.

Overall, the caviar was good...it certainly elevated the dishes (and snacks) that I had.  I wasn't expecting the caviar to be that savoury, so I only needed to salt my dishes very lightly or not at all.  I enjoyed it the most with the scrambled eggs and soft-boiled eggs.  The bottle might look very small (100g) but a little goes a long way.

While lumpfish roe and sturgeon caviar may look fairly similar (except that lumpfish roe is really tiny unlike the larger, more luscious pearls of caviar), lumpfish roe is technically not caviar (though many such alternatives are still referred to as caviar)!  While lumpfish roe is not quite caviar, it still tasted great.  So, imagine if this was the real, luxurious, fine caviar! O_o  Due to its accessibility and affordability, you can use as much as you like...spread it on toast points, use it as a topping on your dishes (specifically eggs) or simply as a hors d'oeuvres.

So, thanks to my sister-in-law for her gift of lumpfish caviar which she got from her travels to Iceland....and even though this is not the real or super expensive caviar...it still tasted pretty darn good to me (and I wished there was more).  If I find them selling here, I would surely buy without hesitation...but, no, I googled and it's not sold here! :'(

#ewew cooks Minced Meat Omelette

I can "hear" some of you saying already....what, Minced Meat Omelette?  Aiyah, that's such a simple recipe...everyone can do that but I was inspired to post this when I was confronted with phonghongbakes' minced beef omelette that looked more like stir-fried minced beef with egg instead....wakakakaka!

Since she cooks that quite often as it's a simple dish for her carnivore way of eating, I thought I'd share how I do it in the hope that she can get a better-looking omelette...but not necessarily a better-tasting one (^_~) + I also have a little story to share about this particular dish.

I used to make my minced meat omelette just like everyone else (usually with minced pork but you can also you minced beef or chicken).  I fry the minced pork first to get it cooked and lightly charred (for extra fragrance).  Sometimes I would add chopped onions or bell pepper and all that have to be cooked until soft first as well.  Then I pour in the beaten eggs! ;)

That was before.  Then I realised the minced meat doesn't stick so well to the eggs.  This is especially so if your pan is large and you don't use enough eggs, the beaten eggs end up as a thin coat around the pan, not enough to hold on to the meat.  So, when you try to flip the omelette, the meat tend to fall off and scatter around the pan making it look more like stir-fried minced meat with scrambled eggs...lol!

Now I do it this way.  After frying the minced meat, onions or veggies (depending on the omelette you're making), I scoop them up and add it to my beaten eggs (that's in a bowl) and give it a good stir.  That way, all the meat/veggies get coated and stick to the egg, hence they won't fall off so easily.  Then I pour the whole mixture back into the oiled pan (sometimes there's remnant oil from frying the meat, so you may not even have to add more oil) and spread out the contents into an even layer.

So, here's my little tip.  Wait for the eggs to set a little (not necessary for it to be fully cooked though) and then cut your omelette into quarters with your spatula.  It's much easier to flip this way...a quarter rather than a full omelette (actually PH's omelette looks good until she got to the stage of flipping it and it became like scrambled eggs...lol, so hopefully this tip helps).  For my 26cm pan, I can even make a good minced meat omelette with just two eggs though three would be more ideal for a thicker omelette.  

And there you have it....a minced meat omelette that looks more like an omelette rather than stir-fried scrambled eggs...lol!  Note that the uneven browning on the omelette is due to my pan being a little warped from usage, otherwise it should be beautifully and evenly browned. ^_*

Of course it would look even more presentable if the omelette was in one whole piece.  That is also achievable but safe the hassle if you're cooking it for your own consumption.  To get the omelette whole, you have to invert it onto a plate and then slide it back into the pan.  Too much work, right?  Let's leave that to the restaurants, shall we? ;D

Apportioning your omelette into quarters also has its advantage if there's 3 or 4 of you...each one gets a piece (or a quarter) or, in my case, my husband gets two pieces! ;)

I can't remember how I "discovered" this way of making it (I must have seen someone doing it somewhere) but since discovering this method, I continue to cook it this way even if I'm making a vegetable omelette (with french beans or onions).  I fry the french beans or sliced onions first before adding them to the beaten egg. And if I'm making a coriander omelette, I just snip the Chinese parsley directly into the egg mixture. Hopefully this little tip I've shared will result in your omelette not breaking apart! :D  Try it out and see if this method works for you. ^_~

Now coming back to the little story I wanted to share about this minced pork omelette.  It was during the early days of my restrictive diet when I was really trying to cut out as much carbs as possible + I was also due for an after-meal blood glucose test at Caring (that was before I got my own test kit).  Hoping for a good reading, I chose to have a minced meat omelette for lunch (without any rice/carbs).

Wrong move!  I already felt something amiss when I was at Caring.  I started to sweat (even with air-conditioning) though my hands weren't trembling yet but I knew something was not quite right.  I told myself I better eat something quickly after my test at Caring.  Holy moly, my glucose reading was at 3.8 (my pharmacist was alarmed...and concerned)!  It was below the minimum range permissible for fasting (4.2) or non-fasting (4.4) levels.  I was experiencing hypoglycemia (as confirmed by my doctor at a visit later when I told him about the incident) which, in layman terms, is low blood sugar! >.<  I went next door to Family Mart and got myself a (white bread) sandwich and chomped it down immediately...and felt so much better after that.

Moral of the story...I've learnt my lesson not to omit carbs from any of my meals (must at least have a little) as my body can't seem to handle it.  Even with my restrictive diet of wanting to cut out carbs and sugar, I can have less carbs.....but not to the extent of no carbs at all. ^_~

Sometimes Simple is the Best!

I'm always looking to cook simple dishes that have just two or three ingredients to make my life easier cooking stress-free in the kitchen.  Such dishes are also excellent on days when you don't feel like cooking or have an appetite for something light.

If you're tired of cooking after slaving in the kitchen over the holidays for your makan gatherings, this simple pick-me-up dish is just what you need! ;)  I actually found this through a food blog I follow which gave me a new insight as in a new way to treat this humble ingredient that I never thought of.  I'm talking about a fuss-free dish of fried eggs over rice.  It can't get any simpler than that, right?  But with a twist! ;)

How often have we cooked....and eaten fried eggs with rice?  Very often, I reckon.  Kids (and some adults alike) will welcome fried eggs with open arms when they see it at the dinner table.  Even the pickiest eaters will not refuse eggs.

The way I've prepared it have always been to just fry the eggs, either with the egg yolk still runny or totally cooked with frizzy sides, and have it with rice until I chanced upon a new twist cooked up by The Woks of Life, who happens to be a Chinese family of four (residing in US) writing a food blog of Chinese food recipes which I follow to ogle at their delicious-looking food photos and gather (food) inspiration from.  They have since come up with their cookbook last month (which I'll probably end up owning too).

This plate of food is so fast and quick to dish up that if you blink, you'll miss it.....lol! ;D  First, we fry up two eggs (or three, if you need more) and put them over a bed of hot, fluffy white rice.  You can make your eggs sunny-side up, over easy or completely cooked through...whatever rocks your boat as to how you like your eggs done! ;)

I prefer mine sunny-side up or over easy.....but over easy eggs aren't the easiest to nail as the yolks could break when you try to flip them over or get overcooked when you wait for the eggs to brown.  My attempt at over easy eggs was obviously not very successful as the yolks were cooked through. >.<  Not a problem though since my son likes his egg yolks completely cooked.

In the same pan that you fried your eggs, throw in some long strands of spring onions and let them char in the residual oil.  Once wilted and charred, drizzle in some soy sauce and pour the scallions and sauce over the egg and rice (you have to do this real fast before the soy sauce has a chance to dry up, adding a little water can help you in this regard especially if your brand of soy is on the salty side).  You can drizzle in a bit of Shaoxing wine too if you like but that's totally optional (you don't really need it if you ask me).

Now, sunny-side up eggs are a lot easier to get right...hehe!  The key to having the yolks still runny is, of course, to let it ooze out onto your rice to double up as a sauce.  You can drizzle a bit more soy on top to reinforce that savoury flavour.  Of course, mine must have a dash of (white) pepper too. ^_~

Partnering creamy eggs with softened, charred, salty spring onions (which also acts as the vegetable in this dish) is just unbelievably good! ^o^  I like to cut my spring onions in long strands to mimic picking up a long-stemmed vegetable with my chopsticks...hah..hah!

Eggs is a staple in every household...and I almost always have spring onions (or coriander) in my fridge (some even have them growing in their gardens).  Spring onions keep quite well in the fridge for at least a week to 10 days if treated right and stored properly.  I wash them and let them dry completely in a colander before cutting them into two (or shorter strands) and storing them wrapped in paper towels in an airtight container.

When you had plans to eat out, tapau or weren't planning to cook and it's suddenly raining cats and dogs outside, this quick and easy dish will come to your rescue every time.  I've had this many times over since learning about this new twist with just soy sauce and scallions.  Good (and, more importantly, simple) things are meant to be shared!  Sometimes the simplest things are the most satisfying, don't you agree? ^_~

#ewew cooks Fresh Coriander Omelette

Love it or loathe it!  That's what fresh coriander (the leaves, not the seeds) is to many people....some love it immensely (like me) for its fragrance when added to anything.  Others loathe it for its smell and taste....and would spend their precious time picking out every single piece if they find it on any part of their food! :D

Fresh coriander is known by many names.  To the westerners, it's usually referred to as cilantro or Chinese parsley (to distinguish it from their western parsley which is not the same).  For us Chinese, we call it yin sai.....and to the Malays, it's known as daun ketumbar.

If you're a fan of watching cooking shows, you'll probably have heard many times how the chefs would say not to discard the coriander root as it's the most fragrant and delicious part (I certainly agree when I smell the roots).  They would not waste it but chop them up and throw them in marinades, sauces soups and stews.  I would too....if I get them in a condition like theirs...super clean!  But have they seen the fresh coriander sold here?  They come to us full of mud, dirt and soil! >_<  So, most of us would probably just snip off the muddy ends.  We even have to wash the stalks carefully as dirt gets trapped between the stems.

Most people would make spring onion/scallion omelette or chives omelette (like what choiyen.com would do...I do too) but what about coriander omelette?  Have you tried that before?  I have.....and the first time was accidental.  I wanted to include some kind of a protein in my salad but didn't have any meat, so I thought I'd just fry an omelette...and since I had some fresh coriander left in my fridge, I thought why not include that in my omelette.

And that's what I did....and it turned out better than I anticipated.  The fresh coriander leaves gave the omelette a very fragrant smell and delicious taste.  That fragrance added an extra lift to the fresh, crunchy salad leaves I was eating....and I've added fresh coriander to my salads ever since (whenever I have them in my fridge).

Of course, an omelette like this is only for true lovers of this fresh herb....to others it would be a stinky omelette.  But if you're someone who makes scallion or chives omelette, then you'll probably love a coriander omelette too...coz, more or less, spring onions and chives can be considered cousins of coriander.

What would most people do with fresh coriander anyway?  They would usually use it as a garnish....over steamed fish is the most common.

Or sprinkled over soups.  It's especially good with chee toh tong (pig stomach pepper soup) or chee chap tong (pork innards soup).  I do that at home all the time...sprinkle throw in lots of coriander (for my bowl only obviously) when I make peppercorn pork ribs soup or any other soup for that matter.

I even sprinkle them (if I have any in my fridge) over soup noodles that I tapau to eat at home.  You don't get that outside coz the stalls are too kedekut (stingy) to give you any as it's an expensive garnish.  They're equally stingy with their spring onions.

I use them in porridge too (together with chopped spring onions).  I find that the addition of lots of chopped Chinese parsley really helps to bring out that harum (fragrant) smell in an otherwise subtle tasting bowl of porridge.  Just stir that into the porridge at the last minute....try it some time.

If you're making pork meatballs, I recommend that you add chopped coriander (instead of spring onions) to the mix...it makes a world of difference....but only if your family members share the same love for coriander.  I realised this after eating a truly delicious meat stuffed tau pok with coriander from a fish ball noodle restaurant (though there are times they substitute with daun sup instead which is much cheaper). 

If you want a change from all the other omelettes you've been cooking with minced meat, long beans, lap cheong, onions, choy poh, luncheon meat, etc., give the coriander omelette a try next.

A little side story.  I recently 'met' an elderly lady who loves coriander more than me. I was doing my vegetables shopping one morning and was picking out a bunch of fresh coriander.  The sign said RM3.50 for a bunch (already tied-up) or RM9 for 3 bunches (my one bunch filled up two containers).  Then this elderly lady next to me (who spoke to me in Cantonese) asked me if it's RM9 for 3 bunches.  I thought she did not see the RM3.50 for one bunch and told her yes, RM9 for 3 but you can buy one for RM3.50, I said.  Again, she asked....but, but, but, it's RM9 for 3, right?  That's when I realised she wanted 3 bunches and I asked "Can you use that much?"  She said, "I put lots of it when I cook tofu, it's very nice."  Aiks, looks like she loves fresh coriander so much, she treats it like a vegetable....lol! :D  Hmmm, maybe I should try that when I next make a tofu dish.

I remember hating this herb when I was a kid (which sane kid wouldn't!) and thinking why would someone put something so stinky on something delicious (pungent then, fragrant now!).  This went well into my teenage years, even right up to my twenties, I think.  I can't remember at which point I started liking it...and now I love it so much I eat it at every chance I get (I guess I'm making up for lost time....lol).  But I still have not learned to love daun sup as much I do fresh coriander.

For me, fresh coriander is not only the best garnish ever.....it's the best ingredient to bring freshness to lift up any dish!!  And what can be more aromatic....and easier......than making a fresh coriander omelette if you love to eat coriander (like me).

I make this omelette for mua only since none of the boys in the house like fresh coriander....my son hates it...my husband can tolerate it (slightly).....and Cookie runs away from it! ^_~