Tuesday 3 January 2012

Joining the Happy Call craze - Bak Kwa, Stir-fry Choy Sum and Grilled Teriyaki Saba

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Bracing into a brand new Year, a good head start with healthy cooking and diet would be my aim for this 2012. As age is catching up we have to be more careful with the food we eat and the way it is prepared. So since two months back I have being trying to in cooperate more steamed and baked dishes such as at least two steamed fish per week and daily stir-fry/blanched green vegetables.

We also tried to cut down or replace fatty meat and high carbo stuffs to perhaps once a week or every two weeks. Sometime I think working in the kitchen is rather more difficult and hectic than working in the office. As we have to plan the daily menu, grab fresh ingredients and at the same time monitor the in take of food in order to create a healthy life-style which I think is not an easy job. In this post, I would love to share with you a new pan and a facebook group which I have discovered recently and I hope it might add some good tips to your kitchen pantry and meal planning too.

Actually I got to know Happy Call pressure pan(HPC) quite long ago through my mum as she is using it for cooking since 2 years back.  And since I have my own loyal brand of non-stick pan I didn't bother to find out more about Happy Call pan from mum and I also seldom use it in my daily cooking. It's only until recently that I bump into a Happy Call group(known as Munch Ministry) in facebook where the members use it to cook up a lot of delicious and effortless dishes then I realise the magic of this pan.

I have two sizes of Happy Call pressure pan - which are the Normal pan and Deep Ocher Pan both can be used for cooking, baking and steaming. Below are 3 quick and easy recipes using HCP which I hope you would find it useful if you do own a HCP too. (for your information this is not a advertorial post, it is only base on my personal view and sharing)


BAK KWA - BBQ PORK


Chinese New Year is barley about 3 weeks around the corner and everyone is busying with spring cleaning, storing up groceries and etc. Recently at the Happy Call facebook group where most of its members are using Happy Call pressure pan to make interesting snacks and pastries. And since Chinese New Year is approaching everyone is joining the craze to make Bak Kwa - BBQ Pork


Recipe adapted from Munch Ministry website, HERE.
(Make: 5 pieces | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 15 - 20 minutes)

Ingredients:
250g Minced Pork Meat
1 Tablespoon Maltose
1 Teaspoon Fish Sauce
1/2 Tablespoon Light Soy Sauce
1/4 Teaspoon Dark Soy Sauce
1/2 Tablespoon Cooking/Rose Wine
1 Teaspoon Red Glutinous Rice Lees
1/4 Teaspoon Five Spice Powder
2 Tablespoons Sugar


Method:-

1. Marinate the minced pork with the rest of the ingredients for about 30 minutes or more in the refrigerate.

2. Cut the baking paper according to the size of your Happy Call pan, set aside.

3. Spoon about 1 - 1 1/2 tablespoons of meat mixture on prepared baking paper, spread out thinly according to your preference. (refer to the photos above)


4. Preheat Happy Call pan (without oil) for 1 minute, place a sheet of the meat spread on the pan. Once the base is cooked, flip the meat over and slowly remove the baking paper.

5. On low heat continue to pan fry each side until cooked and a bit charred. Remove and repeat on another sheet of meat spread. (you can wipe the pan with paper kitchen towel in between to remove any burnt residue or stain )


Although ours is not as nicely done as compared to those commercial ones outside but this is indeed our 1st time making Bak Kwa at home and it is definitely something interesting.  At least we know what kind of ingredients is being used and we can to control the amount of sweetness and taste accordingly to our preference too. For more information and video on how to make Bak Kwa you can refer to the website at HERE.


STIR-FRY CHOY SUM


Using Happy Call pressure pan to stir-fry vegetables retain it's natural green and crunchy texture which our family loves.  And moreover the quick cooking due to the heat pressure enable food to cook faster and less hassle due to oil splashing and etc during cooking.

(serves: 4 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 5 minutes)

Ingredients:
1 Bunch of Baby Choy Sum, cut into sections
3 Fresh shiitakeMushroom, thickly sliced
3 Slices of Ginger
2 Clove of Garlics
1 Teaspoon of Oil
1 Teaspoon Knorr Hao Chi All-in-1 Seasoning 1 Teaspoon Cooking Wine



Method:-
1. Soak and rinse the vegetables at last twice before draining it well and set aside.

2. Preheat Happy Call pan for about 2 minutes, saute ginger, garlic cloves and mushroom with some oil for about 1 minute(pan closed and locked).

3. Open the pan, give the wilted mushroom a quick stir, evenly spread the drained vegetable on top. Cover the pan, locked and cook for 20 seconds before flipping the pan and cook another 20 seconds.(flipping the pan enables the dish to be evenly cooked)

4. Flip the pan over, open(red seal facing upwards) and drizzle some cooking wine and seasonings over the vegetables, give a quick stir and remove from pan.

5. To serve, top it with some fried shallot to enhance the flavour.


GRILLED TERIYAKI SABA


Finally at the 1st day 2012, I managed to spot fresh Saba fish at one of seafood stalls in my wet market. So without hesitate, I bought medium one to try out our favourite grilled Teriyaki Saba. Even though we love fish especially those pan-fried or grilled over stove but the stinky fishy smells always put me off cooking it until I discover this Happy Call pressure pan.


(serves: 2 | Preparation: 5 minutes | Cooking: 8 - 10 minutes)

Ingredients:
1 Medium Size Saba Fish, halves
Freshly Ground Salt and Pepper
2 Tablespoon Homemade/Bottled Teriyaki Sauce

Method:-
1. Rinse and pat dry the fish with kitchen paper towel. Lightly marinate it with some salt and pepper, set aside for 5 minutes.

2. Preheat Happy Call pan for 2 minutes on low heat. put in the fish as shown above. Cover, locked and cook for 3 minutes before flipping over and cook for another 3 - 4 minutes. (I cook on medium heat for the last 1 minute to get that golden brown and crispy skin)

3. Lastly flip the pan over open, evenly drizzle the teriyaki sauce over the fish and let it cook for 10 second on low heat.

4. Remove and serve with either rice or noodle.

As you can see from the photo above, Happy Call pressure pan can cooks meat and fish perfect leaving it with a moist and tender texture. This fish is cook for around 8 minutes and we love its juicy and soft texture which compared some dry ones sold in certain Japanese restaurants or food center. And moreover the most importantly fact is it reduce that stinky fishy smell when frying fish and as well minimize the greasy area around the stove.

For the next Happy Call post, I would try making some cakes/pastries which I hope I would be able to share my experience with you too.

24 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for sharing our website here and your HCP dishes look wonderfully tantalizing!!! *slurpz*  :9

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ann@Anncoo Journal3/1/12 6:27 pm

    Ellena, I saw few bloggers bought this Happy call makes me 心痒痒 :D 

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love fish and I love pasta, so this looks perfect for me to try it as soon as possible

    ReplyDelete
  4. The vege looks like it's been cooked on a wok, but no... perfectly green with this special Happy Call pan.
    It's very interesting seeing so many bloggers using this pan.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Happy New Year Ellena!  I've never heard of Happy Call, but this reminds me of Japanese fish grill.  We have wires inside this pan and put water underneath and grill fish (more like grill and steam).  I totally forgot about that driller.  All these dishes look delicious.  You always make delicious Western and Asian food.  I'm so envious!  Also, I love your step-by-step photos.  It's small but it's so clear photos.  I need to improve mine somehow (I've been trying but never succeeded).  Looking forward to your new posts this year Ellena!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sgfoodonfoot5/1/12 1:14 am

    walau with the Pan I can also cook now :P

    ReplyDelete
  7. Jo foodepix5/1/12 12:30 pm

    Looks delicious. Would love for you to share your pictures with us over at foodepix.com.

    ReplyDelete
  8. You make it sound so easy! I'm impressed with how good everything looks. The photos are fantastic too!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I finally cook my first dish using HCP! Yay! Couldn't find saba fish so used cod fish steak instead. Woohoo! Like you said, the fish turned out juicy and soft. Yum Yum.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yeah Lolandra! Welcome to the HCP club i am sure you will dote this pan more and more :p

      Delete
  10. Hi, your recipes are great! Have been trying them out using my normal size HCP. Just wonder if anyone here knows if the deeper HCP is easy to fry as in flipping the food inside the pan? Coz I'm thinking of selling my normal size HCP to my friend and get a deeper one instead since sometimes I tend to needs to cook more.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Jeannie,

      Thanks for your kind words :) Emm your deeper HCP meaning the Jumbo pan? which is about 8cm in height or the Ocher Pan(7.5cm in height). To what i see, HCP is not really use for stir-fry i guess the ocher pan will be good enough to feed a family of 5 - 6 depending what you are cook.

      Delete
  11. Hi Ellena,
    How do you remove the vegetable from the pan? I find it difficult to pour them out as there are two sides of pan and pretty heavy too!
    Regards,
    Janet Goh

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Janet,

      Yup the pan can sometime be a bit heavy to handle. I usually use chopstick/tong to remove the vegetables then use a ladle or spatula to scoop out the gravy if there is any :)

      Delete
  12. Hi Ellena,

    In your opinion, is the deeper one better or the regular one?

    Thanks,
    Sarah

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Sarah,

      Emmm I can suggest is that it all depend on your usage. If let's say 2 - 3 pax you can just get the normal pan. It's good enough for cooking, baking and stew. But if you are going to cook for more than 3 pax, then a deeper pan will do wonders. HTH :)

      Delete
  13. Hi Ellena

    Is it ok to preheat the happy call pan? The manual warns not to preheat an empty pan.

    Regards
    Rachel

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Rachel. Preheat with oil for just a few second or so with pan open is ok. unless you are cooking it empty with pan(LOCK). HTH

      Delete
  14. Hi Ellena,

    Thanks for sharing your hcp recipes. It inspired me to cook my dinner with just my hcp and i must say its very easy to use and cleanup.

    Hope u can help me with the following:

    When i preheat with hcp open it doesnt seem to heat up? Is my heat too low? How do u know if its hot enough?

    How to avoid oil splutter when i add teriyakki sauce?

    Cheers,
    J

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Juju,

      Emmm usually the heat up takes about 1 min or less just to warm up the pan but it won't be extremely hot like pan/wok. Before i pour in the teripyaki sauce, remove the hcp away from the heat and slowly swirl in the sauce, close the cover and move it back to the stove. HTH

      Delete
  15. How to prevent leaking out the source when turning?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maxine, Usually for dishes with sauce, we don't really turn the pan over. We just open the cover and give it a quick stir :) HTH

      Delete
  16. Hi Ellena,

    I gave your grilled teriyaki saba a try. It didn't turn out as yummy as what you have in the picture but I still find it better than the saba set sold in some of the eateries.

    Thanks for the inspiration.

    ReplyDelete

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Regards
Ellena (Cuisine Paradise)

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