Domino's Pizza

Domino's Pizza has finally makes it way back to Singapore after it's hiatus for so many years. I remember this was my favourite takeway during my 2 years stay in Brisbane where we always pop-by to the nearest  Domino's outlet near our area on every Tuesday for their 1-For-1 promotion which you can get 2 regular pizza for less than AU$10.

Since last year, Domino's Pizza has re-lunched in Singapore with better flavour, products and services that capture most of the patrons palates. Recently we received some flyers in our mailbox on their value meals and A-la-crate Pizza offers which comes in handy especially during rainy evenings where we just want to enjoy some comfort food without leaving home.

Here is our "Value Meal 1" that costs S$29.80 nett plus an extra S$2.00 for our "Half and Half" toppings. I always love the idea of having two flavours in 1 pizza as I get to enjoy my favourite toppings without wastage of ordering two individual pizza which we could not be able to finish it up.

For this we have half each of the "Hawaiian Paradise" with 100% mozzarella cheese with smoked chicken breast, turkey ham and juicy pineapple while "Classy Chic" was topped with smoked chicken breast, chicken sausage, onion, green pepper and ripe olive. All these succulent toppings were all resting on top of the light and crispy Crunchy Thin Crust which was flat and thin that enables you to really enjoys the toppings instead of the flour dough. For your information, Half and Half only available for Regular, Large and Xtra Large pizza with the same pizza sauce base.

For side orders we had Cheese Onion Ring, Hot and Spicy Chicken Wings and Twisty Bread. But sad to say their hot and spicy wings taste rather tough and it was served in a pool of salty red sauce that soaked up the wings.

We love this Twisty Bread which was another version of garlic bread but with a softer, chewy kind of texture that topped with lots of yummy garlic powder.

Although we might not be very satisfied with the orders that we had but on the other hand I must compliment on their  good customers sservice which impressed us. Their operating staffs actually took the initiative to call and inform us about the possible of delay after 20 minutes upon order confirmation. And a 2nd call was received around another 15 minutes later to check upon the delivery of the pizza as well as their apology for the delay.

And to compensate their delay in delivery they also present us a FREE Regular pizza coupon which we can use on our next order too. Perhaps this coupon will come in handy for our 2nd trial on their speedy delivery pizza which might turn out better than what we had on this order.

Vietnamese Spring Roll (Gỏi cuốn)

In Vietnam there is a non-fried and refreshing spring roll known as "Gỏi cuốn" which include ingredients such as boiled or fried pork, shrimp, chicken, fresh herbs, lettuce, cucumber, rice vermicelli and etc. All the ingredients are all wrapped in moistened rice paper and eaten with a cold dipping sauce.

Here is my version of preparing this Vietnamese Spring Roll using cooked prawns, vegetables and fresh herbs.

Ingredients: (makes 6 rolls)

6 Sheets of Large Vietnamese Rice Paper
12 Medium Cooked Prawns, shell removed
1/2 Medium Carrot, peeled and julienned
1 Small Japanese Cucumber, peeled and julienned
24 Mint Leaves
Handful of Thai Basil Leaves
Some Lettuce Leaves, tear into small portion

Method:-

1. Fill a large dish or bowl with warm water, soak each sheet of rice paper for a second or two then transfer to a slightly damp cotton dish towel.

2. To assemble, arrange 2 cooked prawns, carrot, cucumber, lettuce, 2 mint leaves and some basil leaves at about 1/3 of the way from the edge nearest you.(refer to the photo above)

3. Roll from the edge nearest you and tuck in the sides as you go near to the other end. Carefully not to tear the wrapper with too much strength.

4. Serve whole or diagonally cut in half with dipping sauce.


There are a few ways to prepare this dipping sauce for the Vietnamese Spring Roll but here we love this version without minced garlic and instead I add in some chopped peanuts to enhance the flavour and texture.

Ingredients For Dipping Sauce:

2 Tablespoon Lime Juice
1 Tablespoon of Fish Sauce
60ml Hot Water
1 Teaspoon of Caster/Brown Sugar
1 Small Red Chili, seeds removed and slices
1 Small Green Chili, seeds removed and slices
1/2 Tablespoon of Chopped Peanut, optional

Method:-

1. Whisk together all ingredients until sugar is dissolved. Set aside.


Although this might seems a bit troublesome to prepare as it used many ingredients as an appetizer or salad but trying it can be worth for getting away with our usual food routine. For this you can use all kind of vegetables according to your preference and if you do not like the taste of raw herbs, you can omit them in this recipe too. Moreover eating this Vietnamese Spring Rolls can be lots of fun too as you can mix and match the ingredients, wrap it and enjoy a light and refreshing meal while chatting with group of friends around the table. 

Steamed Firm Beancurd with Egg And Preserved Turnip

A few weeks back I have done a similar beancurd dish using Firm Tofu with Leek (read more HERE) and now here is another version that I have adapted and modify from one of the "3 Plus 1 Sr 3( 三 菜一汤)" cooking show. For my recipe I used preserve turnip (菜脯) instead of the dried shrimps because I prefer the fragrant and taste of preserve turnip with the bland tofu.



Estimate Cost On Ingredients: S$2.00

Ingredients: (serves 2)
1 Piece of Firm Tofu(豆干)
1 Medium Size Egg
1/4 Cup (50ml) of Water/Stock
1/4 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
Dash of Salt and Pepper

For Garnish:
3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon of Preserved Turnips(菜脯)
1 Small Red Chili, thinly sliced
Spring Onion and Coriander

Method:-

1. Lightly fry the firm beancurd with 1/2 Tablespoon of oil then golden-brown on both side. Remove and drain well, cut into 9 equal parts and place it in a steaming bowl/dish.

2. Saute garlic and preserved turnip till fragrant and lightly brown with the remaining oil from frying the beancurd. Dish up and set aside.

3. Lightly whisk the egg in a bowl(do not over beat it), add in water, sesame oil, salt and pepper and mix till combined.

4. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve to get rid of lumpy egg cluster before pouring it the strained mixture into the prepared tofu dish.

5. When the water boils, steam the tofu and egg over medium low heat for about 10 minutes.

6. Top with the prepared garlic mixture and continue to steam for another 3 – 5 minutes till egg custard is firm and toothpick inside and comes out clean.

7. Garnish with spring onion, coriander and chili then serve with steamed rice.

Note:-

~ Omit seasonings such as sesame oil, salt and pepper if using stock instead of water for the egg custard.

~ Rinse Preserved Turnips in water, squeeze dry before use.

If you cannot get hold of any traditional Asian "Firm Tofu(豆干)" in your area, you can replace it with with either one of those pan-fry / deep-fried tofu. I am sure this dish will lift up your appetite with more than 1 serving bowl of rice due to it's combination some fragrant spicy and salty toppings.

[Blog Event] 2 Dishes plus 1 Soup

Recently we have come out a blog event on $20.00 Budget Meal with aim to encourage those who loves to prepare simple homecooked meal to share with us their meal planning and budget tips. We hope to take this opportunity to learn from each other on how to plan and prepare some quick and easy nutritious dishes even with minimum sum of budget given.

So far I have a few responds and enquires from readers but I do hope to see more supporter(s) for this event if you/your helper do prepared a budget meal smilar to this post. For example below shows the 2  Dishes plus 1 Soup menu which I spent a total of S$19.20 to prepare and serves 4.



STIR-FRY BITTER GOURD WITH EGG

Ingredients: (serves 4)

1 Small Bitter Gourd(苦瓜), about 150g
1/2 Tablespoon Dried Shrimps, soaked till soften
2 Eggs
3-4 Garlic Cloves, minced
50ml Hot Water

Seasonings
1 Teaspoon Chicken Stock Powder
Dash of Light Soy Sauce

Methods:-

1. Remove seeds from the bitter gourd and slice it thinly before rubbing it with with 1 teaspoon of salt. Rinse well with water and set side to drain.

2. Preheat a frying pan with 1 tablespoon of oil, saute dried shrimp(pound lightly before use) until fragrant, add in garlic and continue to fry for another 10 seconds before adding in the drained bitter gourd.

3. Fry for a another 10 seconds, add in powder chicken stock, water and let it simmer for 2 minutes.

4. Lastly crack in eggs, give it a quick stir and simmer till the mixture became thicken.

5. Add in dash of light soy sauce, stir, dish up and serve.


Bitter Gourd (苦瓜) being rich in all the essential vitamins and minerals, especially vitamin A, B1, B2, C and Iron. It can also be use to treat complications such as hypertension, eye complications if consume regularly. For this quick and nutritious dish it cost around S$2.10 with breakdown shown below:-

Cost of Ingredients:
~ Bitter Gourd = S$1.00
~ Egg = S$0.40
~ Dried Shrimp and Garlic  = S$0.70




STEAM KURAU FISH WITH SALTED VEGETABLES

Ingredients: (serves 4)

400g of Kurau Fish(马友鱼), tail portion
150g of Preserved Salted Vegetable, cut into slices
2 Fresh Shittake Mushroom, thinly slice
1 - 2 Stalks of Spring Onion, cut into sections
3 Slices of Ginger, cut into thin strips
1 Chili, seed removed and cut into slices

Seasonings:
1 Teaspoon Sesame Oil
1 Teaspoon Cooking Wine

Method:-

1. Clean and remove any scales from the fish, rinse and pat dry using kitchen paper towel. Set aside.

2. Rinse salted vegetables under tap water, drain well and cut into slices. Put 1/3 portion of it on steaming plate together with some ginger and spring onion before placing the fish on top.

3. Top fish with the rest of the ingredients and drizzle with seasonings.

4. When the pot of water comes to boil, steamed fish over medium high heat for about 12 - 15 minute till the fish is cooked through.(you can test using a fork to flake the fish meat after 12 minutes to check)

5. To serve, drizzle some extra sesame oil and dash of pepper on it and spoon some sauce at the bottom of the fish to moist the fillet and enhance the taste.


  Out of the 3 dishes, this steamed fish is consider to be the most expensive as the Kurau Fish cost around S$3.00per 100g. Total cost for this dish is about S$14.40 with breakdown shown below:-

Cost of Ingredients:
~ Kurau Fish Tail = S$12.90
~ Salted Vegetable = S$0.60
~ Mushroom = S$0.40
~ Chili and Spring onion = S$0.50



BLACK MOSS TOFU SOUP

Ingredients: (serves 4)

1 Box of Silken Tofu, cut into small cubes
50g Minced Pork
1 Tablespoon of Black Moss, soaked in water till soft
1 Shallot, finely chopped
2 Slices of Ginger, optional
1.2 Litres Hot Water
1/2 Chicken Stock Cube
1 Tablespoon Cornflour Solution
Some chopped Spring Onion

Method:-

1. Rinse the beancurd and cut into small cubes. Rinse the soften black moss and cut into shorter lengths.

2. Marinate mince pork with 1.5 teaspoon light soy sauce, 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil, 1.5 teaspoon cornflour and dash of pepper. Stir well and set aside.

3. Heat up 1/2 tablespoon of oil in soup pot, add in chopped shallot, ginger and saute it till fragrant.

4. Add in minced pork, press and stir with a spatula to break the pork into bits.

5. Pour in water and let it simmer for about 5 minutes before adding the stock cube, beancurd and black moss.

6. When the mixture comes to boil again, stir in some cornflour solution(mix 1 tablespoon cornflour with 1/2 tablespoon water) to thicken the soup.

7. To serve, top with ground pepper and chopping spring onion or coriander.


This quick and easy soup is done in less than 15 minutes of cooking time which you can prepared while steaming the fish so that you do not need to reheat it before serving. Total cost for this dish is about S$2.70 with breakdown shown below:-

Cost of Ingredients:
~ Silken Tofu = S$0.90
~ Minced Meat = S$1.00
~ Black Moss = S$0.50
~ Shallot and Spring onion = S$0.30



For more read up or ideas on how to submit your homecooked dish for this event, you can also refer to these 2 submission below:- or follow the link HERE. Hope to see your entry soon, closing date EXTEND to next Sunday, 27 March 2011, 2359 Hours.


SINGAPORE: with total costs of S$19.50


2 Dishes, 1 Soup (两菜一汤 ) by WaiFong of Fong's Kitchen Journal

BANGKOK: with total cost of THB 340 or S$14.30

2 Dishes plus 1 Soup by Amy of  Mothering Corner

Closing Date: Sunday, 27 March 2011, 2359 Hours.