EAT! REVIEW & WIN

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- Advance reservation is required

Cordyceps Militaris Chicken Soup

I have read about the usage of this Cordyceps Militaris in some Chinese Soup Book some months back but I didn't give it a try because I thought we might not be able to find this in Singapore as it is not a common soup herbs. But my view changed when I chance upon a soup recipe from FOOD 4 TOTS called Chicken & Cordyceps Militaris Soup. Thank LK, for sharing this herbs and a wonder soup recipe :)

She mentioned about this herb and how she got it from her mother-in-law. So without hesitate, I also try my luck in one of the Chinese Medical shop in Chinatown where I managed to get hold of this herbs at $11.00 (during their promotion) for "一两 (38g)".

Ingredients:
1/2 Chicken
5-7g of Cordyceps Militaris (虫草子实体)
6 Big Red Date (红枣)
1 Tablespoon Wolfberries(枸杞)
5g Yu Zhu (玉竹)
1000ml water

Method:
1. Clean, remove the extra fats from the chicken then cut it into half if your double-boiled pot is too small.
2. Bring some water to boil in pot, blanch the chicken for about 2 - 3 minutes, rinse and set aside.
3. Rinse all the herbs and set aside.
4. Next bring the 1000ml of water to almost boil, add in the rinse herbs and bring to boil for about 2 minutes then add in the chicken.
5. Let it bring to boil again then simmer for about another 3 minutes.
6. Transfer to the double-boil pot and place it in a slow-cooker with hot water in it.
7. Double-boiled for about 2 - 2.5 hrs.
8. Serves with rice or you can drink before meal.

Note:
1) I just season the soup with pinch of salt before consume. The adding of herbs do makes the soup taste sweet and fragrance so it's ok if you omit the salt seasoning.

According to the shopkeeper by adding some Yu Zhu (玉竹) can nourishes Ying and stimulates saliva to quenches thirst. It also can be used to heals coughing and clears the internal Heat as well as pain the the throat. And there also also a few types of Yu Zhu available is most of the medical shop which I have shown two types over here. The 1 on the left which is darker brown in colour is more towards the fresh cut without being press thin and dry compare to the whiter colour 1 on the right.


Recently I also spot another type of vacuum sealed packing of this Cordyceps Militaris from Fook Huat Chinese Medical Shop (福华). But I am not sure how it taste and look like compare to this type that I get from the Medical Shop in Chinatown. So do give this soup a try if you managed to find this herbs. It really add extra flavour and fragrance to the soup which make it taste great.

Longhouse Food Centre - Thomson

LongHouse located at the busy street of Upper Thomson Road where it is very hard to find a park lot during lunch/dinner peak hours. Recently, they have an open air car park that one street before the food centre which can accommodate more parking spaces for foodies to enjoy their favourite food.

There are about more than 10 stalls in the Longhouse food center, ranging from Chinese, Korean, Malay and etc. Most of the people are attracted to the famous Bugis Chicken Rice, Char Kway Teow and Pisang Goreng. And you can hardly find a place during the lunch crowd timing.

There are too many choices of food to be choose from. So after much discussion, we settle for these few dishes below. While ordering the Fried Oyster Omelette - 蚝煎 and Char Kway Teow, Mum happen to spot one of her friend helping around at the stall. In this case, we have extra ingredients in our orders :p Look at the fat and juicy oysters that are being wrapped in layers of omelette, isn't this taste great despite of all the fats content :) We all love this dish ad it is not as oily compare to some other stalls and the omelette is nicely done with a golden and crispy texture.

The Char Kway Teow is of average standard, as we find that it is still lack of something which brings out that special flavour which compare to some of those famous Char Kway Teow stalls around Singapore. From the photo, you can see that the rice noodles is being fried together with some dark sauce, with the adding of beansprouts, spring onion, egg and some cockles. While some of other stalls, might have prawns, fish cakes, choy sum or Chinese sausage and etc....

Apart from the oily stuffs, we also ordered one pot of the double-boiled soup which is the "Du Zhong Ji Tang - 杜仲炖鸡汤" because I was attracted by the stunning soup photos on the menu. But to our disappointment, this soup does not taste as what we expected before of the ingredients they add. Mum and I both feel that the soup taste kind of odd with the adding of pepper and Chinese parsley. As these two ingredients actually mask up the herbal taste of the soup.

Lastly, after a nice and comfort meal. We decided to order a few of these to settle our sweet tooth. Since this is my favourite snacks/finger food, I cannot resists the temperation and buy more than half a dozen of different items on the shell. As you can see, the outer skin is so nicely fried with a golden and crispy layer which makes you crave for more after your first bite.

Astons Specialties @ East Coast

Astons has many branches located in different parts of Singapore range from Shopping Center to neighbourhood coffee shops. So I am sure no matter which area you are from, there is always a Astons outlet near you. Today we are visiting the outlet at East Coast Road which is opposite Katong Mall after hearing a lot of good comments from friends, especially on their Wagyu Beef Set.

The atmosphere of the restaurant is great with it's furnishing and warm and prompt services. First to be served is their Cream of Mushroom soup which is very good. The soup itself is very thick and creamy which is towards our liking.

From a quick glance on this post, you can see that we have actually ordered 3 different "Beef" set which are "Porterhouse Cut", "Prime Ribeye" and their famous Grade 6 "Wagyu Beef". This Porterhouse Cut served with Potato Salad and Garden Veggie which gives it a brighten up colour contract from the cut.

Medium Well cooked Prime Ribeye comes with Onion Rings and Pasta Salad. The beef is nicely grill and it is still soft and juicy when cut through. This is sure worth the price of S$16.50 including two side dishes.

Finally comes the STAR of tonight dishes which is their Grade 6 - Wagyu Beef. This slice of 200g beef cost S$38.90 with 2 side dishes of your choice and a drink. It is kind of high for such a pricing to enjoy a small piece of beef but if the chef has done it well, I am sure it will worth it price for that.

Finally here is my Salmon Spaghetti which I was kind of disappointed with it. This seems to be like a chunk of fish meat coated with tomato sauce placed on top of the cooked spaghetti. Overall it is kind of an affordable restaurant for Western food as there is no extra GST or 10% service charge in the total bill as in you only pay for the price that you see from the ordering menu.

Hari Raya Delights

Today is Hari Raya Puasa holiday which is an important Muslim festivals in Singapore. Hari Raya is Malay for "Grand day of rejoicing". It is also known to be a celebratory occasion following a month of fasting. This year we are so lucky to have a new Malay neighbour shifting into our area who gave us so many of their homemade delicacy.

These are their homemade cookies which is so pretty at sight and delicious on taste. Rey loves these star cornflake and chocolate cornflake cups while I fancy more on the pineapple tarts and almond cookies.

This is Sambal Petai with Tempeh is one of the interesting dish that I have not try before. It consists of prawn, petail, tempeh, chicken liver and a lot of chilli spices. It is a very tasty and appetising dish and I love the combination of add the chicken liver in it.

Ayam Masak Merah (Spicy Tomato Chicken) is similar to the Italian famous dish Chicken Cacciatore except for it spicy hotness. The chicken pieces are pan-fried to a golden brown then simmered with the spicy tomato sauce. It is a popular Malay dish which is usually eaten with nasi tomato (tomato rice).

Look at this delicious and tender looking Mutton Rendang. It goes really well with their homemade ketupat (rice cake wrapped in coconut leaf) which is soft and fragrance. We give their Mutton Rendang 8/10 as the meat is really tender and the gravy is excellent with the combination of spices. Most important fact is you won't find that strong "Mutton" smell on this dish.......

Dairy Farm Nature Park

Recently there is a new hiking area called Dairy Farm Nature Park which is opened next to the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve. This new discovery make it easier for older walkers and young children to pause and check out the nature beauty, butterflies, birds and plants.

Unlike the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, which has many uphill trails along the way, Dairy Farm Nature Park has flatter trails which is more relax and enjoyable for hikers. There are two carparks within the park where Carpark B near Bukit Timah Express way, has the nearer access (about 15 minutes walk) to the Wallace Education Center.

Along the walk to the Wallace Education Center, you can enjoy the beauty of the nature by looking at these beautiful flowers, plants and trees. Kids will sure to enjoy the walk as they will find many interesting insects such as butterflies, dragonflies, damselflies, beetles and etc.

Outside the Education center, you will find interesting road sign and interesting creatures. We did spot some lizard and monkeys on that day. There is also a Wallace Trail near the Education Center which is about 1Km. This trail cuts through secondary forest and you will find fruit trees such as Durian and Rambutan also you might able to spot some bracket fungi and beetles.

Wallace Education Centre is a former milking shed that has been restored into an information centre that traces the history of the area. They also have interactive information kiosk that has pictures of the biodiversity found in the area.

About 3 minutes away away from the Education Center, you will see a one-storey abandoned old fashioned English garden house which is believed to have been built in the 1920s. Outside the house, you will find a small garden planted with ixora, lantanas and hibiscus which makes it a very popular photo shot area.

After back to Carpark B from the Wallace Education Center, we move on to Carpark A where we start another 30 minutes walk to the Singapore Quarry Trail. As you can see, along the walk we discovered a lot of interesting view, flowers and Rey also spot some Banana Trees.

At the entrance of the Singapore Quarry, there are a lot of Orchid flower planted on the left side of the gate which add extra beauty to the area. This former quarry has been transformed into a wetland where they is a viewing deck with a sheltered area.

Releasing of fish or other animals into the wetland is prohibited as it will disrupt the eco-system. We are also not allow to capture any insects such as butterflies or dragonflies or bird. This place is indeed full of nature peace and you can see that it's such a beautiful place to indulge in. So do try to squeeze out some of your time from your busy schedule and take a walk along these trail to enjoy the beauty of the Nature Park.

Sakae @ North Point

This evening we are having our weekend dinner at newly renovated Sakae Sushi @ Northpoint Shopping Mall. Before the new location shifted to the newly renovated building, Sakae used to have their branch located at the Basement 2 of the old building.

First we ordered this Ungai and Tempura Bento which comes with assorted tempura set such as prawn, capsicum and mushroom. Gorgeous amount of grilled Ungai sandwich between slices of Tamago. This set also comes with rice and miso soup which is at a reasonable price of S$15++

Out of the set, I love the crabmeat Chawanmushi which is very smooth and fragrance in taste. The texture of the steam egg is very delicate and it really will melts in your mouth with that Opps feeling!!!

As usual every Sakae visit you will see us ordering this Tamago Sushi which is one of Rey's favourite and a must order.

Temaki is one of my mum's favourite to order list when she comes to Sakae. Like before, today we ordered Mango Avocado and Salmon Mango. But to our disappointment, today's temaki is not up to the usual standard as the nori sheet is rather soft and moist compare to the usual crunch and crispy texture.

Due to the hot weather, we also grab a plate of this green tea Cha Soba which is a type of thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour and also with the added ingredient of fresh Green Tea leaves.

Sunshine Maki is one of my favourite because I simply love the combination of Mango and Prawn. The extra fish roe topping do add on extra flavour to each individual piece of cut out. Luckily, today the mango slices used is still fresh and vibrant in colour and most important is it's freshness and sweetness that enhance the overall flavour of this dish.

Salmon Kammage is my mum's favourite dish which she can eat at least 2 plates on the go. This seems to be one of their popular dish which is always out of stock if you dine in late in the afternoon or evening.

Fried Doufu which is crispy on the outer skin but soft and juicy in the inside. I love the sauce that is come with the fried doufu that makes this plain dish extra tasty.

Before we ends our meal for tonight's dinner, I grab a plate of the Salmon Nigiri which is appears to be very fresh and tender to me. And just as I expected, the taste and texture of the salmon slice is great :)

Share an interesting shot with you. Rey spot these cute little fish roes on top of the Sunshine Maki and he insisted that I must take some shots on them. He was fascinated with these fish roes because of a recent Japanese Animated Movie called "Ponyo On The Cliff By The Sea". He said that these little fish roes is Ponyo because if you look carefully at the darker orange image it seems to be like a little paw prints.