If you think being on a low carb diet means you’d never eat shepherd’s pie again, you couldn’t be more wrong! I can’t lie. I love potatoes. I love them in any form – baked plain, topped with sour cream & bacon, as french fries, in stir-fries, mashed, anything. But when carb counting, you can’t eat all the potatoes you want. Luckily there’s something else for us fatties: cauliflower.

Cauliflower is one of the most versatile vegetables. If you think it can only be used for boring stir-fries, you need to give this a try. Mashed cauliflower in place of creamy mashed potatoes for shepherd’s pie? Yes it is possible! 100g of cauliflower = 5g carbs as compared to 100g potatoes which has 18g. That’s almost four times as much carbs which can be spent on something else!

To make the cauliflower mash, all you need is a boiling pot of water and a food processor or hand blender. Boil cauliflower till fork-tender, drain, then mash till smooth and creamy. I love cauliflower as it is, but I find it great with some cream cheese mixed in. Some people like to add butter but I’m not a fan. Just a sprinkle of salt and some cream cheese is all I want in my mashed cauliflower. For the filling, I used minced chicken but you can use beef or lamb. One ingredient you shouldn’t miss out is Worcestershire sauce. It makes a huge difference to taste which makes you come back for more. And that’s ok, it’s low-carb!

And finally, top with some grated mozzarella cheese and pop it into the oven or airfryer. Enjoy your low carb shepherd’s pie!

The post Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.

I love shabu shabu style pork, and I don’t only eat them during Chinese New Year! Because of how thinly-sliced they are, the meat is always soft and tender. No tenderiser needed and very good for stir fry.

Because I had some potatoes to use up, I bought a tray of these pork collar shabu shabu slices to cook tonight’s dinner. The husband kept exclaiming, “Home-cooked taste!!” throughout the meal, it was hilarious. He loves oyster sauce pork and chicken with rice and one of his favourite ways to eat this is to scoop the thickened gravy over steaming hot rice. I suspect he can eat the rice with gravy alone! If you’re not a fan of thickened sauces and prefer a lighter dish, visit my recipe for Japanese Ginger Pork – Japanese cooking doesn’t use cornstarch to thicken the dishes.

Note: The gravy recipe is very versatile. You just need your tastebuds. If you prefer more gravy, add more water and adjust the seasonings by doing a taste test. If you have some Japanese Shogayaki Sauce, you can add approximately 1 tablespoon and omit the sugar and ginger.

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Quick post! I have been craving for this dish since forever and finally cooked it tonight. It is super easy to cook and everything is done in one pot, so washing up is a breeze. I thoroughly recommend this for weeknight dinners!

You should be familiar with the confinement dish 猪脚醋? This is similar except I used chicken thigh pieces instead and way less ginger. I say chicken goes really well with the gravy. I prefer it actually. I didn’t add hard boiled eggs but you totally could to make this dish even more complete.

I used Chan Kong Thye Black Sweet Rice Vinegar which is available in major supermarkets.

Too bad I can’t eat an entire pot of rice (fat issues blah), but this vinegary dish still satisfied and warmed my tummy on a rainy night. The husband prefers oyster sauce chicken aiya but what does he know. You should cook this, this week!

The post Black Sweet Vinegar Braised Chicken 鸡腿醋 appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.

I can’t believe it’s already the end of the year. 2015 seemed to have whooshed by in a flash! I had fun cooking and experimenting, although not as much as I’d like due to job demands and terrible lighting at dinner time :) I hope to bring us even more quick and simple recipes in the coming year!

I have posted about 100 recipes in the past year, and if you’re looking for a few to start with, here you go! My favourites of 2015, in order of preference:

1. Creamy Homestyle Chicken Stew, June 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/homestyle-chicken-stew/

This is a family recipe, passed down from my 80-year-old aunt. I’ve never seen anyone else cook chicken stew this way! Everything is from scratch and I don’t use canned soups or packaged creams. I ate this as a child and still love this today. My favourite way to cook this is on the stove top. This dish is perfect with rice and my #1 comfort food! Try it and you’ll know why!

2. Airfried Cod Fish with Crispy Skin, HK Style, January 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/airfried-cod-fish-with-crispy-skin/

I often cook this dish, or variations of this dish using different types of fish like sea bass and salmon. The best part is that it can be done easily in the airfryer. You don’t have to worry about over steaming it, nor do you have to care about skin that sticks to the pan (and messy splatters!) if you choose to fry in oil. I love how the rock sugar and boiling hot oil (that you ladle over at the end) really makes a difference to its flavour.

3. Mongolian Chicken, October 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/mongolian-chicken/

I seldom deep fry my food, but when I do, I make sure it’s worth it! And this is worth it! ‘Mongolian Chicken’ doesn’t seem to be available in Mongolia, just like how Singapore Noodles is non-existent here, but deep fried chicken pieces slathered in creamy, buttery gravy perfumed with evaporated milk and curry leaves is too good to pass up, no matter where this dish really is from.

4. Wok Fried Kam Heong Prawns, October 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/kam-heong-prawns/

One of my missions for 2016 is to make seafood-in-a-bag with kam heong sauce! Imagine crabs, prawns, lala, corn and carrots served Dancing Crab style but with kam heong sauce.. I think it’ll be a great match. Let’s see if it happens!

5. Salted Egg Sotong, March 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/salted-egg-sotong/

I did a few versions of salted egg sauce this year. This version is my favourite. I prefer not to steam the egg yolks first to get the sandy texture and more fragrance. The addition of stock also made a big difference to how this dish turned out. This recipe recorded the highest hits ever for the blog, with over 5000 unique views in a day!

6. Traditional Pumpkin Rice 南瓜饭, May 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/traditional-pumpkin-rice/

This is another of my go-to recipes for fuss-free dinners, especially when I don’t know what to cook! When you’re out of ideas, all you want is to throw everything into the rice-cooker and let it do its magic.

7. Airfried Cajun Salmon, December 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/airfried-cajun-salmon/

When cooking salmon, always remember not to overdo it! I’ve had my airfryer for 3 years – it’s the first generation Philips 9220 and it has served me well. The one thing I have cooked the most in my airfryer? Salmon. I will never pan fry salmon again with this fool proof recipe. Just wash, sprinkle on Cajun spices, and airfry for 7 minutes in a preheated 180C AF. This recipe is so simple, dinner is literally on the table in 10 minutes, including prep time!

8. Low carb lunch idea: Grilled Cauliflower Steaks, June 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/grilled-cauliflower-steaks/

One of the most beautiful dishes I have photographed.. I’m not a fan of cauliflower when it’s stir fried but when roasted, grilled or baked, cauliflower is totally transformed, emitting a delicious, intense, nutty flavour. So good!

9. Hakka Abacus Seeds for Noobs, December 2015
Recipe at: https://budgetpantry.com/hakka-abacus-seeds/

I had to include this because it was the most back breaking thing I have ever attempted. If you’re a noob at this like me, you’d like this recipe.

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So that’s my round-up for 2015! Thank you for sticking around, especially those who are with me on my Facebook Community – you have no idea how much your likes, shares and comments mean to me!

Love,
Chris

The post 2015 Budgetpantry’s recipe round-up! appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.

This is a popular dish you see at economical rice stalls. If you’re not familiar with ‘economical rice’, it is simply rice eaten with small portions of side dishes. You select 2-3 dishes to go with your rice and a meal of 1 meat and 2 vegetables typically cost $2.80 – $3.20. I guess they’re so named because it’s a cheap way to eat.

What’s your favourite combination at these ‘zhup cai png’ (literally translated as mixed vegetables rice) stalls? I almost always go for long beans with dried shrimps, brinjals and this sliced pork with garlic sprouts. And of course, must put curry gravy. I also like tomato egg, fried pork and fried meat balls. Super unhealthy sounding I know, but they’re da bomb. If I say ‘zhup cai png’ is luxury food, will you believe me? Yes, I indulge in one whole packet of zhup cai png with my favourite ingredients once in a while.

To tenderise the meat, I use a combination of baking soda and corn starch. The bouncy texture you get at Chinese restaurants or zi-char stalls is baking soda in action. You can skip this step, and I sometimes do, but lean meat is tough and it has an extremely low fat %. I don’t use baking soda if I’m cooking this dish with pork shoulder butt or pork collar shabu shabu. Be sure to rinse off all the baking soda before cooking to avoid a bitter aftertaste.

This dish isn’t life changing but so comforting. I could eat this every day!

The post 家常便饭/Easy Homecooking: Sliced Pork with Garlic Sprouts appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.