The prawns don’t need any seasoning because we’re stuffing them with garlic, mayo and cheese. This prawns recipe would work really well with halved crayfish too. Be careful not to overcook these so they remain sweet and tender. Ready for a quick seafood fix? Here you go!

For many who ask, I’m using Philips XXL Airfryer. Read my review here and don’t miss my other airfryer recipes.

The post Airfried Cheese Grilled Garlic Prawns appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.

You can choose to steam or airfry the barramundi. I airfried it at 180C for 8 minutes and the flesh was so tender and moist. Steaming takes about 7 minutes on high heat as you’re not steaming a whole fish (I used local barramundi fillets from Sasha’s Fine Foods). Top it with chai poh (preserved radish – scroll down to see the brand I use) and a separate soy sauce mixture and dinner or a quick lunch is ready!

About the Barramundi

The local barramundi fillets I used were from Sasha’s Fine Foods. The flesh is firm with large, white moist flakes with a sweet and buttery flavour which I really love. The best part is they are caught locally at a sustainable hormone and antibiotic-free aquafarm, Singapore Aquaculture Technologies (SAT) – where water quality is monitored and water is naturally filtered, treated and oxygenated, ensuring well-defined conditions for stress-free growth.

National Day Promo! + use code ‘Budgetpantry10’ for 10% off

In line with National Day, Sasha’s Fine Foods is having a 10% off on local products from 5-12 August 2019! See here for the list. You can still use my code ‘Budgetpantry10’ for additional purchases on their website. Get your orders in!

Read about Sasha’s Fine Foods in my earlier blog post. I really love their no antibiotics, no hormones, sustainable produce!

About the preserved radish (chai poh)

Use sweet chai poh, not the salty type. This is the brand I got from Sheng Siong and I see that it is also available on Redmart:

And now for the recipe…

The post Quick 15-minute Chai Poh Barramundi (Asian Sea Bass with Preserved Radish) 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.

Instead of going out and spending money on cafes, I decided to stay home and make some cafe food today!

The fact is also that my fridge finally went ‘kapowwww’ yesterday and we have to quickly clear everything before they go bad. Luckily it decided to die on Saturday and not Sunday when I’d have been done with my marketing for the week!

But ok la, it die also good (它死了也好), that means we can finally get a newww fridge! We went out to get one with a bottom freezer so that it is easier for Ah-mm and 88 to get things, i.e., no need to bend to reach the vegetable compartment all the way at the bottom. I’m quite looking forward to our new fridge. it’s gonna be delivered on Tuesday!

So thinking of the ingredients I have in the fridge, which is now actually a cupboard.. I have bacon, eggs, the orange capsicum that I was soooo fascinated with on Friday that I had to bring two home, a yellow capsicum (this one just 客串 cos it looked bright and fresh next to its orange cousin), and some spring onions. Oh, I also stole 2 slices of bread from 88. I decided to make something pretty with these!

Bacon and egg cups baked in a muffin tray! You can also airfry these, but you only only AF 2-3 at a go and in those aluminum cups. I wanted to save time and money so I used my muffin tray. I realised that although these came out nice from the oven, it was lacking.. a sizzle. So what do I do? Like any Airfryer fan, I scooped each one out when done and airfried them for another 3-5 minutes so that the bacon got even further crisped up. If you like your eggs more runny, you can decrease the oven baking time.

These were really easy to make. You could also use blanched spinach or sliced mushrooms in place of capsicums, and add shredded cheese before cracking the egg! Step by step recipe with pictures right below!

The post Bacon & Eggs Muffin Cups (Airfry option) appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.

I was on the way home yesterday thinking of what to cook for dinner. I wanted to prepare something simple, one-dish, something which is not saba/ salmon (we’ve been having fish almost daily as they’re easy to prepare in the airfryer!), and something new.

I knew I wanted noodles, but what kind? What noodles have I not cooked before for the blog which is relatively easy to prepare? Prawn noodles are out of the question because I didn’t have time to prepare prawn stock.. and I’ve featured Fishball Kway Teow Soup and Bak Chor Mee before.. the next easiest dish seems to be.. Ban Mian?

p/s- You don’t have to make your own noodles la, I used store-bought noodles for this dish!

The broth was phenomenal! Subtly sweet and incredibly infused with the myriad of ingredients, I’d say this is the best ban mian I’ve had in a long time, since Qiu Lian ban mian’s standards dropped years ago. This isn’t difficult to make, why not surprise your family today? Like what Jason said, this ban mian is “sibeh 好吃啊!” LOL!

(edit: 6 Oct 2014- he is obviously very happy that I made this again yesterday!)

The post Hawker Staple: Prawn Ban Mian (Handmade Noodle Soup) appeared first on Budgetpantry | Singapore Mummy Blog on Food, Recipe & Baby.