Lotus root is one of my favourite food because I identify with it. What? Yeah. Lotus root looks tough on the outside but when you cook them, they release such delicate flavours that makes you wonder if they’re the same entity as the “before cooking” version.

I usually use lotus roots in soups or a quick stir-fry, but I also like to make lotus root chips in my Philips Airfryer. Slice them up real thin and spray on some cooking oil. They become the most amazing snack in 15 minutes. Today I’m going to make burgers out of them. I got the idea of a lotus root burger from Nami, and slightly changed the recipe to include chopped prawns and water chestnuts and I also omitted the sauce. I could eat 20 of these because they’re so good, so delicately crispy and light, with the sweetness of pork, prawns and water chestnuts in every bite.

You can make a sauce to go along with these. Combine 80ml water with 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 1 tablespoon sake, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 tablespoon mirin and cook til simmering. Add cornstarch solution (half tablespoon corn starch with 1 tablespoon water, mixed) and stir to combine. This will yield a sweet sauce that you can pour over the burgers. I omitted this step because I just felt like eating these with chilli sauce and ketchup, like finger food. They’re quite darn good!

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I experience major cognitive dissonance when it comes to pork chops. One part of my brain (the health freak part) tells me I should cook with pork loin chops, the lean meat that hardly contains any fat, and the other part (the understanding, indulgent twin) tells me I should always make pork chops with pork shoulder butt.

I don’t particularly like the texture of pork loin because those that I’ve had outside tend to be a little dry as the meat is very lean. Some people love the texture though, but not me.. I love a juicy, succulent  piece of pork chop with some fat.. which the seasoning caramelises together with to form a savoury, sticky sauce that coats the meat perfectly. There isn’t that much fat in reality.. it is ok to have some fatty meat (it’s not that bad anyway) as long as you watch portion size. Everyone should make pork chops with pork shoulder!

I prepared this dish two ways- oven baked the first time as I was cooking a few pieces together, and airfried the next day for a single serving. Both were lip-smackingly tasty and tender. The airfryer version didn’t have much gravy because I used the grill pan, but it was still very juicy. Because my table-top oven is small, I always cover chicken or pork with foil before baking so that the meats don’t burn or dry up easily. To reduce the stock which I cook the meats in, remove the foil for the last 10 minutes and spray some cooking oil on top to get the glaze or crusty finish. The meats always turn out moist this way.

The picture above is making me drool.. I can even see the marbling of the meat! (click on the pic to enlarge it!)

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A hearty stew is usually made up of a few core ingredients- potatoes, onions, a type of meat (beef and pork are common and impart great flavour) and (surprise!) celery. I know how most of you feel towards celery. Trust me, no one knows celery better. In a desperate attempt to lose weight (the wrong way) more than ten years ago, I survived on ONE stalk of raw celery per day. I hated celery. I lost a lot of weight (so would anyone, on the crazy diet) and lowered my blood pressure to a healthy range (it was 160/100 at my peak- very scary) and still hated celery. But I knew it was, and still is, good for me. What I want you to know, though, is that cooked celery tastes NOTHING like its raw form. It tastes earthy and potato-ey if cooked in a stew, and is essential to making a great stew. It is also used in chicken pie fillings.

Please do not leave out the celery if you decide to cook this dish. Please do not cook this dish if you intend to leave out the celery- it will not do this stew justice.

The version I’ve done above is a cross between a soup and stew because today I decided to serve this with rice instead of bread. This was after about 1.5 hours of slow cooking on a lowered flame. The stew gets thicker as it simmers. After two hours of slow stove-top cooking, this is what you’ll get:

A beautiful comforting soup, great with some warm crusty bread roll.

Makes 4 servings

What I used:

500g pork shoulder, chopped into 2-cm pieces (use beef if whoever you’re cooking for takes beef)
1 large onion, wedged
5 cloves garlic, crushed
1 litre chicken stock (use beef stock if whoever you’re cooking for takes beef)
1 small Beijing cabbage, chopped
2 potatoes, chopped into chunks
2 carrots, chopped into chunks
1 tomato, wedged
4 stalks celery (leaves and white stems removed), chopped to 1-cm pieces
1 can mixed beans (kidney beans, chick peas etc, optional)
5 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp oyster sauce
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp corn flour

1. Marinate pork pieces in some oyster sauce, soy sauce and corn flour for 15 minutes.
2. Heat up the oil in a pot, brown meat on both sides then set aside.
3. In the same pot, fry the onions til slightly soft, then add the garlic. Fry for 1-2 minutes then add the celery.
4. Fry for 5 minutes. Add stock if too dry.
5. When the celery is softer, add the rest of the stock and return the meat to the pot. Scrape the sides of your pot with the stock to get all the goodness.
6. Add in the carrots, potatoes, tomato, cabbage and bring to boil. Lower flame and simmer for 1 hour.
7. Stir in tomato ketchup and oyster sauce. Continue to cook for 30 minutes or til consistency is to your liking.

How much I spent:

$2.35 for pork
$1.20 for Beijing Cabbage
$0.60 for potatoes
$0.40 for carrots
$0.30 for tomato
$0.40 for celery
Everything else from my pantry

Total cost per serving: $1.32

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Because this is so good, I recommend that you make a batch of this in a large pot. Cover leftovers and refrigerate.. heat it up for dinner the next day. You can also freeze leftovers in an airtight ziplock bag (keeps for 2 weeks if frozen properly) and reheat when you feel lonely.

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Ok, I’ll admit it- I cheated on this dish by using Ayam Brand Red Curry Paste. It was too easy to be true! The picture above sucks though- there’s actually more curry gravy and the pork don’t look so pale in real life. HA.HA. Ok, I promise to take photos of my cooking using my super awesome Panasonic Lumix TZ-7 digital camera instead of my iPhone 5 (have you heard the story of me in a coach in Europe, zooming in to a household window ON THE HILL on the way to Switzerland, using this camera? ok, the recap is just another excuse for me to miss Europe but more on that later).

Buy this thing:

Serves 4

What I used:

250g lean pork
Half packet Ayam Brand TRIM Coconut Milk (100ml)
3/4 bottle Ayam Brand Red Curry Paste
150ml water
1 potato
1 tsp olive oil
Half an onion, sliced
1 tsp belachan (optional)

1. Fry onion in olive oil til fragrant, about 1-2 mins.
2. Add pork and cook for 2 mins, then add curry paste and potatoes.
3. Cook on high heat for 3 mins til fragrant.
4. Add coconut milk and water.
5. Cook til potatoes are soft and liquid is reduced and thick.
6. (optional) Add a teaspoon of belachan chilli.
6. Serve hot with rice.

How much I spent:

$2 for pork (I bought Pork Kee lean pork 2 packages for $7.95 from NTUC. Each package is vacuum divided into 2 so I’ve got 4 portions)
$1.30 for 3/4 bottle of curry paste (I got 2 bottles for $3.50)
$0.35 for coconut milk (2 x 200ml for $1.35. I used half a packet)
$0.30 for potato
Everything else from my pantry

Total cost per serving: $0.99

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Jason was full of (good) comments for the curry- he finished his entire bowl of rice, hardly surprising though- I wonder why I even brought it up *shrugs*. But really, the sauce was delightful and rich, and wonderfully tangy with the addition of belachan. The pork was tender and of very good quality even though it is frozen and not “fresh”. The cut is slightly thicker than shabu pork, not tough like some types of lean pork I’ve cooked with before. I’ll post a photo of the packaging when I cook Ginger Pork with Spring Onions next.

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