Pasta Experimenta

As the famous saying goes Many roads lead to Rome – this is true for cooking. My mom had a natural gift in the kitchen and she never used recipes from books. She memorized some recipes inherited from her mom and invented some of her own while I learned cooking by following recipes from books or other sources.

When I started cooking, I did not dare to improvise. I simply followed a recipe to the letter, no substitutions no improvements. I started with my mom’s old recipe of chicken barbeque coz it was familiar, has simple list of ingredients and easy cooking method. And it worked! This first success story encouraged me to be more experimental.

In the mean time I keep doing my desk research. It's not just on cooking but also on the details of the ingredients, methods, cooking tips from different references plus my private cooking course with famous Chefs on TV.

After watching one of Rachel Ray’s 30 Minutes cooking on TV, I was inspired to try cooking pasta. I bought one of Periplus Mini Cookbooks named Classic Essential Pasta. From this book plus the results of my research, I learned some important Pasta Secrets.

There are a huge number of pasta varieties and shapes, and each has a specific type of sauce as its partner. Pasta may be dried or fresh, and dried pasta made in Italy is considered to be the best. Spaghetti and macaroni are perhaps the most widely available pasta shapes but there are hundreds of others including numerous flat sheets, noodles and small shapes. Most shapes can be obtained in a variety of sizes and many are sold with both smooth and ribbed surfaces. Common sense will tell you that some shapes are suited to particular purposes. To make a dish which pasta is layered with a sauce, large flat shapes such as lasagna are an obvious choice. However, even when recipes associate particular shapes with certain sauces, it is still up to you whether or not to follow the convention.

My Pasta Experimenta

To start my pasta experiment, I follow recipes in Classic Essential Pasta as my guide. Spaghetti Bolognese was my first trial. Looking at the list of the ingredients for the sauce (parsley, olive oil, garlic, onion, carrot, celery stick, mince beef, beef stock, red wines, canned crushed tomatoes, sugar, and parmesan cheese), I realized that this time I could not follow the recipe to the letter. My family do not like carrots, celery stick and parsley so I skipped them. I did not have canned tomatoes in stock so I used fresh ones. I started to improvise the recipes. I believe that recipes are only a guide, a skeletal framework to be fleshed out according to your nature and desire.

After some trials with different versions of Spaghetti Bolognese, I must confess that as Queen of Convenience, I ended up using the ready-to-use spaghetti sauce which sold in a glass jar. There are many brands of spaghetti sauce in the market and I had to try several different brands to come to a conclusion which brand gives the best mix to my spaghetti Bolognese customized recipe.

One day I went to a café with my youngest daughter and we saw an intriguing dish on the Menu: Spaghetti Tuna Cabe Rawit literally means Spaghetti Tuna Bird’s Eye Chili. This must be a fusion type of spaghetti. As chili lovers, we definitely loved to try this so we ordered. It turned out to be a delicious spaghetti for our Indonesian taste-bud. I ate the spaghetti slowly trying to identify what ingredients they used. Of course there were tuna and chili but I also could feel the taste of button mushroom, garlic, salt & pepper.

The next day, I tried out the Spaghetti Tuna using my own imagination recipe. It turned out to be more delicious than the one I ate in the café. My daughter confirmed this too and the secret was because it was cooked with LOVE . I name this recipe Spaghetti Tuna Hot Fusion.

SPAGHETTI TUNA HOT FUSION

Ingredients
3 cloves of garlic, peeled & chopped
3 bird’s eye chilies (the red ones)
100 gram button mushroom, sliced finely including the stem
100 gram of canned tuna flakes in water, drained the water
1-2 teaspoon lime juice
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
250 gram dried spaghetti
Pinch of salt and pepper
Coriander leaves and grated parmesan cheese

Method
To cook perfect pasta, I follow the Secret of Cooking Pasta which I learned from the book Classic & Essential Pasta by Periplus Mini Cookbooks as follows:

Put the spaghetti in a very large pot.
Allow at least 2 liters of water for every 250gram of spaghetti – this gives plenty of room for the pasta to move and expand and prevents the pasta clumping together. Bring the water to a rapid boil (cover the pot with a lid to make it come to a boil faster) then add the spaghetti.
Some people like to add a little oil to the pot, but plenty of water will prevent the pasta sticking.
Add salt if you like.
Give it a quick stir to distribute it evenly through the water and bring back to the boil.
You can use the times given on the pack as a guide but the only way to really know if the pasta is ready is to taste it. Lift a small piece of spaghetti from the pot, cool it slightly, then bite. The spaghetti should be just tender, with no raw taste but certainly not soft and gluggy. This is known as ‘al dente’ the correct way to serve pasta.
Then drain the cooked spaghetti in a colander.

Carefully wipe the mushroom with a damp paper towel to remove any grit. Slice the whole mushroom finely including the stem
Heat the EVOO in a heavy-based frying pan.
Cook the garlic and chilies over medium heat, stirring occasionally until it is fragrant
Add the tuna flakes which have been drained from the water, then add the mushroom and stir occasionally for about 6 minutes
Add the lime juice to the pan
Add the cooked spaghetti and stir to mix well with the other ingredients for about 5 minutes
Season to taste with salt and pepper

Serve immediately in warm pasta serving dish and garnish with fresh coriander leaves and parmesan cheese (if liked).

Cooking With Love

When my children were still very young, I did not do regular cooking. For everyday meal, it was either the maids cooked or we ordered food from catering company. But from time to time I cooked them simple dishes like fried noodle or omelet for a change.

Whenever I cooked, my children ate the meal enthusiastically and they seemed to enjoy the food so much. One day, my oldest daughter while enjoying the meal I cooked, asked: ‘Mom, why the meal you cooked taste much better than the meal cooked by the maids or caterers? Not prepared by such question, I answered her lightly: ‘because mine is cooked with love’. As a young kid she truly believed whatever I said. She then told her friends proudly that her mom’s cooking is cooked with love (bless her!)

Back to my cooking, my study expanded to watching cooking programs on TV by famous Chefs such as Anthony Bourdain, Kylie Kwong, Jamie Oliver, Bob Blumer (Surreal Gourmet), Nigela Lawson, Bobby Chinn, Curtis Stone (Surfing the Menu, Take Home Chef), Iain Hewitson (Never Trust a Skinny Cook) etc.

Whenever I watch a cooking program on TV, I always have a pen & notebook handy to write down tips from the chefs, and often I write down the recipes and how they cook them in details. I have a collection of cooking notes and stick them on my cooking books.

I watch each cooking program with much interest because all those chefs are so gifted. They make cooking looks like an easy task. One of my favorite Chefs is Bob Blumer.

What I like about Bob Blumer is he always gives catchy names to the dishes. One of my favorite recipes I learned from him on Surreal Gourmet is Love Me Tenderloin (this romantic meal was cooked by Bob Blumer for a couple on their 50th anniversary assisted by the couple’s daughter in the Toaster-mobile). This special dish symbolizes ever-lasting love.

This steak is easy to make, delicious and has a catchy name. I have tried this recipe and it tastes great, I am sure you’re going to love it too. Cook it with LOVE and it will taste even more delicious.

LOVE ME TENDER LOIN

Main ingredients (for 1 portion)
• 1 sweet potato cut into 4 wedges, steamed
• 1 small red cabbage around 100 gram, cut into 4 wedges
• 1 slice of 250 gram tender-loin beef

Ingredients to marinate the steak
• 1 teaspoons of chili powder
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• ½ teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

Marinate the steak
• Mix the chili powder, sugar, salt and pepper in a mortar, grind and pestle finely. Rub both sides of the steak with the mixed ingredients (dry marinade) and put in refrigerator for one hour.
• Before cooking, rub a little olive oil on both sides of the steak to keep it from drying up also to promote even searing and enhance the flavor.

Cooking the steak: direct grilling (see Notes and Tips)
• Place the steak on the heated grill, when one side has been seared (about 1 minute) turn the steak and sear the second side.
• Continue cooking to the required time for the desired degree of doneness (medium rare: around 8-10 minutes; medium 10-12 minutes and well-done 12-15 minutes).

Ingredients to season the red cabbage
• 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoons of balsamic vinegar (*)
• Salt & pepper
• Mix the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper in a bowl and stir lightly


(*) Red cabbage will normally turn blue when cooked. To retain the red color it is necessary to add vinegar or acidic fruit to it.

Grill the potato and cabbage: indirect grilling (see Notes and Tips)
• Brush the steamed sweet potato with olive oil and grill
• Coat the red cabbage with the mix-seasoning using a brush to distribute evenly and grill until cooked through

Place the cooked steak, sweet potato and red cabbage on a serving plate and serve immediately. Deliciously goes with Cabernet Sauvignon Red Wine.

Notes and Tips
• Grilling is cooking on a metal grid positioned directly over a glowing heat source: the meat is thrown on to the preheated grid and sears almost instantly on the hot metal.
• A general rule-of-thumb is that anything taking a short period of time should be grilled directly and anything taking longer should be grilled indirectly
• Direct grilling refers to the method whereby you cook directly over hot coals
• Indirect grilling is not true grilling, it's really more like oven roasting, but done outdoors in a grill.

Indonesia, the Tropical Islands of Spice and Rice

Being a researcher as my profession has led me to conduct desk research for my new-found cooking hobby. I browsed the internet, read many books and interviewed some people trying to find out all about cooking. And as Indonesian, of course I started my research on my home country cooking.

Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago, consist of more than 17,000 tropical islands ranging from the world’s largest to mere tiny coral atolls stretching some 8000 kilometers from the northwestern tip of Sumatra to the southeastern of Papua. Indonesia is a home to some 235 million people and it’s hard to imagine a more appropriate motto for this nation than Bhineka Tunggal Ika which means Unity in Diversity.

A typical Indonesian meal can be described as simple mound of rice accompanied by several savory side dishes of veggie, fish or meat or chicken dish with a chili-hot condiment (sambal) on the side and crispy wafers (kerupuk) and fried shallots sprinkled on top to provide a crunchy contrast (this description is valid mainly for Sumatra, Java & Bali, the most populated islands). In other islands of the archipelago we can discover the diversity of the Indonesia’s native cuisines.

Preparing Indonesian food does not require a complex arrays of ingredients or a number of utensils needed as I used to think. First and foremost you need a tool to grind or crush the seasonings (bumbu). I use a saucer-shaped mortar and a pestle both made of volcanic stones. You can also use food processor, blender or spice grinder as the easier way to prepare the basic spice paste.

Also important is a chopping board and a heavy non-stick wok that won’t tip over easily. To partner the wok, I use a wooden spatula and a perforated ladle for lifting up deep fried food are useful.

I learned from some cooking books that it is not advisable to use aluminum or cast iron saucepan for cooking Indonesian food. Many of our recipes contain acidic ingredients such as tamarind or lime juice, or coconut milk and using aluminum or cast-iron will result in discolored sauce or can cause a chemical reaction. Choose either stainless steel, glass or enamel saucepan.

Rice, the soul of the Indonesian Life

For Indonesian, rice is more than just a staple food. Even when we have eaten Big Mac or a bowl of noodle soup, for many Indonesians including me, it feels like we have not eaten yet if we have not eaten rice.

One of Indonesia’s most popular dishes is fried rice (Nasi Goreng). It is prepared in countless different ways and is eaten morning, noon and night. During my stay at my sister’s house in Bern (Switzerland), she cooked me the classic Nasi Goreng from my mom’s recipe. This classic version is accompanied by sunny side-up fried egg (telor mata sapi) and deep-fried shrimp crackers (kerupuk udang). Any sort of left-over meat or shrimp or chicken may be added but the source of the true flavor of Indonesia comes from the use of chilies and roasted shrimp-paste (terasi).

INDONESIAN CLASSIC FRIED RICE (NASI GORENG)

Ingredients
• 500 gram cold cooked rice or leftover rice
• 3 table spoon oil
• 2 eggs
• 4 shallots, peeled and sliced
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled & sliced
• 2 - 4 red chilies, chopped
• 2 teaspoons dried shrimp paste, roasted
• 200 g chicken meat or any other left-over meat, diced
• 200 g thinly sliced cabbage
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon Indonesian sweet soy sauce (kecap manis)
• Sliced cucumber & tomato to garnish

Method
• Flake the cold rice with a fork or fingers to separate the grains. Set aside
• Grease the non stick skillet with vegetable oil and fry the egg. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• Pound the shallots, garlic, chilies and roasted shrimp-paste in a mortar and pestle into a paste.
• Heat the remaining oil in the wok over medium heat and stir fry the spice-paste 1-2 minutes or until fragrant.
• Add the chicken dice until almost cooked around 2 minutes, add the cabbage and continue to stir fry until the cabbage is almost wilted around 2 minutes
• Add the rice, salt and Indonesian sweet soy sauce (kecap manis) and stir fry briskly until all the ingredients mixed well and heated through, about 2 minutes.
• Remove from the heat.
• Transfer the fried rice to serving dish and top with fried egg and if liked garnish with cucumber and chili slices.

Notes and Tips

It is important to use cold cooked rice (leftover rice of yesterday which is kept in refrigerator) since freshly cooked rice is too soft and will absorb the oil. It’s good to use long-grain rice (e.g. basmati rice) because it remains separate when cooked correctly.

This Is The Beginning...

I don’t know why I start this blog. I just feel an urge to write something about my journey into the joy of cooking.

It started in early 2005, after I came home from visiting my sister in Switzerland. She was the one who inspired me to cook, because she cooked for me everyday during my stay in Bern, and her cooking reminded me of my mom’s. My mom was an excellent cook. It’s a shame I never had the desire to learn how to cook when my mom was still alive.

At the time, I only knew one recipe that my mom taught me. It was “Bumbu Rujak Chicken Barbecue”, a kind of spicy barbecue chicken dish. I remember when I was in my early twenties and had just gotten married, I cooked the dish for my husband and he loved it and told me that it was really good. Being in my twenties, young and impressionable, after getting that one compliment I kept cooking him the same dish for five days in a row. Bless his heart, it took him 5 days before he turned to me and said, “Sweetheart, as much as I loved your chicken, but after eating the same dish for 5 days in a row, it kind of lost its appeal on me.”

The man had a point there, but still, it discouraged me a bit from cooking and I never cooked anymore because I felt that I wasn’t the cooking type of person, and that was the reason why I never bothered to learn any of my mom’s other recipes.

But coming back from Switzerland, it felt like I was bitten by ‘cooking bug’. Suddenly, I have a burning desire in my heart to cook. So I started.

I bought some cooking books, the pocket series from Periplus Mini Cookbooks because they were cheap (around $ 2 per book). I was determined to learn how to cook, and soon I discovered my passion.

I began by cooking the “Bumbu Rujak Chicken” for my children (only this time I made sure that I didn’t cook it five days in a row) . Now this is important: never cook the same thing over and over again) and just like my husband did a few decades prior, my children loved it as well.

Thus started the beginning of my journey into the “joy of cooking”. I don’t know if you are just starting or if you’re already a pro, but in any case, I thought I’d share with you the recipe that started it all. Enjoy!

BUMBU RUJAK CHICKEN BARBECUE

Bumbu Rujak Chicken is traditionally roasted in a special clay oven but in modern kitchen the closest and easiest way to imitate this is to cook it under electric or gas grill.

Main Ingredients
• 2 whole chicken legs
• 1 whole chicken breast

Ingredients to marinate the chicken
• 5 fresh red chili
• 1-2 table spoon of shrimp paste (belacan)
• 1 table spoon of brown sugar
• 300 ml coconut milk

Method
• Cut each chicken leg into 2 pieces (separate the thigh and drum stick)
• Cut the chicken breast into 2 pieces
• Make a few diagonal cuts on the thicker parts to allow the marinade to penetrate

To prepare the marinade:
• Cut the fresh chili into small cuts. Pound the chili, shrimp paste and brown sugar in a mortar and pestle or grate finely.
• Coat the chicken pieces with this mixture, ensuring that they are well covered with the marinade.
• Transfer the chicken coated with the marinade into a pan. Pour in the coconut milk.
• Cook on low heat stove until the chicken pieces are tender and the sauce thickened.
• Pre heat the grill to medium heat. Arrange the chicken on a wire rack, leaving a little space in between each piece and grill fairly close to the source of heat. Cook for 10 minutes on each side or until the chicken is well browned and cooked through.
• Serve Hot with steamed Rice

Notes and Tips
Test the chicken by inserting a skewer or tip of knife into the thigh - the juices should not be pink or tinged with blood.