Sausages

Sausages and cold cuts are the simplest filling for sandwiches especially when you are not in the mood to do serious cooking.

Instead of just boiling or pan-frying the sausages and then just dumping them in bread, you can make a hearty sandwich by adding a few other ingredients to make it delicious and wholesome.

Some of you will say sausages are not a healthy ingredient. I agree but as long as do not make a habit of eating them every day, you should be alright. After all there are a lot of other unhealthy ingredients in our everyday diet.

As for cold cuts, these are practically cooked meat or sliced meat. You don’t have to cook them before eating.

I have created two recipes using CP sausages and cold cuts. They are easy to prepare and taste awesome. Can add on these recipes to your Ramadan menu.  

Wasabi Fettucine and Spiced Bologna Cold Cut

(For 3 to 4 persons)

240 gm Fettucine (boiled according to instruction on the packaging)

3 pieces of CP Spiced Bologna Cold Cut – cut into big squares

2 tsp wasabi paste (wasabi paste are normally eaten with Sushi)

1 tsp crushed black pepper

1 tbl white vinegar

8 pieces tiger prawns – devained and coated with a bit of salt

3 red chillies sliced

2 onions sliced

5 cm ginger julienned

Few stalks of coriander leaves chopped

3 tbl Olive oil

Salt

Preparation:

1.       Mix Spiced Bologna Cold Cuts with wasabi paste, black pepper and vinegar. Leave aside for about 15 to 20 minutes.

2.       Heat up olive oil in a wok, fry prawns till skin changes colour. Remove and put aside.

3.       In the same oil, fry onion, ginger and red chillies till onion becomes translucent.

4.       Add in marinated cold cuts and fry for 2 or 3 minutes.

5.       Add in the boiled pasta, chopped coriander and salt. Fry till all ingredients are well mixed. Do not over fry or else the pasta will be dry.

6.       Serve hot with fried prawns.

Oatmeal Bread Sandwich with Cheese Sausages

(For 2 persons)

1 loaf oatmeal bread (from Mustafa Centre Bakery)

1 tbl olive oil

2 pieces CP Cheese Sausages

1 onion sliced

4 pieces fresh button mushroom, washed and sliced

Salt

Mayonaise

1 Tomato sliced

Choice of green salad leaves

Preparation:

1.       Cut the loaf of bread vertically into half and heat up in the oven for a few minutes.

2.       Heat up olive oil in a pan and fry cheese sausages for just a few minutes. Do not over fry or else sausages will shrink and they become rubbery. Remove sausages from the pan and put aside.

3.       In the same pan, caramelise onion and mushroom. They should be brown in colour when done.  Add in a bit of salt.

4.       To assemble the sandwich, spread some mayonnaise onto the bread and top the bottom half with mixture of onion and mushroom.

5.       Place the sausages (cut open) on top of the onion and mushroom followed by sliced tomato and salad leaves.

6.       Cover with the top half of the bread and you have a scrumptious sandwich. 

Nandos

The first time I ate at Nando's was in Kuala Lumpur. The Afro-Portugis flame-grilled chicken was so good that I wished they have outlets in Singapore. A few years later my wish came true but unfortunately Nando's outlets in Singapore were not certified halal until just recently. A few days ago I had the opportunity to try out their Espetada Carnival, a newly created dish to add on to their Espetada selection.

The dish came in a very unique presentation - skewered 'balls' of Peri-Peri boneless chicken thighs hung from a metal stand. Really exotic.

Each skewer comprised five pieces of flame-grilled succulent chicken meat stuffed with a generous amount of feta cheese, garlic and parsley. The meat was full of flavour, combination of Peri-Peri marinate and saltiness of the feta cheese which melted and coated the chicken meat nicely.

Either you eat it just on its own or you can dip into one of Nando's Peri-Peri sauces. Try the Hot Peri-Peri and your exotic Espetada Carnival epitomises the perfect symphony of exquisite flavours - salty, spicy and lemony - Superlicious!      

It is more economical to order the Espetada Carnival set comprised two side dishes and a hot fiery designer drink called Spicy Mango Sangria. Choose the side-dishes that suit your palette. The selection comprises coleslaw, baked pumpkin and grilled corn, potato chips and Mediteranean-style rice.

I tried the baked pumpkin and grilled corn. Pumpkin has never been one of my favourite vegetables unless its a pumpkin pie, haha. The baked pumpkin was served cold and the texture was soft - mushy-like. I thought it just didn't go well with the hot chicken..

As for the tangy Mango-infused drink with a spicy kick, it pairs brilliantly with the savoury Espetada Carnival. But be warned, the 'side-effect' kicks in a few minutes later -  a 'sore-throat like' feel in my throat that lasted about 15 minutes or so. It was a great experience nevertheless. A must try.

The set meal including the designer drink costs $25.90. Without the drink its only $22.90. Its available all day at all Nando's outlets.

These Peri-Peri sauces a must-have in your kitchen or rather on your dining table. You can buy them from Nando's.  Not only are they excellent with flame-grilled meat/chicken but with any other kinds of food that requires a dip.

Espetada Carnival is available throughout the month of June but very likely will be put on the menu permanently.

Nando's outlets:
Open from 10 am to 10 pm. Two new outlets just opened - Lot One Shoppers' Mall and NEX.    

 

Muhammara

I love the usual Middle Eastern Mezze or dips like Babaganoush, Hummus and Chacik until I was introduced to Muhammara another kind of dip made using ingredients like red capsicum, walnuts and pomegranate molasses.

Instantly I fell in love with Muhammara. The taste is a bit sourish depending on how much lemon juice is added. The texture of the dip varies – depending on how fine you process the walnuts. As for me I prefer it with a bit of crunchy texture.
I made Muhammara a few times at home after getting the recipe from a Moroccan chef who, in addition gave me a jar of pomegranate molasses.
It is not only a healthy dish but a very delicious one too. You can eat it with Arabic bread or tortilla.
Here is the recipe if you would like to try making it at home.

MUHAMMARA:
2 large red bell peppers (remove seeds, roasted and loosen skins)
2 cloves garlic
1 small onion finely chopped
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp chilli flakes
3/4 cups fresh breadcrumbs (2 pieces of white bread toasted and ground)
1 cup walnuts, toasted and ground
2 tbls lemon juice
2 tsp pomegranate molasses (make your own if you can't find it in the supermarket)
1 tsp cumin powder
Salt to taste
4 tbls olive oil

Combine walnuts, breadcrumbs, onion and garlic. Process in a food processor till finely ground.
Add the bell peppers, lemon juice, pomegranate molasses, cumin, cayenne pepper, chilli flakes and salt. Blend again while drizzling the olive oil till mixture is creamy.

Pomegranate Molasses
4 cups pomegranate juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice.

Cook all ingredients in a small pot till sugar dissolved. Once dissolved, reduce heat to medium-low till mixture reduced to 1 cup, approx 70 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 30 minutes. Can keep in a glass jar for 6 months.

Badoque@Thomson Part 2

Garlic Chilli Chuka

Tiny glaring-red octopus marinated and sautéed with mixture of garlic and chilli that gives a solid punch to your palette. The accompanying salad which comprised shredded/julienned pickled carrot and some greens is a good combination that adds a little sourness to the dish that makes you want to continue eating. It was a very light and tasty appetiser.

Ayam Bakar 

Ayam Bakar or to be more accurate Ayam Percik is a Kelantanese goodness which is very popular with Malays in particular Malaysians. It is a complete dish that can easily be shared by 2 persons. A big portion of chicken Maryland coated with a generous amount of spicy marinate and grilled to perfection. Unlike the normal ayam percik sold at Hari Raya bazaars which are normally reddish/brownish in colour, this is the traditional version and is 'white'. The coconut cream or santan used which is the main ingredient was not too overwhelming. The dish goes very well with the Basmati rice served, which is fluffy and gives out a nice aroma and full of taste. Though I think the chicken marinate could use a little bit more salt, but when you eat with the rice and the pickled carrot, the taste of the dish was quite balanced. Delicious and satisfying.

Kepak Bing Bing

This dish is not for the health-conscious because the tastiness of the chicken lies in the chicken skin which is spicy, well-seasoned and crispy. Once you 'undressed' the chicken, the meat tastes bland.The order comes in a big portion of about 10 pieces of chicken drumlets which can easily be shared with 3 or 4 friends. Like all fried food, it's really yummy to eat while it's hot.

Seafood Soufflé 

Many of us know that Soufflé is a dessert. But Badoque created a savoury dish that comes with basmati rice mixed with sambal belacan. Yes its sambal belacan! so it resembles fried rice.

The Soufflé is spiced with Thai spices and cooked with a mixture of seafood like squid, prawns and mussels. Tasted a bit like 'otak-otak' but softer texture, it can be eaten on its own without any accompaniment or a lighter carbohydrate.

However, the seafood were a bit over-cooked, in particular the mussels. Like all Soufflés, this dish is best eaten while it's hot.


Ice Cream Meringue Cake

1/2 portion shown in the picture. It is definitely for someone with a sweet tooth. The cake is layered with meringue baked to a soft brown and have the softest and lightest texture. It goes well with the vanilla ice-cream.  A good 'closure' to a scrumptious dinner.

Badoque @ Thomson Part 1

When you say Badoque, you can visualise every dish comes in a big portion enough for two or three persons to share. Their priority is customer's satisfaction.

I had the opportunity to savour some dishes at Badoque @ Thomson which is newly opened and the second outlet after Simpang Bedok. It is a modern, casual and chic restaurant with a subtle romantic atmosphere no matter what time of the day you dine.

Retaining the same concept serving Western and South East Asian dishes like Ayam Percik, Vietnamese Pho Bo, Smoked Duck, Prawn Glass Noodle, steaks and pasta, the restaurant caters to all palettes.
    
Badoque 
246 Upper Thomson Road
Singapore
Telephone: 6552-1646

Opening hours: 3 pm to 11 pm
Closed on Mondays.

Price:  Average $20

Mediterranean Grilled Garden Vegetables

Here is the recipe for last week's dish,

• 1 red capsicum
• 1 green capsicum - de-seed and cut into 3 cm square
• 1 yellow capsicum
• 1 carrot cut into slices of approx 0.8 cm thick
• 2 red onion peeled and cut into quarters
• 7 garlic with skin, squash with the heel of your hand
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• Black pepper freshly cracked
• Sea salt 
• Olive oil
• A bunch of fresh rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• A bunch of fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• Baharat spices or 1 teaspoon freshly pounded coriander seeds

1. Preheat oven at 200 deg Celsius.
2. Put all the veg in a roasting tray. Scatter the Baharat spices or ground coriander, salt and black pepper. Drizzle with a generous amount of olive oil and toss to coat.
3. Bake in the oven for about 20 to 25 mins or until vegetables are tender.
4. Turn the vegetables a few time while grilling so that they cook evenly.

Serve with grilled chicken, meat or fish or simply with couscous. They make a delicious and nutritious meal.
Recipe for Baharat Spices

• 2 tablespoon each of ground spices - coriander, cinnamon, black pepper, cumin, paprika, sumac (can buy from Mustafa Centre or any Arabic spice dealer)
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 2 teaspoon each of ground spices - dried ginger, cloves, cardamon and nutmeg.

Mix all spices well and keep in a glass bottle or jar with a tight lid. Keep in the refrigerator. Can last for a few months

Welcome

I have never really liked to cook until I started writing food reviews professionally. Since then I can't resist a cookbook and I view food from a different perspective. I must say I have a good palette and high expectation where food is concerned. Follow my blog to know where are the best places to go for good Halal food. However, if you don't feel like eating out, you can always try out my recipes.

Mediterranean Grilled Garden Vegetables