baked eggs; spicy paprika cumin pork, toasted mustard cheese bread

baked eggs; spicy paprika cumin pork, toasted mustard cheese bread

So I've had a rough couple of months. It wasn't my favorite way to start off the new academic year I must say but I'm just really glad that I've finally managed to adjust my mindset and my heart to think and feel differently. Sometimes the random things we find important initially really aren't all that important after all. And all everyone needs is time; time to see, time to rethink, time to heal. Eat good food, do the right things, love your family and your friends, exercise often. Shall stick with this simple mantra in my life.

Woke up this morning and prepared a dough of cinnamon walnut raisin bread to proof before getting to my baked eggs. NEW RAMEKINS~~~ Only AUD$6 for 6 of them. Wuuuuuut? Garage sale is love.

set up for 2!

I've been having breakfast for 1 for a mega long time. Didn't have the heart to plate up and have been eating the most random stuff off the pan. Cooking for others still fills me up with way more love and joy.

What I used!

800g mince meat (pork and veal works quite well!)
1 teaspoon of whole cumin, grounded coarsely
1 teaspoon of paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon of oil
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/4 of a large white onion, sliced
1 bottle of pasta sauce, depending on how saucey you like it (herbs and garlic worked fine for me)

handful of grated cheese cheddar
3 tablespoon of olive oil
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 teaspoon wholegrain mustard
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 large egg
parsley and thyme

What I did!

1) Marinate the meat with the spices and leave it side.

2) Fry the onions for a minute on medium high heat, before adding the garlic to fry for another minute. When onions and garlic are fragrant, throw in the marinated meat and fry until cooked, about 5 minutes.

3) Pour in the pasta sauce until satisfied with the consistency of the meat. I liked mine not too runny.

4) Put the mustard, olive oil, salt and pepper into a bowl and mix them well until a spread forms. Spread it on the sides of the bread and lay it on an aluminium foil tray. Smother the bread with the grated cheese and toast it at 200 deg C for 8 - 10 minutes, until bread is crisp and cheese is melted and brown.

5) At the same time, fill the ramekins up to about 3/4 of the way with the meat sauce, and top it up with some grated cheese and an egg. Put it into the oven to bake together with the bread. The baked eggs are done when the egg white is cooked. For a runnier egg yolk, push the yolk away from the walls of the ramekin and bake until the egg whites have yet to turn opaque white.

6) Serve with a sprinkle of thyme and parsley and share the love.

Pressure points and top tips! (from trial and error) =D

1) Don't overcook the meat. Flatten it out as best as you can and sear and brown it off on high heat and don't leave it to simmer.

2) Sprinkle some toasted nuts for a textural dimension. Toasted almonds or pine nuts? =D

3) Buy things from garage sales.

Lor Bak (Braised Pork)

Oh. Man.

I love Lor Bak. I love the melt-in-your-mouth texture of the meat, I love the fragrant and delicious braising liquid smothered over my rice, I love the accompaniments to the dish like the semi-solid garlic cloves, eggs and sometimes tau kwa and tau pok.

Damn I just love to eat.

I've made this a couple of times and each time I'm learning more and more about it's preparation then the previous attempt. And each time I feel that it's getting better and better and better. I can't wait to make this again and hopefully one day, attain the level of yum that is conjured by my grandma. In fact, I'm gonna spend more time in my grandma's kitchen and pick up her mad awesome cooking skills!


The magical ingredients!

Grandma's Braised Pork

500g of pork belly. I used a loin portion which has less fat and more meat. But if you can, use pure unadulterated pork belly. =D
3 tablespoon dary soy sauce
2 tablespoon light soy sauce
2 teaspoon 5 spice powder

2 tablespoons of brown sugar
2 tablespoons of oil (I used vegetable oil.)
4 cloves
12 white peppercorn (more is fine.. I bumped it up to 1 tablespoon after taking this photo)
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
11 cloves of garlic (but the more the merrier, really!)

Hard boiled eggs if desired. I tossed in a couple 15minutes before serving so that it absorbs the color.

1) Marinate the pork in the soy sauces and 5 spice powder for at least 2 hours. Overnight is best!
2) Start cooking approximately 2 hours before serving this dish.
3) Heat the braising pan on medium high heat.
4) Fry the dry spices without adding any oil to let the oils of the spices come out, for about 2minutes.
5) Add the oil in and let the oil heat up, about a minute
6) Add the brown sugar and fry until it has dissolved, about a minute
7) Put in the pieces of pork and fry them until the sides have browned, about 3 minutes. Then, flip the pork around and brown the other side, another 3 minutes.
8)Once the pork has browned, add enough water to barely cover the top if you have to. I didn't have to as my pork released a fair amount of water.
9) Toss in the garlic, unpeeled and turn the heat to low and cover the pot.
10) Let it simmer in the liquid (braising!) for a good 1 hour or more, stirring occasionally (like every 15minutes?) to ensure that it doesn't burn and to ensure even braising of both sides of the meat. Also, top up the water until the water level in the pot BARELY covers the surface of the pork when required to ensure enough braising action goes on.
11) Meat is done in half an hour if in a hurry but will become AWESOME in an hour or more. ;)


Cutting the pork before serving and licking my fingers behind the lens

So so so yummy. Especially for a student studying overseas, this dish is relatively no fuss, recreates home tastes, and is absolutely comforting. It doesn't take much effort at all and the lingering fragrance really is reminiscent. Ahhhh..

>
Sliced lor bak with egg on a bowl of rice. AWESOME, especially with the gravy.

Pressure points and top tips! (from trial and error) =D

1) It's braising, not boiling. Don't pour too much water. Boiling seals in the flavors.

2) Don't over spice. More is not better for spices.

3) I used 2 tablespoon of soy sauce and found that it was sufficiently salty. If you want it saltier, add more soy sauce at the end.

4) Do not waste any of that awesome braising liquid goodness. You WILL be punished in some tiny way or another.

Oh no... I'm drooling again. T_T