Recipes

Pumpkin Brioche From My Kitchen/南瓜布利歐。

3 cups white whole wheat, or traditional whole wheat

4 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast

1 tablespoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons  gluten flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1 1/4 cups lukewarm water

4 large eggs

1/2 cup honey

3/4 cup cooking oil or unsalted butter, melted

1 3/4 cups pumpkin puree (freshly roasted or canned)

Egg wash for brushing on top

Raw sugar for sprinkling on top

Mixing and storing the dough: whisk together all of the dry ingredients in a 5-quart container, fitted with a non-airtight lid. Combine the liquid ingredients and add them to the dry with a wooden spoon. Mix thoroughly, until there are no more dry bits of flour. The dough will be quite loose when you are done.

Cover the container and allow the dough to rest on the counter for 2 hours. Once it has risen refrigerate for at least 2 hours before baking or it is too difficult to handle. It can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

On baking day: Grease and flour a brioche mould. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 2-pound (cantaloupe size) piece of dough. Dust with more flour and quickly shape  into a ball.
Place the ball of dough into the prepared pan with the smooth side up.  Allow the dough to rest, loosely covered with plastic wrap for 1 hour 45 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 with the oven rack in the middle of the oven.

As you can see it didn’t rises that much during the rest. That is normal for our dough. Brush the top of the dough with egg wash using a pastry brush and sprinkle it with the raw sugar.
Bake for about 50 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Allow to cool in the pan for about 5 minutes then turn it out and form a thick ring with a clean kitchen towel…

and invert the brioche onto the towel so that the dome of the brioche is supported by the towel. This will prevent the top or bottom of the loaf from getting crushed as it cools. Let the dough come to room temperature before cutting and serving.




 Dan Dan Mian - Spicy Sichuan Noodles/日式擔擔麵
Adapted from Ken Hom, A Taste of China

8 ounces (225 g) pork, minced
1 Tablespoon dark soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
6 oz peanut oil
3 Tablespoons garlic, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons ginger, peeled and finely chopped
4 Tablespoons onion, finely chopped
2 Tablespoons peanut butter
2 Tablespoons dark soy sauce
2 Tablespoons chili oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 Tablespoon Sichuan peppercorn, ground
2 teaspoons salt
8 ounces chicken stock
12 ounces (dry thin) Chinese egg noodles
1 handful roasted peanuts, finely chopped

Combine pork, soy sauce, and salt in a small bowl and mix well. Heat a wok or large skillet until hot. Add 4 ounces of the oil and stir-fry the pork,
stirring with a spatula to break it into small pieces. When the pork is lightly browned, about 3 minutes, remove and set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to boil. (This will be for the noodles.) While the water is heating, go to the next step.

Reheat the wok (add the remaining 2 ounces of oil if needed) and stir-fry the garlic, ginger, and onions until aromatic, about 1 minute. Then add the
peanut butter, soy sauce, chilli oil, sesame oil, Sichuan pepper, salt, and chicken stock and simmer for 5 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, when the pot of water has come to boil, toss in noodles and cook for 2 minutes if they're fresh or 5 minutes if they're dry. Drain the
noodles well. Divide into individual bowls or put them all into a large bowl for sharing. Ladle the sauce on top, top with pork and chopped peanuts,
and serve while hot.

Serves 4 to 6 as part of a multi-course meal, or 2 to 4 as a single dish

Nyonya Chicken Curry

Adapted from Kuali's Amy Beh recipe

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg chicken, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 400g potatoes, cut into wedges
• 2 tomatoes
• 6-7 tbsp oil
Spices (A)  to be ground

• 10 dried chillies, deseeded
• 5 red chillies, deseeded
• 30 shallots
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2½cm fresh turmeric root
• 2cm galangal, sliced
• 3 stalks lemongrass
• 1 tbsp dried shrimp paste (belacan)
Spice (B)  mixed with enough water into a paste

• 3 tbsp meat curry powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp fennel powder
• 1 tsp cumin powder
Ingredients (C)

• 2 star anise
• 4cm cinnamon stick
• 3 cloves
• 5 cardamoms split
• 2 stalks curry leaves
Ingredients (D)

• 1 litre thin coconut milk
• 200ml thick coconut milk
Seasoning

• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp fish sauce

Method

Heat oil in a deep pot. Add spices (A), (B) and (C). Fry until fragrant and oil rises.
Add chicken and 1 cup thin coconut milk. Cook to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for a while. Add thin coconut milk gradually.
Add potatoes and tomatoes; cover and continue to cook until meat is tender.
Pour in thick coconut milk and adjust with seasoning to mix. Bring to a boil until oil rises. Serve curry with the steamed turmeric rice.