Ricotta Pancakes with Blueberry Compote and Vanilla Cream

Lazy Sunday mornings. Rain pattering softly against the glass of the window. You know what you need for breakfast? Pancakes.

Pancakes are actually very simple things to make. It can be as involved or as easy as you want. Now, I like a certain texture to my pancakes (fluffy) and there are a couple more steps than just mix wet and dry. But let me assure you, the results are completely worth it.

Read more »

What I ate: Shredded lamb pasta

So I had a satisfying roasted lamb over the weekend, but seeing as how I roasted a whole 2+kg lamb shoulder, I was bound to have leftovers. Well, waste not want not, and I think this is a fantastic way to use up those bits of lamb left in your fridge.


Read more »

Roasted.

Sometimes I look at winter dishes - slow roasts, stews, braises etc - and wonder: is this people's way of keeping a heat source going as long as possible so the house is warm too? I know that I relish a slow roast during winter because my oven ends up heating the entire apartment, eliminating my need for an extra heater.

This slow roasted lamb shoulder is a pretty easy and versatile recipe, and the roasted vegetables that accompany it are some of my favourite roast vegetable recipes ever, and I would eat them all on their own, without the meat. It's a surprisingly rich meal, great when it's freezing outside, and nothing says Sunday family lunch like a roast.


Read more »

Kitchen Hand: When life gives you bones

And by 'life', I mean your butcher.

When I buy cut meat from my butcher - diced chuck steak, gravy beef, beef mince - I think it's fair to say that I don't expect any bones in it. So imagine my surprise when I opened up the bag of diced lamb shoulder from my butcher, only to find that he's diced everything (presumably with a band saw) with the bones in. The vertebras and everything! I can see where it happened: he was only selling the entire shoulder of lamb, and I had requested diced shoulder. When he said that he could do that for me, he just went out the back, took a band saw to it and gave it to me in a bag.

Read more »

Prince Restaurant, Parramatta

I've heard many recommendations to try the Yum Cha at Prince Restaurant in Parramatta, and one Sunday, I decided to walk down there to get my Yum Cha fix.

It was extremely busy, and the hustle and bustle of ordering families and trolley ladies really got me excited for a great meal!!

A large hotplate of various delights greets you near the entrance, and I really love the look of the food being fried/cooked in front of you. It gives me a great feeling of immediacy of the hot steaming food.


Read more »

What I ate: Squid ink pasta and crabmeat aglio e olio

Sometimes, you just want a light lunch. Sometimes it's nice to pretend that it's still spring and immerse yourself in punchy fresh flavours that make you forget that you had to drag yourself out of the warm cocoon that is your bed to face the day.

Read more »

Marmalade Pantry, Singapore

I've long had a love affair with crustaceans of all types. And carbs, I love carbs too. So when they come together in something called Crabmeat Linguini, I am just about as close to heaven as I can get.


Read more »

What I ate: Miso glazed eggplant

Eggplants seem to be everywhere lately, and I love how a simple glaze can transform the humble eggplant into Nasu Dengaku. The miso glaze is dead easy.
Read more »

Heston's Mac and Cheese

Heston Blumenthal is one of my idols. His approach to learning is one of a man dying of thirst. Constantly evolving, constantly improving...and he seems to have an ever expanding capacity for processing and storing information.

Which is why I love trying out his home recipes - he always incorporates techniques that I can use on other dishes, and ideas that I can apply to my other experiments in the kitchen.


Read more »