115. CNY 2024 - YEAR OF THE DRAGON

Sunday, February 11, 2024

115. CNY 2024 - YEAR OF THE DRAGON

CHINESE NEW YEAR 2024
Year of the Dragon

so.
what do i cook this year?

it has to be from scratch.

but i'm working 2 days before CNY! oh.

surprise, surprise, i will STILL be cooking!

9 Feb 2024 - CNY Eve - Reunion Dinner

10 Feb 2024 - CNY DAY #1

24 Feb 2024 - CNY DAY #15

Age this year 2024

daddy 82 (horse)

me 55 (monkey)

jamie 53 (pig)

aidan 24 (dragon)

christen 22 (horse)

jannah 18 (dog)

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CNY Meals & Recipes - Links

2018 (dog) - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2018/02/34-chinese-new-year-2018.html

2019 (pig) - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2019/02/54-chinese-new-year-2019.html

2020 (rat) - https://jt-write.blogspot.com/2020/01/110-cny-2020-many-firsts.html

2021 (ox) - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2021/02/90-our-food-diary-feb2021.html

2022 (tiger) - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2022/01/105-cny-2022-year-of-tiger.html

2023 (rabbit) - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2023/01/109-cny-2023-year-of-rabbit.html

2024 (dragon) - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2024/02/115-cny-2023-year-of-dragon.html

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CNY Recipes - Links

bakwan kepiting - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2017/06/13-bakwan-kepeting.html

ayam buah keluak - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2023/01/75-ayam-buah-keluak-alows-recipe-my.html

ayam sioh - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2023/01/75-ayam-sioh-2022-2023-my-peranakan.html

yu shang - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2023/01/110-yu-sheng-cny-recipe.html

ngo hiang - https://jt-food.blogspot.com/2024/02/75-ngo-hiang-prawn-rolls-for-cny-2024.html

more to come

- popiah

- kueh pie tee

CNY 2021 - recipes for

- cabbage fish maw and fishball soup

- pig stomach soup
- kiam chye duck

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2024 cny menu - all made from scratch

CNY MENU 2024

Soups

- bakwan kepiting

- cabbage fishball, fish maw soup

didn't make kiam chye duck,

i made pig stomach pepper soup a few weeks earlier

Stews

- ayam sioh

- buah keluak with pork ribs and chicken

- braised sea cucumber with abalone and mushrooms

Vegetables and Salad

- yu sheng

- leeks with prawns

Others

- sambal belacan

- ngo hiang or prawn rolls

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left to right - buah keluak, ayam sioh, bakwan kepiting, abalone and mushroom stew

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09/2 Fri - CNY Eve (Reunion)

10/2 Sat - CNY Day 1

11/2 Sun - CNY Day 2

12/2 Mon - CNY Day 3

CNY reunion dinner is on 9 feb 2024 Fri

but since i'm working thu 8 feb full day and fri 9 feb half day/morning,

i started shopping from the weeks before,

early prep & freeze

sambal belacan
buy fresh prawns - peeled some, wash and prepared others
water chestnut - wash and chopped and froze
buy chicken, minced pork, fish maw, mushrooms, scallops
buy, prep and freeze - serai/lemongrass, limau purut, fresh turmeric, ketumbar, assam, etc

6 feb Tues

went ntuc 7.30am bought last minute things
went wet market 628 amk, bought pork ribs
defrosted frozen food
boiled pork ribs for buah keluak and set aside
while jannah doing science experiment, i peeled and chopped fresh garlic!

7 feb Wed

blending rempah for the sioh and buah keluak
roast ketumbar for sioh
blending and marinating/seasoning the sioh, left in the fridge for a day (to cook thu)
mixing the bakwan kepiting meat/fish/prawn/crab,
went airport to pick jamie,
then to waterway for lunch and buy last minute things, like sea cucumber
mixed the bakwan kepiting ingredients together
wrapping and steaming the ngo hiang >> then froze them, 10 rolls

8 feb 2024, thu - DAY BEFORE CNY EVE

worked till 6.30pm, reached home around 7.30pm,

started cooking after reaching home

cooked the sioh, grilled (and BURNT some), chicken too tough!! - FAIL!!
made meatball soup, meatball too soft and smells funny - FAIL!!
rolled the ngo hiang and steamed, then packed and freeze the rolls - OK!
left the pork ribs buah keluak in the slow cooker from 10pm till 2am - OK!
ran out of cornflour! - FAIL!!

9 feb 2024, fri - CNY EVE

woke up 2am to cook pork ribs in buah keluak in slow cooker,

2am-5am cooked buah keluak in slow cooker, 2 batches!

morning work online 9am-12.30pm

breakfast - buah keluak with leftover rice! with jannah
buah keluak pork ribs tough and overcooked - FAIL!!
well, the bakwan kepiting mix had a bad smell and was soooo soft! so i threw it out :( - FAIL!!
(thankfully, i made some ngo hiang (prawn rolls) and saved some of the mix!)
jamie helped to buy the ingredients for the bakwan so i started making again!
made a new batch of bakwan kepiting soup from 2pm+ till 5pm! (crab frozen 12pm so had to thaw till 2pm to use for meatball) before rushing off to get ready for reunion dinner

jamie bought

- 1 kg minced pork ($17+)

- bamboo shoots x2 packets

- cornflour

and i took out what leftover prawns from fridge/freezer

10 Feb 2024 Sat - CNY DAY 1

Lol 8 items/dishes
- cooked the fish maw, fishball, cabbage soup

- cooked abalone with sea cucumber and mushrooms (yum!!!)

- cooked leeks with prawns

- cooked rice with lap cheong that adrian bought from HK at $7 each LOL

3 wine sausages and 2 goose liver sausages - very very fragrant!!!

- grilled the ngo hiang - tasted quite nice!

- the buah keluak pork ribs (heated)

- ayam sioh (heated)

- bakwan kepiting soup (heated)

25 Feb 2024 Sunday

Yu Sheng!

1 day after chap goh meh,

1 day after CNY 15th day

ko ko and dio dio are at home alone

ko ko's hip still quite painful and still moving around with the walking frame... it will take a while to recover. we would have this yu sheng days earlier if she didn't have that fall that became a hip fracture and then had to go for surgery. scary... one fall and not mobile for a while :(

so i made yu sheng

(since i bought the pickles already! LOL)

- 1 set auspicious yu sheng, 600g, from NTUC (singlong brand, $15.90, for 10 pax)

- jellyfish x1 packet

- raw mango x1

- japanese cucumber x3 (not enough)

- carrot x1 big

- iceberg lettuce 1/2 - shredded

- fresh coriander

- pomelo (dio dio found one in his fridge!!)

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7 Feb 2024 Wed

Prep and blending rempah for sioh and buah keluak
cooked the buah keluak and sioh on the next night after work (thu after 8pm)

9 Feb 2024 Fri

CNY Eve (reunion dinner)

making a new batch of pork balls, bakwan kepititng

jamie and daddy bought the ingredients

- minced pork 1kg $17+

- frozen crab x2 packets

- bamboo shoots x2 packets

- corn flour x2 packets

tues 6 feb 2024

- go ntuc 7.30am

- go market 628 amk

- defrosting

jannah did her chem experiment on tues while i tried to cook and prep...

9 & 10 Feb 2024

Yu Sheng / Loh Hey
reunion dinner and CNY day 1 dinner

uncle vincent buys his loh hey ingredients from chinatown...

Leong Yik Loong, block 333 #01-29 kreta ayer road

CNY DAY 1 - Lunch at home

- cooked cabbage soup with fishballs, fish maw, fish dumplings

- cooked abalone, sea cucumber, mushroom, dried scallops stew

(ref: https://youtu.be/d_IqIa_dfhY?si=QVX-YyeiTL6x4_Ky)

- grilled the ngo hiang in aidan's air fryer

- cooked rice with lap cheong - 3 hk wine lap cheong and 2 goose liver lap cheong

- jannah helped to cook leeks with prawns

Recipe - Ngo Hiang

1. prepare and combine filling mix:

- mnced pork

- cornflour

- minced prawns

- chopped bamboo shoots

- chopped water chestnut

- chopped dried mushrooms - soaked and cut into pieces

- chopped black fungus - hard type for crunchy texture

- chopped carrots

- minced raw garlic

- fried crispy garlic and the oil

- fried crispy shallots and the oil (bawang goreng)
- 5 spice powder

- sesame oil

- chinese shaoxing wine

2. prepare beancurd wrapper

- cut to size

- wipe with a clean damp cloth to remove the salt

3. wrap ngo hiang and steam till filling is cooked

4. cool and freeze or set aside

5. fry or grill / put in air fryer ot turbo oven

6. serve hot with sweet sauce/paste

and macaroni chilli sauce or chilli chuka (vinegar chilli sauce)

CNY DAY 2 -

11 Feb 2024 Sunday

lunch - ate hor fun at hans after going to the niche to visit gong gong, mama, alow and mummy.

dinner - singapore swimming club - didn't quite enjoy since i had itchy insect bites on my sole/feet.

CNY Day 3 -

12 Feb 2024 Monday

lunch - adjusted the seasoning of leftover food

only daddy, christen and me for lunch

dinner - leftovers - sioh, bakwan kepiting soup

cooked more rice and more lap cheong,

cooked frozen scallops with the mushroom and abalone stew,

fried eggs seasoned with salt, white pepper and black sauce (love eggs!!),

also cooked chinese cabbage with garlic - plain - so yummy!!!!

below: CNY DAY 3 Dinner

13-14 Feb 2024

leftover cny food

14 Feb 2024

lunch - leftovers and chicken breast meat with A1 and ketchup sauce

dinner at red star restaurant for hui tzur di di's bday

14 Feb 2024

Red Star Restaurant

- abalone loh hey / yu sheng

- scrambled eggs with sharks fin and crabmeat san chow bao

- egg tofu with crab meat and egg sauce

- crispy duck - sweet and sour

- salted egg yolk prawns with chilli and curry leaves

- salted egg yolk with liver paste

- ee fu noodles

15 Feb 2024 Thu

breakfast - aunty and uncle's noodles with lots of beansprouts

lunch - vegetarian - veggies with tofu and rice (so good!!)

dinner - bibimbab

16 Feb 2024 Fri

lunch - buah keluak 2 chicken wings with rice

dinner - no pics - but i tried to cook the dish i ate at the vegetarian restaurant on thu!

recipe - tofu stew

- egg tofu x2

- cabbage (and any other suitable veggies)

- black fungus

- tung hoon x2 bundles

- tofu skin 1/2 packet (wah very nice!!)

seasoning/gravy

- shaoxing wine

- light soya sauce

- oyster sauce

- sesame oil

- ikan bilis stock cube or powder

- ti poh / dried solefish powder

- water + cornflour slurry

1. fry garlic

2. add oyster sauce, soya sauce, chinese shaoxing wine

3. add tofu or tau guah, cabbage, black fungus and water/stock

can also add broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, xiao bai chye, etc

4. cook till ingredients are still crunchy

5. add tofu skin, sesame oil, cornstarch slurry

6. serve hot

17 Feb 2024 Sat

lunch

- buah keluak, lap cheong steamed with rice,

cabbage with beancurd skin, leftover red star food

(today is likely 10th day since i cooked this pot of buah keluak!)

then went to sengkang hospital to see chor tzur ko ko, she fell at seletar mall

dinner - grilled chicken, pork chops (tough, porky taste), fried cabbage (no pics)

the cupboard smelt bad and i realised it was jamie's salted fish... had to throw away :(

below: beancurd skin

below: cabbage with beancurd skin and egg in gravy

below: leftovers from red star

(plum sauce is my own)

18 Feb 2024 Sun

lunch - cooked a lot!

- assam prawns

- pork cutlet with sweet and sour sauce (today's is very very nice!)

- tau guah with leeks

- fried eggs with dark soya sauce and fried onions

- smoked duck (want to clear the freezer!! haha)

dinner at sengkang general hospital -

had beef pho $6, very nice!

below: fried eggs

Recipe - Sweet and Sour Sauce Mix

- sugar about 1/2 tbsp

- rice vinegar 4 tbsp

- tomato ketchup 2 tbsp

- chilli sauce 2 tbsp

- A1 steak sauce 1 tbsp

- sesame oil 2 tbsp

- light soya sauce 1-2 tbsp

- oyster sauce 1 tbsp

- salt and pepper

- water / slurry

fry onions, garlic and tomatoes,

then add the sauce mix

below: christen's plate ...

below: beef pho from sengkang hospital - very authentic!

19 Feb 2024 Mon

breakfast - telok blangah

forgot today is mon so most stalls not open.

lunch - no pics

albert centre - pork liver and pork balls - so nice!

dinner - no pics

bought waterloo chicken rice at albert centre

$19 for 1/2 chicken + 4 packets of chicken rice

+ sio bak from coffeeshop next to queen street carpark

minimum $8 now

below: what i would love for breakfast!!

and can make this at home too!

20 Feb 2024 Tues

lunch - forgot what i ate

(hans breakfast at seletar mall? with christen, daddy, jamie)

went ntuc to get some soya bean milk for ko ko at the hospital.

we went to the hospital for visit...

dinner - white snapper steaks with turmeric, chilli, garlic and onions

Recipe - Turmeric Fish with Chilli Lime Gravy

1. coat fish with turmeric powder and fry the fish, set aside

2. fry garlic, ginger, onions, turmeric, chillis, lime juice

>> sauce for fish

3. serve hot!!

21 Feb 2024 Wed

morning - went to have breakfast at sengkang hospital

daddy had western - eggs, sausage, muffin etc

i had beef pho with extra spinach. soo good!!

after adrian left for HK, we went to waterway.

waterway ntuc to get some veggies

- cucumber, carrots, iceberg lettuce, lime, string beans,

also got frozen chicken thighs x2 packets

and jamie's stuff - herbal bak kut teh spices, abalone

bought chicken karaage and toufu for dinner

also cooked pongteh with mushrooms,

eggs and string beans with tau kuah

22 Feb 2024 Thu

(work - week 7 assessment)

Breakfast with Jannah

fried bee hoon with ladysfingers, brinjal and fried eggs!

aunty's noodle stall was closed...

she said she'll be open but it's not open.

Dinner -

Josephine gave me her buah keluak - wow sooooo good!!!

ate her buah keluak with some chicken karaage from don don donki

no pics of Jo's buah keluak :(

she says she stuffs minced pork into the shell and uses a certain brand of assam. her rempah has dried chilli, belachan, turmeric, langkuas, candlenut... same as alow's leh...

no pics

23 Feb 2024 Fri

(work - research with 3K)

Lunch - aunty's noodle stall was closed... maybe she's unwell.

so ate chye peng - scrambled eggs, melon (mo kuei), tau kuah with peeks $3.80. it's so bland looking but tastes so good!! so busy eating, have no pics haha

Dinner -

Teochew Grouper Fish Soup (Charcoal Hotpot)

南华昌(亚秋)鱼头炉

Nan Hwa Chong

ordered
- $48 red grouper fish charcoal steamboat

- $15 (M) sambal sweet potato leaves

- $12 (S) salted egg pork chops

- $12 (S) ngo hiang

- $10 pig intestines

- 4 rice