Thursday, February 4, 2010

Sunday Stills, the next challenge: Hot Sauces or Salsas

Sunday Stills, the next challenge: Hot Sauces or Salsas
Posted in Sunday Stills Challenge of the Week, the next challenge with tags Sunday Stills on January 31, 2010 by Ed

Yep you read right, whatever you put on food or dip chips into or spoon on your eggs, lets see some spice in this weeks pics and stay in and stay warm..:-)
http://sundaystills.wordpress.com/

Guacamole avocado dip
I am told that avocado has the good kind of fat, so I don't feel guilty eating them.
I also made this Guacamole with the yogurt I made myself.
To add the heat, I put a teaspoon of hot chilli powder and half a chilli.
For crunch, I chop up a quarter of red capsicum aka red pepper or bell pepper.
To taste, I add half a teaspoon of salt and one tablespoon of lemon juice.
You may like to serve your dip in the avocado shells.



A spicy fusion of Chinese and Indian lamb shank.







My famous lamb shanks, I don't know if it qualifies as a sauce. It has a lot of gravy and you put it on rice or noodles or dip bread it in. That day, I cooked one of my most elaborate dish I have ever cooked. With Sam as the kitchen hand, I reminisce cooking lamb shank for my sister Grace and my good friend Manchala.

When I was in Singapore, Grace was more adventurous with food. This is partly because the water engineer who was then teaching at the University was the opposite of the Chan family in our discovery of food. Grace and I would walk past Little India and secretly salivate the Indian eating their reddish concoction of lamb shank.

I told Grace that I would try to cook that dish, and bought a lot of lamb shanks from Mustafa Halah store. I went to my friend Manchala, and together, we came up with a fusion of Indian-Chinese Dish which would mask the musky smell of the lamb that the water engineer was particular about.

Manchala gave me, cumin, cardimon, fenugreek, and I went to my garden and got some lemon grass. All in all, I added 16 spices to this dish, and braised it. My friends and Grace ate it and wanted more. I didn't care whether the water engineer liked it or not.

I am invited by a Flippino friend for a pot luck dinner. In passing, J. said the Filippinoes like lamb. In my freezer was a pack of lamb shank that I had bought to have a cook out competition with my other friend J. This session was cancelled because the water engineer went gallivanting so often to Australia.

Any way, Sam counted I had twenty ingredients to make up for the lack of lemon grass. I added mint ( a touch of European), vietnamese basil. Here's the rest, ginger, onion, garlic, freshly cracked Sarawak black pepper, white pepper, whole dried chillis, tumeric, cumin, feenugreek, cinnamom bark, tomato, tomato paste, sugar, salt, five spice powder, spring onion and curry.

The verdict is in the tasting. Oh yes, you may say why not saffron. This is an expensive spice which I am using for saffron rice.

***This pack of lamb was bought at a Pakistani Halah butcher shop in Sandringham. Their meat are more choice and leaner. When I asked if he was from Aghanistan like some of my students, he said, he was Pakistani. Then he asked where I was from, I said Sarawak, he didn't quite know, and I said, Malaysia. He said, Selamat hari. I replied, Assamalakum. He asked how I knew, I said, I have Muslim students. Now, the butcher is my boyfriend. He gives me the best cuts.****

10 comments:

Ensurai said...

Always have the butcher as your friend!! Good move.

But the post is entertaining. I love reading about food. Once we had a Mexican outlet here in Miri and I enjoyed going there. But it closed down after two years. Miss the food.

Ed said...

I love indian food, looks delish.:-)

SandyCarlson said...

Yum! These are neat shots, even for this vegetarian!

Autumn Belle said...

The food pictures here looks delicious. I think you are a good cook. I like lamb shanks too.

Dave said...

Mmmm!! That food looks delicious! I love avocados and the way you prepared them makes me hungry! Fantastic food Ann! - Dave

Sherri said...

Excellent post. Now I am starving.

gtyyup said...

It looks delicious! Avocados are my fav.

Tammie Lee said...

wow, this looks like and sounds like an amazing meal! I love all those spices.

as for your question. No snow in sight here. The ice crystal shots are from earlier this year. I mean, they could appear any day, but we would need colder temperatures and this winter is so warm for us. Thanks for asking.

Jama said...

I would love to eat that lamb shank, with so much of spices, my type of food!

Brenda said...

looks delicious. I would have to take out the hot spice, though!