Korean Fried Chicken. You’ve probably had Kentucky Fried Chicken, but this Koreatown favourite is all sorts of delightful. It’s sweet, savoury, sticky and spicy and honestly not that hard to make! 🍗🌶️
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs chicken drumsticks (5-6)
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup potato starch
1/2 tsp, allspice or 5 Spice Powder
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Glaze:
3 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp Gochujang (Korean Pepper Paste)
2 tbsp organic raw sugar
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp rice vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp ginger, minced
1 chili, minced thinly
1/2 sweet orange pepper, sectioned
1 stalk green onion, minced
Instructions:
1. Season chicken in salt, pepper, ginger and vinegar for minimum one hour.
2. Pat chicken dry with paper towels.
3. In one dish, combine starch, allspice, salt and pepper.
4. Dip drumsticks in egg wash and then in starch mixture. Place aside.
5. Heat oil in large skillet on medium-high heat.
6. Fry drumsticks in hot oil till golden brown, about 5-7 minutes each side.
7. Place drumsticks on paper towels, absorbing excess oil.
8. In skillet or wok on medium-high heat, sautée ginger, orange peppers, garlic and chilli and sugar in sesame oil. Once caramelized, add Ketchup, Gochujang, maple syrup and soy sauce, stirring well.
9. Toss-in drumsticks and coat in glaze. Cook 2 minutes medium-high heat till caramelized. Garnish with green onion and serve.
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Keeneland Bread Pudding. Keeneland Racetrack in Lexington, Kentucky makes the best Bread Pudding and believe me, it is all the hype! We haven’t stopped thinking about it since having some. We hope to make another trip there this November for the Breeders’ Cup and get the real deal! 🍞🏇 During isolation, they have been kind enough to share their legendary recipe with fans! They use Sister Shubert Rolls, which we don’t have out our way. But we baked some superb fresh white bread last week, froze it and this was the perfect way to give it new life! Other modifications, we reduced the recipe to a third (we don’t have a party of 20 to serve it to sadly!), cutting down some of the sugar as well. I added nutmeg, the original recipe has cinnamon only. And the Bourbon Sauce absolutely is a must!
Ingredients:
1/3 loaf of white bread, cut into 1″ cubes
3 eggs
3 cups whole milk
1/2 cup organic raw sugar
1/3 cup golden raisins
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Bourbon Sauce:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup icing sugar
2 tbsps Bourbon (they use Maker’s Mark)
Instructions:
1. Beat eggs, milk, sugar and vanilla with handmixer.
2. In large bowl, pour batter over bread cubes. Soak minimum 2 hours in refrigerator.
3. Preheat oven at 275°F.
3. Transfer mixture to greased baking pan. Press-on raisins, sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg.
4. Bake 90 minutes or till pudding is golden brown and bounces back with a firm press. Allow to cool an hour.
5. In mixing bowl, whisk butter, Bourbon and icing sugar till creamy. Set aside and serve over warm Bread Pudding.
Official Recipe:
It’s the recipe you’ve been waiting for! The Keeneland Bread Pudding is a tradition of the track, and the @MakersMark bourbon is the key to the incredible sauce. Here’s the recipe to bring a taste of Keeneland home, and don’t forget to share with us on social. Enjoy! pic.twitter.com/1vDK7IxBfx
— Keeneland (@keeneland) April 26, 2020
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Kentucky Derby Cake. For the first time in 75 years, the most exciting 2 minutes in Sports won’t be contested the first Saturday in May. We’re still celebrating! 95% of all Bourbon is produced in Kentucky and we thought we’d celebrate this beautiful state and our love for horses with this moist, buttery, nutty creation pronounced with the popular whiskey. And what says Kentucky Derby more than an adornment of roses? We’re taking you into the winner’s circle! Might we suggest a nice, bright Bourbon cocktail like a Libertine to go with your slice? 🌹🏇
Ingredients:
2 3/4 cups flour
1 cup butter, room temperature
3 tbsp Crisco Golden
1 cup whole milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice, let sit 1 hour room temperature
3/4 cup organic raw sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup Bourbon (Woodford Reserve, official Kentucky Derby sponsor)
1/2 cup pecans, toasted
1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
Bourbon Pecan Icing:
2 cups icing sugar
3 tbsps Bourbon
1/4 cup half & half
1/4 cup pecans, toasted
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven at 350°F.
2. In large mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar and Crisco.
3. In separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.
4. In small bowl, mix milk, Bourbon and vanilla.
5. Combine flour into butter bit by bit, beating with handmixer.
6. Add milk mixture and beat till smooth.
7. Fold-in pecans with spatula.
8. Grease Bundt pan and dust with flour, tapping-out excess flour.
9. Pour batter into pan, levelling with spatula.
10. Place in oven, baking 45 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean.
11. Cool cake 20 minutes, using spatula around edges to loosen it from pan. Flip cake over onto a platter.
12. Cool 1 hour.
13. Prepare icing by mixing icing sugar, Bourbon and cream by hand. Icing shouldn’t be too thick nor too thin.
14. Use a spoon and drape icing over cake. Sprinkle toasted pecans over top of cake evenly.
15. Stand 1 hour before serving. Garnish hollow of cake with roses.
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Seared Lamb Chops in Balsamic Reduction. I love me some lamb, which I get to enjoy only a couple times a year. Possessing a natural gaminess, some find its taste unpleasant, hence marinating it with herbs overnight certainly helps. Seasoned right and seared at a high heat for a short time, lamb chops can be just as satisfying as a juicy steak!
Lamb Chops:
8 lamb chops, cleaned and pat dry with paper towels
1 tbsp basil, chopped
3 sprigs rosemary (1 for garnish)
1 tbsp thyme
2 tbsps olive oil
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Balsamic Reduction:
3/4 cup chicken/beef broth
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup cherry tomatoes
2 shallots, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon organic raw sugar
Turmeric Almond Raisin Rice:
1 cup long grain rice
1/2 cup beef/chicken stock
1 cup water
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup almond slivers
1 teaspoon Turmeric
Sea salt, to taste
Asparagus:
1 bunch of Asparagus, cleaned
2 tbsps unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lemon wedge
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions:
1. For rice, combine all ingredients in rice cooker and once cooked, fluff before serving.
2. For Asparagus, sautée butter and garlic. Once browned, add Asparagus and cook medium-high heat for about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and squirt lemon wedge over top before plating.
3. Marinate lamb chops in salt, pepper, oil, basil, thyme and rosemary. Seal in Ziploc bag(s) and refrigerate overnight.
4. Heat large skillet with oil on medium-high heat. Once hot, sear lamb chops 3-4 minutes per side. Place on warm platter.
5. Sautée shallots and garlic in butter. Once caramelized, add vinegar, sugar and stock. Add cherry tomatoes. Cook-down till liquid is reduced and thickened. This takes 5 or more minutes on medium-high heat, uncovered.
6. Pour reduction over lamb chops and garnish with sprig of rosemary. Serve with Turmeric Almond Raisin Rice and Asparagus.
Gallery:
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(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Pineapple-BBQ Pork Pastries. A hybrid of two classics, BBQ Pork Puff Pastry x Pineapple Buns. The latter is a staple at any Chinese bakery but surprisingly doesn’t have any pineapple in it. What a tragedy! Let’s fix that. 🍍
Think – a flaky, crumbly meat pie with a savoury-sweet pork filling… and a cookie topping!
Pastry:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsps sea salt
1/2 cup butter, chilled
3/4 cup Crisco Golden All-Vegetable Shortening
1/2 cup cold water
Cookie Crust:
3/4 cup flour
4 tbsps unsalted butter, softened
1 egg yolk
2/3 cup organic raw sugar, pulsed in food processor till fine
1 tbsp whole milk
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp turmeric
Pineapple-BBQ Pork Filling:
2 cups Chinese BBQ Pork (Cha Siu), minced
1/2 white onion, minced
3/4 cup chicken or beef broth
3/4 cup pineapple chunks, sectioned
3 tbsps organic raw sugar
2 tbsps soy sauce
2 tbsps dark soy sauce
3 tbsps Oyster Sauce
2 tbsps Hoisin Sauce
5 tbsps flour
1 egg beaten, used as egg wash
Instructions:
1. Prepare pastry, combining ingredients, adding water 1 tbsp at a time, handling minimally. Knead dough gently on floured surface. Roll into ball. Chill minimum 2 hours, no more than 5 days.
2. Pineapple-BBQ Pork filling: Sautée onions in sesame oil. Add pork and pineapple. Cook 3 minutes medium-high heat. Add sugar, dark and regular soy sauce, Oyster Sauce, Hoisin Sauce and chicken/beef broth. Bring to boil. Taste to ensure flavour balance is right. In bowl, mix flour and equal parts water to form paste, stirring into pork mixture till thick like a pie filling. Chill.
4. Cut dough into halves. Roll each half onto floured surface. Use cup to cut circles, reforming and rolling again till used. Each half should yield 12 circles, a total 24.
5. Flatten each circle with hand. Scoop filling into center of dough circle, careful not to overfill. Place another circle on-top, pressing together to seal and crimp edges gently with fork. Use paper towel to tidy any filling that leaked-out. Prepare 12 pastries and place on greased baking sheet.
6. Prepare oven at 425°F.
7. Cookie crust: mix flour, baking powder and turmeric in one bowl. In separate bowl, cream milk, butter, vanilla, egg yolk and sugar. Combine butter mixture into flour and form dough. Form 12 even balls, rolling into a thin sheet between 2 Ziploc bags till large enough to cover each pastry. Apply to pastries gently.
8. Using fingers or brush, apply egg wash.
9. Bake 15-17 minutes till golden. Cool 15 minutes.
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White Bread. To be honest Sourdough is okay, but nothing beats versatile, fluffy white bread. This is the second time in-a-row I’ve been able to get my dough to rise so I know it’s not a fluke! The trickiest part is ensuring the yeast is activated in lukewarm, not warm water and adding sugar. And the temperature at which you proof cannot be too hot. I’ll share a couple of my tips to making that perfect loaf! 🍞
Ingredients:
5 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons yeast
3 tablespoons organic raw sugar
1/2 tablespoon sea salt
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter
1 egg, beaten for egg wash
Instructions:
1. Mix flour, salt and butter in mixing bowl. Use two forks criss-crossing to cut butter in.
2. In bowl, mix 3/4 cup lukewarm water (not warm or hot) with yeast and sugar till dissolved and filmy. Let stand a few minutes.
3. Mix yeast water into flour bit by bit, using forks. Pour another 1 1/3 cup lukewarm water, forming dough.
4. Turn dough onto flat, floured surface. Sprinkle with flour till dough no longer is sticky, kneading 10 minutes. Dough should be punchy and elastic.
5. Grease large bowl and transfer dough into it. Cover with damp cloth and place in oven on top rack with a pot of hot water on the rack below. Shut oven. Replace hot water again in 30 minutes. This provides a perfect environment for your dough to rise. Be careful!
6. Dough will have doubled in size by one hour if proofed right. If not, your water might have been too hot when activating or something is up with your yeast. Transfer back to floured surface and knead 5 minutes, releasing air pockets.
7. Grease loaf pan and fit dough into it. Proof again for 45 minutes to 1 hour covered, with pot of hot water underneath in oven. Dough will have doubled again in size. Remove from oven.
8. Preheat oven at 400°F. Brush top of loaf with egg wash using fingers or a brush.
9. Bake for 30-35 minutes or till golden brown. Rotate pan once, half-way through. Allow to cool 15 minutes in pan and transfer to cooling rack to avoid bottom getting soggy. This freezes well.
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Singaporean Chilli Crab on BBQ Pork & Scallop Fried Rice. Mildly-spicy and tangy, sauce bursting each bite!🌶🦀
Crab:
1 2 lb live Snow Crab, cleaned and sectioned
2 tomatoes, sectioned
2 tbsps ketchup
1 tsp organic raw sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tbsps soy bean paste/Miso paste
1 tbsp tamarind paste (or a few seedless candied tamarind)
1 medium white onion, minced
1/2 sweet red pepper, sectioned
1/2 sweet orange pepper, sectioned
1 stalk green onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 green chillies, seeded and minced
2″ cube ginger, minced
1 egg, beaten
Coriander
Lime wedge
BBQ Pork & Scallop Fried Rice:
4-5 cups cooked white rice, chilled overnight
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup green peas
1/4 cup corn kernels
1/2 cup Chinese BBQ Pork, diced
1/2 cup Bay Scallops, brined in salt water
1/4 cup sweet red/orange peppers
1 cup Chinese Broccoli, minced thinly
1 stalk green onion, minced
2 tbsps Crab Tomalley (green gunk from crab)
2 tbsps soy sauce
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Banana Leaf
Instructions:
1. With larger skillet on medium-high, heat oil. Once hot, throw-in peas, corn, Chinese Broccoli and peppers. Cook till wilted. Add pork and scallops. Cook till scallops lose translucence; don’t overcook. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
2. Add egg, Tomalley. Cook till almost done. Add rice. Stir with spatula and add soy sauce. Cook till rice is about to caramelize, about 5 minutes, medium-high heat. Top with green onions.
3. Line bamboo steamer with banana leaf, covering base fully. Transfer rice onto leaf.
4. Boil a bit of water (do not fill too high) in a large skillet/wok with a dome lid. Once boiled, place bamboo steamer in and cover lid. Steam medium-low while prepping crab.
5. In large skillet/wok heat oil till hot. Add ginger, garlic, chillies, soy bean paste and onion. Fry on medium heat 2 minutes.
6. Add tomatoes, sweet peppers, tamarind paste, ketchup, sugar, salt and 1/2 cup water. Bring to boil and add crab pieces. Cover and cook 8 minutes medium-high heat.
7. Remove cover and add beaten egg, stirring gently till egg is wispy, thickening sauce. Remove from heat. Transfer some of crab mixture over rice, not too much sauce. Serve.
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Matcha-Pistachio-Almond Chocolate Chip Cookies. Scaling it back a bit today, but nothing beats a perfect cookie! This buttery elevated twist to the classic Chocolate Chip Cookie is a delight and easy to make! 🍵🍪
Ingredients:
2 cups flour, sifted
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup milk chocolate chips
1/2 cup organic raw sugar
1/3 cup of almond and pistachios, crushed
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
1-2 tablespoons Matcha powder, to taste
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven at 325°F.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder and soda.
3. In separate bowl, cream butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla with handmixer.
4. Add flour mixture to butter mixture bit by bit till combined.
5. Add-in chocolate chips.
6. In small skillet, toast nuts. Be careful not to burn as this happens quickly. Mix into dough evenly.
7. Using hands, roll 24 even balls and place on greased cookie sheets, 2 inches apart.
8. Bake 10 minutes, or till bottom of cookie is golden brown.
9. Cool 20 minutes, transfer to storage container.
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(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Curry Shrimp & Scallop Pie. I love pies and always have been terrified of making them because the crust is notoriously tricky. I finally nailed it thanks to an amazing pastry recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction. If you’ve never used Crisco‘s Golden All-Vegetable Shortening, it’s a thing of wonder!
The trick to a perfect crust is to never over-handle the dough – handle minimally. This perfect crust combined with one of my favourite curries proved a real knockout. Hope you get to try this yourself. And don’t worry if you don’t know how to do a lattice crust, I didn’t either. Just Google. There are several helpful guides online. It was simple! This was a knockout! 🥊
Pastry:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup butter, chilled
3/4 cup Crisco Golden All-Vegetable Shortening, room temperature
1/2 cup cold water
Curry Shrimp and Scallop Filling:
2 lbs Tiger Prawn Shrimp, shells/tails removed and halved and brined in salt water
1 cup of Bay Scallops, brined in salt water
1/2 can of Coconut Milk
1 block of Glico Japanese Curry (medium)
2 small white potatoes, diced
1/4 cup corn kernels
1/4 cup of green peas
1 carrot diced
1/2 white onion, diced
1 green chilli, seeds out and minced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
Sea salt to taste
1 egg, beaten
Instructions:
1. In large mixing bowl, combine flour and salt. Add-in butter and Crisco, using two forks criss-crossing mixture till it resembles small peas. Add-in 1 tablespoon cold water at a time, scraping mixture off each fork with the other, till it starts resembling dough.
2. Knead gently and sparingly on floured surface and roll into ball. Chill 2 hours, no more than 5 days.
3. Cut dough into halves. Take one-half and roll with a rolling pin on floured surface into a circle, enough to cover bottom of pie dish.
4. Transfer dough to pie dish and fit till covered. Prick with fork a few times. Refrigerate.
5. In large skillet, sautée garlic, chilli and onion in oil. Add-in potatoes, carrots, peas and corn. Add sea salt to taste. Cook 5 minutes on medium-heat.
6. Add-in coconut milk, Glico Curry and mix till dissolved.
7. Add 2-3 cups of water, a bit at a time, stirring till filling reaches a thick consistency for a pie filling.
8. Once mixture reaches boil, reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes. Put aside.
9. Preheat oven at 425°F.
10. Remove other half of dough from refrigerator. Roll into a circle, enough to cover pie dish.
11. Using ruler and knife, cut dough into 12 even strips.
12. Add filling into pie dish, layering-in uncooked shrimps and scallops. Cover top with filling, careful not to overfill.
13. Cover top in lattice pattern.
14. Use fork, crimp edge of crust.
15. Brush crust with egg wash.
16. Bake 30 minutes. Cool for about 45 minutes before serving.
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(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
Blood Orange Chicken. My love of sweet ‘n’ sour often got me teased by my parents as a kid, them jokingly disowning me. Things like sweet and sour chicken balls/pork are seen as “inauthentically-Chinese”. Here is my elevated take on a food court fave. The bitterness of Blood Orange, lime, mild heat of chilli and Sambal give this dish a bit of mystery. Enjoy! 🍊🌶️
Chicken:
4 chicken breasts, sectioned to bite-size pieces and seasoned in sea salt
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup corn starch
3 eggs, beaten
Sea salt and pepper taste
Canola oil
Blood Orange Sauce:
1/2 cup Tropicana Orange Juice (no pulp)
3 Blood Oranges juiced (reserve zests of 2)
1 lime, juiced
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1/2 cup organic raw sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Sambal
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon ginger, minced
1 chili, seeds removed and minced
1 tablespoon tapioca starch
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 green onion stalk, minced for garnish
Cilantro, minced for garnish
Instructions:
1. Heat Canola oil in large skillet, medium-high.
2. Prepare coating in a dish mixing flour, corn starch, sea salt and pepper to taste.
3. Beat eggs in bowl.
4. Dip each chicken piece in egg wash and then flour coating. Once oil is hot, place pieces in oil, careful not to overcrowd.
5. Fry pieces till golden and not too dark. Takes about 4-5 minutes approximately per batch.
6. Place chicken on paper towels to absorb excess oil.
7. Once all chicken is fried, prepare sauce in another skillet.
8. On medium-high heat, sautée chilli, garlic, ginger and Sambal. Add sugar and cook till it caramelizes.
9. Add-in Blood Orange juice, zest and lime juice, stirring till sugar dissolves. Add soy sauce, rice vinegar and bring to quick boil. Add Tropicana and bring to boil. Taste with spoon to ensure flavour balance is right. If not, adjust with rice vinegar, sugar or salt accordingly.
10. Run sauce through strainer, and return to skillet. Bring to boil. In small dish, mix tapioca starch and equal part water to form paste. Stir it into the Blood Orange sauce till it thickens to the consistency of a glaze.
11. Toss-in fried chicken and coat evenly in sauce. Sprinkle cilantro and green onion. Serve.
Gallery:
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(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)
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