Tonkichi (Ngee Ann City)

I am a fan of pork, i love them in any form other than raw :) If prepared correctly, they have nice meaty flavour and excellent texture.

In Singapore, there are many specialization shops. Like Burgers, Ramens, Pizzas... For my Pork Katsu carvings, only one place in Singapore can satisfy it....

Welcome to Tonkichi. Very simple menu, not much of a selection. I remember the first time i tried it was in Taipei (Conveniently named Tonkatus) when i was traveling with my sister. It left a deep impression not only because of the food, the way we make our own sesame sauce was pretty fun. It was an aromatic therapy for diners before meal.

The tools to make your own Simple sauce.

First you grind some roasted sesame seeds. How fine is up to you but i love to keep going because the aroma of the sesame is so fragrant due to the release of its oleoresin.

After you are done with the sesame, take a break, sip some tea :)

Add in the sauce on the table and give it a good mix. It is slightly sweet with some savory and acidic note, most importantly taste really good with the pork.

A Tonkichi set for 3 pax. Rice, Veg and soup should be free flow...

What I love about the pork katsu here is the way they prepare it till it is crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside. However the one I had in Taipei was much better probably due to the fact the pork variety is different. Some how the pork in Taiwan taste better!

This is the closest you can get to a good pork katsu. Any better you have to order the Korobuta pork katsu. I'm sure it will taste better, with a premium of course ;)

Address:

391 Orchard Road #04-24

Ngee Ann City

Singapore

Opening Hours

Mon–Sun: 1030am–10pm

Tel: +65 6735 7522

Maxwell Food Center, A place of hawker heavy weight unite!

Tian Tian Chicken Rice

Looks Simple? Look like just another plate of chicken rice? Overrated and overly absurd long queue? No. No. No!

Chicken here is cook in batches when the chicken running out then they will cook more. So you don't get chicken cook in the morning when u are buying dinner. Chicken here is cooked to just nicely done to ensure the perfect tenderness. Big, fat, plump, Juicy!

The rice itself is delicious and not really oily. You can't imagine they actually used chicken fat to cook the rice right? But who cares as long as its delicious :) Grains were well separated and dry, not lumpy.

Chilli sauce is nicely concocted but nothing special. Oh well, sometimes the chicken is so good that i don't even dip it into the chilli sauce. Instead i use the chilli sauce with my rice :D

Maxwell Fuzhou Oyster Cake

UFO. $1.50 or $2(with oyster). First look not really appetizing. Second look into the deep fryer oil, not appetizing. Hey! But people say looks can be deceiving right?

Right!

Crispy on the outside, moist and juicy on the inside. You can give the oyster a miss if you are not a fan of overcooked oyster which in most of the case it is. However the filling have a balance flavour which will please everyone including Aliens....

Fried Sweet Potato Dumpling

Incorporating modern technology into hawker cooking. This stall looks very neat and clean! (They even have speed racks! You don't see most hawker stall invest this much in cleanliness and tidiness) I think this should be the most modern hawker stall in Singapore!

However!

The balls are still roll by hands individually, no machines :)

Prices are pretty cheap. Such a wide variety, which is my favourite, make a guess... :)

Pandan Coconut :) Crispy, slightly chewy on the outside, not so sweet yet aromatic and delicious coconut infused with pandan flavours on the inside. I shall limit myself to only one as this is a calories bomb. (Sugar, Starch and Oil, how worst can it get? Hahaha...)

Penang Kitchen

Previously when i wrote about i was disappointed with Malacca's Jonker Street's Assam Laksa i was taking my point of refrence from this assam Laksa in singapore.

First up Penang Ice Coffee, not my kind of coffee. A little too bitter with no acidity and depth, some how i find it a little more like burnt coffee.

Penang Assam Laksa! One of my favourite here. Savory and sourness well balanced with fish cooked into the gravy but not fishy at all. Maybe not the best as compared to the real deal in Penang, but this is certainly the best i can find in Singapore. The only setback? Too small bowl!

Lor Bah! When presented you will think its just ordinary Ngor Hiong but once you bite into one, you will realize its juicy and flavourful! It is some piece of pork that is well marinated, not your usual minced pork. No regrets :)

I love to end the meal with some sweets. Pulut Hitam, A little watery, not too sweet, so-so only.

Apparently the Char Kwey teow and rojak is pretty popular here. Be sure to try it out. Oh, the pricing wise, its a little pricy... Its probably the same number u see in Malaysia but in different currency...

As for service wise, its the same for everywhere... When place gets busy, don't expect too much out of them...

Address:

5 Coronation Road

#01-05 Coronation Arcade

Tel: +65 6466 6193

Opening Hours

Daily: 11am–3pm, 4pm–9pm
(Closed on Wed)

How to make Glazed Vegetables...

Well, instead of the boring boiled vegetable and unhealthy MSG loded vegetables, what can we do to make it delicious and healthy?

Here is a simple suggestion on what you could do.

The idea of glazing vegetable is simple. Firstly u choose vegetables that can absorb water well, i.e. Root vegetables. Then get ready chicken stock, some herbs and butter.

Over here i am glazing carrots.

First i pour just enough stock to cook the carrot (require some experience) then add in herbs (in my case i use garlic and thyme) and butter (french butter). Season with salt at this stage.

Let it cook down and reduce the stock. This way the carrot will absorb the flavourful stock and also the remaining stock will thicken up with the butter producing a glossy glaze.

Here i add in brocoli half way because it cooks faster.

After its done, there should not be so much liquid and the vegetables should be just nice done. If not, remove the vegetables and reduce the stock then add in the vegetables to coat with the glaze.

Serving Suggestion: Ha! Made coq au vin so need some vegetables to go along :)

Conclusion:

• Vegetables loses nutrient thru water blanching. However this method, the carrots was cook in the stock. The stock was reduced to a glaze and coat onto the vegetables. End story you get all the nutrient. Not to mention the flavourful chicken stock is definitely tastier then plain water.
• It is essential to add in butter to not only make it glossy but also to give flavour. However, butter should not be in first as burnt butter will change the colour of the vegetable.
• Even cooking is essential. Vegetables should be cut evenly, ideally bite size. Also, test the vegetable doneness wile cooking. Vegetable should retain some crunch, we are not babies, we are not eating baby food.
• When i add in herbs and spices, i add them whole so its easier to remove after cooking.

Some other example:

Glazed Dice Celeriac

Glazing Baby Carrots

Glazing Baby Radish

Le Chasseur

Having heard so much about this place from various people, i starting to wonder what is it all about... I have been here 3 or 4 years ago and it didn't leave much impression.

Still i decided to check this out to see what is so special about this place.

Firstly, the menu was pasted all over the wall with picture. I must say its quite a view. Simple yet delicious looking food is really the key to their success i think.

They trying to go traditional but what is with the shop name? Le "Char Siu" Hahaa...

After a really long and painful (aroma of the food from other table is killing us...) wait, The first dish arrived. It was a simple peppery soup with pork ribs and stomach. Soup was simple and delicious but i feel the pork ribs could be more tender. I like the way they make the pig stomach so clean and it was cook simply, perfectly.

Pork trotter with ginger and vinegar. Acquired taste but i love it. Pork was tender, nicely cooked with a sweet and lightly sour dark vinegar sauce. However i was disappointed to see some hair on the skin, not removed cleanly...

Prawn paste chicken. It was the perfect snack for beer! Boneless chicken leg cut into bite size, marinade with prawn paste, deep fried and serve with a power packed chili sauce. I have no complains for this dish!

Stir fry kai lan. A little disappointing as it is pretty dry and almost tasteless. It could probably get the healthier choice endorsement hahahaa... But the price is cheap, at $4.80, u can't find it elsewhere...

Next up is the Finale... the much raved about Claypot rice. Actually pretty much a disappointment. Probably because i have tasted the commonwealth avenue claypot rice when i was young, nothing could beat that. But the owner of that claypot rice is MIA now...

Anyway...

The service staff will first help you with mashing up the salted fish then drizzle a little dark soy over it then let us help ourselves. But $16+ for the large one is really expensive considering the pricing of their other dish. Anyway I'm not saying its not good. In fact, its pretty decent with wok hei, well separated basmati(long grain) rice and balanced flavours. I think it could do better with some lard infused in the rice and more salted fish for a more intense flavour. Good but overrated.

As for dessert, i chose to have a recommended dish which is the black fungus dessert. Nicely done, not too sweet. However if it was served with crushed ice instead of ice cubes, it would be much better in terms of mouth feel and connivence of eating.

I will be sure to go back to try more delicious looking dish like the fried pork knuckle and traditional soup.

Address:
31, New Bridge Road
Singapore 059393

Opening hours: 11am to 11pm daily

Tel: 63377677

Craving List

Don't know what happen, i suddenly developed cravings for the following food...

Tanling Halt Food Center(FC) Duck noodle

Alexander FC Bah Kut Teh.

Maxwell FC Tian Tian chicken Rice

Hock Lum Beef Noodle

Taman Jurong market Bah Chor Mee

Zion Road Char Kwey Teow

Holland V XO fish head beehoon

Redhill FC/Adam road FC Fried black Carrot cake

Golden Mile FC Hainan hokkien mee

Katong 328 Laksa

Tiong baruh market/Bukit Batok west ave 6 Lor Mee

Why my cravings so local one? hahaha... Gonna conquer them all!

Making Brown Chicken Stock - From Scratch

Making stock is a simple but time consuming process. Most home cook took a look at recipes and got taunted by the hours or the number of steps they see where the supermarket shelves have ready made one so readily available at cheap price.

Somehow i feel its better to make your own stock. No MSG, no preservative, better flavour to suit your taste and its cost effective if u debone some chicken and don't know what to do with the bones.

First of all what u need is Mirepox.

Mirepox:

- Onion (Use white onion if you are making white stock)

- Carrot (For brown stock)/ Parsnip (for white stock)

- Celery (For brown stock)/ Celeriac (for white stock)

Ratio 2:1:1

Then u need to prepare Bouquet Garni. Bouquet garni is a mix of herbs tied together and into the stock to flavour the stock. I love to use Leek, thyme, parsley and bay leaf then throw in a bulb of garlic too.

The steps i have over here might not be the ones found in recipe books. In recipe books they want you to roast your mirepox and bones in the oven till nicely browned. However it might not be cost effective for home cook.

In a restaurant setting, oven is turn on in the day and off at night. They do stock in quantity that would take a home cook months and months to finish using.

For home cook, it would be troublesome and not envriomentally friendly just to preheat the oven and roast some mirepox and bones.

What you could do is to use your saute pan to grill it. With just a drizzle of olive oil. (but i use butter)

Grill it over high heat till its almost burnt. This will obtain maximum flavour.

Then for the bones, same thing is applied.

Take note, this is not burned, u need that maillard reaction (not caramelization) to produce a flavourful stock.

And also the flavourful bits stuck on the pan, deglaze it with some water or white wine.

Throw everything into a stock pot and fill it up with water. Let it simmer (do not boil) for 4-6h. Carefully strain it and there you go. You can store in in chiller for 4-7 day or freeze it for 2-3 month.

And take note, no salt is added. Salt is added only when you are using the stock for cooking.

What i do is to portion out in ziplock bag and freeze it. so i can just defrost it in the microwave as and when i want it.

What to do after 2-3 month when you can't finish your stock? for me, i won't throw it away. It will not spoil in freezer, just loses its intensity and flavour. What i will do is to do a new batch of stock and add the old frozen one into it pot together and create a new batch of stock.

Its no rocket science and not really hard work. Just time consuming. But you won't need to do it every time if u make a big batch :)

Wee Nam Kee 威南记海南鸡饭餐室

If you ask me what if my favourite local food, I don't have to think to give you the answer. Its Chicken Rice! Nice and delicious rice which is so flavourful with tender steamed chicken (More like poached) or fragrant roast chicken (more like deep fried).

When ever i'm overseas, this is the first dish i'll miss and for sure after i come back to singapore, this is one of the priority dish to have.

My favourite stall is still Tian Tian Chicken Rice at Maxwell food center. However Wee Nam Kee which is near my place also serves up a good chicken rice without the queue.

This place is located near mediacorp so don't be surprise to see local celebrities. Other then chicken rice, they serve up some pretty decent Cez Char which is a good complementary if you want to have a wholesome dinner instead of just chicken rice.

Somehow i love the barley drink here. Love the thick consistency which has a strong flavour of pandan and barley.

As for the chicken, i always prefer the steamed chicken because that i think bring out the best of the chicken. Occasionally i love to order Yuan Yang, meaning both steam and roast chicken to pamper myself :) The sauce they have by the side is pretty standard; Chili Sauce, Dark Sauce and Ginger sauce. I love to mix all the sauce together to create my concoction.

Don't you just love the looks of it?

Address:

275 Thomson Road

#01-05 Novena Ville, Singapore

Opening Hours:

10.30am-2am

Seasoning - Salt

Somehow, a simple pure and innocent looking salt is actually the hardest to grasp for beginner cook. What is the right amount?

Today did potato gratin and adjust as i go with the salt. I always keep in mind chef mention that potato dish need more salt because they are plain in taste. A slightly over salty cream will be just nice after cooking it with potato.

Just like what i read on a book, to rescue a pot of over seasoned soup, add some potato into the soup to absorb the salt.

Feeling good today, Chef said the Dauphinois taste good :) Luckily i did not screw it up!

Procrastinating..

Last week, i told myself to take a break for a week and adjust to my new job before starting my exercise regime. However today after reaching home, i feel so erm... Haiz....

No more procrastinating for me, I seriously need to keep in shape to pass my IPPT else i have to attend 8 weeks remedial training again at Maju camp :( which is a complete waste of time... I rather be working.

Why do the Singapore government like to torture its citizen this way? Not everyone in singapore is working 8-5 job leh... Could make my boss not happy, lower productivity during the period which could cause some impact on economy. Think i'm over-rating it saying it might have impact of economy? Go see for yourself the number of people attending RT... could add up to a few percent of total workforce population!

Anyway...

Have less then 6 month for sundown 42km marathon and less then 7 mth to Osim Triathlon.

Come on, this is not the time to slack! Run fat ass, RUN!

Shall start slow with 20km cycling @ 29-30km/h tomorrow!

From the front, left, right and backside...

Today really low, getting screwed by my CDP all day... Hahaha! haiz... Sometime explain also no use, just suck it up and move on.

Luckily army has prepared me for this kind of situation. Celebrity restaurant is no walk in the park like the other normal restaurants i've worked in. Its not the hours or people, but the want to excel beyond what i am right now that keeps me on overdrive.

Sometimes, after a day of hard work (no time for lunch), the EC said some words of encouragement (e.g, "you are doing good" / "its because of your prep since early in the morning that smooth service is possible" / or simply just a "thank you for today" ). That is the satisfaction!

New Knowledge!

I have eaten gnocchi in the past.

I have cooked gnocchi with gorgonzola cream sauce in swiss club.

Today is the first day i made gnocchi from scratch! Although the size not very even (got screwed a few times), but still, its fun to make!

Maybe next time if there is any potluck session, i'll make it :)

Just 2 days...

In just 2 days, many thing could happen...

What i love most about my workplace now is the attitude of the Chefs. Be it EC, CDC or SC they all come early in the morning do prep together with us and this is the first time i see people above SC so hands on. I really respect the chefs there.

My mentor commented about me being slow hahaha... Haiz... i gotta pick up speed. Thank god i carry plaster in my wallet everyday :) First blood on the first day LOL! hahaha....

EC has been very encouraging. He say frankly since i'm new i will only be doing prep. but as time pass he would probably let me start Garde Manager. Lets hope by end of this year i do get to cook as a line cook. Even veggy station is fine :)

New Year, New Job, New Beginning!

Well in many stories i heard about successful chef, they all started with the lowest rank in the kitchen. Doing odd jobs for start then work their way up to various station as they progress.

It all happens when there is first step, the foundation, the beginning.

Today marks the day i'm following the foot step of my idol, Chef Danel Boulud, in what happen to be his restaurant for the start of my career.

140 seaters offering classical French food like Coq au Vin while serving some Chef Daniel's signature French American creations like his Burger with foie gras...

The Chef De Cuisine of DB Bistro Moderne Singapore, Chef Stephane Istel, welcomed me with a big smile. Telling me to report 8am in the morning doing prep work. If life throws me a lemon, i'm going to make a lemonade with extra sugar. If he throw me all the vegetables, i'm going to peel and slice them all!

Looking forward to working in DB Bistro Moderne, the most beautiful kitchen i've been into!

Cumi Bali

I was here the first time brought by my sister. I don't know how she manage to find this place because you will easily just pass by this place without a second look.

Firstly i go in, the decor is somewhat confused... A bit of a hawker feel a little restaurant and a little kumpong style.

However the decors aside, the food is pretty good.

(Signature) Cumi Bali, Grilled sotong with black sweet sauce. What i love about this is that the chef cook it till its just nice done. I ordered this dish twice on separate occasion. Once was a pretty big one during a no so busy time and a medium small one on a busy day. Both turns out perfect doneness. If you hate your sotong to be rubbery, you won't be disappointed here. The sauce is simple and i think simplicity brings out the best in this dish.

(Signature) Otah Fish. This is pretty new to me, spreading otah paste (without mince fish) on top of a fish, steamed. End result is a very soft and juicy fish with very aromatic smell and flavour full of refreshing herbs spices (kaffia lime leaf is prominent here). Not spicy, easily the best dish in this restaurant. However be prepared to wait as this takes some time to steam. And also check the price with the boss too. Different size different price, don't assume!

Largest satay in Singapore? Chicken Satay. Big chunk of chicken leg meat grilled with black sweet sauce then sprinkle with some fried shallot. The flavour reminds me of the ayam panggang i used to love in Plaza Singapura food court. I'm not sure how "grilled" is this as the satay stick looks pretty clean. More like finish in oven type of satay. But still not bad, worth a try.

With 3 protein im introducing here, plus a veggy or 2 (the eggplant looks good), it will be a really great meal. Lime juice is $2.50 a cup, try to go easy on the sambal chili. Hahaha...

Reservation recommended as place is not very big. If there are people hosting large group gathering, most likely you won't have seat easily.

Address:

66 Tanjong Pagar Road

If can't find parking along the road park at Duxton Hill big carpark.

Parking is $2/h weekday before 5pm. Must put coupon if not will become an expensive meal

Tel: 6220 6619

You might wanna end your meal with a nice japanese dessert.

http://triathlonchef.blogspot.com/2010/09/flor-patisserie-by-chef-yamashita.html