Monday, February 04, 2008

Home Cooking with Abalone - Chicken Char Siu and Porridge


Chicken char siu and abalone on top of Maggi instant noodles

Recently I had 2 cans of abalone to finish just before their expiry date which is this month. We just used it in a simple manner i.e. as a simple topping for noodles and porridge. I understand some people do use the canned liquid for cooking but my mother has warned me against that, since she reckons it is full of preservatives.


Sliced abalone

I decided to try and make the chicken char siu I learnt from the Cooking House with Fatboybakes, Precious Pea and Lyrical Lemongrass. It was pretty simple to make and I made a few tweaks to the recipe - crushed garlic cloves vs garlic pips, more chinese wine, brown sugar instead of white as I couldn't find any around, a drizzle of honey and less time under the grill. Instead of the recipe's half and hour, I only used 15 minutes because the boneless chicken thighs weren't as big compared to what I saw demonstrated.


Chicken and abalone porridge

I thought it didn't taste as great as the one in the Cooking House because the meat she used was much thicker hence it was juicy. I had burnt bits on my chicken skin as I drizzled honey. Maybe next time, I'll use bigger chicken thighs, a lower heat and less time to get the texture I am looking for. I paired it with Maggi instant noodles as we couldn't get any wantan mee from KLCC, where we were earlier on and sliced abalone from the can.

Earlier, we had used one can by cooking chicken porridge at my mother's place. Very nice when combined together as she had used one whole chicken to cook the porridge. She had a bit more patience than me as she sliced the abalone thinly. Hope all this gives you an idea how to use up the abalone, which seems to be a common gift during Chinese New Year.

26 comments:

Precious Pea said...

High 5! While i was shifting house, I found 1 can of abalone from last Chinese New Year. Luckily, not expired yet.

Lyrical Lemongrass said...

Only you can make maggi mee look good lar.

yammylicious said...

lovely porridge!! mom i wan abalon porridge pls?! XD

HairyBerry said...

haha..i also have 2 cans from last year...and we're gonna use it as an ingredient for the soup...other stuff that we put in include black peppercorn (lots), dried scallops, black chicken, wolfberries and pork stomach...

"Joe" who is constantly craving said...

if instant noodles can always look so good, i want to eat instant noodles for dinner for the rest of the year!

JOjo said...

The chicken charsiew looks good cos im not a pork lover.Haha.
The abalone porridge is an indulgence la...

daphne said...

what a luxury! if only someone were to give me some abalone for CNY too.. LOL

ling239 said...

hahahaaa... i tot abalone is best cut into triangles (in cantonese: chit kok) ? to get more chew out of it...^_^

Hazza said...

That's an unusual combi .. expensive ingredients over cheap ones. Well, there are no rules against that.. in fact, many years ago, when abalone used to cost unde rm10 (yes, I am that old!!), I used to eat slices straight from the can! By the way, the juice is only brine .. ie. salt water ... salt alone is a good preservative.

LianneK said...

I love how your porridge turn out so white, and fine. I can never get my porridge this way. Abaloneeee ... oh yummm! I wanttttt!

The Peenut said...

seriously your maggi mee looks so gourmet it's not funny. Gorgeous!

boo_licious said...

precious pea - yippee, u can feast on abalone this CNY. Mine is left over from 2 CNY ago. Had to finish them ASAP or else expire.

LL - LOL! Well, it was either Maggi Mee or soba noodles in the pantry. Somehow, soba didn't sound right wth char siu?

Yammylicious - am sure yr mummy will make u some.

Nic - gulp!, your soup sounds super yum!

Joe - up to u to jazz it up?

Jojo - mine's burnt and not as yum as the teacher's version though.

daphne - I reckon no one will ever give me abalone ever again as I take forever to eat it!

ling239 - hmmm, no idea but now u mention it, it shld look like the way they cut in the pun choy place.

hazza - thxs for the tip on the brine but I don't dare risk getting hypertension though.

imbi and itchy - my mum's secret as she's the expert chef here.

the peenut - hee hee, I kinda love Maggi Mee as it's so simple to make.

wushukid said...

wow. I always thought instant noodles are dump cabo only so I always add some veg/egg. Yours definitely in another class ;-)

Jason said...

You certainly have the patience to prepare the toppings for the noodle :)

Happy Chinese New Year!

Big Boys Oven said...

This is one of the most expensive maggi mee dish I had ever come across! Gong Xi Fatt Cai to you and your family!

fatboybakes said...

that is one heck of a maggi mee....
looks darn good la...
GXFC to you ha.

choi yen said...

The chicken char siu look so succulent!!!

♥ ♡ Alvin ♡ ♥ said...

恭喜发财! brada you maggi mee really ichiban neh~

Sugar Bean said...

A new combination of food, char siu, abalone and maggi. :) The porridge looks good.

Happy Chinese New Year to you!! Wishing you all the best. Stay healthy, wealthy and happy!

rokh said...

wow such class yet simple and lovely meal. gong xi fa cai!

Unknown said...

Abalone and porridge is so fancy! I have actually been looking for abalone where I live in the USA (400+ miles/700+ km from the ocean) but there is none to be found. I will not look for canned, I have not thought of that before.

boo_licious said...

wushu kid - can add anything on maggi. Just let yr imagination go wild.

jason, BBO and FBB - Gong Xi Fa Cai!

Thxs Mimi!

Alvin - hee hee, very iciban alrite.

Wenching - Thxs and Happy Chinese New Year to both of u.

Jackson - not as good as the ones in Shah Alam though.

rokh - thxs! Gong Xi Fa Cai too!

Lannae - we survive on canned ones though as I can imagine fresh ones will cost a bomb in Msia.

janice said...

Hi,

I read your blog on a regular basis and was wondering if you would be able to email me your recipe for the char siew chicken? I study in the US, and it's hard for me to get the right kind of pork to make char siew, so chicken would be a good alternative.

Thanks

mycookinghut said...

Nice char siew.. yum!

Unknown said...

Hi!
Your char siu looks so yummy! I wonder which part of the chicken meat was being used. Is it possible to share your recipe?
Thanks!
Asty

Jane Kaylor said...

Thanks for the recipe!!! Love it. Fresh or frozen local abalone is cheaper but will never give the same taste, flavor and texture as canned abalone. I love the flavor and taste of canned abalone and one day I want to eat abalone like 'abalone kings' do: braised in sauce and served whole, like a steak, washed down with a good white wine. Cut with a knife and fork of course. Meantime, it's still cheaper to slice abalone thinly and share with the family. I love this dish. It's such a special treat

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