This is my first attempt at this dish. It tasted pretty good, if I may say so myself. However, I felt that the french beans were cut too short because I am so used to doing that when I stir fry them. For this dish, cutting each french bean in half would be just nice.

Ingredients:

500gm french beans

2 tbsps minced pork

1 tbsp dried shrimp

2 tbsps chopped ginger

1/4 tsp salt

1/5 cup water

1 tsp vinegar

1/4 tsp sesame oil

1/4 tsp sugar

Method:

1. Trim the ends of the french beans and break into two sections.

2. Soak the dried shrimps till softenened, remove hard shells if any and then finely chop the shrimps.

3. Heat up a wok and deep fry the french beans until the surface of the french beans turn wrinkly. Transfer them out and use paper towels to absorb the excess oil.

4. Heat 2 tbsps of oil in wok and stir fry the minced pork and chopped ginger. Add in the chopped dried shrimp, followed by the sugar, salt and water. Finally, return the french beans to the wok and stir fry until gravy is almost dry.

5. Drizzle vinegar down the edges of the wok and add the sesame oil.  Continue stirring a few times, then dish out and serve.

Recipe is courtesy of Dedric McGhee, executive chef of Thyme on the Creek, the in-house restaurant at the Millennium Harvest House Hotel in Boulder, CO.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp butter
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tbsp flour
1 cup chicken broth
2-4 ounce cans of chopped green chiles
¼ tsp cumin
1/3 tsp oregano
1/3 tsp coriander powder
1 ½ cups shredded turkey
2 cups cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses
1 pack corn tortillas
1 pint sour cream
2 green onions, chopped
Salsa

Directions:

1. Add the butter to a warm sauté pan.
2. Add onions and sauté until translucent.
3. Add garlic and cook until it becomes aromatic.
4. Add flour and cook for 1 minute.
5. Pour both cans of green chiles into pan.
6. Add cumin, oregano, coriander, chicken broth and a little salt and pepper.
7. Simmer for 5 minutes at low heat.
8. Place turkey in a mixing bowl. Add 1/3 cup of the green chile mix, 1/3 cup of sour cream, 1/3 of the cheese mixture and salt and pepper. Mix well.
9. Grease a 13×9 baking dish.
10. Place 1 to 2 tablespoons of filling in each tortilla and roll up. Place the rolled tortillas in the baking dish seam-side down. Continue to add rolled tortillas until the top layer is filled.
11. Pour the rest of the green chile on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with remaining cheese.
12. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
Serve with sour cream, green onions and salsa.

This restaurant used to be located in Grand Continental Hotel’s building but has since moved to a new location. It’s new premise is BEHIND the “Dua Puluh Sen” store next to the junction/traffic light at Jalan Mendu.

Being a restaurant, food is a little on the pricey side, especially when you order seafood. However, there are some dishes which I feel are worth paying for such as my favourite Thai Style Mized Midin and the Sweet and Sour Fish. Unlike most outlets, their Sweet and Sour Fish have very little flour added, so you don’t get that chewy or rubbery feel when you bite into the fish fritters. Most important, the fish is also fresh.

RATINGS:

FOOD - 4 out of 5 (sometimes depends on the dish you order)

SERVICE - 3.5 out of 5

ATMOSPHERE - 4 out of 5

Thai Style Mixed Midin

Sweet & Sour Fish

Braised Mushroom with Soy Gluten

Vanilla Maple Syrup
Featured in Nielsen-Massey’s A Century of Flavor Cookbook
Makes 1 cup

1 cup pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract

Combine the syrup and vanilla extract in a small saucepan and mix well. Heat until warm.
Note: Substitute Nielsen-Massey’s Mexican or Tahitian Pure Vanilla Extract for a change of taste.

Pumpkin-Ginger Pancakes (By Ellen Easton, Courtesy of Nielsen-Massey Vanillas)

2 TBS. butter, melted
1 large egg
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup milk, room temperature
2 TBS. Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Walnuts, natural, crushed to tiny pieces
1/8 cup Ginger People crystallized ginger, crushed to dust size pieces
2 TBS. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups King Arthur Pumpkin Pancake Mix

Melt butter over a low heat. In a medium size mixing bowl, add next eight ingredients. On a medium speed, slowly add pumpkin mix, blending together until combined. It is OK if batter is a bit lumpy.

On a preheated hot skillet, place 1/4 cup of batter for regular size pancakes or one heaping tablespoon for mini pancakes, allowing room in-between each. When small bubbles appear on the top, flip over for 30 seconds or until cooked through. Remove and serve with slices of fresh pear and maple syrup.

Garnish: fresh sliced pears and maple syrup