Quick Lunch: Salad with tuna, sweetcorn, iceberg lettuce and poached egg with truffle oil

You may have noticed that I have been posting regularly under the "Quick Lunch" section, for healthy delicious lunch that you can prepare in under 15 minutes. As a mother of two, I am always on the go and  I know that it's not always easy to find time to cook a long, elaborate lunch.

I made this relatively simple salad last week, but received several requests on Facebook and Instagram for the recipe. If you're planning to make this to bring to work as a packed lunch, then it is advisable to replace the poached egg with a boiled egg (hen's or quail's will both work). If you're planning on making salads or pasta regularly, then do buy a good bottle of extra virgin olive oil.

There is no rule as to what you can put in your salad. For this salad, I just put together a few things which I like eating such as sweetcorn, tuna and POACHED EGG! You can also add sundried tomatoes or other salad leaves as you please.

Salad with tuna, sweetcorn, iceberg lettuce and poached egg with truffle oil

Salad with tuna, sweetcorn, iceberg lettuce and poached egg with truffle oil
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 5-10 minutes
Serves 2

1/2 can of sweetcorn (you can also use frozen sweetcorn)
2 eggs
1/2 can of tuna (I used tuna chunks in olive oil)
2-3 lettuce leaves, thinly sliced
1 tbsp butter
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Truffle oil

1. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan on medium high heat. Add sliced onions and cook until softened for about 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.

2.At the same time, you can cook your poached or boiled egg. To poach an egg, fill a frying pan with 4cm barely simmering water. Break each egg into a cup and lower into the water. Cook for approximately 2 minutes (you will know it's cooked when the egg white has set). Use a slotted spoon to remove.

3. If using frozen sweetcorn, then pour boiling water over the sweetcorn and leave for a few minutes to defrost. Drain water and place in a bowl with the butter. Mix well.

4. Toss the lettuce with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.

5. To assemble, place lettuce, followed by fried onions, sweetcorn, tuna and finally top with poached egg. Drizzle with some truffle oil.

Light, simple and delicious

*This recipe has been featured on Asian Food Channel's Facebook page on 1 July 2012.

Dim sum @ Di Wei Chinese Restaurant, Empire Hotel Subang

Both my children love dim sum very much. They often ask us to bring them for dim sum every weekend. 

During our weekend getaway at Empire Hotel Subang, we took them for dim sum at Di Wei Chinese Restaurant. We've eaten there once for dinner and enjoyed the food. The restaurant was fairly busy on a Saturday afternoon, but service was good. Upon arrival, the waiting staff kindly brought 2 cute cutlery set for the kids, which they liked very much. 

Vietnam style fried salad roll

Hehe both of them wanted to take photo with their cute plates!

Complimentary appetizer - cucumber and pineapple in a spicy dressing

There is quite a good variety of porky and non-porky dim sum items here. You can also order a la carte if you want, at the moment they have a Peking duck promotion which runs til August, whereby you can get a whole duck for RM39.90++. We saw lots of people ordering it but because we are dining in a small group, we decided to forego this and just go with the dim sum.

I did all the ordering, choosing some of our regular dim sum items such as har gao (steamed prawn dumpling), siew mai (steamed pork dumpling) and steamed scallop dumpling for the benefit of the kids as well as some of the more unique sounding items from the menu.

The steamed prawn dumpling had a nice translucent skin, this time I didn't take so long photographing the photo hence the skin didn't feel so sticky. The prawn was big and juicy. Both the steamed scallop dumpling and siew mai was also good, and Baby C loved it cos it is topped with lots of roe.

Steamed prawn dumpling with water chestnut (RM10 for 3 pcs)

Steamed fresh scallop dumpling (RM12 for 3 pcs)

Steamed pork dumpling with crab roe (RM10 for 4 pcs)

We also enjoyed the deep fried prawn dumpling, again nice juicy prawns and the wasabi sauce wasn't overpowering. The steamed pork ribs was also good, the meat was tender complemented by a sweet-spicy sauce. Usually I try not to order xiao long bao from any restaurants other than Din Tai Fung as they are usually quite poorly made, however the xiao long bao (steamed Shanghainese dumpling) here at Di Wei was surprisingly very good. The translucent skin was not too thick and did not break when we lifted it up to eat. Inside, the pork was juicy and filled with a flavorful broth. Bravo - another place to get my XLB fix in future.

Deep fried prawn dumpling with wasabi sauce (RM10 for 3 pcs)

Steamed Shanghainese dumpling (RM9 for 3 pcs)

Steamed pork ribs with chilli sauce (RM8)

The only item I didn't enjoy was the steamed cheong fun as the rolls were slightly too thick and stodgy and the prawns were minced up too finely. One that I loved was the Vietnam style fried salad roll, which contains no meat at all and just a cold "salad" filling. I felt it went really well with the "hot" deep fried crunchy skin. The salad had a slightly sweet dressing. Definitely unique. The deep fried salted meat dumpling was also very good - I like the slightly chewy glutinous rice texture of this, plus the sweet crust and salty meat filling was a good combination.

Steamed cheong fun with prawn (RM9)

Vietnam style fried salad roll (RM12 for 3 pcs)- very unique

Deep fried salted meat dumpling (RM8 for 3 pcs)

On to desserts, we had the steamed mini custard bun which a oozy salted egg yolk filling as well as egg tarts. We also enjoyed the chilled light cream of sago with seasonal mango topped with ice cream, which came with some homemade "green" jelly that Baby D kept looking for in his glass. LOL.

Steamed mini custard bun with salted egg yolk (RM6 for 3pcs)

Home baked egg tart (RM9 for 3 pcs)

Dessert time = happy time :)

Chilled light cream of sago with seasonal mango topped with ice cream (RM10)

"More, more.. green jelly"

Peking duck promo

Verdict: Dim sum here is good, I certainly don't mind coming back if I'm in the vicinity.

Click here for my previous review of Di Wei. Click here to read our review of Empire Hotel Subang.


Opening times: Mon - Fri 11.00pm -3.00pm, 6pm-10pm; Sat-Sun and PH 10.30am - 3.00pm, 6pm - 10pm.

Service: Good.

Location: Di Wei Chinese Restaurat, Empire Hotel Subang, Level 1, Jalan SS16/1, 47500 Subang Jaya, Selangor.

Tel: 03- 5565 1388

GPS Coordinates: 3.082033, 101.583200

Warong Kaklong @ Bandar Tun Hussein Onn, Cheras, Selangor

A breakfast fit for champions... 

Nasi lemak with ayam rendang and telur sambal

A food hunt to find fabulous Malaysian street food in Selangor led us to this gem of a place in Bandar Tun Hussein Onn. We were told by locals that Warong Kaklong is a popular breakfast and lunch spot.

Warong Kaklong ("Kak long" translates to big sister in Malay) serves Malay traditional kampong style dishes from 6.30am to 5.00pm daily. In the morning, you will find the delectable Malaysian breakfast, nasi lemak. Other than nasi lemak, you can also find kueh teow goreng, meehoon goreng, nasi goreng (fried rice), ikan goreng, sambal sotong (squid sambal) and ayam goreng (fried chicken).

The vendor was packing nasi lemak non-stop, and customers would buy them by the dozen.. I kid you not. We too wanted a piece of the deliciousness, and ordered a plate of nasi lemak with ayam rendang and telur sambal to share.

Quite a nice variety of food

These were quite popular with the customers.. steamed tapioca and sweet potato.

Kuih-muih!

I see my favorite kuih tepung pelita

She must have packed 100s of this that morning! She worked non-stop..

Rows and rows of nasi lemak.. YUM!

Getting my plate of nasi lemak :)

We knew we were on to something good, as we scooped a spoonful of rice into our mouth - it was fluffy yet firm and aromatic from the use of coconut milk. The sweet-spicy sambal was also very good. I like that they serve the nasi lemak on a banana leaf, which gives out a nice fragrance while you savour your food. The ayam rendang gets a big thumbs up - the chicken was moist and the thick sauce was very flavourful and fragrant with spices. As for the telur sambal, give me 5 of them and I will finish them all - need I say more? This is definitely a breakfast fit for a champion. As Baby D would put it, "BEST - NO.1!"

 

A really great way to kickstart our morning

Baby D enjoys some of the nasi lemak.. he says No.1 BEST!

Another popular item here is the lempeng pisang, a banana pancake cooked on banana leafs on a flat pan. The sound of the sizzling pan and wonderful aroma makes this hard to resist - chewy on the outside and moist in the centre.  No wonder they sell like hot cakes... literally!

I spotted soto when I walked into the stall and ordered a bowl to try. The vendor recommended that I tried the soto campur, which comes with chicken strips, beef slices, and deep fried beef tripe. The soup was comforting and flavourful, and comes with meehoon (vermicelli), fried chilli, daun sup and sambal. Even Baby D enjoyed slurping the noodles with the broth. YUMS.

Slurp-licious

By now, we were full, however we couldn't resist a kuih (traditional Malay cakes) or two. I especially liked the kuih tepung pelita,  a kuih made up of layers of smooth coconut milk and rice flour with pandan leaves  in a banana leaf case.  Baby D also loved the sesame ball with green bean filling and chocolate muffin. 

The teh tarik (pulled tea) wasn't too sweet. 

Speaking to the vendors, they have many additional items in the afternoon (starting 12 noon) such as ikan bakar (grilled fish), gulai kawah (a famous curry dish from Kelantan), and ayam goreng berempah. The stall opens til 5pm daily and closes on alternate Mondays.  I can't wait to come back again to try some of their lunch offerings! 

Located opposite this mechanic shop

Another landmark close to the shop... a tower clock

On another visit we came back again for the nasi lemak and I also tried their assam laksa (Penang version). The soup was thick, full of fish flavour and very appetizing. Loved it.

Full set of photos can be viewed on my Facebook page here.

Halal.

Opening times: 6.30am to 5.00pm daily. Closed on alternate Mondays.

Service: Excellent. The vendors were very friendly and answered all the questions that we had. :)

Price: Cheap. All the above for RM10.20!

Location: Warong Kaklong, Jalan Suasana 2/7A, Bandar Tun Hussein Onn, 43200 Batu 9, Cheras, Selangor. (At McDonalds, go straight to the end, you will see a mechanic shop C&K Auto Services, Warong Kaklong is directly opposite it).

GPS Coordinates: 3.049861, 101.763804

I baked: Hokkaido chiffon cupcake

After trying the Hokkaido cake from RT Pastry House and writing about it, some blogger friends mentioned that it is a very easy cake to make at home. Since I've recently caught the "baking bug", I decided to try my hand at making this and they were right - it is very simple to bake this!

My take on the Hokkaido chiffon cupcakes

Hokkaido cake is basically a light chiffon cake with a whipped cream filling and dusted with icing sugar. A Japanese friend tells me that he has never come across this in Hokkaido, Japan. Perhaps the icing sugar represents the pretty snow in Hokkaido during winter time, hence the name.

I looked around for some recipes and found Sonia's (Nasi Lemak Lover) Hokkaido chiffon cupcake recipe. I adapted it slightly to suit my tastebuds. First time baking these Hokkaido cakes was a success (yay!). I did not use the square cupcake liners, instead I just used regular round ones. The cupcakes do not look very pretty when they come out from the oven (they will look a little "cracked"), but do not despair. There's nothing a little "make-up" can't fix.... in this instance a light dusting of icing sugar completely transforms it into a gorgeous lil' cupcake.

A good way to make your children eat fresh fruits - top it on your Hokkaido cake! ;)

Or you could always just serve it with cream and icing sugar

Tastewise, the cake was very light and not too sweet hence I could easily eat a few in one seating. I especially love the cream filling in the centre, the more the better - hence, I have increased the amount of whipping cream in my recipe. Sonia's recipe includes addition of custard powder to the whipping cream and sugar, but I omitted that as I preferred the taste of pure whipped cream. If I remember correctly, the RT Pastry ones do not have custard powder added to the filling as well.

I have made this several times now, as it is really easy, doesn't taste too sweet and the kids love it! I usually make it in the afternoon, just in time for their evening treat. Make it at least 2-3 hours in advance as you need to allow the cakes to cool or else the cream will "melt" when you pipe it into the cake.

Baby D is happy to see 'em cakes!

Hokkaido chiffon cupcake
Makes 8

Ingredients
3 egg yolks, at room temperature
20g caster sugar
35g corn oil
60g full cream milk
70g cake flour, sifted

3 egg whites, at room temperature
25g caster sugar
1 tsp cream of tartar

100g whipping cream
10g sugar
1 tsp instant custard powder (I omitted this)

Icing sugar, for dusting


1.Pre-heat oven to 170°C.

2. Remove eggs from fridge 30 minutes before you start, and separate the egg yolks and whites and place in separate bowls covering them in cling film until ready. Arrange paper liners on a muffin tray.

3. Using an electric whisk, beat the egg yolk and sugar until pale yellow in colour. Add in oil and milk, and mix well. Add the cake flour and combine.

4. In a separate bowl (make sure bowl and whisk are very clean and free of oil or else the eggs whites will not rise), use an electric whisk to beat the egg white until foamy and then add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks are formed. Gradually add the sugar, and continue to beat til stiff peaks.

5. With a spatula, gently fold 1/3 of egg white into the egg yolk batter.

6. Fold in the balance egg white until well-combined.

7. Fill the pre-arranged paper liners to about 3/4 full.

8. Bake for 18- 20 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Do not overbake or else texture of the cake won't be as light. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

9. Using an electric whisk, beat whipping cream with sugar until firm. If you are using custard powder, add in now and mix well. I omitted it - after experimenting a couple of times with the different fillings, I prefer the pure whipping cream & sugar combo.

10. Pipe cream into the cooled cupcake and dust with icing sugar. Serve immediately or refridgerate until ready for consumption.

*My Hokkaido cake photo is featured on  UKTV's Good Food Channel "Summer of Cake" Gallery in June 2012. This recipe was also featured on Asian Food Channel's Facebook page on 19 July 2012.
This post was also featured on DailyBuzz Moms Top 9: Berrylicious! on 22 August 2012.  

Full set of photos can be viewed on my Facebook page here.