Red: A red dragon in Auckland zoo.

We were brave, back in 1985

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flowers: Rose buds

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Flowers: Aloe maculata vera flowers

 

 

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Making Siew Mai Dim sum.

Making Siew Mai.









When I was growing up in Sibu, Borneo, we didn't have Dim Sum or Yum Char. As kids, we longed for one dish when we went for wedding or birthday banquets. It was the Siew Mai in my Cantonese dialect. Most of the restaurants were Foochows, I am not sure Siew Mai was a Cantonese specialty or a Foochow's. It is also called Sio Bee.


Ingredients :

800 gram of ground meat (pork or chicken)
200 gram of shrimp (roughly chopped)
6 dry wood fungi (soak and cut small)
6 dry shitake mushroom (soak still soft and diced small)
4 stalk of spring onions - finely chopped
2 eggs
4 tsp of corn starch
1 tbsp of oyster sauce (Optional)
1 tbsp of soy sauce (optional)
1 tsp of sesame oil
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp salt.
1 tsp of sugar.

60 pieces round dumpling wrappers, these are ready made Jiao Ji Dumplings that the Northern Chinese use. (You can roll them out yourselves,)
some green peas or grated carrot (for garnish)

1) Mix all the ingredients for the filling.
2) Cover with glad wrap, Chill for 30 minutes.
3) Spoon one teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper.
4) Thinly grease the plate you are going to place your Siew Mai to steam.
5) An important step as this stops the Siew Mai from sticking to the plate.
6) Shape the wrapper up around the filling with a small space at the top.
7) Sit the Siew Mai flat at the bottom.
8) Press a green pea on the top of half the Siew Mais.
9) Press some finely shredded carrot on the top of the other half.
10) I use a rack and a special tray with holes the Chinese use for steaming.
11) Steam over high heat for 12 minutes.
12) Serve warm with chili sauce. I prefer the Thai sweet chilli sauce for chicken.
13) Arrange them alternately, one green one orange for nice presentation, and the small bowl of chilli sauce in the middle.


Verdict: All 60 Siew Mais were gone in a flash!

Comment: Authentic Siew Mais were made with crab roe instead of grated carrots. I wasn't going to use crab roe because I might get people say, "what's that? I am not going to eat crab roe." Besides, I am too stingy to use expensive crab roe.

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Lisa and Loom Bands

My friend's brave daughter Lisa has chronic kidney disease. They are raising funds by selling loom bands.

Loom bands are very popular with both boys and girls.
Lisa's fundraising page!!!
This is where you will see all that is up and coming in our fundraising efforts for her amazing trip with Koru Care Nz to California!!

Lisa's Californian Adventure with Koru Care NZ - Fundraiser

11yr old Lisa lives with chronic kidney disease and will need a transplant sometime within the next few years. Help her forget that for just a while

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Borage

blue flowers in my archives, Borage . The leaves are edible and the plant is grown in gardens for that purpose in some parts of Europe. The plant is also commercially cultivated for borage seed oil extracted from its seeds. Anyone know how to extract the oil?

Naturopathic practitioners use borage for regulation of metabolism and the hormonal system, and consider it to be a good remedy for PMS and menopause symptoms such as the hot flash.[15] The flowers can be prepared in infusion.

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Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides)

Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) is a flowering plant that grows upon larger trees, or tamed in pots , At Winter garden in the Auckland Domain.

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Save the wold, Alphabet Thursdayletter E Elephants

 I love visiting the Singapore Zoo, thy have a wonderful enclosure for th elephants, and these elephants perform for visitors. They don't seem stressed, and the enclosure look like their natural habitat.

Recently, some idiots killed the biggest elephant in Africa. I feel so angry.

Alphabe-Thursday letterE
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friday flowers

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Seina, Fijian Indian Taro leaf delicacy

We used to eat different kinds of Taro/yam leaves. The only drawback is the sap is very itchy, and we didn't have rubber gloves then.

Fijian Indian recipe. I am very fortunate to meet friends from different nationalities and eat their food.This one was very unfamiliar to most of you. 
It is made of Taro leaves ( Yam in South East asia)

Seina
Ingredients:
10 taro leaves, washed
1/2 cup uradh dhal, soaked overnight
1/2 onion, optional
Juice of 1 lime
3 chilies
3 cloves garlic
1 tspn. Salt
Cooking Instructions:
Grind dhal. Add lime juice and salt. Make a paste of garlic, onion and chilies and add to ground dhal. Smear dhal paste on the wrong side of a taro leaf. Take another leaf, put paste on and place the second leaf on top of the first one. Repeat spreading the paste on every single leave until about 5 leaves are done. Roll up tightly, plastering loose ends with the dhal paste. Tie with a string and steam for about 30 to 40 minutes. Remove string, cut into 1/2 inch slices and deep fry in good quality oil (preferably olive oil) a couple of minutes each side or until slightly golden.

Organic snail and slug bait.

My enzyme bait caught a slug.

and 2 snails ,

  I made my own enzyme to wash my floors and dishes, and use as fertilizer, and lately I found out that snails and slugs get attracted by the yeast. So I experimented and found I can use the enzyme as a bait.

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Hyacinth

 

 

Hyacinth

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a converted cafe

 


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