Dinner at Mela Indian Restaurant

Non-vegetarian Thali

Masala Dosa

On a wet autumn night, we decided to have some spicy food at Mela Indian Restaurant, William Street. My wife had the vegetarian Thali while I had the non-vegetarian one. At $14.50, the non-vegetarian thali must be the best value meal in town. It consists of a lamb curry, butter chicken, two vegetable curries, yogurt, rice, naan bread and rice pudding for sweets. Oh yes, and a papadam. The children had Masala Dosa (Dosa with potato fillings.)

Weekend Breakfast at Home

Free Range Egg (sunny side up), Baked Beans, Sauteed Mushroom, Short Back Bacon and Multigrain Toast.

Hokkien Mee (Prawn Mee or Har Meen)

I have been cooking Hokkien Mee for a while, by trial and error. I can get all the required ingredients in Perth.

The toppings include hard boiled eggs, sliced boiled pork and prawns.

I also like to use pork bones (bak kut). Both bones and soft bones.

The finished Hokkien Mee.

Friday Nights at Pasta House (Inglewood)

Pasta House in Inglewood is our usual Friday night haunt. It's a very small, cozy and homely restaurant where everyone seems to know each other. My children love the Aranchini they serve there but tonight they were sold out.

Wine of the night. Penfolds 128. Recommended.

I had Chicken Parmigiana with chips and Greek Salad. (sorry for the poor lighting)

My brother-in-law had Agnello. Skewered lamb with honey and mint.

Finished off with a cuppacinno

The "Pasta House"

April Fruit in Perth

Plums

Fuji Fruit

Red Globes

Pink Ladies, Fuji Apples, Granny Smith and Fuji Fruit (Persimmon)

Photos taken by Mike

Mee Jawa

Mee Jawa

My children love this dish. I use prawn and beef stock which I blend with condensed tomato soup, tomato ketchup and boiled sweet potatoes. Pour over boiled yellow noodle and prepared ingredients.

Afternoon Tea at Veron's

I love her table setting

Muffin with apricot jam

Sticky Date Pudding

This is better than Breakfast at Tiffany's anytime. My sister-in-law is a wonderful cook. I love her desserts. This time she served up sticky date pudding and mini-muffins with home made apricot jam. I couldn't make up my mind which one to have so I had both. Can you blame me?

Pasta tossed in olive oil

Version 2. Spaghetti, tomatoes, mushroom, bacon, smoked salmon and macademia nuts.

Version 1. Spiral pasta, pine nuts, bacon and rocket salad.

Another quick and easy meal I like to make is pasta tossed in garlic flavoured olive oil. There are many variations to this recipe. I also like to add some bacon with the garlic . If I have some salad (rocket is my favourite) I will toss it in when the heat is switch off. The warm pasta will cook the salad. I also add some roasted pine nuts and Parmesan cheese. I have also tried roasted macademia nuts and they work fine too.

Simple Fried Rice

One of my favourite dish is fried rice. It is quick and simple to make. I usually use whatever I have in the refrigerator. I don't use measurements because I cook by trial and error. I think you just have to use your judgement (agak) as to how much of each ingredient you need.

Ingredients:

• Rice (overnight and chilled in the refrigerator)
• Oil
• Prawns
• Sambal (Chilli. optional)
• Frozen peas and corn
• Bacon or Barbeque Pork (or any meat you have)
• Chopped Garlic
• Eggs
• Mustard green (choi sum) and/or beans sprout
• Light Soya Sauce
• Fish sauce
  

Heat oil in a wok (or non-stick pan.) Fry the garlic (and bacon if you are using) until garlic is brownish. Add the prawns and any meat and stir constantly until prawns and meat are nearly cooked. Add the rice followed by fish sauce and light soya sauce. Continue frying until the rice is well mixed in the sauces (ie a consistent colour.) Add the frozen peas & corn. Continue frying until the peas & corn is soft. Next, make a "hole" in the centre of the wok, add some oil and crack the eggs in the "hole". Mix the eggs around and when the egg is semi cooked, cover it with rice and leave for about 20 seconds. Then start frying. Add any green vegetables and fry for just a bit. Add the chilli and mix it in well. Lastly, add in beans sprout if you have any.

More Photos - Dinner at Gary's 19/04/2007

Another photo of the pungat. Did I say it was delicious?

Fried Yee Foo Mein by Veron. This photo was taken as the food was still in the wok.

Dinner at Gary's Place - 19th April 2007

Coconut milk with palm sugar, pandan leaves and sago is added to the steamed ingredients.

The main ingredients of pugat before the cocunut milk with palm sugar is added. This ingredients are steamed.

Yumi's sushi was also a great hit especially with the children.

Amy's sweet. It was very refreshing. It had canned longan, canned rambutans, nata de coco and grass jelly.

Sim made Lor Bak. The photo says it all.

Veron's often requested butter cake. This is fluffy and moist and is simply the best.

Gary's Fried Kueh Teow. He fried this outdoors using a portable gas stove. He uses dried chilli flakes. His Kueh Teow is as good as you can get!

Dinner at Golden Century - 20th April 2007

Singapore Style Chilli Crab. Some thought the same dish at Binh Ming was better.

Snow Crab with Salted Egg. This is better than the one in Binh Ming

Prawn on Toast

Menu:

1. Pork and Corn Soup
   
2. Prawn Toast
   
3. Snow Crab with Salted Eggs
4. Singapore Chilli Style Snow Crab
5. Mustard Green with Dried Shrimps
6. Peking Style Pork
   
7. Stuffed Tofu
8. Clay Pot Patagonian Tooth Fish
9. Crispy Skin Chicken
10. Egg Fried Rice
11. Fresh Fruits
12. ToFu Fah

Homemade Fried Hor Fun

Fried Hor Fun (Sar Hor Fun)
My sister in law cooked this dish at home. The sauce is made from pork and prawn stock. It was delicious and rivals the best we have back home in Penang.

Dinner at Binh Ming 15 April 2007

Singapore Style Chilli Snow Crab with Man Tou

Snow Crab with Onions, Celery and Salted Eggs

Chilli Squid

Chicken Chop

Eng made some Enee (glutinous rice balls with sugar and ginger syrup)

Chicken Chop
My brother-in-law makes a great chicken chop. He would not share his recipe with me. The ingredients are

• Cabbage
• Tomatoes
• Chicken
• Cinnamon
• Baked Beans

He serves it with rich and creamy mashed potatoes.

We had homemade cheese cake for dessert.

Nasi Lemak Night

Curry Chicken

Ikan Billis with Peanuts and Hard Boiled Eggs

Assam Prawns

Indian Curry Crab