Indonesian Dish - Vegetables & Prawns in Lodeh Gravy

Sayur Lodeh or Vegetables & Prawns in Lodeh Gravy is actually a common Indonesian dish that takes from a soup (but this does not serve as a soup). the veges and the gravy are poured over a steaming hot rice and accompanied by other side dishes such as Ayam Masak Merah/Chicken in red gravy, or spiced fried chicken etc...

to be honest, i ran out of ideas on what to cook for dinner (and hubby MUST eat rice) so in search of ideas i went on to browse my trusty old cook book that i've been compiling from friends, paper cuttings, mama's recipes, grandma's recipes tips and so on from alot of people....and this book seriously look like crappy scrapbook with drawings and ugly handwritings (apparently my handwriting changed through out the years)....hehehe~ can't believe i wrote it all down complete with footnotes... anyway i found this recipe and it seem just perfect with what i have in my fridge...

so here's what you need...

1tbsp vegetable oil

1 med onion - blended

1clove garlic - blended

1 red chilli without the seeds (we don't want its hotness but just the heat)

1inch of galangal/lengkuas - blended .............you may blend all 4 ingredients together

1tsp ground coriander

225g prawns - peeled and devein

225g cabbage - coarsely chopped

225g cauliflower - parted into florets

1 small carrot - jullian cut them (cut into strips)

225g string beans - remove the strings and cut into thirds

1 small eggplant - cubed

salt to taste

1.5c coconut milk

1.5c water

1 Bay leaf / Salam leaf

-> heat oil and saute blended ingrediens and grounded ingredients . fry for 1 minutes until fragrant

--> add prawns and saute fro 2 minutes

--> add in all the vegetables cover and cook over low heat fro about 10 minutes or so

--> pour in the coconut milk and water. add in bay leaf. cook uncovered stirring almost continuosly until vegetables are tender. serve.

Note: you can substitute prawns with chicken breast

Sate Lilit Bali with Sambal Jeruk / wrapped balinese satay with spicy lemon dip

my husband is fasting today and i'm feeling creative and also craving for that 'ole ole bali 'sate lilit. 1st of all if you're wondering what's an ole ole bali? its actually means souvenir from bali (an indonesian island) but thats not it as its actually a name of a restaurant that serves indonesian food and i personally think the restaurants is an exotic place to dine i mean the ambiance is superb... to malaysian have you eaten there yet? its worth a try the outlet ones that i know of is at seri hartamas and sunway piramid...

anyway...i like the fact that the sate is being wrapped around the lemongrass its very fragrant i love it....i uses chicken meat with prawns i think the original sate lilit uses seafood such as ermmm tuna/mackerel fish flesh or any meaty fish combined with other seafood such as squids or prawns.

this Sate or satay lilit is different from our malaysian sate which is skewered with a bamboo stick. the marinade is also different.

ok ok enough blabbering here's the recipe:
SATE LILIT BALI

300g chicken breast meat minced
150g medium sized prawns remove all shells and minced
9-12 lemongrass ;cleaned
blended ingredients / marinade paste:

1/8tsp coriander spice (serbuk ketumbar)
11/2tsp palm sugar or brown sugar
salt to taste
1/2" ginger
1" galangal (lengkuas)
1clove garlic
1cm fresh tumeric
60-100g desiccated coconut (this depends on your liking)
*1tbsp corn flour (+-)

1. mix the marinade paste with the minced prawns and chicken breast. mix well.
2. let it sit for awhile.
3. if the mixture is too loose you can add in the corn flour as you see fit. but please do not put too much of its render taste. but if you already put more than 2tbsp corn flour yet your mixture still too loose, add in more desiccated coconut instead. then let it sit in the fridge for 10 minutes.
   
4. then wrap the mixture around bamboo skewer or lemon grass
5. let it sit in the fridge for another 5 minutes or so then grill it until cooked

-> choosing lemongrass: for this purpose look for skinny lemongrass rather the plump fats ones if you can't find lemongrass you can always use bamboo skewers.


Sambal Jeruk/ spicy lemon dip :
10 red chillies remove all seeds
1/2tsp shrimp paste /belacan
1 lemon cut into a fine wedges
1shallot
1tsp palm sugar
salt to taste
1tsp lemon juice


=> mix alll ingredients except lemon wedges, blend until smooth.
=> with a teaspoon of heated oil cook the chili paste until fairly dry but if you like watery dip its really up to you.
=> have a taste and adjust the taste to accordingly then mix in the lemon wedges, ready to serve.

you can use lime instead of lemon like i did; no lemon so i improvised ;)

Serikaya Labu / pumpkin with egg custard

I bought this pumpkin last week and had forgotten about it coz our family had a terrible flu and all of us was just so tired and lazy (you know how it is with the spinning headaches, muscle sores, running nose etc) so today i was cleaning my fridge and i saw the pumpkin and lucky for me the pumpkin is still in a good shape. then i was wondering what can i do with the pumpkin then i remembered a pumpkin dessert i had in a thai restaurant. so i thought 'ok let try and do that...couldn't be that hard...'

It turned out great and try this recipe:
you'll need...
1 fairly ripe pumpkin - medium size
8 eggs
200g brown sugar
50g granulated sugar
250 thick coconut milk
1/4tsp ground cinnamon
1/2tsp salt

method

1. cut the upper part of the pumpkin, together with the stem, to a diameter of about 12cm. set aside the cut portion.
2. Remove the pumpkin seeds to create a hole. clean it and drain the excess water.
3. in a bowl, beat eggs and brown sugar and the granulated sugar well until dissolved.
4. Add in the coconut milk, ground cinnamon and salt, stirring well.
5. in a sauce pan heat the custard mixture until slightly thick or when you see steam coming out from the custard - use medium heat. then set a side whilst continuing stiring.
6. sieve the custard and pour it into the pumpkin shell filling it to the brim. cover with the cut piece.
7. Steam in a medium heat for about 45mins to an hour. leave cool before cutting

=> note: If the pumpkin is huge you'll need to steam it a head for about 15 mins then pour in the custard mixture.