1. Marinade the chicken with soy sauce, ginger, garlic and sake and set aside for an hour in the fridge.
2. Add in an egg and mix well.
3. Coat with potato starch or corn starch.
4. In a pot, add cooking oil to one inch high and heat pot.
5. First fry chicken on medium heat (no. 5 or 6 on my stove) until golden on both sides in batches. The fire should not be too hot, as you will burn the chicken. To test the temperature, drop a little piece into the oil. It should bubble and float up. Don't overcrowd the chicken pieces.
6. Remove and place on kitchen towel to remove excess oil.
7. Then fry them again on higher heat to get it crispy (no. 7 or 8 on my stove). The second time is usually for a short time than the first fry. This is called double frying. Dish out onto kitchen towel to remove excess oil.
Additional Information:
I prefer potato starch over corn starch, and I also added whole-wheat flour to make it more nutritious. It will still be crispy, albeit a little different texture more like KFC's chicken, if you add whole wheat flour to coat the chicken. I also sprinkle a little salt to the potato starch, but it is not necessary.
If you don't have Japanese sake, you can substitute it with Chinese rice wine or dry sherry.
To test the temperature, drop a little piece into the oil. It should bubble and float up. This dish is a picnic dish as it apparently stay delicious when it is cold.
Adding egg gives the chicken a nice golden yellow color.
Ingredients:
1. 600 - 675 g cod or salmon or a combination, skinned, boned and cut into smaller pieces
2. 1-2 eggs
3. 1 carrot diced or any other vegetable such as squash, fennikel, celery, leek or even potato
4. 1/2 red pepper bell or chili diced
5. 1 clove garlic
6. 1 slice of ginger diced (optional)
7. 1 handful of parsley or chives chopped
8. 3 TBS wheat germ or rolled oats or a combination of both
10. 1 TBS flax seeds ground
11. 1 TBS herbs such as dried basil, thyme or oregano (optional)
12. 1 TBS lemon juice or capers diced
13. 100 ml low fat fresh milk (traditional Danish recipe uses heavy cream)
14. 1 tsp salt
15. 6 turns black pepper mill
16. 2 TBS cooking oil (or you can use a mixture of butter and cooking oil)
17. Dill for garnishing
Directions:
1. Dice carrots and red pepper fruit by hand, food processor or blender. If using blender, you need to add water and pulse it. Drain off the liquid and press dry the carrots and red pepper fruit.
2. Blend all ingredients (except cooking oil and butter) by hand or in a blender/food processor til combined and smooth. The mixture will be a bit sticky.
3. Let the mixture rest for 15-30 minutes in the fridge.
4. Heat cooking oil and butter on a pan.
5. Use a tablespoon to form the mixture into fish cakes and fry them on medium heat for 5 minutes on each side or until golden using medium heat to ensure the fish is cooked without burning the fish cakes. It's important to have patience when frying the fish cakes and not rush it with a higher heat.
6. Sprinkle some chopped dill and serve.
Tips:
You can also bake them in the oven at 180 degree celsius. Give it 7 minutes on each side.
Video Demonstration:
Additional Information:
Recently, I am reading up about nutrition and did a detailed analysis of the different nutrients in food. Fish comes up on the top for almost all the nutrients, especially salmon at the very top comparing with all the different kinds of food including vegetables. Thus, I am more determined than ever to incorporate more food into our family's diet.
But alas, it hasn't been an easy task. Our Little FECS started liking fish as a toddler, and then somewhere along the way(I don't know what happened), he doesn't like fish anymore. Our Baby FECS hasn't really like fish from day one as a toddler, although she does like salmon on good days (phew). Daddy FECS prefers beef to fish. Although he does eat fish, we just don't eat it as regularly as is recommended by the Danish health authorities to consume fish two times a week.
If I prepare fish the Chinese way - by steaming them... the kids run away and Daddy FECS eat them, but not as heartily as he would eat the Danish fiskefrikadeller.
Then bingo, I thought why don't I try to make the Danish fish cakes "fiskefrikadeller" that all the Danes love. Apparently, I read that this is the method the Danes make their kids fall in love with fish. I don't know why I waited almost 18 years in Denmark to try making it myself!!!
But better late than never. I got down to it as soon as I could today. Daddy FECS and Little FECS ate many of them. Baby FECS only add half a fiskefrikadeller :-( She snacked too much along the day to have sufficient appetite for dinner.
I dice the carrots and red pepper bells using the Magimix blender, using water and pulsing it. You can actually use half of the water than what was shown in the picture above.
Drain off the liquid and press dry the carrots and red pepper fruit.
Don't throw away the water. You can drink it like you are drinking your regular water. It tastes like water, but with all the vitamins in it.
Add all the ingredients into the blender... such as 1 table spoon of oats
2 tablespoon of wheat germ
Crack in 2 eggs
Add 1 teaspoon of salt
Add a few turns of the peppermill as desired
I added leek here
Add a handful of parsley. Pre-chopping it is not required.
Add a clove of garlic
Add 1 tablespoon of dried herbs... here I added dried basil...
Add in the diced carrot and red pepper fruit
Add in the fish - here I added a combination of cod fish and salmon. I first cut the fish fillets into smaller fishes. I then add it into the blender with the other ingredients...
Lastly, add 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds and a teaspoon of chopped ginger
Add 50 ml of milk. Some recipes call for 150 ml. The Magimix blender works fine with just 50 ml of milk, but it will be faster if more liquid is added.
I start at speed 1 and slowly work it up to speed 2 and ended with the last few seconds on speed 3.
I also use the spatula while blending to scrap down the side and guide the mixture towards the centre of the blender.
The blending is done :-) Ideally let the mixture rest in the fridge for 15-30 minutes.
Heat up pan with 2 tablespoon of cooking oil and 1 teaspoon of butter.
Use a tablespoon to form the mixture into fish cakes and fry them on medium heat for 5 minutes on each side or until golden using medium heat to ensure the fish is cooked without burning the fish cakes.
Thus, it's important to have patience when frying the fish cakes and not to try to quicken the cooking with a higher heat.
9
Danish Fish Cakes called "fiskefrikadeller" ready to be served with mashed potatoes or Danish rye bread along with tartar sauce or remoulade sauce :-)
1. Cut diagonal on fish so that it will cook faster, rub a little salt onto the fish.
2. Add oil to pan and add fish.
3. Cover and fry on high heat (no. 9 on my stove) for a short minute or until golden brown and fragrant.
4. Turn the fish around, then simmer under low heat (no. 2 or 3 for my stove) for 30 minutes or until cooked.
5. Now it is done :-)
Additional Information:
I have never fried a fish before. My mum is here with us for 3 months, and she taught me how to fry a fish, Chinese style. I am recording it so that I can remember.
Makes 6 small pancakes Ingredients:
1. 1 large banana
2. 2 eggs
3. Dash of cinnamon powder (optional)
4. 1/2 tsp brewser's yeast (optional)
5. 1/2 tsp wheatgerm (optional)
6. 1/2 tsp oil (for frying the pancake)
Directions:
1. Mash banana with a fork.
2. Crack in 2 eggs, beat and mix well.
3. Sprinkle some cinnamon powder.
4. Heat pan until hot (Its temperature is just right when a few drops of cold water dropped on the pan will jump and sizzle. If the pan is not sufficiently hot, the water will lie there and boil. If it is too hot, the water will evaporate instantly).
5. When the pan is hot, add some oil just enough to spread a thin layer on the pan by rubbing it with a piece of kitchen roll when making the first piece of pancake.
6. Turn to medium-low heat (no. 7 on my stove) and pour in a ladle of mixture just enough to spread it to cover the whole circumference of the pan.
7. Cook until the surface of the pancake is filled with bubbles and the underside has turned slightly brown (about 45 secs to 1 min). Raise the edge of the pancake with the wooden spatula to test if it is firm and brown.
8. Flip over and cook the other side for 30 secs more. DO NOT flip again or the pancake will be tough. (Although you may be tempted to do so, don’t use the spatula to press down the pancake or it will be heavy).
Additional Information:
I found this awesome recipe from Facebook. This is a very simple, tasty and healthy pancake that is very easy to make. It doesn't need any flour and there is no sugar added. Only two ingredients are needed - banana and egg, the rest are all optional :-) We tried it out this today on Christmas Day's morning for the first time, and J loved it.
1. Mix well all the the ingredients for Teriyaki Sauce.
2. Marinade beef steaks with 4 TBS of the Teriyaki sauce in a zip-lock bag, and keep in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. In a separate bowl, add corn starch with water and mix well for thickening sauce.
4. In a sauce pan, bring Teriyaki sauce to boil for 5 minutes to evaporate the alcohol in the sake.
5. Stir in the corn starch mixture to the sauce to thicken the sauce. Set aside.
6. Heat oil in pan on medium high heat, drain steaks from marinade and add into the pan. Fry for 2 minutes.
7. Turn over and fry for 1.5 minutes for medium-rare done-ness.
8. Pour 2 TBS Teriyaki Sauce over each steak and let it bubble a little.
9. Remove the steaks from the pan to a plate before the sauce starts to burn.
10. Let the steaks rest to allow succulent juices to distribute for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
11. Sprinkle a little bit of roasted sesame seeds and spring onion on top of the steak.
12. Serve with the leftover Teriyaki Sauce on the side for extra drizzle.
Additional Information:
Yes, you guessed it. Tonight we had Teriyaki again for dinner, this time around, Teriyaki beef steaks. It tasted very good. Daddy FECS like beef steaks. J didn't like it as much. He prefers Teriyaki chicken or salmon.
