Shiso Shrimp and Pork Rolls (Using Flour Based Wrappers)

Do you know that there's a difference between a Chinese spring roll wrapper and a Vietnamese spring roll wrapper? Especially when describing such ingredient in English, it can be hard to tell what kind of wrapper do you actually need for the recipe.

But do not worry. Let me tell you that we are not going to use the "rice" based wrapper for this recipe. Instead, use "flour" based Chinese wrapper instead. It'll look somewhat white-colored and definitely not translucent at all. More so a sturdier wrapper for this pan-fried rolls.

Shiso shrimp and pork rolls using flour based wrappers - 

Ingredients (about 8 to 12 pieces)?

• 8 to 12 medium flour spring roll wrappers
• 300 grams medium shrimps
• 500 grams ground pork
• 1/2 teaspoon Chinese rice cooking wine
• Some salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white sesame oil
• 1 small chunk ginger
• 1 garlic clove
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon potato starch
• 20 Japanese shiso leaves
• Some olive oil

How?

Peel and devein the shrimps then slice into medium small chunks. Mix the shrimps together with 1/2 teaspoon of Chinese rice cooking wine, 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of white sesame oil. Let it sit under room temperature and marinate for about 10 minutes.

Bring out a big bowl and add in the ground pork. Use a chunk of ginger, scrape then grate the ginger. We will need about 1/2 teaspoon of grated ginger in the end. Also peel and grate the garlic, for that we need about 1/4 teaspoon of grated garlic. 

Add both the grated ginger and grated garlic to the big bowl along with the marinated shrimps, 1/8 teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper. Give it a rough mix then add in 1 teaspoon of potato starch last. Mix till evenly blended this time.

Trim-off the stems for the shiso leaves. Rinse then pat dry with paper towel.

Lay down one sheet of flour spring roll wrapper. Scoop some ground pork fillings and set on the wrapper, a bit closer to our end but do save some empty space to fold in. Also try to shape the filling into a somewhat log-form. Lay down two shiso leaves next to the pork filling, towards the inner side too.

Fold in the left and the right side of the wrapper. Fold in the bottom edge of the wrapper then start rolling up into a log. Towards the end, dip the edge of the wrapper with either some water or potato starch mixed water to help sealing the end. Set the sealed side down and repeat to make all other rolls.

It is totally normal that you won't get the shiso leaves at the correct spot, I mean the green leaves will be like semi see-through beneath the wrapper on the front side. It's hard to get the look right especially it'll also depends on how much pork filling added and the size of the wrapper used too. So just play around and test it out a few times, should get better and better after a few rolls.

Have a big pan ready and drizzle 4 tablespoons of olive oil along with 1 teaspoon of white sesame oil. Switch to medium heat and wait till it gets warm. Once hot enough, transfer the rolls one by one with sealed side down.

Don't move the rolls once set to the pan. Simply sear till the bottom turns slightly browned. Then you can flip and sear the other side till slightly browned too. 

Once all ready, it's up to you if you would like to transfer the rolls to a plate lined with paper towel in order to absorb excess oil, or just transfer onto the serving plate right away.

The wrappers I got were medium large in size, so I ended up with pretty huge pan-fried rolls. If possible, do go with the medium small sized wrapper instead. That way you should be able to get around 12 rolls, and the size will be perfect to serve as a light snack or side dish.

On top of that, my recipe should give you well-seasoned rolls, so no dipping sauce is required. However, if you would like to give it more depth or just offering more flavor choices on the plate, I would say Thai sweet chili sauce will be a great option. It's not as salty compared to other type of chili sauces out there, and can bring something sweet with just a wee bit spiciness to the table. 

Extended reading:

• Pan-fried chicken and Chinese basil rice paper rolls
• Shrimp and pork wontons in vinegar and chili oil sauce

Taiwan's Version of Shrimp Cocktail - Seafood With Five Flavor Sauce

If you like shrimp cocktail then most likely you'll also fall for Taiwan's boiled seafood served with five flavor sauce.

Boiled shrimps and cuttlefish with five flavor sauce - 

Ingredients?

• 24 to 30 shrimps
• 1 medium cuttlefish
• 1 small chunk ginger

Sauce:

• 8 teaspoons ketchup
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce paste
• 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon grated garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
• 1 red chili (optional)

How?

Let's start out with prepping the seafood. I used shrimps and cuttlefish here, so for the shrimps peel and devein them. As for the cuttlefish, it might be easier to just ask the seller to prep it for you. Otherwise, usually you'll have to remove the tentacles from the body. Remove the inner cuttlebone, organs, ink sac, beak, and even the outer layer skin for better yet tender texture in the end.

Slice the tentacles to shorter sections. Score the cuttlefish meaty part in a crosshatch pattern if preferred then slice the cuttlefish into medium bite size pieces.

Prepare a pot of water and toss in one small chunk of ginger. Bring to a boil then add in the cuttlefish first. Just a moment later add in the shrimps. The point is to boil the seafood of your choice till they just got cooked through. Drain and maybe transfer to a bowl filled with icy cold water and ice cubes to quickly lower the temperature, but that's totally up to you.

I simply transfer drained seafood to serving plate and set aside. Or you can move the plate of cooked seafood to the fridge while making the sauce in the meantime. That'll help cool-down the seafood faster too.

Mix all the ingredients listed under the "sauce" section. If adding red chilies, destem and remove the seeds, then give the chili a fine chop before adding to the bunch. Taste and adjust if needed. The sauce should be tangy and a bit sweet, also a tiny kick from the grated ginger and grated garlic. 

Serve the sauce with boiled seafood. Ideally chilled seafood, just like how you would enjoy a classic shrimp cocktail, but Taiwanese version.

After tasting the five flavor sauce, one should be able to detect some similarities shared with western's shrimp cocktail sauce. Especially both sauces use the same base ingredient ketchup. I would say that western shrimp cocktail sauce is slightly on the milder side. Taiwan's five flavor sauce got a bit more kick due to the garlic and ginger.

Seafood-wise, I used shrimps and cuttlefish here. However, you can simply use any meaty seafood of your liking, mussels and little octopus would be two good options.

Extended reading:

• Cilantro garlic chili sauce 香菜大蒜辣椒
• Crunchy shallot and garlic chili oil

Pan-Fried Version Shrimp Toast - A Little Dim Sum Vibe at Home

Shrimp toast is like one of my must-order dishes at a dim sum restaurant. Something irresistible about that crispy toasty bread bound with umami-filled shrimp paste.

I searched a bit online and realized that I don't have to use a deep fryer for the shrimp toast, just add more oil and go with the pan-fried way will do. The key concern has been dealt with, so I rolled up my sleeves and got working in the kitchen right away. 

Pan-fried version shrimp toast - 

Ingredients (about 8 individual squares, that means two whole toast slices)?

• 300 grams shrimps
• 1 small chunk ginger
• 1 stalk scallion
• 1 small bundle cilantro (or parsley if cilantro is unavailable)
• 1 tablespoon potato starch
• 1/4 teaspoon dark sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg white
• 2 white toast slices
• Some toasted white sesame seeds
• Some olive oil
• Some Thai sweet chili sauce (optional)

How?

Peel and devein the shrimps and add that to the food processor. Scrape the ginger and slice a small chunk, we will need about 1 teaspoon finely chopped portion, so roughly measure the size of the chunk you need. Add to the food processor.

Destem and slice the scallion into shorter sections. Add that to the food processor too along with small bundle of cilantro. If you can't find cilantro, parsley is your next best bet. Separate one egg into white and yolk, save the yolk for something else, and add the egg white to the processor.

We have the ingredients ready, now add the following seasonings to the food processor: 1 tablespoon of potato starch, 1/4 teaspoon of dark sesame oil, 1/4 teaspoon of granulated sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Blend till the mixture appears paste-like.

Bring out the white toast slices. I chose not to trim-off the edge of the toast, because once pan-fried, that edge actually gets extra crispy and even more delicious. 

Spread the shrimp paste onto the toast. You can use a silicon spatula to help even out the portion and smooth out the surface. Sprinkle some toasted white sesame seeds on top then use a sharp knife to cut the toast into four individual serving squares or triangles.

Drizzle more olive oil than usual to the pan, I used about 5 tablespoons. Switch to medium heat and wait till it turns warm. Transfer the toasts over paste-side down. Continue to use medium or medium low heat to sear till the paste firms up and set.

Flip and sear the toast side till slightly browned on the bottom. Note that once flipped, the toast side can get browned or even burnt faster than expected, so please pay extra attention during this step.

Have a wide plate lined with paper towel. Transfer cooked shrimp toasts over so that the paper towel can help absorbing excess oil first. Wait a short moment then transfer the shrimp toasts to the final serving plate.

You can serve with some Thai sweet chili sauce on the side if preferred, or garnish the plate with some fresh cilantro or parsley, whichever you used in the shrimp toasts.

This recipe reminds me of something else, there's one somewhat similar dish as shrimp toast, the lobster sandwich. However, I'm not talking about the western style lobster sandwich, but the one usually found at an Asian seafood restaurant. 

The shape looks just like a sandwich, the triangle kind, and usually there are three toasts stacking up then sliced into two triangular servings. So you put on some spread on the toast. As for the filling, generally there're cucumber slices, tomato slices, ham slices, and most importantly lobster meat!

Then you dip the whole thing in the batter or some places will use beaten eggs then breadcrumbs. And the sandwich will be fried as a whole. Once that's done, slice in half so you'll get two triangular servings. 

Don't you think that the shrimp toast and Asian lobster sandwich do share something similar? Hopefully I can recreate the lobster sandwich at home one day too, but for that I definitely have to use the deep-fry method, and the ingredient cost for sure will be sky skyrocketing.

Extended reading:

• Easier way to Chinese crispy pork belly

Eggplant Cold Dish in Flavorful Chinese Seasonings 中式涼拌茄子

When you Google eggplant cold dish or any sort of eggplant salad, usually you'll find a lighter version of Japanese recipe. No doubt, the Japanese version of eggplant cold dish recipes are quite popular online. But this time around we are talking about the Asian aromatics-filled eggplant recipe instead, with spicy chilies and kicking garlics.

Eggplant cold dish in flavorful Chinese seasonings 中式涼拌茄子 - 

Ingredients?

• 2 long or 1 big round eggplant
• 1 small bundle cilantro
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 to 4 red chilies
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 1/2 tablespoons black vinegar
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon black sesame oil

How?

There is no need to peel the eggplant, simply steam till softened but not soggy, about 15 to 20 minutes. Once done, remove from heat and wait till cool enough to handle by hand. Squeeze out the liquid first. You'll be surprised how much water these eggplants will hold. After that, tear the eggplant into strips and set aside for later use.

Prepare a big serving bowl that can withhold the heat from sizzling oil. To there, add in destemed and chopped red chilies, 4 peeled and chopped garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon of red chili powder, and 1 tablespoon of toasted white sesame seeds.

Have a small pot ready and pour in 1/2 cup of olive oil. Bring up the heat and make sure the oil gets hot, pour that right on top of the aromatics prepped earlier in the bowl.

I actually put the bowl inside the sink before pouring in the hot oil. If the oil splashes out, at least it'll hit the sink wall and that means easy cleaning job for me afterwards.

So once the hot oil touches these aromatics, it should start sizzling, which will help releasing the aroma and flavors. Let's add some seasonings too, 2 1/2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 1/2 tablespoons of black vinegar, 1 tablespoon of sugar, and 1 teaspoon of black sesame oil.

Give it a good mix then transfer the eggplant strips over. Mix till evenly blended too.

Lastly, chop some cilantro and mix together with the eggplant. Adding the cilantro last will help preserving its refreshing aroma, also a bit vibrant green color pop.

With all the ingredients listed here will give you a very flavorful result. However, there is one extra ingredient that you can add to the bunch, to further enhance the somewhat already heavy seasonings. That is, the century egg.

Basically it's Chinese preserved duck egg, the black colored kind. So if you don't mind such distinct ingredient, simply peel-off one preserved egg and smash into the whole eggplant bunch. It'll help binding all the seasonings, giving you a smoother touch yet with added depth of savory note. 

Other eggplant recipes:

• Seared eggplant with dried shrimp and garlic 醬燒蝦米茄子排
• Cubed eggplant and ground pork stir-fry with spicy fermented bean paste 炒辣豆瓣醬茄子豬肉丁

Pan-Fried Chicken and Chinese Basil Rice Paper Rolls (Please Enjoy Right Away)

Once a long while I'd like to dig into more troubled hassled work in the kitchen. Things like making bread and noodles from scratch, or this pan-fried rice paper roll recipe.

Some might find it a soothing process, but trust me, all that handcraft work doesn't necessarily translate to therapeutic especially when you have to cook up few other dishes at the same time. But it's definitely fun and especially fulfilling once the result is successful.

Pan-fried chicken and Chinese basil rice paper rolls - 

Ingredients (about 20 medium small or 10 medium large pieces)?

• 20 medium small or 10 medium large rice paper
• 380 grams chicken tenders
• 40 grams Chinese or Thai basil
• 1 medium red bell pepper
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice cooking wine
• 1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• Some olive oil
• Some sweet chili sauce (optional) 

How?

Remove the tendon from chicken tenders then slice the meat to smaller cubes. You can simply use ground chicken but I think hand-slicing the chicken to smaller cubes adds more texture.

Marinate the chicken with 1 tablespoon of soy sauce and 1 tablespoon of rice cooking wine.

Meanwhile, peel and chop the garlic cloves. Destem, remove the seeds and pith from the red bell pepper, then slice to small cubes. Save some whole basil sprigs for garnish in the end, and chop the remaining leafy part.

Have a pan ready and drizzle about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Switch to medium heat then add in the garlic. Give it a quick stir-fry till aromatic but not burnt.

Add in the chicken, try to stir-fry while breaking the meat to smaller bits, cook for about a minute. Add in red bell pepper and stir-fry for another minute. Add in chopped basil leaves and cook for a quick 30 seconds.

As for the seasonings, add 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of fish sauce, and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar. Mix till evenly blended and continue to cook till the whole thing appears more concentrated and darker color. Scoop them out and set aside till cool-off.

You have to really wait till the chicken filling has completely cooled-off, that means the temperature won't affect the rice paper much.

Have a plate with some depth filled with drinkable room temperature water. Also try to find a non-stick working surface to lay the rice paper on top.

So take out the dry rice paper, doesn't matter the package shows Thai or Vietnamese rice paper, gently soak one rice paper in the water till softened and shapable. The package should also have some instructions on it for you to follow.

Move the softened rice paper to the working area. I actually put a damp towel on the working area too to further prevent any possible sticking issue. Spoon over some of the chicken filling then wrap into a roll. Remember to tug in both ends. Repeat till you finish up all the rice paper or chicken fillings.

Have a pan ready and drizzle 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Switch to medium heat and wait till the oil gets hot. Carefully pick up the rolls one by one and add to the pan. Make sure these rolls do not touch one another, otherwise they might stick together.

Just leave the rolls there and sear till you feel the bottom has been set and turned golden color. Carefully flip to the other side and sear till golden again.

Set up a big plate lined with paper towel. Once both sides get that good sear, transfer the rice paper rolls there. You might have to pan-fry these rolls in few batches depending on the size of pan. If so, drizzle more oil and repeat the process. 

It's better to sear fewer rolls at once instead of crowding the pan. Once these rolls touch and stick to one another, that'll definitely give you a big headache, way more troublesome then searing these rolls in few batches.

Once all set, transfer pan-fried rolls to serving plate. Garnish with whole basil sprigs and see if you'd like to serve with additional Thai sweet chili sauce on the side. However, the filling is flavorful enough, these rice paper rolls still taste great even without the extra sauce .

Working and folding the semi-sticky rice paper is no easy job at first, but trust me you'll get a hang of it after a few tries. So don't get discouraged or frustrated when the first few pieces turn out somewhat mis-shaped.

And even if you do have some slightly deformed rolls, you can still pan-fry them till nice and golden as long as the filling is still nicely sealed inside. The final look won't be so bad after all with golden pan-fried color on both sides.

One final note, please make sure to enjoy these pan-fried rice paper rolls right away. As they turn cold, store overnight, or even reheat afterwards, the rice paper will become soggy and soft. It'll be like eating a sheet of gelatinous mass instead, not good.

Other recipes using ground chicken:

• Mountain yam, shio kombu, and ground chicken patties 山藥塩昆布雞肉餅
• Ground chicken and shiitake mushroom congee 香菇雞肉粥

Mountain Yam, Shio Kombu, and Ground Chicken Patties 山藥塩昆布雞肉餅

Instagram gives me a lot of inspirations especially when it comes to cooking. One time I was scrolling through other people's cooking videos, and one caught my attention. The person used ground chicken mixed with corn and corn starch, perhaps other ingredients and sear into patties.  

I was like that could work! So I started imagining what would go well with ground chicken patties. Since ground chicken can be on the soft side, I figured adding mountain yam cubes should bring a slight crunch to the patties. Then I turned that idea into reality, and it has been tested and proven that this recipe works. Not only served as a side dish, also great as an otsumami, something that goes well with drinks (don't drink and drive).

Mountain yam, shio kombu, and ground chicken patties 山藥塩昆布雞肉餅 - 

Ingredients (about 8 medium patties)?

• 310 grams ground chicken
• 3/4 loosely packed cup peeled and cubed mountain yam
• 3/4 loosely packed cup shio kombu
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Some dried seaweed flakes

How?

Peel and cube the mountain yam. Transfer that to a larger mixing bowl.

Also add to the bowl, shio kombu, ground chicken, and corn starch. Mix till evenly blended. Note that the mixture is really sticky, so perhaps wear gloves or use spoons to do the job.

Take out a pan and drizzle 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil. Switch to medium heat and wait till the oil gets warm. Use a spoon and scoop the chicken mixture to the pan. The shape doesn't have to be perfect. In fact, it might look like a small mound instead.

Do not move the chicken in the beginning. Just let them sear till the bottom turns golden. Then it'll be ok to flip them or change sides and continue to sear till golden brown. 

Some mountain yam cubes will fall out of the patties, which is totally fine. Simply let the cubes sear on the side. Pick them out earlier to prevent burning and serve along the patties later on.

When ready, scoop out the chicken patties and transfer to serving plate. Dust with dried seaweed flakes before serving.

If you don't like it too oily, you can let the chicken patties rest on top of the paper towel lined on the plate first to absorb excess oil.

One very important thing, handling mountain yam might cause itchy hands for some people. That's the case for me too. You can wear a glove when peeling and cutting the mountain yam. I was too lazy and worked barehanded, just have to endure that itchy feeling for the next 10 minutes or so.

Other recipes using shio kombu 塩昆布:

• Sashimi grade tuna otsumami served with nori sheet
• Pan-fried chicken with shio kombu 香煎塩昆布雞腿肉
• Canned tuna cold dish with bean sprouts and shio kombu

Korean Soy Marinated Eggs (About 8 to 12 Eggs)

Not sure about others, but the exact thing that came to my mind when I first learnt about the soy marinated eggs is that so much soy sauce was used. Sometimes nearly one full cup, that's like half of my skinny bottle of expensive organic soy sauce. And that's what held me back from making the soy marinated eggs at first.

However, housewives are always smart and resourceful. I still went ahead and used up quite the amount of soy sauce. But instead of letting the marinade goes to waste in the end, I saved it up and used in other dishes. Either further marinate some fish with it, or as a dipping sauce for pork slices, or even added to dry noodles. Now I found my peace and nothing goes to waste after a dozen of delicious soy marinated eggs. 

Korean soy marinated eggs - 

Ingredients (about 8 to 12 eggs)?

• 8 to 12 eggs
• 1 red chili 
• 1 jalapeño chili
• 1/4 red onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 stalks scallion
• 1 tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds
• 3/4 cup soy sauce
• 3/4 cup chicken stock
• 1/8 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon black vinegar
• Some salt
• Some sesame oil
• Some pre-boiled or filtered icy cold water

How?

Have a pot of filtered or pre-boiled water ready, either add lots of ice cubes there or store in the fridge first to lower the temperature. Since it'll be used to cool down the boiled eggs, I do suggest use drinkable water just to be safe.

Destem and chop the scallion. Destem and chop both the red chili and jalapeño. Peel and chop the garlic cloves. Transfer all of the above to the big container that'll be use for marinating the eggs.

In that container, also add 3/4 cup of soy sauce, 3/4 cup of chicken stock, 1/8 cup of sugar,1 tablespoon of black vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of toasted white sesame seeds.

Have a pot filled with water, bring to a boil and add a pinch of salt. Once boiling, gently add in 8 to 12 eggs. I prefer fully cooked eggs here, but it's up to you if you want to aim for semi-runny yolk consistency. For fully cooked version, it'll take about 7 to 8 minutes.

Once done, transfer the eggs to cold water and wait till cool enough to handle by hand.

Once ready, remove the eggs from cold water and peel the shells. Perhaps give it a rinse to make sure no more tiny bits of shells remain. Put the eggs to the marinade.

Of course the eggs will appear pale and white in the beginning, but look, just after 10 minutes in the marinade and I move the eggs around, the other side was already darkened. 

Put on the lid and into the fridge overnight. Remember to move around the eggs half way through.

When ready to serve, drizzle extra marinade all over. Like what I did here, and all that quinoa rice soaked up the flavorful sauce, so good. 

If you'd like, drizzle some sesame oil too, just couple drops per egg should be enough.

Don't worry if you can't finish the eggs the day after. I actually enjoyed this batch of soy marinated eggs over like 5-day span. However, be sure to use very clean and dry utensils when scooping out the eggs. Especially don't let any water droplets get it, which might induce bacteria growth in that case.  

Other Korean recipes:

• Spicy Korean cucumber salad
• Korean brasied potatoes (gamja jorim)
• SPAM and gochujang kimchi stew