Shark's Fin Soup - Chinese style

Ingredients:

• 120 grams dried shark's fin
• 120 grams sliced chicken flesh - boiled
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 4 shallots - sliced
• 1 clove garlic - sliced
• 120 grams crab meat
• 4 cups chicken stock
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 cm piece ginger
• 1 tablespoon cornflour blended with water

Method: 

1. Clean the shark's fin. Soak overnight or for at least 8 hours. Place in a pan of water and boil for 2-3 hours.
2. Heat oil in a deep frying pan. Fry sliced ginger, sliced shallots, sliced garlic until fragrant.
3. Add chicken stock, salt and pepper. Bring to boil.
4. Stir constantly. Add in the blended cornflour to thicken the soup.
5. Serve hot. 

Sup Ekor Lembu (Ox- tail Soup) - Malaysian style

Ingredients:

• 600 grams Ox tail
• 4 potatoes
• 1 teaspoon cummin seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon aniseed
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1 piece cinammon stick
• 1 large onion - quartered
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Clean the ox tail well and cut into small pieces. It is advisable  to get the ready cut ox tail as it is quite difficult to cut.
2. Pound the aniseed and coriander finely and wrap in muslin cloth.
3. Peel the potatoes and quarter them.
4. Boil the ox- tail in enough water until almost done with the quartered onion, wrapped spices and cinnamon stick.
5. Add in the potatoes and continue cooking until tender.
6. Serve garnished with chopped spring onions and fried  onion slices. Can be served with either bread or rice. 

Nasi Lemak (Rice in coconut milk) - Malaysian style

Cooking rice

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rice
• 1 grated coconut
• 3 screwpine leaves
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Clean the rice and drain.
2. Squeeze out 2 cups of thick coconut milk from the grated coconut.
3. Cook the rice in the coconut milk with screwpine leaves. Add in salt.
4. If you desire, you can also add in some sliced shallots and ginger.
5. Serve the rice with sliced hard-boiled eggs, cucumber and Sambal ikan Bilis.

Sambal Ikan Bilis

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup dried ikan bilis (anchovies)
• 1 bombay onion
• 4 shallots
• 2 tablespoons tamarind juice
• Prawn paste (belacan) optional
• 8 dried chillies
• 1 clove garlic
• Salt and sugar to taste

Method:

1. Fry the ikan bilis until crisp and put aside.
2. Grind the prawn paste together with shallots, garlic, de-seeded dried chillies. Slice the bombay onions into rings.
3. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a pan and fry the ground ingredients until fragrant. Add in the onion rings.
4. Add tamarind juice, salt and sugar.
5. Cook, stirring occasionally until the gravy thickens.
6. Add in the ikan bilis and mix well.
7. Serve with hot Nasi Lemak.

Fried Kway Teow - Chinese style

Ingredients:

• 1kilo of kway teow - cut into 1 cm strips
• 450 grams fresh prawns
• 400 grams oysters - scalded and shells removed
• 500 grams bean sprouts - tails removed
• 2 fresh chillies pounded
• 6 cloves garlic pounded
• 200 grams chicken flesh - cut into strips
• 250 grams squid - cleaned and cut into strips
• 1 tablespoon thin soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon thick soy sauce
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3 tablespoons oil

                                                                                              Serves 4-6
Method:

1. Heat oil in a deep pan and fry pounded garlic and chillies until fragrant.
2. Increase heat and add in chicken. Fry for 2 minutes.
3. Add prawns and squid and stir fry for 2 more minutes. Add the oysters.
4. Pour in both types of soy sauce, salt and beansprouts
5. Mix thoroughly and stir fry for 2 more minutes.
6. Serve immediately garnished with sliced chillies. 

Murtaba - Indian style

Ingredients:

• 3 cups plain white flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon ghee
• 1 cup lukewarm water
• 1/2 cup oil

For the filling:

• 500 grams minced meat
• 2 tablespoons gheee
• 1 large red onion - sliced finely
• 2 cloves garlic - crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger - grated
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1 1/2 tablespoon fresh coriander leaves - finely chopped
• 1 fresh red chilli - finely sliced
• 2 eggs - beaten
• Salt and pepper
• 1 onion - finely sliced

Method:

For Roti:

1. Place the flour and salt in a large bowl and rub in the ghee.
2. Add the water and mix to a fairly soft dough.
3. Knead the  dough for 10 minutes or longer.
4. Divide the dough into equal - sized balls and place them in a small bowl containing the oil.
5. Leave for at least an hour.

To make the filling:

1. Heat up the ghee and fry the onion until it is soft.
2. Add the garlic and fresh ginger and continue to fry the onion until golden brown.
3. Add the turmeric and chilli powder and stir for a few seconds.
4. Put in the meat and carry on frying, stirring constantly, until it is well - cooked.

Cooking the Murtaba:

1. Season the beaten eggs with salt and pepper and set aside in a small bowl.
2. On a smooth surface, spread a little oil from the bowl and flatten one of the dough balls with a rolling pin.
3. Gently pressed with the fingers, spreading the dough until it is almost as thin as strudel pastry.
4. Heat the griddle and grease it lightly with ghee.
5. Drape the Roti over a rolling pin and transfer it on to the griddle.
6. It will cook very quickly so spoon on some beaten egg and spread it over the middle portion of the Roti with the underside of the spoon.
7. Sprinkle some meat over and just before folding, add a few slices of onion.
8. Fold over the sides of the Roti, in an envelope like to enclose the filling completely.
9. Turn it over and cook the other side, spreading a little more ghee or oil on the griddle before putting it down.
10. Cook until crisp and golden on both sides.
11. Serve hot either on its own or with a bowl of curry gravy or dhall.

Mutton Korma - Indian style

Ingredients:

• 600 grams boneless mutton
• 2 medium - sized red onions - chopped
• 2.5 cm piece ginger - sliced
• 4 cloves garlic - crushed
• 3 green chillies
• 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 2 tablespoon ground cummin
• 3 cardamoms - ground
• 1 stick cinamon
• 2 tomatoes
• Milk from half a coconut
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated coconut
• 2 tablespoon oil
• Salt to taste
• A few stalks coriander leaves

                                                                                             Serves 6-8

Method:

1. Grind together the chillies, black peppercorns and fresh grated coconut.
2. Mix together the turmeric, coriander, cummin and cardamoms with a little water to form a paste.
3. Boil the mutton pieces with a little of the sliced ginger, and crushed garlic in water until tender.
4. Heat a saucepan with oil and fry the onions, cinnamon and remaining ginger and garlic.
5. Add in the paste.
6. Fry until the oil begins to surface and then add the mutton, coating it well with the spices.
7. Pour in the coconut milk and bring slowly to the boil.
8. Cover and cook on low heat until the gravy thickens.
9. Add the salt, lime juice and coriander leaves.
10. Stir well and remove from heat.

Fried Meehoon - Chinese style

Ingredients:

• 357 grams fine rice vermicelli
• 2 cloves garlic - crushed
• 2 teaspoons coriander - ground
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• peanut oil
• 8 dried Chinese mushrooms - soaked
• 90 grams prawns - shelled
• 125 grams white fish
• 2 medium onions - sliced
•  125 grams beasnprouts
• 2 eggs - lightly beaten
• 3 red chillies
• 3 stalks spring onions - chopped

Method:

1. Soak the vermicelli in cold water for 5 minutes, then scald them in boiling water. Drain well.
2. Mix the crushed garlic and pounded coriander with turmeric powder. 
3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil and fry the garlic mixture for 2 minutes.
4. Remove the stems from the mushrooms and slice thinly.
5. Dice into small cubes the fresh prawns and fish. Add to the garlic with mushrooms. Fry on medium heat for 5 minutes. Remove from pan.
6. Add 2 tablespoons oil to the pan and fry the sliced onions and chillies.
7. Add the vermicelli, season with salt and stir thoroughly. Add the beansprout and stir-fry  for 1 minute. Remove from pan.
8. Pour in the beaten egg. swirl to make a thin omelette. Cook until set and remove from pan. Shred.
9. Add the fried seafood to the fried noodles, mix well and serve with shredded omelette, and chopped spring onions.