Easy Chicken Rice Pilaf

Ingredients:
5 chicken drumsticks
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp white pepper

200g Basmati rice or any rice of your choice, rinsed and drained well
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 shallots, finely sliced
a thumb-sized piece of ginger, chopped finely
2 cardamon pods
3 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
about 15 cherry tomatoes (or 1 large tomato cut into cubes)
about 1/2 cup diced carrot
2 tbsp cooking oil
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
approx 2 cups water (or stock)
3/4 tsp turmeric powder
salt & pepper, to taste
1 cup of chopped fresh coriander leaves

• Marinate chicken with garlic powder, ginger powder and pepper for at least half an hour.
• Preheat oven to 200°C.
• Heat 2 tbsp oil in a frying pan and fry chicken drumsticks until brown.  Transfer onto a plate and set aside.  
• In the same pan, fry shallots and ginger under medium heat for about 2 minutes, then add garlic and other spices and fry until aromatic.  Add in rice and stir until rice are well coated with oil, then add in carrot and tomatoes. Fry for about a minute before transferring into a baking dish. Place chicken over the rice.
• Combine yogurt, water, turmeric powder, salt and pepper and pour over the rice.  Cover tightly with foil.
• Bake for about 1 hour or until rice is cooked.  Remove foil and continue to bake for another 20 minutes or until the chicken skin is golden and crisp.
• Stir in coriander leaves and cashew nuts before serving.

Raisins Hot Cross Buns

Tangzhong Starter: 

40g bread flour
200g water

• In a small pan, combine flour and water.  Cook over low heat, stirring continuously until the mixture thickens and you'd notice some "lines" appear in the mixture when you stir (or until it reaches 65°C).
• Remove from heat and transfer to a clean bowl. Place cling wrap directly onto the surface of tangzhong to prevent from drying up. Bring to room temperature before using. Measure the amount of tangzhong you required and the rest can be kept in the refrigerator.  But remember, once the tangzhong turns grey, discard it.

Main Dough:  

550g bread flour

75g dark brown sugar

8g salt

10g milk powder (optional)

8g instant dried yeast

84g egg (lightly beaten)

180g fresh milk

180g tangzhong

45g butter, softened

30g raisins

For the cross: 

3 tbsp self-raising flour

3 tbsp water

1/2 tsp butter

Glaze: Mix together

4 tbsp sugar

1.5 tbsp hot water

a drop of vanilla paste

• Combine all the main dough ingredients, except butter.  Knead until well combined and smooth.  Then add in butter and continue kneading until dough is smooth and elastic and passed the "window pane test".  Then knead in raisins.
• Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl.  Cover with a damp cloth and let it rise until doubled.
• Punch down the dough to release trapped air.  Divide dough into 20 equal portions and roll into round shape.  Cover and let them rest for 15 minutes.
• Shape the buns and place them onto a lined baking tray. Cover and let them rise until doubled in size.
• Preheat oven to 180°C.
• For the cross:  Place all ingredients into a piping bag and mix into a thick paste. Snip off the end of the bag and pipe over the buns to form crosses.
• Place buns into the preheated oven and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until buns are cooked through.
• Brush glaze over warm hot cross buns. Transfer the buns onto a wire rack to cool.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.

Pan-fried Black Pepper Chicken

[Serves 4]

400g chicken thighs, cut into pieces
1 tbsp cooking oil

Marinade: 
1/4 tsp ginger powder (optional)
1 tsp black pepper (coarsely ground)
1/2 tsp cornflour
1 tbsp light soy sauce

Sauce: Mix together
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (or Japanese cooking wine)
3 tbsp water
1/4 tsp sugar

• Mix ginger powder, black pepper and cornflour together and sprinkle onto the chicken pieces.  Then add in soy sauce.  Mix to combine and leave to marinate, covered, for at least 30 minutes. 
• Heat 1 tbsp cooking oil in a frying pan over medium fire.  Place chicken pieces (without the marinade) in the pan and pan fry for about 3 minutes; then flip to the other side and cook for about 3 - 4 minutes or until completely cooked.  
• Add sauce to the remaining marinade and pour over the chicken and bring to the boil.  
• Serve hot.

Doggy German Butter Cookies

The 2018 Chinese New Year or Spring Festival begins on 16 February which will mark the beginning of the year of the Dog. What better way to usher in the Year of the Dog than with these cute little doggy cookies. They taste very good and are easy to to make too!

Recipe adapted from here
Ingredients: (Makes about 28 cookies)

125g unsalted butter, softened
40g icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
125g potato starch
80g plain flour

Nestle Milo cereal for ears
Mini chocolate chips for nose
Black sesame seeds for eyes

• Preheat oven at 170°C.
• Sift potato starch and plain flour together.  Set aside.
• Cream butter and icing sugar until light. Beat in vanilla extract.
• Add in flours and fold to combine to form a soft dough. Chill the dough for 30 minutes.
• Divide dough into portions of 14g each. Roll each portion into a ball and press two Milo cereal onto the ball to form ears; black sesame seeds for the eyes and chocolate chips for the nose.
• Place 'doggies' onto a baking tray and bake for about 15 minutes.  
• Leave cookies to cool on a wire rack before storing in an airtight container.