Sloppy Chic

Finally, we are stepping into the week of Chinese New Year, and I can’t believe this is my first Yee Sang of the year

What’s the better way to welcome Chinese New Year with a bunch of favorite friends right?

If you are considering a pork-free CNY set but with budget in mind, this might be a good place!

Bangsar Venicia Restaurant is strangely located in Bangsar Puteri Condo, like a neighborhood restaurant, opposite Bangar Shopping Center.

The RM398 set dinner comprises of shark fin soup and prawns which we have swapped with roast duck and vegetables.

Yee Sang was alright, wish they had more salmon though

The 4-seasons platter came as a surprise as the portion was huge!

There was even a yam basket with about 10 pcs of big scallops! We were already half full when we had the first 2  dishes.

Hello roasted Donald!

The meat was juicy and tasted not too bad.

Herbal chicken was only mediocre as the herbal fragrance was not strong enough.

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I can’t believe that CNY is coming in just about a week’s time, and I have not even prepared anything!

And and…..not to mention I have to give angpows this year! So, boys and girls, want some angpow?

Being quite pre-occupied with work, I think I am just too exhausted to even go for food hunt or shopping. And I have a big money saving plan for 2011 (hopefully) One can wish right?

Here I will share an easy recipe for Pork Chops in Onion Sauce.

It is important that you store pork/chicken fillets in your fridge and they will just come in handy when you run out of food to cook.

The ingredients used are all you can find in your kitchen.

Clean the pork chops, and cut them into smaller slices if you need. Now, to soften the meat a little, lightly pat the chops with the back of your knife to break the veins.

For marination, it is better if you do it 2 hours earlier or longer.For about 5-6 pcs of small pork chops, you will need:

- Chop 2 red onions, 4 pcs of garlic finely and spread them evenly on top of bottom and top of the meat.
- About 2 teaspoons of soy sauce, dash of pepper, some salt, sesame oil, red wine or chinese cooking wine, and some fresh lemon juice.

Mix everything well and leave it aside or in the fridge.

Now, moving to the sauce, slice 1.5 – 2 big onions for use later.

When you are ready to cook, heat up a non-stick pan with a little bit of oil. And, pour some corn flour on a dry plate to dip the pork chops into the flour before frying.

I prefer to use non-stick pan to avoid the mess and excessive oil.  Flip the chops from time to time to not over-burn.

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Ever since Sushi Zanmai made its way to 1u and The Gardens, it has been my staple place for quick and affordable fix for Japanese cravings.

This new Japanese restaurant in The Gardens – Hokkaido Ichiba (In Mandarin it says Hokkaido Market), is here to beat Sushi Zanmai!

It is located on the top floor on The Gardens mall.

It can get REALLY crowded during lunch and dinner time, especially on the weekends.

Salmon Salad @ RM18 as the appetizer.

Portion is quite big and it came with the dressing at the side.

They have menu for set lunches, and it is about RM5-RM10 cheaper than set dinner.

Not sure about the  portion though.

What I have here is Beef Sukiyaki @ RM30. It can even be shared too!

It came with a rice, raw egg for you to dip, fruits, chawan mushi, miso soup, and mashed potato and some pickles.

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Happy 2011 everyone!

What’s a better way to start new year than a simple recipe to save your pocket from over-bleeding right?

Note: The sales tax has increased to 6% now.

I am going to show you how to make a egg-wrap-minced-meat recipe. But of course, Pocket of Minced Meat sounds a lot more glamorous right?

For 4 pax, you will need:

- About 100g of minced meat (pork/chicken)
- Same amount of minced onion and carrot for the crunch

Mix them together and marinade with small teaspoon of salt, sesame oil, pepper, and light soy sauce. Leave it aside for 30minutes.

Now, heat up the wok of oil and throw in some garlic to sauteed, before the garlic is brown, dump in all the ingredients and stir fry for about 5 minutes.

Add dark soy sauce to make it look better.

Now, you are done! Serve it aside and now you need to prepare the egg.

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