Christmas Food Round Up 2020

 

In November I already started to plan my Christmas feeds on instagram. I had a couple of ideas for Christmas food from drinks to main dish and desserts. I've also tried to do Christmas theme photographs for the food I prepared, I did enjoy the whole process and would like to list it on the blog as a record. I believe these foods are also classic ones for Christmas, most of them could be easily bought from supermarkets so it's less hassle for Christmas feast preparation.

Christmas Hot Chocolate Drink

Speaking of festive drinks of Christmas, what comes up in your mind?

I don’t really drink alcohol so hot chocolate would be my answer rather than mulled wine, and I was always thinking to create a photo shoot like this to show cozy Christmas vibe. Just pour hot chocolate in a mug, add whipped cream, top with marshmallows, sugar balls, lovely gingerbread man, mini shortbread star, and then sprinkle some cocoa powder. Here you are a cuppa of festive chocolate drink.

Alcohol Free Fruity Mocktail

We all know Christmas is different this year, even though all our travels, plans, Christmas parties have been cancelled, we still can get connected cause thanks to the technology. Had a virtual drink celebration with friends over video chat on Christmas day, got myself an alcohol free festive mocktail, said cheers we all stay safe and healthy to enjoy this festive moment together.

Pigs in Blankets

Pigs in Blankets is classic Christmas side dish in the UK which you can simply buy from supermarkets. But it’s also quite easy to make at home without any complicated cooking skills. Check out the full recipe here and this is one of the most easiest Christmas recipes you should know as it's hard to fail.

Asparagus & Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken Breast

This cuisine is from Waitrose Easy to Cook range. I don't think it tasted amazingly good but was okay for small portion as a Christmas meal option. 

Scottish Salmon en Croute with Tarragon & Watercress Sauce

Another cuisine ifrom Waitrose Easy to Cook range. This one was better than chicken breast and since it's just a small portion, it means we don't need to eat Christmas turkey leftovers for a whole week.

𝐏𝐚𝐤 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐑𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐞

As I am doing mostly Asian cooking at home, this is my Christmas food idea with Asian twist. Full recipe here and I quite like how it has turned out even it's a short tree.

Celebrating Christmas in Japanese way - eating KFC fried chicken

Do you know KFC is kind of Japanese traditional Christmas dinner? You might have heard about it , I also asked some of my Japanese friends regarding this Christmas tradition in Japan, they all said it’s sort of marketing campaign that turned into a national phenomenon. Anyway thanks to Takeshi Okawara, manager of the first KFC restaurant in Japan who came up this idea to promote fried chicken as a fine substitute instead of turkey. I think particularly for those who don’t have tradition on Christmas, having KFC fried chicken is another good option to celebrate this festive moment. The kitchen will stay tidy with less hassle as no need to spend hours preparing a feast.

Strawberry Santa Hat

A very easy (and maybe healthier?) Christmas treat recipe you should know. These cute things would definitely make yourself and your guests happy. Full recipe here.

Santa's Yumnut from Marks & Spencer

One day I passed by Marks & Spencer and found they have this Santa themed pastry which is called ‘Yumnut’ (a combo of Yum Yum and Doughnut). I can’t help grabbing one home and look at this…how cute is it with icing Santa’s belt? 

Fruit Cake

Christmas celebration is not completed yet until having fruit cake. I know there are also other options like Christmas pudding, panettone, mince pie, yule log...but I think fruit cake deserves more attention at Christmas.

So this is my Christmas food round up in 2020. I feel making one dish and doing all the photograph including setting up the theme is already taking time and energy, not even to mention if one day in the future I need to prepare a completed Christmas feast! Not sure if next year I am still so motivated at instagram doing this seasonal food theme, I did enjoy what I have done this time and was happy how they turned out. Hope you enjoy this round up and get some inspirations for Christmas food as well.

Pigs in Blankets

 

When I first heard about Pigs in Blankets I think the name sounds quite cute. I also found it has reginal variations like in the US the term refers to hot dog wrapped in dough pastry but in the UK it refers to sausage wrapped in bacon. Pigs in Blankets are also commonly seen at Christmas table, they are classic Christmas side dish that you can simply buy it from supermarkets but it’s also simple to make it at home. I don’t think it requires any complicated cooking skills, all you have to do is to wrap sausage in bacon and leave it with oven. Here is how I made my Pigs in Blankets, I used caramelised onion sausages so they already tasted quite flavourful, this is one of the most easiest recipes that you can’t fail.

 

Ingredients:

-4 caramelised onion sausages from The Jolly Hog.

-4 thinly slices smoked streaky bacons from Waitrose.

(You can surely use any sausage and bacon of your choice.)

 

To make sauce mixture: (Equal parts of soy sauce and honey.)

-1 tbsp soy sauce.

-1 tbsp honey or sugar.

-A few rosemary. (Plus additional to garnish.)

 

Method:

-Preheat oven to 180°C-200°C.

-Wrap sausage with bacon each, place on a baking tray and season some oil on top, cover with cling film and cook in oven for 6 minutes at 200°C.

-Flip each sausage over and continue to cover with cling film in oven for cooking a further 3 minutes.

-Pour the sauce mixture and rosemary in, stir well and send it back to oven (without cling film) for another 10 minutes until golden.

-Top with more rosemary.

(I served with Brussels sprouts and some redcurrants.)

 

當我第一次聽到培根捲臘腸有個「豬包毯」(或毯包豬？)的名字覺得甚是可愛，雖然超市的架上常看到這項食材，不過因為曾有一位朋友跟我說過她在瑪莎買的豬包毯非常不OK(朋友是個對難吃食物很寬容的人)，加上我一直覺得英國臘腸口感怪怪的，於是我好像就從來都沒有想過要買豬包毯來吃。後來是買了Jolly Hog的某款臘腸，肉質口感不僅扎實且嚼勁十足，而且吃起來帶有甜味，吃起來跟台灣香腸極為相似，於是我就想說乾脆拿它來自製豬包毯，再怎麼樣應該都會比超市現成的好吃吧？做法也很簡單，基本上就是拿培根來把臘腸捲一捲、送進烤箱烤一烤就完成了(期間翻面一次跟拌一次醬汁)，這個據說是聖誕節餐桌必備的經典配菜，但我覺得拿來配白飯應該也很好吃。

Pak Choi Fried Rice Christmas Tree

𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐬𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭 !

 

Last time when I made Hong Zhao/Red Yeast Paste Fried Rice I came up with an idea…since I am doing mostly Asian cooking here, how about making Asian cuisine look Christmassy even it’s not traditional Christmas food? Then here it is, Pak Choi Fried Rice Christmas Tree. Okay this tree may be short as it was not supposed to be like this but I think the colour looks festive to match Christmas vibe, don’t you think?

 

𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐈 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐏𝐚𝐤 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐑𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐞:

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬:

-3 to 4 pieces thinly sliced smoked streaky bacons.

-1 bunch of Pak Choi, finely chopped.

-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped.

-1 bowl of rice, cooked.

-1 pinch of salt to taste.

-Seaweed and white sesame to season. (Optional.)

 

𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝:

-Heat a pan over medium low heat, place thinly sliced bacon in a single layer, flip over when golden crispy brown, then set a side.

-Use the same pan, wipe some oil up with kitchen paper towel, add chopped garlic and Pak Choi to stir fry over medium heat until soften.

-Add cooked rice to mix evenly, add salt to taste.

-Transfer Pak Choi fried rice into a plate, use a serving spoon to shape it like a tree.

-Break up crispy bacon and sprinkle on top, season with seaweed and white sesame.

 

 

之前做紅糟炒飯時意外發現炒飯配色滿有聖誕節慶感的，那時就有在突發奇想說也許可以做成小飯糰，然後疊成聖誕樹的樣子，應該也可以很應景？不過紅糟醬用完了，後來是想到用青江菜炒飯替代，然後小飯糰也懶得捏，最後是直接用飯匙立出聖誕樹的造型(不准說它是金字塔，Kings Cross有個聖誕樹裝置造型也是這樣的)，配菜則是毛豆，紅紅綠綠的，說是聖誕餐應該也不至於太突兀吧。

Red Thai Curry Vermicelli Noodles 泰式紅咖哩米粉

 

𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐬 ?

 

Made red curry rice a couple of days ago but I think it also goes well with rice noodles cause noodles would certainly absorb coconut curry soup with so much flavour, and I just can’t wait to try it out! This time I cook it with shells-on tiger prawns that I recently bought from a Korean butcher Treestone, the prawns are so meaty and juicy which make this dish more seriously delicious. I believe it’s easy enough for any meal of the week. Here is how I make it:

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 (serving 2)

-2 packs of vermicelli noodles.

-45g Red Thai curry paste from Bart.

-200 ml coconut milk.

-200 ml dashi or chicken stock.

-5 tiger prawns with shells on. (Unpeeled)

-Bamboo shoots and seafood sticks. (Optional.)

-1 bunch coriander.

-1 sunny side-up egg. (I use egg from Clarence Court.)

 

𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝

-Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat, add tiger prawns and cook until both sides have turned opaque, set aside.

-Reduce to medium heat, add red curry paste to sizzle for a few seconds.

-Pour in coconut milk and stock, bring to boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.

-Meanwhile cook vermicelli noodles in boiling water for 1 minute.

-Put tiger prawns, bamboo shoots, seafood sticks, half bunch coriander and vermicelli noodles into the pan and stir with red curry soup for a further 3 minutes.

-Top with coriander and sunny side-up egg, enjoy.

 

最近突然有點迷上泰式紅咖哩，繼前幾天做了紅咖哩飯之後，因為在IG看到有湯米粉版本的，於是腦波弱的我也馬上來嘗試煮看看；這次還一起下了前陣子在韓國肉店買的帶殼虎蝦，覺得炒過之後更增添海鮮的風味，而且蝦肉好肥美，讓我不禁有點不想再買超市的蝦。不得不說吸滿了紅咖哩湯汁的米粉真是讓人稀哩呼嚕吃的一口接一口，唯一美中不足的是家裡沒有萊姆了，如果能擠點萊姆汁應該就更酸香可口。

Brown Crab with Silken Tofu 蟹黃豆腐

 

I really love the combos of rich brown crab and the tender texture of silken tofu, so comfort and warmy with distinctive flavour. Have made this dish before, this time I referred to the recipe from Ah-Chi-Shih (阿基師), a well-known celebrity chef in Taiwan, his cooking method seems to have multiple steps to follow but actually the whole cooking process was quick and took less than 20 minutes to make it.

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 :

-100g brown crab from Seafood & Eat it.

-300g Silken tofu from Clearspring, cut in cubes.

-1 tbsp finely chopped carrot. (This is to enrich the colour of the soup sauce.)

-1 egg yolk.

-1 watery egg white. (beat egg white with 1 tsp of water.)

-1 tsp plain flour.

-1 cup dashi stock or chicken stock.

-1 tbsp grated ginger.

-4 tbsp flour slurry. (mix equal parts of plain flour and cold water.)

-A pinch of salt and sugar to taste.

-A handful of finely chopped spring onions. (reserve some to garnish.)

-Seafood stick, shredded to garnish. (optional.)

𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝 :

-Heat oil in a pan over medium heat, put brown crab and stir until fragrant, then set aside.

-Mix carrots, egg yolk, flour thoroughly, use the same pan to stir fry over medium heat until carrots are softened, then set aside.

-Use the same pan to stir fry chopped onions, ginger over medium heat until fragrant and soften.

-Reduce the heat, add dashi stock and tofu in, let it cook for 2-3 minutes.

-Season salt and sugar to taste, add brown crab and pâté carrot back in, simmer for a further 3 minutes.

-Turn off the heat and add flour slurry to thicken the soup, stir well then heat again. Here also add 1 tbsp oil which will make soup shinning on the top.

-Add watery egg white, stir and simmer over low heat for a further 3 minutes.

-Move it to a Donable-style clay pot if you have (or any heat resistant ceramic pot.), remember to heat clay pot on hob before you pour in the soup sauce.

-Sprinkle with extra chopped spring onions and shredded seafood stick on top.

-Serve and enjoy with rice.

 

 

最近又做了一次蟹黃豆腐，食譜是參照阿基師的做法，步驟感覺很多但其實咻咻咻一下就煮好了，然後我這次是買整盒的蟹黃，這次還學到了一個小撇步，就是加上一點紅蘿蔔泥可以增加蟹黃的色澤，覺得這次的蟹黃豆腐在濕度跟稠度的比例上較之前做的好，一餐吃不完，剩下的過幾天又可以拿來煮粉絲煲變出一道新菜。

Red Thai Curry Rice 泰式紅咖哩飯

 

I love Thai cuisine, Thai curries are also my favourites. Today’s post is to share my quick version of Thai red curry rice. Have used red curry paste for cheat version of easy laksa before, this time I used the remaining paste to make red curry rice, this was not traditional but still tasted good. The sauce was thick and comforting with all my favourite ingredients in one bowl.

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 :

-45g Red Thai curry paste from Bart.

-200 ml coconut milk.

-200 ml dashi or chicken stock.

-Tiger prawns 3-4 pcs.

-Tofu, sliced.

-Mushrooms.

-Lime, sliced.

-Basil leaves.

 

𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝 :

-Heat oil in a pan over medium heat, add red curry paste to sizzle for a few seconds.

-Pour in coconut milk and stock, bring to boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.

-Add prawns, tofu, mushrooms to gently stir for 10 minutes until they are cooked through.

(You can add sugar or additional fish sauce here to taste if you want.)

-Top with lime slices and basil leaves, serve with rice.

 

Do you also like Thai curries ? Which one is your favourite ? Green, Red, or Yellow ?

𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐢 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 ? 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 ? 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧, 𝐑𝐞𝐝, 𝐨𝐫 𝐘𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 ?

 

之前用了半罐泰式紅咖哩醬做了快速版的叻沙，還剩下半罐就直接來做紅咖哩，只不過整鍋下的料好像不是一般泰式紅咖哩會放的食材，但反正是自己吃的冰箱有甚麼就丟甚麼。有人也喜歡吃泰式咖哩嗎？綠咖哩、紅咖哩、黃咖哩，你喜歡哪一種？

Christmas Cracker Pie with Chocolate Filling

 

My first time to accept Mystery Ingredient Challenge from Foodtryb and guess what I got ? A parcel of Bounty chocolate bars ! The first thought was this is definitely something I am not familiar with, also I found Bounty has been recognised as one of the most controversial sweets that people either love or hate it. (In case you don’t know, Bounty is chocolate bar with coconut filling coated with milk chocolate which was first introduced to the UK in 1951.) I think I have ever eaten something similar in Asia but never tried Bounty before. Eating Bounty and Using it as a food ingredient are both new experience and challenge for me, anyway I came up an idea to bake Christmas cracker pie with Bounty chocolate bars, and I was happy the result went quite well.

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 :

-4 Bounty chocolate bars.

-220g Frozen pizza dough, but you can also use ready rolled puff pastry sheet. Remember to spread flour on working surface when you roll it.

-1 egg yolk, beaten.

 

𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝 :

-Follow the instruction on the package of frozen pizza dough, stretch and roll the dough into a sheet, cut into a rectangle sheet.

-Place 4 Bounty bars in the centre of the base, fold over the sheet and twist two ends to create a Christmas cracker shape.

-Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C.

-Brush top with beaten egg yolk and bake for 25 minutes until golden.

-Serve hot immediately.

 

 

第一次參加神秘食材的活動，收到包裹後發現是巧克力棒(而且還是椰蓉巧克力)，一時還有點傷透腦筋，本來也有想過大不了就跟咖哩塊一起煮，不過擔心最後會變成暗黑料理，所以後來還是決定做成巧克力派比較安全，造型是Christmas Cracker，這個聖誕拉砲可以直接吃進肚子裡，所以沒有過度包裝的問題。然後Bounty的椰蓉巧克力一開始查資料時覺得好像是個口味充滿爭議的東西，不過實際吃了則覺得還好嘛沒有網路上說的那麼雷，做成烤派也是滿好吃的，烤過之後巧克力的味道會比椰蓉濃郁。呼，這次應該算有挑戰成功。

Hong Zhao/Red Yeast Paste Fried Rice 紅糟炒飯

 

Fried rice is my usual clean-out-the-fridge meal particularly on the day before my grocery delivery. My ingredients are simple, but this time I added Hong Zhao(紅糟醬)/Red Yeast Paste to stir fry, and the fragrance of red glutinous rice wine just perfectly enhanced the aroma of fried rice. Also I feel the colour of this red yeast paste fried just looked so Christmasy, don’t you think ?

 

𝐈𝐧𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 :

-Hong Zhao/Red Yeast Paste.

-Short grain rice, cooked.

-Eggs, beaten.

-Sweetcorn.

-Frozen edamame beans.

-Salt to taste.

-Chopped spring onions and crispy fried onions to garnish.

-Sesame oil for finishing.

 

𝐂𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐝 :

-Heat oil in a large pan over medium high heat, once it’s hot, add beaten eggs and stir well to scramble, then transfer to a plate.

-Use the same pan to stir fry red yeast paste over medium high heat for about 30 seconds, add cooked rice and stir well until rice is coated reddish colour evenly.

-Add sweetcorn, edamame beans, and fried eggs back to the pan, keep stirring fry everything together.

-Add salt to taste, sprinkle chopped spring onions and crispy fried onions, finish with a drizzle of sesame oil.

 

之前用過的紅糟醬還剩下一點份量一直冷藏在冰箱，因為只剩兩大匙也不夠拿來醃豬五花，今天便決定拿它來做紅糟炒飯。不得不說紅糟的酒香真是特殊且迷人，而且這盤明明是清冰箱料理，但意外地炒出來有種聖誕節的感覺啊。(靈機一動：如果把紅糟炒飯做成一球一球的飯糰，然後疊成聖誕樹的樣子如何？)