Salmon in teriyaki sauce

My son loves salmon in teriyaki sauce and usually I would just drizzle the salmon in teriyaki sauce and grill it. Very simple and he loves it.

Ever since I started cooking from recipes, it seems cooking any old how is now beneath me. I wanted to try salmon in teriyaki sauce (what else?) from Cooking To A Degree which featured recipes from people who used to study in the U.K.


The marinade includes sugar and Thai fish sauce. Sugar? I hesitated but added it anyway. I ditched the fish sauce because I cannot stand the taste.


Pan frying in my (sob) WMF stainless steel frying pan. I think the fire was too high because the oil was splattered everywhere.


Got a little burnt. I only looked away for a few seconds. Garnished with fried garlic and lime juice.


And this is how we eat it. White rice, sweet peas, egg and salmon bone soup with Korean Ginseng powder

Verdict:
Although my children managed to finish their dinner, they did not like the salmon. They felt it tasted weird.
I thought the salmon tasted weird too.

Postmortem:
Sugar and teriyaki sauce don't mix. Maybe it was the lime? Or the missing fish sauce. Definitely not cooking this again.

Minced Chicken Cutlets

My mother-in-law used to cook these minced pork cutlets which were delicious but she never got the saltiness right. It was always too salty and we would be left feeling quote husband "thirsty for the rest of our lives".

I'm still ploughing through The Eurasian Cookbook by Mary Gomes and sure enough there is a Corned Beef Cutlets recipe. No, we're not a corned beef eating kind of family except for husband but then he eats everything. I substituted corned beef for minced chicken and hoped for the best!


What goes into the minced chicken - soy sauce, egg, soda biscuits, potato and ground black pepper


All nicely mixed


I pan fried using my WMF stainless steel frying pan and the cutlets turned out really nicely browned


And this is how we eat it. White rice, minced chicken cutlets and boiled unflavoured cabbage. No, I'm not being cruel. My kids love boiled cabbage. It's the truth.

Verdict:
My girl said she didn't care for the cutlets but she still ate quite a number of them.
My boy was pretty direct. He didn't like them and told me not to make them again.
I LOVE them. They were tasty and not too salty.
My husband tasted the cutlets 3 days later and complained they tasted old.

Postmortem:
My kids don't like minced meat. Accept it.

Honey Chicken Wings

I cook out of desperation. Having relied heavily on my favourite foodstall just 2 mins from my flat all these years, I was devastated when my "personal cook" did not return after the coffee shop was revovated. Only the bad stalls returned. After weeks of paying for bad food, I decided I would cook. And none of that usual boiling, grilling, pre-mix, call my mother for information sort of thing. I would cook using actual recipe from cookbooks.

I have The Eurasian Cookbook by Mary Gomes. Her food looks familiar - like stuff my mother has cooked. I chose Honey Chicken Wings because my children love chicken wings so I can't go very wrong.

Chicken wings with the marinade. What's in the plastic tube is pancake honey. The spoons contain minced garlic and minced ginger.


I was supposed to get coriander leaves but bought Chinese celery instead.


I think that's too much water!


While the chicken was simmering, I could smell the fragrance of the ginger and garlic and it was heavenly.

I was supposed to cook until the gravy had dried up. But I added too much water (I followed the recipe!) and the chicken wings were wetter than desired.

My celery wilted!


Verdict:
My girl said it was too spicy for her but she doesn't mind the chicken.
My boy likes it and said I could cook it again.
My husband who ate the chicken wings the next day likes the fragrance.
I thought the chicken tasted really good. My mother has definitely cooked this recipe before.

Postmortem:
Go easy on the ginger and garlic and less water next time!