Feast for buddies
One cook knows the way to his friends’ hearts is through their tummies.
IT pays to be Reza Fitri’s friend – not in cash or in kind, but more precisely in food. The 26- yearold budding chef loves to cook for his friends and makes it a point to organise a cookout at least once every two months. And the best part? His dishes are all finger- licking delicious.
“I got serious about cooking when I was studying in Australia. I was hooked to the cooking shows on television and started cooking for myself, then for my friends and now I can cook for a group of 20 people,” says Reza who hails renowned chef Gordon Ramsay as his idol. Reza has a collection of Ramsay’s cookbooks and treasures them for the unlimited knowledge he gets from the chef.
Reza first dabbled in cooking at eight, when he whipped up maggi goreng in the kitchen one hungry afternoon after school. Soon, he secretly began to cook for himself although the young boy’s mischief didn’t stay hidden for long. “My mum found out about my secret hobby when she found unwashed pots and pans in the sink and made me promise never to go near the kitchen again as she thought I was too young to cook,” says Reza.
Times have changed in Reza’s household as his mother now joins him in his cooking sprees in the kitchen. However, Reza admits that the sessions aren’t always fun and easy.
“We disagree in the kitchen a lot. Sometimes, when she is making something Western, I would walk in and ‘ hijack’ the cooking process,” says Reza with a smile.
“We have different styles of cooking. She is the rigid, stick- to- the- recipe kind of cook, whereas I am more experimental with my food. She does the traditional Malay and Asian food and I am more into Western cuisine.”
Right now, Reza is going through an Asian influence himself. He has been busy in the kitchen trying out Japanese and Korean recipes which he gets from TV or the Internet.
“I always give these recipes my own twist. I look at different recipes for the same dish and combine them to come up with one that suits my taste,” he says.
For example, instead of using Korean bean paste for the Spring Onion Pancake ( Pa Jeon), Reza uses miso paste as it is more easily available here. And for the Korean Fried Chicken ( Dak Gang Jeung), Reza adds a little mustard to the sauce to give it an extra kick.
Reza desires to open a restaurant, a place where he can showcase his cooking skills, but says that it is too soon to start the venture.
“I don’t have the financial means or the kitchen experience to run a restaurant now. Hopefully, the situation changes in 10 years or so,” says Reza.
“But for now, I am happy to cook for my family and friends and seeing them enjoy my food is a reward on its own.”
SPRING ONION PANCAKE ( Pa JEON)
Serves 2
For the pancake
55g cup all- purpose flour
1 tbsp miso paste 60ml cup cold water
1 egg
1 tsp light soy sauce
1 bunch chives
½ bunch spring onion, cut into long thin strips to fit the frying pan
4 tbsp cooking oil
For the dipping sauce
4 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp fish sauce
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp finely sliced spring onions or chives
to make the pancake
In a mixing bowl, combine flour, miso paste and water to make a
batter. Add egg and soy sauce. Mix the batter well.
Cut the chives and spring onion to fit the frying pan lengthwise. Dip them in the batter and coat well.
Heat oil in a round frying pan on medium high heat.
When the oil is hot, gently arrange the chives and spring onion in the pan.
Do not overlap to ensure that the pancake is crisp.
Fill the gap in the pan with remaining batter and use a spatula to evenly spread the batter thinly across the pan.
Once bubbles start to appear on the top of the pancake, roughly after 3 to 4 minutes, flip the pancake.
Reduce the heat to medium and let the pancake cook for about 6 minutes.
Place the pancake on a round plate and cut with a pair of scissors or a pizza cutter.
to make the dipping sauce
Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl or saucer. Serve with pancake.
KOREAN FRIED CHICKEN ( DAK GANG JEUNG)
Serves 2
6 chicken wings
350ml oil, for frying
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
115g potato starch
1 stalk green onion, chopped
For the sauce
3 tbsp cooking oil
6 cloves garlic, minced
6 dried red chilli, cut
4 tbsp light soy sauce 1 tsp mustard
6 tbsp rice syrup
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp sesame seeds
For the fried chicken
Place the wings in a bowl. Add ginger, salt and pepper to the wings and marinate for 10- 15 minutes.
Heat oil in a pot at medium high heat.
While the oil is heating, place potato starch in a shallow dish.
Dip each piece of chicken in the flour to coat it well. Shake off any excess.
Add the chicken pieces to the hot oil without overcrowding and cook over medium high heat for about 12 minutes.
Remove to drain on paper towels or wire rack. Reduce the heat to medium and double fry the chicken pieces for extra crunch.
to prepare sauce
Heat oil in a large pan at medium heat. Fry garlic and dried chilli until fragrant. Add soy sauce, mustard and rice syrup and stir.
Once the sauce starts to bubble, add vinegar and reduce heat to medium low.
Add half of the sesame seeds to the sauce and turn off the heat.
to finish
Return the prefried chicken to the saucepan in batches. Toss the chicken and coat them well.
Transfer to a plate. Sprinkle the remaining sesame seeds and chopped green onion over and serve.
BEEF BULGOGI
Serves 2
500g beef, thinly sliced
½ large onion, sliced into rings
3 tbsp cooking oil
1 tbsp sesame seeds, for garnishing
Spring onion, for garnishing
For the marinade
½ Korean pear, peeled and cut into small chunks
4 cloves garlic
½ large white onion, roughly chopped
3 stalks large green onion, finely diced
4 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 ½ tbsp sugar
Marinade
Place pear, garlic and onion in a food processor and blitz to a paste.
Transfer to a bowl. Add green onion, soy sauce, sesame oil, and sugar.
Add sesame seeds and mix well to incorporate ingredients.
to marinate the beef
Combine the marinade with the beef and cover the bowl with cling wrap. Set aside for at least 30 minutes.
to prepare the beef
Heat oil in a pan on medium high heat. Fry onion until brown and fragrant.
Add beef to the pan. Spread the meat evenly across the pan and leave for about 1 minute. Stir beef for another 2 minutes, and transfer to a serving bowl.
Garnish with sesame seeds and green onions. Serve with rice.