WE HAVE A NEW FORMAT TO THE WEBSITE!!

(If you follow the “Paeds” part of the blog, please pardon the double post – as I will repost this first part in the health post I will write next)

Thank you to my IT whiz husband Troy, who re-formatted the home page with easy-to-click tiles, so you can more easily see the content and titles, sort by topic and search for what you are looking for.   The most exciting new feature of the website is though, PUSH NOTIFICATIONS.  Contrary to my medical brain thinking this is something to do with a good friend letting you know she has gone into labour (tee hee hee, lots of very pregnant friends at the moment – Tingy, Kelly, Kath, Gemma, Lara, Charlotte et al – so it is on the brain), it actually means that you (as a follower of the blog) can get a notification on your phone or lap/desktop that I’ve posted new content!  Well, I think it’s exciting anyway – the website should give you a little pop-up that you can click on “Allow” and Bob’s-your-uncle.

Huge week too… Our Paeds in a Pod, NORTH LAKES clinic opened TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Woo hoo!!!  So exciting! Unfortunately our builders aren’t quite finished yet (**eye roll, face palm) and only one of the 6 clinic rooms are currently finished.  The walls are painted though, the carpet is down, the pendant lights are up and you can see that it has potential!  Hopefully it will look heaps more finished by this FRIDAY, when I have my first clinic!  I cannot wait.  That will be a huge day (have already looked at the list – I think am booked solid for the next 5 weeks), but I am so looking forward to getting started.  Anyhoo, enough waffle…

 

So guess what is for dinner tonight???

OMG soooooo good (I just tasted it off the stove and it is AH-MAAAAAAAAAAAAZ-ZING!!).  Chinese style sticky pork belly.  Yu-ummmm…. And it is another recipe that is super easy to do.

One of my (two, wonderful) big sisters, tagged me in one of those “Tasty” abbreviated video recipes last week.  I watched it and thought, “Hey, that looks yummy..”

BUT as anyone who knows me knows, I cannot just let things alone.  I ALWAYS (and completely pathologically)  have to change elements of the recipe, to make it “better.”  Ha ha ha!!  maybe one of these days I’ll actually do something the way that it is meant to be done! Ha ha… or maybe not.  So my new re-invented recipe is below!!

 

INGREDIENTS

• 1kg pork belly – cut into smallish cubes (about 2cm)
• 8 slices of ginger (about 5cm)
• 6 shallots – cut into ~5cm lengths, and a handful chopped finely to garnish at the end
• 6 cloves of garlic – 4 whole, 2 cut finely
• 4 tbs of oil (vegetable, peanut, canola – whatever you want)
• 6 tbs of brown sugar
• 6 tbs light soy sauce
• 6 tbs of dark soy
• 6 tbs of Chinese cooking wine (Shao Xing)
• 1-2 tsp of Chinese 5 spice powder
• 2 whole star anise
• Optional extras (I add this stuff to get my kids to eat more vegetable matter!!)
  • 1 can of quails eggs
  • about 60g of dried wood ear (bat’s wing) fungus – soaked in boiling water for about an hour before
  • 60g dried shiitake mushrooms – soaked for a minimum of 5 hours before (and then use the mushroom liquid instead of water in step 5 below), then tough stems removed and sliced OR a can of shiitake mushrooms
  • can of baby corn
  • can of straw mushrooms or champignons
• Fresh coriander and cut Lebanese cucumber to serve

METHOD

1. Place chopped pork belly, 4 slices of ginger, shallots (the 5 cm lengths only) and 4 cloves of garlic into a pot and cover with 2L of boiling water
2. Boil for 5 min until cooked.  Drain onto paper and set aside for a sec [*** just as an aside – I use the pork stock liquid then to make my steamed rice.  Adds flavour and less waste!]
3. Heat oil in a wok over high heat and toss in remaining aromatics (ginger, finely chopped garlic, star anise) and fry till aromatic (~30 sec-1 min)
4. Add pork and when brown, add brown sugar and fry until caramelised
5. Add light and dark soy, cooking wine, 5 spice powder, 2 cups of water (or shiitake mushroom soaking liquid if you are using this)
6. [Add shiitake mushrooms and wood ear fungus now (if you are adding these) ] 
7. Bring to the boil, then turn down and simmer for 45 minutes (or if you can be bothered, you can transfer to a pressure cooker and cook for 10 min)
8. [For the last 5 min, if you are using the optional extras, add them now (canned baby corn, canned straw mushrooms, quail eggs) ]
9. Garnish with chopped spring onions and fresh coriander
10. Serve hot with steamed rice, and Lebanese cucumber pieces on the side +/- chilli sauce

 

YUU-UMMMMMM!!!!

Hope you like this recipe guys – don’t forget to post me a comment or a pic if you try it and pleeeeeeeeeeeeease hit LIKE or SHARE to help me out too!

Happy eating!

 

xxDr Megs