Ipoh Shredded Chicken Rice Noodles (Kai See Hor Fun) 怡保鸡丝河粉 (Version 2)

Why is there a version 2? Is it an improvement from Version 1?

Yes....it is and by judging only from the photo itself, you can tell that there is a lot of different!

The secret of version 2 lays on these two items: Prawn oil and Chicken soup

In my previous attempt, personally I do not find that the color of my noodle is very impressive. There is not enough 'red' color in my soup. I have been scratching my head thinking of which ingredient could give the 'red' color... definitely not chili; how about prawn's head? I tried to cook prawn's head with oil using low heat and to my surprise, red oil is produced!!! It is really amazed me.

Another improvement is the soup itself. In this attempt, I have added sweet turnip in my soup and it makes the soup change to slightly milky. The taste is so 'sweet' and the color is really looked like the one I found in Ipoh. I am really happy to announce that this is a real Ipoh Kai see Hor Fun!!!

Ingredients
(Serving of 4-6 persons)

For the broth
1 medium chicken 
3 liter of water
300 g of prawns, washed and deveined (reserved the prawn shells)
300g sweet turnip
Rock sugar (about 5 pieces or to taste)
Salt to taste
2 tbsp of oil

Shrimp oil
200g prawn's head
125ml oil


Garnishing
Chives
Fried onions (shallots)
Bean sprouts
Shredded chicken


Making the shrimp oil

1. Heat up the oil using low heat. Add in the prawn's head and saute until the oil is separated out.

Making the broth

1. Heat up 3 liter of water. When the water boils, soak the chicken in the water. Lower the heat and let it cook until it is done. It takes around 40-50 minutes. Upon cooked, immediately transfer the chicken to a pot of cold water and let it soak for at least 10 minutes. This step is important to make the meat juicy and tender. Then, remove the flesh from the bone. Put the bones back to the chicken stock. Reserve the chicken meat; shredded before serving the meat.

2. Using the same wok, saute the prawns shells for around a minute or until they turn to golden colour. Then, transfer to the chicken stock (step 1). Normally, I will use some water to raise the pan to make sure that all the prawn's juice that are stick on the pan is being transferred to the chicken stock (with bones). Simmer for an hour or longer until you see a milky chicken broth.

3. Strain the stock. Taste with sugar and salt. You may use chicken stock concentration to enhance the taste (optional).

                                             



Garnishing
4. Shredded the chicken meat and set aside.

5. Blanched the prawn meat in the soup, removed.

6. Cut chives into 1 inch strips. Blanch


Noodles
7. Blanched a serving of hor fun and bean sprouts in a pot of boiling water for around 5-10 seconds. Put into a bowl. Add some prawns, shredded chicken and chives. Then, add in the boiling broth. Before serving, garnish with fried shallots.

Spinach Seafood Spaghetti

To cook any dried pasta, it is important that the pasta should be cooked until it is al dente-that is, soft on the outside but still firm to the bite on the inside. Al dente can be achieved by cooking dried pasta for 1 or 2 minutes less than the suggested time on the packet. While the pasta is cooking, pick out a piece occasionally with a fork and chew on it, to see if it as reached the desired texture. I personally like pasta very al dente, so I cook my spaghetti for only 5 minutes or so.

As soon as the pasta is cooked to your satisfaction, remove it from the heat and drain it, retaining a little of the cooking water, which can then be used to moisten the finished dish if it seems too dry. I usually like to add the drained pasta to the pan containing the sauce, so the pasta absorbs the sauce in the final minutes of cooking.

To cook Spinach Seafood Spaghetti, it is important to have sufficient spinach which has been blended with sufficient olive oil. Unlike Pesto, this spinach sauce is cooked with seafood to enhance the flavor of this sauce. I am really hope that your picky kids love this dish.

Ingredients

400 grams dried spaghetti

200 grams prawns, washed and deveined

2 pieces of squid, cleaned and cut into pieces

250 grams bacon, cut into small pieces

250 grams of spinach, blended with sufficient olive oil

1 small onions, diced

2 tbsp of olive oil
3 slices of Cheddar Cheese
1 tsp of dry basil flakes

salt to taste

pepper to taste

A dash of Parmesan Cheese

1. Prepared all the ingredients and set aside.

2. To prepare the sauce, heat up the pan. Saute the onion until it is soft. Add in bacon and continue to saute until the bacon is brownish. Add in squid and prawns. Saute for around 1 minute before adding the the blended spinach. Continue to saute until spinach is cooked. Do not worry when you see plenty of water. Off heat and set aside.

3. To prepare the spaghetti, cook it with plenty of boiling water until al dente. Drain, reserving a little of the cooking water.

4. Sprinkle the basil into the sauce, put the pan back over low heat and add the spaghetti. Add in the Cheddar Cheese, salt and pepper. Toss well until the Cheddar Cheese melts and incorporates with the spaghetti. Add in a tablespoon or two of the reserved cooking water if the sauce seems too dry. Serve immediately with Parmesan Cheese.