Chicken with Brocolli Leaves

500 g. of chicken breast fillet, cut into thin strips
about 2 tablespoonfuls of finely minced garlic
2 shallots (or 1 large onion), peeled and thinly sliced
lots of broccoli leaves, tough ends of stalks cut off and discarded
5-6 tbsps. of vegetable cooking oil
3 tablespoons of sherry wine or rice wine
light soy sauce
ground pepper, to taste
cornstarch
sesame oil

Cooking procedure :

Season the chicken breast fillet with 1/4 light cup soy sauce, ground pepper, sherry wine or rice wine, 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, and 2 tablespoonsful of cornstarch. Marinate for atleast 1 hour.

Heat the cooking oil in a large shallow pan. Add the marinated chicken and cook, stirring, until lightly browned around the edges. Add the garlic and sliced onion. Cook for about a minute before adding the broccoli leaves. Pour in the soy sauce mixture a few at a time, adjusting according to one's desired taste. Add some ground pepper. Stir a few times then lower the heat, cover and simmer for 5-8 minutes, depending on how mature the broccoli leaves are. More time is require for more mature leaves over the tender ones. Add 1 tablespoon of sesame oil and quickly stir and remove from heat. Serve with warm rice.

Add more soy sauce, if necessary, before serving. Or serve with soy sauce on the side.

Beef Ampalaya with Oyster Sauce

Normally when we prepare bitter gourd or ampalaya, we would saute it with tomatoes, garlic and onions. But for a change, I decided to add slices of beef to make it a complete meal with rice. My mom would tell me to rub salt on the gourd to remove the bitter taste. While doing this, no sound must be uttered during the whole process else the bitterness would still be present. I don't know if this bares any truth but I always end up with a not so bitter dish and everyone enjoys it.

Ingredients:
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 head of an onion, chopped
100 -150 grams of beef loin, pounded and sliced to 1x1/2"
300 - 400 grams of bitter gourd or ampalaya, deseeded, sliced into 1/4" thick
2-3 tablespoons oyster sauce
1 tsp. sugar
oil
salt
water

Cooking procedure:

Rub gourd with salt and leave for 5 minutes. Rinse and squeeze out the excess liquid.
Pour a small amount of oil in a medium non-stick wok. Saute beef until color changed. Add the garlic, onion and stir until fragrant. Add 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce. Add water, about 1/4 cup. Simmer until the beef is tender. Add the gourd and simmer for 1-2 minutes covered or until it is half way done. If the water is not enough, add another 1/4 cup. Drop in the sugar, stir and simmer for another 2 minutes or until the gourd is cooked. (Personally I leave the gourd, half cooked so that there would still be texture, crunch and the color would still be bright green).
Remove from heat and serve.

And there was light...

Finally, after a long absence, I am back... I have been gone for along time that I can't keep track of the stuff I am suppose to post.

Many things have happened. I had to have my laptop serviced by someone from Dell because I have encountered the "Blue Screen of Death" as my friends and I would call it. When ever we encounter a blue screen, there is that chance that data could be lost. Most system errors would display this dreaded screen.

Next, I became busy with moving from one home to another. Gosh, I never thought it would be difficult to pack, load and unload all our stuff. I couldn't imagine how much stuff that I have accumulated in my current number of years. There were clothes, shoes and items that I never thought I owned. Luckily, there was a village garage sale the other weekend.

Lastly, I also have been busy with looking for another job. The 50 hour/week is taking a toll in my health, personal life and social life. This does not include the 2-3 hour travel time each day. It seems or it makes me feel that I am missing alot from my life with this kind of schedule. And through God's grace, He gave me the chance to join another company which I would grow with in the years to come.

Well, let me end this now with, thanking your for bearing with my long slumber and hopefully, I enlighten you with a new set of recipes that I have tried and love to share with all of you...