Advertorial: An evening with SunPork

As someone who's heavily involved with my career progression, I try my best to sustain a healthy lifestyle by literally dragging myself to go to the gym after work and by minimizing my sugar/salt intake. After a hectic day at work, the latter is so much harder to achieve - I'll be reaching out for something sinful to de-stress myself with and can't be bother to prepare a decent meal.

Having just attended a dinner hosted by SunPork, it dawned on me how little I know about pre-prepared meals. Yes, there are a lot of packaged meals out there that are not ideal options but there are also good ones.

Each plate of food that we were served utilized SunPork's pre-prepared products and can be formulated at home in no time. Fully owned by 3 Aussies farmers, these guys have been supplying pork to Woolworths for more than two decades and decided to venture further into the retail market, paying close attention to what consumers these days want.

Without further ado, allow me to bore your eyes with snippets of the dinner. Despite being pre-packed meals that have been reinvented into restaurant quality dishes, I have noticed that every morsel of meat is indeed fresh and still succulent to taste.

Canapes:

Shredded chicken arancini, lemon aioli ~ utilizing their "Slow cooked & shredded roast chicken" meal, the meat was well seasoned and not dry. Wouldn't have thought about using it to make arancini but this has me thinking.

Did I forget to mention the table set up was amazing? So much attention to detail.

Mini pork schnitzel and tomato chutney ~ and now, we can have tasty schnitzels and beers in the comfort of our own home! Adding a dollop of tomato chutney gave the dish a tad more zing but hey, no problems whatsoever if you want gravy on it!

Shredded beef empanada and aji dipping sauce ~ again, the meat used here was very flavourful and the dipping sauce complimented it well.

Plate one:

Pork belly rasher in Korean BBQ sauce, radish slaw, confit apple and apple cream ~ to recreate this entire plate may be time-consuming but have no fear as the pork belly was actually the star on the plate - I would happily snack on this.

Plate two:


Shredded pork croquette, seared scallop and fennel puree ~ this was by far my favourite dish. The croquette was not greasy but rather, evenly crumbed and deep-fried to perfection. The varied textural elements from the crunchy bits, croquette and scallop was sensational together. We were given a recipe card for this dish and I am keen on trying it out myself.

Plate three:



 Peri peri pork schnitzel, labneh and braised cos ~ my brother would love this because 1) its delicious and 2) its a fraction of the price from a pub/cafe. Again, I was impressed by how the manufacturers took care in ensuring that the meat was not dry when it gets re-cooked.

Plate four:

Slow cooked pork ribs in BBQ sauce, potato rosti and mushroom crisps ~ this would be a good one to have in winter, considering that lighting up the barbie might not be the wise-est thing to do now. Meat easily pulled away from the bone and boy, was it sticky, sweet and finger licking good.

Plate five:

Slow roasted pork belly, celeriac puree and grilled fennel ~ the pork belly had an even crackling top which was a nice contrast to the smooth, creamy fatty layer of the belly. I have come across pork belly meat that oozes of a strong unpleasant smell and was so glad this was not a reminder of a bad memory.

Dessert:

Apple, rhubard, fennel and pork skin crumble ~ who would have thought of incorporating crispy pork skin as a crumble? As it is slightly salty in nature, it cuts through the sweetness and acidity of the entire dish perfectly. Move aside salted caramel sauce!

Alas, we were served with petit fours and tea/coffee to end our meal. It was indeed a lovely night in Melbourne, up high in Eureka 89, surrounded by the city's magic. Thank you SunPork for hosting this event and keep up the good work in feeding Australians well:)

Tiamo, Carlton MELB

I have lunched at Tiamo back in 2011 and it was a delicious affair that is tricky to replicate elsewhere. Now that I have relocated to Melbourne, just about everything sweet and savoury about Melbourne is within my reach. Including Tiamo.

We rocked up on a Saturday evening and boy, was it packed full of people. There's definitely not enough room to waltz around the restaurant but for the love of food, I was willing to queue for a spot here. Sure enough, our turn came quickly and without much delay, our orders were sent to the kitchen.

Garlic bread ~ the slice of bread was well toasted (no burnt/ charred spots!) and had sufficient butter spread on it. I find that some places serve garlic bread that are literally soaked in butter which can be a tad off putting.

Prosciutto pizza ~ what's not to like about mozarella, prosciutto and tomato sauce? This is a good example of simplicity well executed. The pizza base was crisp, tomato sauce was not overly tart in flavour and the rocket leaves brilliantly freshened up the dish.

Tortellini Tartufo ~ tortellini filled with ricotta, mushroom, cream and truffles. In a nutshell, this was my favourite combination. I love my mushrooms and tortellini/gnocchi type of pasta so this was a bonus for me. Silky smooth cream based sauce that compliments the earthy mushroom flavours well. 

Granola recipe

I have discovered the wonders of oats as a teen and had never looked back since. Not only are they a good source of fiber but also, there are claims that consuming oats helps reduce bad cholesterol in the body. Have not tested out that second statement although my main reason for including oats in my diet is for its versatility.

I have made overnight oats before (as seen here) and decided to try making granola this time. I actually prefer having granola - it has an unique scent that is really dependent on what type of ingredients you combine your oats with.

Ingredients:
3 cups of rolled oats
1 cup of cashew nuts and almonds, chopped roughly
1/2 cup of honey
1/3 cup of olive oil
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/2 cup of cranberries

1. Mix everything, except for the cranberries in a clean bowl.
2. Evenly lay mixture on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
3. Bake in oven for about 20 minutes at 150C. Add cranberries after 20 minutes (adding them too soon will result in crispy fruit which we don't want).
4. Bake for an additional 10 minutes. Do ensure that you use a spoon to swirl the oats around every 10 minutes for even baking.
5. Store in airtight container once cooled.

I've paired the granola with some chopped fruit and a dollop of Greek yoghurt. Feel free to add shredded coconut, pecans, apple crisps or raisins to the mixture - the sky's the limit.

Figured I should end this post with a picture of my current pair of running shoes that are keeping me on my toes at the gym. These pair of Nike shoes are very light and slightly breathable. Also included in this picture is a pair of my all time favourite walking Adidas shoes. Always in style, I reckon;)

Apple crumble cake recipe

Sticking to budgets is a skill that I am particularly good at because 1) I clearly do not roll in greens all the time 2) it's fun in a challenging sort of way. This is especially true when it boils down to grocery shopping.

A great way to save money and have the comfort of food in front of you is to purchase products that are in season (that is, if you are living in a country that has four seasons). You can still purchase items that are not in season but be mindful that it will cost a few dollars more as opposed to buying it when it's in season.

During Australian winter, apples are what you want to get your hands on. They can used in savoury dishes (good combination with pork) and in desserts. Last week, I pulled out my kitchen utensils and whipped up a crumble cake which is best served warm, perfect for winter/ cool nights.

Ingredients:
1 cup plain flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg
3 medium apples
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp lemon juice

1. Mix chopped apples, 2 tbsp granulated sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and lemon juice in a bowl. Set aside
2. Whisk melted butter with sugar for 4 minutes before adding in an egg, vanilla extract and milk. Whisk for an additional 3 minutes.
3. Mix dry ingredients together before folding wet ingredients into mixture.
4. Pour into baking pan.

Crumble ingredients:
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup melted butter
1 1/2 cup plain flour

5. Mix crumble ingredients together until mixture resembles crumbles (rule of thumb - more wet ingredients creates fluid-y texture whilst more dry ingredients creates sahara desert texture. Need to find a balance here).
6. Place crumble ingredients on the cake mix and bake in preheated oven at 160C for 40 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.

Best served warm with a dollop of vanilla ice cream, if you must. This cake is best consumed within 3 days.

Oriental Spoon Story 2, CBD MELB

Nothing beats a piping hot pot of soup on a chilly winter day. Melbourne's weather is known for being notoriously fickle-minded and winter here can be a bitter experience.

Another good point about consuming out of a pot of bubbling broth is the wonders of sharing. There is a communal feel about it, am I right?

At Oriental Spoon 2, we ordered a kimchi hot pot that comes packed full of vegetables and a decent serving of pork belly. Not forgetting the complimentary cold dishes that are customary at just about every Korean restaurant.

We noted that the hot pot was loaded with vegetables - not a bad thing especially if you like to nom on vegetables like me. Would have liked the broth to have a bit more flavour as it had only a mild taste of kimchi.

Perhaps next time we might jump straight to the barbequed meat section - yet another excellent winter meal option, if you do not mind the after smokey aroma on your clothes;)

Oldtown White Coffee, CBD MELB

The much anticipated OldTown White Coffee restaurant had finally arrived in Melbourne and being part Hainanese from Ipoh (Hainanese is a type of Chinese dialect known for running kopitiams back in the days), I was very keen on getting my Malaysian fix here.

For those unfamiliar, kopitiams are akin coffee shops that usually serve traditional Chinese brekkies such as soft boiled eggs, toasts with butter and kaya (a pandan infused egg custard) and of course, coffee. These establishments are very popular in Malaysia and much sought for quick and cheap meals.

OldTown White Coffee sachets are commercially available in most Asian grocers and is something that my family usually drink on a daily basis. Now that I have given you a summarized history lesson, let's talk about the food here!

Iced coffee ~ slightly on the stronger caffeine scale with a smooth, creamy after taste.

Toasted bread with butter and kaya ~ not too sure what's the story behind the overall browned bread (the ones served in Malaysia are toasted white slices of bread) but it was satisfying. Sufficient quantity of butter and kaya provided - just the way I like it.

Chicken hor fun ~ this is one of Ipoh's signature dishes that is not to be missed if you are visiting Ipoh. The broth had a pleasant prawn aroma and in terms of portion, it was more than suffice.

Hokkien mee ~ tasted just like the ones back home. Do be warned that the thick soy sauce used to coat the noodles can cause noticeable staining so do be careful when slurping it up. Decent quantities of vegetables, prawn and meat in this dish too.

Roast Duck Inn, Box Hill MELB

I've tasted duck meats from various continents but I find that the taste of a Chinese roast duck is still tops on my list. After arriving back to Melbourne, I immediately pounded on the opportunity to tuck into a few favourites.

The staff in this restaurant are very efficient; not a minute wasted after you are seated. On downside is that the restaurant is located in a street that may be tricky for some to find parking (if all else fails, there is always the option of paying for a parking slot.

Siew yoke aka roasted pork ~ not bad in my opinion; meat was still succulent and not overly salty.

Roasted duck ~ the piece de resistance. We got a tad fatty cut of duck but hey, that's the only unfortunate event. The skin was crisp and meat was indeed very succulent.

Snow peas with scallops ~ strangely enough, we got more scallops than snow peas so...not sure which ingredient is the star of this dish.