Best served with plain white rice, bread or fried rice vermicelli, curry chicken is a Singaporean favourite and a must-have for every special family occasion. Made with fragrant coconut milk and a quintessential Southeast Asian spice mix called the rempah, its aromatic and flavourful gravy is one that will bring the whole family together for the upcoming holidays!
What you’ll need
For the Rempah (spice paste):
25 pcs dried chili
15 shallots
3 cloves garlic
1 inch turmeric
1 inch young ginger
For Curry Chicken
Rempah (above)
1 chicken (approx. 1.2kg)
3 tbsps curry powder
3 stalks lemongrass
500g potatoes
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
500ml coconut milk
900 ml water
How to make it:
Blanch chili in boiling water for 10 mins, drain and dry
Blend all ingredients in a food processor
Fry rempah in 3 tbsps oil until chili oil floats to surface and fragrant (small fire)
Marinate chicken with curry powder for at least 15 minutes
Add chicken and lemongrass to rempah and fry until chicken turns opaque on outside
Add potatoes, fry together until the gravy fully coats the potato
Dilute 300ml coconut milk with 500ml water, then add to the pan and cook until chicken and potatoes are tender.
Season with salt
Add rest of coconut milk and cook on medium until the curry boils
Serve with white Jasmine rice or crispy baguette!
(Note Salt should always be added before undiluted coconut milk to prevent any curdling.
Babka is a sweet braided bread that originated from Jewish communities in Poland in the early 19th century. Extra challah dough was rolled up with fruit jam or cinnamon and the Babka was baked as a loaf alongside the challah then.
Fast forward to 2020, the modern day Babka consists of either an enriched or laminated dough, rolled out and spread with a variety of sweet fillings such as nutella, chocolate, cinnamon sugar, apples, poppy seeds, matcha and even sake kasu! It is sometimes topped with a crumb topping.
This is a recipe for Nutella Babka, and a variation for Matcha Sesame Babka (scroll all the way to the bottom!)
What you’ll need
1 cup + 2 Tablespoons whole milk, divided into two
2 teaspoons dry yeast
1/3 cup/70g granulated sugar
1/2 cup/115g unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs, at room temperature and divided into 2
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 and 1/4 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting/rolling
2 cups (600g) Nutella, divided into 2 sets
How to make it
Heat 1 cup of milk to about 95 deg F/ 35 degC.
Pour the warm milk into the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Manually whisk in the yeast and 2 teaspoons of the granulated sugar. The mixture should be frothy and foamy after 5 minutes.
On low speed, beat in the remaining sugar and the softened butter until butter is slightly broken up. Next beat in 1 whole egg plus 1 egg yolk (reserve the egg white) and the salt. Gradually add the flour, then beat on medium speed for about 5-6 minutes until a soft dough forms.
Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a ball. Place into a large bowl, greased and cover with a damp towel. Place in a warm area to rise, till doubled in size, for about an hour.
Once doubled in size, punch down the dough to release any air bubbles. Remove dough from the bowl and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Punch down again to release any more air bubbles if needed. Using a sharp knife or dough scraper, cut dough in half. Work with only half of the dough at a time. Cover the dough you aren’t working with.
Generously grease two round 7-inch pans with butter or nonstick spray.
On a slightly floured work surface, start shaping the babka. Roll one dough half out into an approx. 9×13 inch rectangle. Spread with 1 cup of Nutella, leaving a 1/2 inch border uncovered.
Tightly roll the dough into a 13-inch log. Place the log on its seam. Using a sharp knife, cut the log in half lengthwise. Criss-cross one half, cut side down, on top of the other half– forming an X. Twist the two together then give the plait a quick roll to form a round dough.
Place in prepared loaf pan and cover with damp towel. Repeat with 2nd half of dough. This step can get a little messy – its normal!
Allow both shaped (and covered) loaves to rest for 10-20 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 deg F/ 180 deg C.
To make the eggwash, whisk the remaining 2 Tablespoons of milk with the leftover egg white. Using a pastry brush, brush the babka loaves with egg wash. Do the best you can as some Nutella is exposed.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or until babka is golden brown on top. Remove from the oven, place each pan on a wire rack, and allow to cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.
Cover and store leftover babka at room temperature for a couple days or in the refrigerator for 1 week. You can also freeze the baked babka for up to 3 months, then thaw overnight in the refrigerator. To serve, warm it up in the oven.
Matcha Sesame Babka
To make Matcha Sesame Babka, add 2 tbsps matcha powder to the flour in step 2. Instead of Nutella, make your black sesame filling with 1 cup ground black sesame, 1/2 cup sesame seeds and 2 tbsps brown sugar, then sprinkle on the dough before rolling it into a tight log (steps 7 and 8).
Originally made with oats and griddle-baked, it is believed that scones got their start as a Scottish quick bread in the early 1500s. Some say the word “skone” originated from the Dutch word ‘schoonbrot’, which means beautiful bread, while others argue it comes from Stone of Destiny, where the Kings of Scotland were crowned.
When it comes to flavour variations, the possibilities are endless, so feel empowered to explore your favourite (preferably dry) ingredients! The important thing is to keep in mind are that all ingredients should be cold (e.g. use chilled or frozen butter) for a better rise, and don’t overdo the mixing because crumbly scones are best!
