jessiefoodinthekitchen

There’s something deeply comforting about Char Siu pastries. The sweet-savory aroma of barbecue pork wrapped in flaky pastry instantly brings back memories of Chinese bakeries—glass counters filled with golden buns and pastries, best enjoyed warm with a cup of tea. Traditionally, char siu pastries are made with Chinese flaky pastry dough, a labor of love that involves two types of dough folded together to create those beautiful layers. Delicious, yes—but also time-consuming. And sometimes, we just want a fast, easy snack without sacrificing flavor. That’s where this shortcut comes in. Instead of making Chinese pastry from scratch, I’m using frozen store-bought puff pastry. It’s one of my favorite kitchen hacks—reliable, convenient, and surprisingly versatile. When baked, the puff pastry turns crisp, light, and beautifully flaky, making it a perfect stand-in for a homemade pastry base. The filling is the real star here: tender Char Siu pork coated in a glossy, sweet-savory sauce...

  If you love those Chinese flaky savory pancakes but don’t have the time (or patience!) to make two types of dough, here’s a shortcut version that still delivers all the flavor and crispiness—without the fuss. Instead of making the traditional water dough and oil dough, I’m using ready-made hand-grabbed flatbread ( 手抓饼 ) from the supermarket. They’re flaky, layered, and perfect for creating that crusty bite signature. Why do I choose hand-grabbed pancakes? They   are already laminated, which means They are layers will puff and crisp beautifully when baked. All that’s left to do is prepare your favorite savory filling, wrap, flatten, and bake. Easy! The beauty of these shortcut pancakes is that you can make them your own. Sometimes I use minced pork and spring onions, the classic pairing.   Or you may replace it with large onions or both. Whatever filling you choose, keep it slightly dry. Think of it as a little treasure hidden inside the laminated layer. One of the...

  Do you like to make your own fishcakes? Have you ever tried prawn fishcakes? This prawn and fishcake are crispy golden pops of seafood dressed with a tangy sweet slightly spicy kind of sauce and lot of fresh herbs. This prawn fishcake is slightly different from the classic fishcakes. Let’s talk about the type of fish to use. My late mom used to use mackerel for making fish cake. I am using a snapper for this recipe. In fact, you can choose any kind of firm white fish. Or you can use salmon also. To make the fish paste, my late mom used to scrape the fish meat with a metal spoon and chop it with the back of the knife until it turns to fine paste. I cut my fish fillet into a small chunk blend it with a food processor. How easy was that!! You may use a food processor to blend the prawn paste, but I prefer to manually chop them to give my prawn paste a truly chunky texture with so, the fishcakes will pop a little of sweetness. Kaffir lime leaves are the next ingredi...

The Chinese New Year is almost here, and now I'd want to share these Gok Zai （油角） , or Cantonese sweet dumplings, with you all. They have a crispy exterior and are frequently stuffed with sugar, peanuts, and sesame seeds. People will drool just by looking at it. It's nutty, aromatic, and crispy. The traditional method of making this peanut dumpling is deep frying, but I would like to share a baking method for this recipe.   The appearance of these dumplings is like a mini curry puff. However, it looks like a little plump coin purse from a different perspective– it symbolizes the fuller, the better, for a prosperous New Year! When you make the dumpling dough, make sure do not over mix the dough. Simply work all the ingredients together until they are soft and smooth. That is why I make the dough by hand to avoid over mixing. Aside from that, I like to cut my butter into small cubes as this makes it much easier to blend it into the flour mixture.  Once the dough is made, set a...

I These baked BBQ Shao Bao have a flaky and buttery crust that ’ s perfect for an afternoon treat. This delicious snack is referred to as Seremban Shao Bao( 芙蓉烧包 ) Seremban is a city about 45 – 60 minutes from Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. When was the first time I ate Seremban shao bao （芙蓉烧包） ? How many years have passed since then? Well, that was two decades ago.   I travelled to Kuala Lumpur to visit a friend. We took a trip to Melaka. She made an intentionally stop at Seremban on our way back so I could try this well-known snack. It’s like a steamed bun or pao, it is pleated, but it's baked in an oven. Usually, green peas and BBQ pork made up the filling. In the early days, if you wanted to eat Seremban Shao Bao, you had to travel to Seremban, to buy it from the headquarters or its branches in Seremban.   It is now available to buy at authorized stalls all around the country. Perhaps they will be sold where I reside in the future.  However, I can now prep...

Crispy cauliflower fritters are super addictive!! They are like a vegetarian version of chicken popcorn and taste great with my own made Bang Bang Sauce. These cauliflower fritters are so crispy and tasty that you will need to prepare a second batch. The batter can be made up in advance!  Since they are best consumed immediately after being fried, if you are unable to consume them all at once, fry only what you can and store the remaining batter in the refrigerator for future use. I make the batter with two types of flour: regular flour and rice flour or cornflour. I've discovered that although cornflour will provide a batter with a stronger crunch, rice flour will produce something that fries up light and crisp. Both are delicious.    Cauliflower fritters taste great with some sriracha, ketchup, or cheese sauce on the side. But I am serving it with my own homemade Bang Bang sauce. This sauce is good with seafood, but you can whip it up and use it on meat or vegg...

Traditional curry puffs are made of dough and filled with potato chunks that have been cooked in a spicy, flavorful curry before being deep-fried. The original version requires making two different types of dough and a series of complicated techniques to wrap them. Potatoes and spices are typically used to make curry puff filling. These can also occasionally be made with minced meat. Curry puffs are a favourite among all people and are frequently used as a snack. Today, I am making my curry puff using a quick shortcut spring roll wrapper Let me tell you quietly, I even served it as one of the Chinese New Year dishes. These curry puffs are wonderfully tasty, easy to make, and suitable for the whole family. To kick it up a level for the adults, I suggest using sweet chili sauce.   One adjustment I made to the filling was to swap out the potatoes for sweet potatoes. The filling texture will be tested creamy. Thanks for the advice given by a Facebook food group friend. They are...

These stuffed chicken wings are with flavourful Asian spice!  And it can be served as an interesting appetizer to WOW your guests. These wings are SO delicious, can be prepped well in advance, and are probably going to be something new for your party guest. They are fully juicy on the inside and they are an excellent way to enjoy wings WITHOUT the bone. In fact, I have come across this recipe frequently in my cookbook, but I have not yet tried it. Consider the difficulty in deboning the wings making me give up on this recipe. I resolved to accept the challenge this time. In fact, the remaining processes are significantly simpler after deboning the wings. Just a little bit of practice is required; the first one could be a challenge, but it will get easier as you go. For this stuffed chicken wings, there are a lot of various filling options, such as glutinous rice, ham with carrots and celery, and shrimp. or the filling of your choice, to me it is just all up to you and how you...