Recipes
A Note From chef Mimi
Cooking has become one of the most joyous activities in my life. It helps reduce my stress and anxiety while offering a fun and exciting way to express my creativity. More importantly, it’s one of the best ways I can show love to others.
That said, cooking can feel stressful for some, especially when it seems like you’re a slave to a recipe. Unlike baking, where precise measurements are crucial, cooking allows for flexibility.
Use my recipes as a guide, rather than following everything step-by-step. Instead of aiming to master a recipe, focus on mastering the art of intuitive cooking. Feel free to substitute certain ingredients to make my dishes your own. That's how I usually cook, using classic recipes as a guide but experiment with my adjustments and substitutions to develop my own creations. This is what I call "intuitive cooking."
What is intuitive cooking? Read my blog, Intuitive and Mindful Cooking, to gain valuable insights to help you develop a healthy mindset around cooking and enjoy the process, no matter your skill level.
Recipes
Salad/Vegetable
Whole Roasted Cauliflower Head
Whole roasted cauliflower is as delicious as it is beautiful. To enhance its flavor, poach it before roasting. You’ll love the way it tastes and the presentation will wow your guests.
The recipe is listed in my Instagram post, so please read the post thoroughly before you start anything. Good luck!
Appetizer
Crispy Skin Pork Belly
I posted this recipe with a video on my Instagram twice, so please click on both links to get the recipe and tips.
You're going to love making this dish because it's so satisfying & delicious when you bite into that loud crunch. And the meat is juicy, tender and succulent.
- Start with this video (and read the post, too.).
- Then watch this video (and read the post).
Easy Baguette
This is the easiest French baguette recipe you'll ever make. It requires no kneading, and although you need to let the dough rise for 5 hours, prep time is only 10-15 min.
The recipe and video are listed in my Instagram post, so please watch the video instructions and read the post thoroughly before you start anything. Good luck!
Open-Face Sausage Panini
This is such a great dish to make in a pinch for a quick meal, because it's made with ingredients most people already have and just get some baguette (or make it using my easy baguette recipe under "appetizer."
This recipe is also very forgiving; you can substitute it with so many other ingredients and it would still come out great. So if you don't like sausage, some of the protein substitutions ideas are: raw seasoned ground hamburger meat, raw seasoned ground chicken, raw seasoned ground lamb, etc.
And you can use sprouts, micro greens, lettuce, cilantro, spring onion, red or white onion, arugula, etc. Any melting cheese would do too. You can also make it the way I show what it looks like on my Instagram, but you can cut it into smaller pieces to serve at parties.
The recipe and video are listed in my Instagram post, so please watch the video instructions and read the post thoroughly before you start anything. Good luck!
Main
Vietnamese Pork Chop (Suong nuong)
We went to a fancy restaurant recently and ordered pork chop, and were so disappointed that it came out looking so pale, and tasted so bland.
Pork chop is one of the easiest things to make, but believe me when I tell you I have experienced enough restaurants screwing up this simple dish big time.
There's a trick (fast and high heat, contrary to old belief that you have to bake pork chops slow & low for it to be tender & juicy), and a tip (add soy sauce to your seasoning to deepen the color of the chop).
The recipe and video are listed in my Instagram post, so please watch the video instructions and read the post thoroughly before you start anything. Good luck!
Batter-Free, Oil-Free Fried Chicken
You may think that title sounds oxy-moron but I call it this name because the technique to pan fry this chicken is so brilliant that makes the skin crispy without any coating batter, and the skin of the chicken releases enough fat when cooking so you don't need to add any oil (although a teaspoon is fine too). So it's like the fried chicken we know with flours & batter to create that crunch. This chicken is good too, but you can't eat deep fried food all the time. This is a more healthy, more modern way of making fried chicken.
I modified this recipe from Mandy of @ladyandpups, and love what she named this dish "Mother Plucking Good Chicken." Trust me, it’s a dish you’ll want to make over and over again because you’ll get praise each time.
The recipe and video are listed in my Instagram post, so please watch the video instructions and read the post thoroughly before you start anything. Good luck!
And watch this super short video in this post to see how I flip the chicken to the other side and what the skin should look like.
Middle Eastern Meatball
Tired of the same old meatballs? Try this Middle eastern meatball that gives your regular meatball a kick in the butt, with exotic seasonings that gives the meatballs awesome flavor bomb. Served with warm pita or naan bread. This will turn a regular meatball night into a gourmet night.
The recipe is listed in my Instagram post, so please watch the video instructions and read the post thoroughly before you start anything. Good luck!
Check back for recipe updates.