Recipe of the Week: Singapore Kway Chap

I'm excited to be kicking off September's Asian Recipes of the Week with one from Singapore. This recipe is contributed by our friend, Nixon Khoo. Nixon was nice enough to share his recipe for kway chap, one of the classic hawker fare. At my request, he also made it and photographed it for me to include in this post. And, just in case, I wasn't demanding enough, I also made Nixon send me some pictures of his ceramic work so we can share it on the blog!

Nixon is a member at the Lillstreet Art Center in Chicago. He writes for the Clay at Lillstreet blog, and you can see more of his ceramic work on Facebook. Here's a sneak preview of some teapots he's been working on:

Kway Chap typically comprises of braised duck meat, tofu, eggs, and pig offal served with a small side of preserved vegetables and a bowl of brothy, flat rice noodles. I know, this sounds deliciously exotic. And for readers who might already be turned off by the mention of pig offal and/or other kinds of organ meat, let me just say these ingredients can easily be left out without affecting the overall taste. In Singapore, kway chap is frequently eaten for breakfast or lunch. My mom and brother are big fans. It is a relatively difficult dish to replicate in the US because some of the traditional ingredients are hard to come by. What Nixon has so wonderfully done, is to adapt the recipe to what we can find here in the States. Most of the spices and ingredients are commonly found in grocery stores. But if there's something you can't find, I highly recommend myspicesage.com or your local Asian grocery store.

Now onto the good stuff ...

Braising Liquid:
2 cup light soy sauce

4 cups water

2 tablespoon dark soy sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1 pinch sugar

1 inch piece of ginger smashed

1 head garlic

5 shallots sliced

5  to 8 pieces star anise (whole)

1 tablespoon black pepper corn

10 dried while dried chili pods

Braising ingredient (some or all):

Chicken Thigh or Chicken Drumstick or Pork tenderloin

Fried Tofu (Tau Pok) or Firm Tofu

De-shelled Hardboiled Eggs

Chicken Kidneys

Noodle:

White Rice Noodle cut to size (traditional) or

Wide Rice Noodle or Vermicelli Noodle

Directions:

Heat oil in pot.

Brown the sliced shallots in oil, fish out the shallot pieces and save for later. 

Sear the meats in the shallot oil to form a nice crust.

Add other ingredients (tofu, eggs, kidneys, etc.).

Add in braising liquid. Bring to a boil.

Lower to simmer and braise for an hour (the longer you braise, the more intense the flavor).

In a separate pot, cook the noodles in hot water.

Portion out noodles in bowls with some of the liquid used  to cook the noodle.

Dish out braised “meat” – slice tenderloin and tofu, quarter eggs.

Arrange “meat” on a plate.

Ladle braising liquid over cooked noodle and garnish with caramelized shallot.


Thanks again, Nixon!