Taro coconut sago

This is one of my favorite summer desserts. It’s also a good recipe for winter when served warm. If you never had the chance to try taro — it has a nuttier, starchy texture compared to sweet potatoes. It’s also less sweet and is used in a variety of Asian desserts. 

When I lived with grandma on her tea farm in Taiwan, I would accompany her in the field every day and dig for baby taro. Dessert was simply steamed taro, peeled, and sometimes dipped in sugar. A nostalgic ingredient for me. 


Taro coconut sago

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 medium-sized taro (400 grams), peeled and diced into 1-inch cubes

  • 1 can (14 oz) full-fat coconut cream

  • 1/2 cup sago pearls (100 grams)

  • 1/3 cups sugar (80 grams) or preferred sweetener to taste

  • A pinch of salt

  • Water

Instructions

  1. In a pot & steamer, bring water to a boil and steam taro for 15 minutes. If you prefer mushier taro like me, steam for 3 minutes longer. Turn off the heat and let sit while you cook the sago.

  2. In a separate pot, bring 6 cups of water to a boil and add the sago pearls. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring constantly so they don’t stick to the bottom of the pot. Turn off the heat and let sit for 20 minutes. The residual heat will cook the pearls and they should turn from white to translucent.

  3. Pour the pot of sago pearls into a large sieve and run cold water through it, stirring with a fork. This will stop the cooking process and prevent your sago from getting too gluggy. Set the sago aside.

  4. In a clean pot, bring the can of coconut cream to a low simmer. While you are waiting — mash half of the taro in a bowl with a fork. Add all of the taro, 1/2 cup water (or more to achieve desired consistency), salt to the coconut cream and bring to a simmer. Add the sago pearls last and give it a good stir. Serve hot or chilled in the fridge.

Notes:

Consistency: The soup will become thicker the longer it sits, simply add water and adjust to the desired consistency.

Fresh Taro: Taro can be found fresh in most Asian markets. In the case you can’t find any, try some from the frozen section, though you can’t beat the fragrance of freshly cooked taro.

Over-stirring: Avoid over-stirring after everything is added together. This will ensure you get all the lovely textures from your ingredients.

Caramelized Black Pepper Chicken

A chicken rice dish. One of the first chicken recipes on the blog. I don’t cook a lot of meat these days but dating an Australian boy means meat is bound to show up on the table at least once a week. I am also excited to share Dad’s two-ingredient chicken soup over here at some point.

I attended a Thai cooking class in Australia last winter and loved the chef’s observation of the Asian versus North American diet. The average meat portion in America being 120 grams/person while being 30 grams or so in Thailand. I like the idea — small amounts, shared plates. Growing up, my parents didn’t get to eat a lot of meat as it is more expensive. Mom would get a single hard-boiled egg (dyed pink) on her birthday as a special treat. Oftentimes a meal would be soy sauce with lard poured over a bowl of rice. But if you were to attend any meal hosted by family or friends, you can be sure there will be at least one meat dish on the table

This dish is delicious and easy to whip up. I added some purple onions to give it colour and will try adding vegetables next. Substitute the chicken with tofu or whatever protein you have. Hold back on the red chilies if you need them, they were the perfect amount of almost-too-spicy for me.

Vietnamese Black Pepper Chicken

Serves 2

Ingredients

  • 1 pound chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces (sub chicken thigh or protein of choice)

  • 2 tbsp oil

  • Sprinkle of salt

  • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar

  • 1/4 cup fish sauce

  • 1/4 cup water

  • 3 tbsp rice vinegar

  • 1 medium shallot, thinly sliced into rings

  • 1/2 purple onion, sliced thinly(optional)

  • 1 tsp fresh ginger, finely chopped

  • 1-2 cloves garlic, minced

  • 2 dried red chiles (sub fresh Thai chilli, chopped into pieces)

  • 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

  • Cilantro for garnish

  • Steamed jasmine rice for serving

Instructions

  1. In a bowl, combine chicken, half of the oil, and a sprinkle of salt. Mix to combine. 

  2. In a small saucepan, add the water, rice vinegar, fish sauce, and brown sugar. Give it a stir. Heat until the sugar dissolves, and then turn it down to a simmer.

  3. In a skillet, heat the remaining oil over medium heat. Add the shallots (and onion, if you are using any) and cook for one minute. Add the ginger, then garlic, and fry until aromatic or until the shallot is lightly caramelized. Add the chicken, red chile, and cook for two minutes, flipping the chicken halfway.

  4. Add 3/4 of the fish sauce from the saucepan into the chicken along with the black pepper. Cook over medium-high heat for another 6-8 minutes, until the sauce reduces and the chicken is done. Taste and add more fish sauce if you’d like. If you do, bring the skillet to a simmer again. 

  5. Transfer contents of skillet to a bowl, serve over rice with cilantro.

*Recipe adapted from Charles Phan