Tag: Bella NTV7

Bella Unwind NTV7 Apperance #3: All About Coffee

Following my last cooking demonstration on Bella Unwind NTV7, I didn’t expect to get another invitation so soon to cook another dish for Bella Unwind. This time the theme is Coffee, so the production team has suggested that I cook a savoury dish with coffee. After digging my brain for recipes, I decided to do a Coffee Brined Chicken pairing with a no-brainer: Cauliflower Rice. I will get to the recipe later, but here are some photos from the filming at NTV7 Studio.

Setting my station for the demo.

The host for the day was Elaine Daly who has that pregnancy radiance.

Here’s me with my nervous smile. Hah

We chatted about the benefits of using coffee in cooking, and also how to properly infuse coffee flavour without rendering the dish a bitter mess. She even managed to put me on the spot so I had to sing a little bit (without properly warming up my voice…. eeps! Should be more prepared next time).

Lookie! It’s the Philips AirFryer!

The studio has a fully equipped kitchen, but frying the chicken on pan might create a little too much smoke, so I decided to bring my airfryer along for a no-mess cooking process. The cooking itself was really simple. All I needed to do was combine prepped ingredients together while waiting for the chicken to cook itself in the airfryer, then it was time to plate!

Ready to serve!

If you love the aroma of coffee, then you will enjoy this dish. The Chicken breast was bathed in the coffee mixture overnight, so the aroma really penetrated all the way. The accompanying spices add more depth to it, and the addition of sugar balances the bitterness of coffee. Of course, the brine contains salt, so this creates a balance of taste all round. It takes only about 15 minutes to put together, perfect for those with a busy lifestyle. Furthermore, this dish is Low-carb, High Protein, Paleo Friendly and Gluten Free!

I don’t have a clear close-up picture of my dish, so I took some screen caps:

Juicy Coffee Tinted Chicken Breast

If only you can smell this!

Tada! Plating a bit cacat because le nervous. But still a colourful dish.

2 Chicken Breasts
1 Shot Espresso
1 Star Anise
1 Stick Cinnamon
Pinch of Black Peppercorns, smashed
Pinch of Chili Flakes
3 Tablespoons salt
1 Teaspoon Sugar
Water (enough to cover chicken breasts)

Combine all the brining ingredients and submerge the chicken breasts in the liquid, store in the fridge overnight.

Before cooking, make sure it’s out of the fridge for at least an hour. Prep the airfryer, and set to 180degree Celsius heat. Place the chicken breast into the grill pan or basket and cook for suffficient time until just done (1 for 12 minutes, 2 for 15 minutes). If you are not using an airfryer, you can just use a frying pan and cook for roughly 5 minutes each side, depending on the size of the breasts. Set aside and rest for 2 minutes before cutting.

Cauliflower “Couscous”
200g Cauliflower, florets only
1 Small Cucumber
Handful of Cherry Tomatoes
Juice of Half Lemon
Pinch of Salt
Handful of Parsley, chopped

Blitz the cauliflower florets in a blender of food processor until rice like. You can use this raw, or cook for a minute or two to take the raw edge off. I lightly fry it with olive oil for about 2 minutes this time. Set aside until needed.

Slice the cucumber thinly, and cut the cherry tomatoes in half.

To assemble, combine cauli’rice’, cucumber, tomatoes, parsley. Sprinkle over the salt, and squeeze the lemon juice over, stir to combine. Place the sliced chicken breast on top and you are ready to serve! Enjoy this warm or room temperature.

Thank you Bella NTV7 for inviting me! I hope to do more cooking demos for you in the near future. Always a good way to challenge myself this way, and also it really does take time to get used to live TV: no room for mistakes. If you are interested to watch the program, feel free to head to http://tonton.com.my to search for the 26th Feb Episode (I just watched it and I still looked silly…. must just be my normal persona).

During the same episode Louise from Claire Organics demonstrated a few beauty tricks using ground coffee, and she was kind enough to give me some of her products. Do check out their facebook page, they have a wide range of skincare products using natural ingredients and everything is 100% chemical free. Thanks so much, I am now a fan!

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Poached Salmon in Coconut Milk and My appearance on Bella NTV7

Yesterday was a very important milestone for me: my first live TV interview and performance! When I opened the email sent by the producer of Bella NTV7, my heart literally skipped a beat. At first I thought it would just be an interview, but they also requested for me to sing as well as demonstrate a healthy dish. What an honour! I spent a week stressing about this: outfit, song choice, dish to cook, etc etc and finally the day arrived.

I was lucky to get some decent sleep before the show, as I had a gig the night before as well. But nothing could have prepared me for one of the most nerve wrecking experiences to date. I suppose first time is always difficult. Here are some pictures:

First, the singing.
First, the singing.

I was a little shaky at this point but luckily didn’t forget any lyrics. It was a strange experience because throughout the performance, I was directed to look at different cameras at different timing. Finished the song without collapsing on the floor, which was a good start. Haha. By the way, I sang “Moving On”, one of my originals, you can take a listen here.

Chatting about my music and medical career with Elaine Daly
Chatting about my music and medical career, also my passion in food with Elaine Daly

I looked so serious here. She asked some really good questions and I was more together at that point so hopefully the interview sounded alright. I think my dress really blends with the floral background.

Moving on, to the kitchen!
Moving on, to the kitchen!

After the commercial break, we moved to the brand new kitchen (it is a brand new set by the way). I’m proud to say that I’m the first person to actually cook in the studio! We talked about the Paleo Diet, and some common misconceptions people have with eating healthy. While I cook a very simple but delicious dish: Poached Salmon in Coconut Milk (recipe to follow later).

Looking slightly more animated than before.
Looking slightly more animated than before. Probably cause it was the end of the interview. Spot my dish on the table?

Well, that was definitely a good learning experience for me. I hope there will be more shows like this to come and maybe this singing cook thing can really take off! By the way, that dish was delicious and Elaine definitely enjoyed it. We fed the staff after the show and they were most appreciative too.

And here is the dish I cooked:

Poached Salmon in Coconut Milk with Greens
Poached Salmon in Coconut Milk with Greens

They wanted something fast, simple and healthy. Special request: something that doesn’t produce smoke. Hence this recipe was born! I am currently going through a Thai Food phase so it does have a little Thai influence.

Mmmm...
Mmmm…

The aroma of the coconut milk broth is incredible and this only took no more than 15 minutes to cook. Suitable for busy career women, mums, students and basically everyone who loves fish.

Poached Salmon in Coconut Milk (Gluten-free, Dairy Free, Sugar Free)

2 Salmon Fillets
200ml Coconut Milk
100ml Vegetable Stock
2 Garlic cloves, smashed
1 stalk lemongrass, smashed and chopped
1 shallot, diced
Salt and Freshly ground pepper to taste
Coriander, to garnish
1-2 Red Chili or Chili Padi

Place the coconut milk, vegetable stock, garlic, ginger, lemongrass and shallot in a small pot/pan with lid.

Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce to simmer for a few minutes. Season to taste.

Add the Salmon fillets, keeping the heat low. Cover and cook for 4-5 minutes (turning once), depending on the thickness of the fillets, or desired doneness. Be careful not to overcook.

Carefully remove the fish from the poaching liquid and set side on a dish while let the liquid continue to simmer on a higher heat. Stirring occasionally to prevent burning.

To serve, place the salmon fillets on individual plates, pour the reduced broth over the fillets and garnish with coriander, arugula and sliced chili. Enjoy with a side of steamed vegetable of your choice. I served mine with Arugula on the show, and with bok choy and asparagus at home.

Perfectly cooked.
Perfectly cooked.

I like my salmon still slightly raw inside for that tenderness. You can choose to let it go for a little longer but salmon cooked this way will be quite soft and silky anyway.

If you missed out on the show and want to catch it online. You can log on to http://www.tonton.com.my and look for episode 223.