My dinner for today....recipe compliments from my Canadian friend,
Canadian steamed fish, with coconut rice.
On the subject of China,.......
There were 3 brothers from China named, Bu, Chu and Fu. When they moved to Canada, they decided to change their names.
Bu changed his name to Buck.
Chu changed his name to Chuck.
And Fu.....? Well,.... he decided to go back to China.
'Just for info.......
should any of you ladies planning to have a baby, or want to have another one for old times sake, now that your 5 kids all grown up, gone to college....
Or you now into your 2nd husband, or 3rd.....
Pregnancy and fish: What's safe to eat?
If you're confused about whether it's safe to eat seafood during your pregnancy, you're not alone. Understand the guidelines for pregnancy and fish.
By Mayo Clinic staff
If you're pregnant, you might feel like you need to become a nutrition expert overnight. After all, what you eat and drink — and what you avoid — influences your baby's development. Some choices are logical, such as eating plenty of fruits and vegetables and eliminating alcohol from your diet. But what about seafood?
Here, Roger W. Harms, M.D., a pregnancy specialist at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., and medical editor of "Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy," offers practical advice about pregnancy and fish.
What's the link between pregnancy and fish?
Seafood can be a great source of protein, iron and zinc — crucial nutrients for your baby's growth and development. In addition, the omega-3 fatty acids in many fish can promote your baby's brain development.
But some types of seafood — particularly large, predatory fish such as shark, swordfish, king mackerel and tilefish — can contain high levels of mercury.
Although the mercury in seafood isn't a concern for most adults, special precautions apply if you're pregnant or planning to become pregnant.
If you regularly eat fish high in mercury, the substance can accumulate in your bloodstream over time. In turn, too much mercury in your bloodstream could damage your baby's developing brain and nervous system.
How much seafood is recommended?
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) say pregnant women can safely eat up to 12 ounces (340 grams) of seafood a week.
Similarly, the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend 8 to 12 ounces of seafood a week for pregnant women — or about two average meals.
Canadian steamed fish with coconut rice
1 tbsp butter
1 small onion, sliced
1/2 cup sweet red pepper, diced
few baby carrots, diced
1 cup french beans or snow peas
1 1/2 tsp salt, divided
1/2 tsp hot pepper flakes/ chillies flakes or to taste
1 cup jasmine rice, rinsed
1/4 cup fresh grated coconut
1 cup water
1/2 tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cups milk ( I used coconut milk )
500 g thin skinless white fish fillets, (about 1/2 inch/1 cm thick), cut into 4 pieces
1/2 tsp Pepper
1/4 cup fresh cilantro or basil, chopped
1 lime/lemon, cut into 2 wedges
1/ Marinate the fish fillet with 1 tsp soya sauce, dash of pepper and dash of sesame oil.
2/ Use a heavy bottom skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Saute onion, red pepper, carrots, french beans, 1/2 tsp salt and hot pepper flakes for 2 min. Scoop out and keep aside.
3/ No need to wash the skillet, stir in the rice and grated coconut, well mixed. Add 1 cup water and bring to a boil.
4/ Whisk flour into milk and pour into skillet, stirring. Bring to a simmer, stirring often.
5/ Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 min. Gently stir rice to prevent burn at the bottom.
6/ Cook the rice until almost soft and tender. Place fish fillets on top of rice, sprinkle with remaining salt and pepper, to taste. Put the saute vegetable at the side of the rice.
7/ Cover and simmer, for 10min or until fish flakes easily with a fork.
8/ Remove from heat, let stand for 5 min.
9/ Scoop out the rice on serving plate. Sprinkle some chillies flakes/ pepper flakes on the fish. Garnish with cilantro or basil. Serve with lime wedges to squeeze over top of fish.
Jasmine rice has a fragrant aroma and floral flavor and cooks quickly. It's readily available at most major supermarkets. You can use long grain parboiled ( converted ) rice instead, just increase the water by 1/4 cup and simmer for 10 mins before adding the fish.
Thin fish fillets work best for this recipe, such as red snapper, tilapia, pickerel or Pacific cod. If your fillets are thicker than 1/2-inch (1 cm), add the fish to the rice, cover and simmer for extra 5 minutes,
Canadian Water Chestnut Dessert
Recipe compliments from my Canadian friend.
400gm water chestnuts
Hale’s Blue Boy Red Sala Syrup (can be substituted with food colouring+water)
2 cups tapioca flour
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 small box coconut milk + 1/2 cup water
2 cups water
1/4 tsp salt
8 pandan leaves ( optional )
1 tbsp sago - optional ( wash and soak till soft )
1/ Wash water chestnuts till the skin all clean then peel off the skin and cut into 6 pieces.
2/ Pour Hale’s Blue Boy Red Sala Syrup (or mix water with food colouring in red-it should be concentrate) into the bowl and put all water chestnuts which have been cut into the syrup. Use the spoon to mix gently to let the syrup covers all water chestnuts.
3/ Leave them to absorb the colour for 1 hour. Strain away the red syrup and leave the water chestnut to run out of liquid for 20 mins.
4/ Mix 1 1/2 cup water, sugar in a medium pot and add pandan leaves. Boil over medium heat and stir occasionally till sugar melt. Add in the sago and cook till transparent. Remove from heat and leave it cool.
5/ Pour tapioca flour on the tray, spread the flour evenly then coat the water chestnuts evenly with tapioca flour. Take out the coated water chestnuts from the tray and place in the clean plate.
6/ In medium pot, boil 2 cups of water. Then add the coated water chestnut and let it boil for about 5 minutes. Once the water chestnut is floating to the surface, remove from heat.
7/ Drain it with a strainer and put them into the ( step 4 )syrup. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking together.
8/ Pour the coconut milk, 1/2 cup water and add 3 pandan leaves in the small saucepan. Use low heat cook till simmering and add in salt. Remove from heat, stir to combine and let it cool.
9/ For serving, put water chestnut with syrup in a small bowl then add 1 to 2 tbsp coconut milk and crashed ice. It’s ready to serve!
In case you are unaware, coconut meat is a super food.
In some part of the world, it's been labeled the king of foods because it:-
1/ Provides an abundance of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fibre.
2/ Promotes, sustains and restores health.
Outside of consuming this delicacy raw, there are innumerable other ways to enjoy it.
If it's not in your kitchen at present, it ought to be because you can benefit from it's yummy taste as well give your body the advantage of it's powerful healing capabilities.
After all, people in other cultures have sustained themselves for long periods of time just on the nutrition of coconut alone.
Meat from the coconut is available in two form,
1/ Fresh
2/ Dried
Fresh meat from coconuts is found under several outer layer that protect it and keep it sterile.
The meat can come from both young and mature coconut.
This post is link to Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party host by Marlys of This and That and her co-hosts.
