Now a Singaporean!

I have arrived in Singapore in one piece with one piece of luggage. As there are no clothes on this island that will fit me (think Shrek trying on baby clothes), I will spend my time embracing my size and eating my way through the zillions of Chinese, Malay, Vietnamese, Thai, Indian, and Western options until I am large enough to float home. Let the games begin!

Goal: Explore every tasty treat this island has to offer and learn the basics of Asian cooking! I am no expert!

Target Consumption: I will attempt to try something I have never had at least once a day... ok.. once every other day. I attempted frog congee (Chinese frog porridge)... didn't get too far I'm afraid before my love for Kermit intervened. Shame. I shall; however, forge on...

The first night we got here our hosts took us out to enjoy the traditional dish of Singapore, Chili Crab. These crabs are HUGE; they make our Chesapeake variety look like midgets. This spicy stew is absolutely divine and is to be enjoyed with steamed rolls (which you use to soak up the sauce). I am attempting to make this dish myself this weekend and from a traditional Malaysian web-site. Looks easy, will report back!

SINGAPORE CHILI CRAB!

Ingredients

• 1 Dungeness Crab (about 2 lb size) OR 3 little crabs of any variety
• 1 sprig of cilantro for garnish.
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 2 Tbsp tamarind juice (try Asian markets)
• Salt to taste
• 2 Tbsp peanut oil
• 1/4 cup of water.

for the spice paste:

• 8 dried red chilies (soaked in hot water and deseeded)
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 inch of fresh ginger
• Tamarind juice.. until the thickness is acheived.

DIRECTIONS:

• Clean the crab and chop it into pieces. Save the green and juicy stuff inside the shell and set aside.
• Pound the spice paste with a mortar and pestle or grind them using a food processor.
• Heat up your wok and add cooking oil.
• Stir fry the spice paste until fragant and spicy.
• Add the crab and 1/4 cup of water and do a quick stir. Cover the wok with its cover for 3 minutes.
• Add the green and juicy stuff from the shell and stir well.
• Add in sugar, tamarind juice, a little salt to taste and continue stirring for about 2 minutes or until all crab pieces turned red.

Serve with Chinese Steamed Rolls. They are a pain to make so you can buy them in Asian markets.. if not, just serve with rice.